TWUC calls on the government to implement a Basic Income Guarantee as an economic foundation for Canada’s workers. A basic income should complement and not replace or in any way diminish existing arts support programs.
Author: Coalition Canada
Toronto Arts Council supports a federal Basic Income Guarantee
See the opinion piece published in The Globe and Mail, on March 20, 2021, and in La Presse on March 25. PDF of the article here.
Victoria – The Tyee (Jan 07, 2021): Emergency benefits showed the value of ensuring all Canadians are guaranteed enough money to meet basic needs. A basic income program could have saved lives and reduced COVID-19 transmission when the pandemic struck last spring, says Evelyn Forget, economist and professor in the Department of Community Health Sciences at the University of Manitoba. And basic income, as both a health and a poverty reduction policy, could still help people weather the second wave and those to come, says Forget.
December 17, 2020: The Royal Society of Canada released Renewing the Social Contract: Economic Recovery in Canada from Covid-19. Authored by 11 leading Canadian academics in the fields of economics, law, environment and health, the report provides 16 recommendations in 4 key areas: (1) Renewing the social contract; (2) Reinvigorating the Canadian economy for Innovation and resilience; (3) Enabling innovation; and (4) Improving crisis policy response. Their #1 recommendation to renew the social contract is to establish a basic income guarantee. They also recommend ensuring paid sick leave, universal childcare that provides Early Childhood Education. To pay for these they recommend comprehensive tax reform that calls for taxing all income earned from capital gains the same way we tax earnings and also re-instituting an inheritance tax in order to address inequality.
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Canada’s poor continue to be told “not yet”
The Senate – 9 Dec, 2020: Using a rare procedural step to oppose the second reading of Bill C-17, an Act granting money for federal public administration to the end of March 2021, Senator Kim Pate made a stunning speech in the Senate Chamber. Despite promises from the federal government, 3.5 million Canadians living below the poverty line continue to be excluded from income support programs like CERB and enhancements to EI, because the government says “not yet” to those living in deepest poverty. Read or watch this brilliant and impactful speech here.
Charlottetown – The Guardian (10 Dec, 2020): PEI’s Report from the all-party Special Committee on Poverty recommended implementing a Basic Income Guarantee (BIG) in PEI as a test case for all of Canada – but it also included a backup plan if the federal government declines to partner with PEI to deliver a province-wide program. Plan B is another pilot reaching one-tenth of the people who need a basic income in PEI. BIG advocates say no to Plan B.
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Pope Frances calls for UBI
The Guardian (24 Nov, 2020): In his new book due out this December, Let Us Dream: the Path to a Better Future, Pope Francis speaks of the economic, social and political changes he says are needed to address inequalities after the pandemic ends. “Recognizing the value to society of the work of non-earners is a vital part of our rethinking in the post-Covid world… By providing a universal basic income, we can free and enable people to work for the community in a dignified way…” he said.
The Pope also criticized trickle-down economics, the theory that tax breaks and other incentives for big business and the wealthy eventually will benefit the rest of society through investment and job creation. He called it “the false assumption of the infamous trickle-down theory that a growing economy will make us all richer”.
Interview: Artpreneur keynote Zainub Verjee on a basic income guarantee for Canadian creatives
Here is an excerpt of the article published in the Ottawa news website Apt613.ca by Ryan Pepper on November 19, 2020
“It’s no secret that the arts sector is in a crisis. COVID-19 restrictions closed venues and institutions in March and many still haven’t reopened—and many, some in Ottawa, won’t open again. This month’s annual Artpreneur conference is dedicating three days to the disruptions in Ottawa’s creative sector. But instead of mourning the loss of venues, incomes, and livelihoods, the conference is looking to the future for sustainable, lasting solutions.
“One of the buzzy proposals is a Basic Income Guarantee (B.I.G.), which gained popularity after the successful rollout of the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB). The idea now has wide, cross-partisan support…”
This video celebrates and shares performances, speeches and calls to action by and from politicians, artists and concerned Toronto residents. The Time for Basic Income is NOW.
This video features performances and statements by:
- Multidisciplinary artists Craig Berggold: 00:00
- Musician Rachael Cardiello: 04:32
- Politician and activist Leah Gazan: 10:32
- Artist Jessie Golem (Humans of Basic Income): 15:30
- Poet and professor George Elliott Clarke: 23:38
- Politician and author Rima Berns-McGown: 26:58
- Musician Amy The Coda: 29:02
- Politician and activist Dr. Jill Andrew: 32:29
- Cultural worker Philip Zave: 35:09
- Musician Tara Kannangara: 37:53
Created by the Toronto Artists for Basic Income group.
Carfac Webinar Series
Universal Basic Income webinar, on September 16 at 2pm Eastern Standard Time, organized by CARFAC.
What is Universal Basic Income? Why is it important to artists? How would UBI work in Canada?
Join independent artists Adrian Stimson and Craig Berggold, and Sheila Regehr from Basic Income Canada Network for a discussion about how Canadians would benefit from UBI as a social safety net during uncertain times. The discussion will be moderated by artist Sydney Lancaster.