Basic income for the Swiss?

Written on February 5th, 2016 in politics Comments Off

Published on Market Express.in, by Deutsche Welle DW, Feb 2, 2016.

Pauper or billionaire: Switzerland prepares for a vote on a basic income for all. Here are the arguments pro and con – and why the referendum is most likely to fail.
To work or not to work for a living – that may no longer be an issue in Switzerland in the near future.
The Swiss go to the polls on June 5 in a referendum on an unconditional basic income (UBI). A guaranteed income for everyone, no questions asked … //

… Quite a paradigm change: … //

… ‘Yes’ would be a surprise:

Straub, whose initiative started preparing for the referendum seven years ago, says he can understand the critics to a certain degree: his initial reaction when he first heard about the concept ten years ago was, There’s no way this can ever be financed. Today, he says a UBI would replace part of people’s income.

He also doesn’t think the referendum will succeed this time around.

“We see it as a long-term project, and this vote is just a step.” Straub is confident that even if the majority voted in favor of introducing a UBI, it would take time. “It has to be a political process that should take many years so all voices can be heard, so it’s really democratic” … //

… (full text).

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