- The idea of a basic universal income comes up in political debates, in France and abroad, to face an economic crisis that promises to be historic.
- The coronavirus epidemic gives arguments to the defenders of this measure which, according to them, makes it possible to fight against poverty and to change our relationship to work.
- But will this utopia become reality, or will it be adopted in a watered-down version, via a merger of social benefits under conditions of job search?
What if the state paid each a few hundred euros every month, without conditions or compensation? The idea of a universal income is not new, but in France and elsewhere it resurfaces in the midst of a coronavirus pandemic. It is part of the proposals published Wednesday by sixty parliamentarians who consulted citizens on "the day after". It is also among the tracks of Nicolas Hulot, former Minister of Ecology. Even the pope pleaded, in an open letter published on April 12, for the principle of a universal income. Could this measure, so far confined to the rank of utopias in France, and defended by a few left-wing political parties, be able to materialize?
Social protection undermined by the crisis
Since the arrival of the epidemic in France, the pleas for universal income, somewhat forgotten since the 2017 presidential election, have multiplied. The former socialist Benoît Hamon, who was carrying this proposal as part of his campaign, even came out of his retirement to defend, in a column published on April 16 in the newspaper Le Monde , this “social antidote to the repetition of these crises sanitary ”. “Access to partial unemployment is conditional and moreover reserved for employees. It is far from covering the needs of all these workers, especially the self-employed, ”he laments.
The epidemic, by revealing and even accentuating social and economic inequalities, gives grain to supporters of universal income. "We see our incredible fragility, we realize that the safety net of our State is not perfect, but rather incomplete," observes Valérie Petit, deputy for the North. Daily workers, precarious workers, intermittent workers or self-employed workers dependent on platforms found themselves without income due to confinement. In mid-April, the government finally released financial aid for the poorest households and students.
A law proposal in September
In 2017, some critics of universal income considered it financially untenable, but the explosion in public spending in the face of the global economic slowdown also changed the situation. “For two months, we have been patching up our social protection system, like a patchwork. If we had had a citizen base, it would not have been necessary, ”tackle Valérie Petit.
“Citizen base”: this is how the related elected representative The Republic on the Move renamed universal income, but the principle remains the same: a sum, of the same amount for all, paid each month unconditionally, and automatically , to compensate for the non-use of social benefits. According to the elected representative of the North, the idea seduces beyond the ranks of the social wing of the majority, and the member is preparing a bill to integrate this "citizen base" in the debate on the 2021 budget in September. Not sure that the idea finds favor in the eyes of the government, which has already launched a project on universal income from activity (RUA). "It is a simple merger of allowances, and under conditions of job search, so it is not universal", sweeps Valérie Petit.
Beyond the fight against poverty and the casualization of a part of the citizens, the universal income would also be a response to a questioning raised by the confinement on the direction of work. “This crisis raises the question of useful trades. The work value, which we are constantly harping on, is undermined. We see that it is disconnected from reality, because it is the most ill-considered - and paid - jobs that are the most important at the moment: caregivers, teachers, sewer workers, cashiers, police officers… ”, attacks Julien Bayou, national secretary of Europe Ecologie-Les Verts.
The Covid-19 crisis and the value of work
Supporters of universal income hope to take advantage of this environment. "Behind the universal income, there is the idea of disconnecting income from work, through the recognition of minimum financial needs to live", explains Virginie Deleu, member of the French Movement for a basic income. “The containment slowed down consumption, but also highlighted the importance of activities other than paid work. The coronavirus could be an unexpected boost "to this project, believes the teacher, however cautious:" The government says it will work more for the recovery. "
A poll conducted in March by the University of Oxford indicates that 71% of Europeans support the idea of a basic universal income. In January 2018, 63% of French people were against it. "The idea is progressing, compared to the 1990s when the ecologists were the only ones to wear it," observes Julien Bayou, who has campaigned for several years for a "basic income" and has even made it experiment with citizens drawn to the comes out. "Half of humanity has been confined, consciousness is moving ... But will that be enough? " Like Virginie Deleu, the ecologist doubts that utopia will become reality before a few years.
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- Covid 19
- Deconfinement
- Coronavirus
- Poverty
- Economy
- Left
- Income