Patricia Ryan (Kildare South, Sinn Fein)
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1154. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if a trial of a basic income model will be supported; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9732/20]

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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Universal basic income is a long-standing concept and argues for an unconditional transfer paid to everyone by the state in place of large parts of the existing social protection system.  In terms of taxation, the general concept assumes that the basic income payment would be tax-free and all other income would be taxed.  This would require significant amendment to both the welfare and income tax systems.

Advocates of the approach argue that it would remove the need for complex means-testing for benefit receipts; allow for a greater flexibility in managing work, family and other responsibilities; provide a degree of income security in fast-moving labour markets; and help to address inequality.

Basic income has been examined in Ireland on a number of occasions since the 1970s with a Green Paper on the topic produced by the Department of an Taoiseach in 2002.  More recently, research from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) noted that a universal basic income scheme would require large tax increases, provide less effective supports for the poor and could result in large numbers of people gaining and losing from its introduction.

The current system in Ireland ensures that the tax and social welfare system is continually reviewed, in the budgetary process and otherwise, in terms of its impact in redistributing income, while ensuring the maintenance of incentives for people to contribute to society through employment. 

The Department will continue to follow the outcome of experiments in this area to see if they provide any lessons that might be applied to aspects of the Irish system.