The basic income imperative (24 September 2020)

COVID-19 has ushered in a global economic slump, which may lead to a global depression. But is the coronavirus just the trigger for a financial crisis that was waiting to happen? Globalisation and the economic policies of recent decades have produced a fragile system best described as rentier capitalism, characterised by a global class structure with rapidly growing precariat, and an increasingly deteriorating income distribution system. A basic income as an economic right suggests an alternative way out of the pandemic slump – so what are the social risks of ignoring or delaying this? FEATURING – Professor Guy Standing, SOAS University of London and Co-founder of Basic Income Earth Network (BIEN) – Professor Greg Marston, School of Social Science, The University of Queensland – Moderator: Professor Lisa Adkins, Head of the School of Social and Political Sciences, The University of Sydney For more info, including a transcript to this conversation, visit our website: https://bit.ly/3mwUcgK