Two Nova Scotia MLAs have signed a petition asking that the province create an all-party committee to study the implementation of a basic income guarantee as more Nova Scotia towns and municipalities pass their own resolutions on guaranteed basic income.
On Tuesday, Dartmouth North MLA Susan Leblanc and Halifax Citadel-Sable Island MLA Lisa Lachance presented a petition at the legislature.
The petition requests that the study by that committee reflects “the principles laid out by Basic Income Nova Scotia, Coalition Canada Basic Income-revenu de base, and the Basic Income Canada Network.”
Meanwhile, Kings County, Berwick, Colchester, and the town of Truro join other towns and municipalities in Nova Scotia that have passed resolutions in support of guaranteed basic income. That includes Yarmouth, which passed such a resolution in July 2023.
The Municipality of Truro passed its resolution on Feb. 16, while the Town of Truro passed its resolution on March 4. On March 12, the town of Berwick did the same.
Kings County passed its resolution on March 5, calling on the federal government to begin “endorsing, committing to and enacting” a guaranteed basic income, and if it won’t, provide the reasons why.
Coun. Joel Hirtle was the sole no vote on the resolution, arguing it was “really outside the scope of our government.”
‘Canadians deserve an answer’
Peter Muttart, the mayor of the Municipality of the County of Kings, emailed this response to the Examiner regarding council’s resolution on basic income:
In essence, our letter (and motion) was / is designed to point out to government that people are fatigued over this issue, and it is the responsibility of government to bring it to a conclusion.
We reference the fact that the concept has been tested, analyzed, and studied. Government has studied it and independents have studied it.
Without Kings taking a position as to whether it should be implemented (we clearly do not have the resources to conduct such a study), we prevail upon government to make a decision, document its reasons/rationalize the decision and give Canadians the satisfaction of knowing that their government has done its job and reported to its populace. Canadians deserve an answer.
‘These difficulties are deeply felt by municipalities’
The Examiner contacted Kay Raining-Bird, a professor at Dalhousie University who advocates for UBI with Basic Income Nova Scotia Society, who was at the legislature on Tuesday when Leblanc and Lachance tabled the petition.
In an email response to the Examiner, Raining-Bird said several factors, including the COVID-19 pandemic, increases in energy, food, and housing prices, have worsened income equality in the province, and many people are finding themselves struggling to get by or become homeless.
These difficulties are deeply felt by municipalities. To date, fourteen municipalities across Nova Scotia, encompassing approximately 75% of our population, have called on the provincial and federal governments to work together to create a national Basic Income Guarantee, with more considering resolutions. A BIG would bring relief by giving all Nova Scotians the income floor they need to live with dignity regardless of work or relationship status. By directly addressing income insecurity, a BIG would dramatically reduce poverty and food insecurity, decrease crimes of desperation, improve the health and well-being of Nova Scotians, and bolster local economies and businesses.
I feel the love in the voices of Susan and Lisa, for justice, solidarity and equality. So much love. I feel the pain in the people currently controlled by the vastly insufficient and inadequate forms of social safety nets and (non)income “assistance” rates. So much pain. I feel the joy in the evil hearts of the rich who will inevitably end up profiting from a Basic Income Guarantee program that will most likely contribute to the dismantling of so many secure income safety nets.
Any kind of real and worthwhile Basic Income Guarantee will have to come from a popular movement for massive wealth redistribution at the expense of reactionary, wealthy capitalists and their professional managerial class soldiers.
I hope we can build such a movement.
Given who will be devising (politicians), who will be implementing (government employees) a snowball in the fires of hell has a better chance. Look at the track record so far, having the same people doing the same thing and expecting a different result is what? yup insanity!
I have believing the Guaranteed Annual Income ever since Robert Stanfield advocated it in the 1968 federal election campaign. It’s common sense.
I love the notion of a Universal Basic Income, but fear any implementation would fail, not because the political right opposes forms of welfare and obsesses over who are the “deserving poor,” but because political compromises will result in a low amount, supplemented by an on-going patchwork of programs demanded by the political left for various groups considered more disadvantaged. For UBI to succeed, it must be enough to replace ALL other social support programs and tax benefits (including Child Tax Benefit, EI, OSAP, etc), and I can’t see politicians of any stripe agreeing to that. That said, attention to the issue may at least improve some programs.
My one concern about a guaranteed basic income is that retailers etc will raise prices to match…, which places people in the lowest income bracket back into poverty. Now, though, I think we can – and should – figure out a way to prevent that.
The time has come for BLI. Pick a number that makes sense in today’s reality and gear it to cost of living increases, especially housing and food costs. Eliminate every other program and BLI will cost less.