[Debatte-Grundeinkommen] BIEN NewsFlash 37, January 2006

[strengmann at t-online.de]

BIEN - BASIC INCOME EARTH NETWORK
www.basicincome.org
The Basic Income Earth Network was founded in 1986 as the Basic Income 
European Network. It expanded its scope from Europe to the Earth in 2004. 
It serves as a link between individuals and groups committed to or 
interested in basic income, and fosters informed discussion on this topic 
throughout the world.
_____

NewsFlash 37, January 2006
BIEN's NewsFlash is mailed electronically every two months to over 1000 
subscribers throughout the world.
Requests for free subscription are to be sent to bien at basicincome.org
Items for inclusion or review in future NewsFlashes are to be sent to 
Yannick Vanderborght, newsletter editor, UCL, Chaire Hoover, 3 Place 
Montesquieu, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium, vanderborght at etes.ucl.ac.be
The present NewsFlash has been prepared with the help of  David Casassas, 
Jurgen De Wispelaere, Sabrina Delpico, Sascha Liebermann, Paul Nollen, 
Maria Ozanira Silva e Silva, Eric Patry, Guy Standing, Eduardo Matarazzo 
Suplicy, Ingrid Van Niekerk, Philippe Van Parijs, and Karl Widerquist.
_____

CONTENTS

1. Editorial

2. BIEN 11th CONGRESS: 2-4 November 2006, Cape Town, South Africa

3. "Basic Income Studies" signs an agreement with The Berkeley Electronic Press

4. Events
*ZURICH (CH), 6 October 2005, BIEN-Switzerland's open discussion on basic 
income
*SAO PAULO (BR), 23-25 November 2005, National Seminar on Income Transfer
*ROME (IT), 2 December 2005, Conference on new social guarantees
*BOSTON (US), 6-8 January 2006, Allied Social Science Association Meeting
*DORTMUND (DE), 10 February 2006: Panel discussion on basic income
*KARLSRUHE (DE), 23-24 February 2006: Symposium on basic income
*PHILADELPHIA (US), 24-26 February 2006: The Fifth Congress of USBIG
*HEIDELBERG (DE), 18 March 2006: Panel Discussion on "Unconditional Basic 
Income"

5. Glimpses of national debates
*GERMANY: PRESIDENT KOHLER SAYS BASIC INCOME IS WORTH CONSIDERING
*GERMANY: FREEDOM, NOT FULL EMPLOYMENT
*NAMIBIA: PRESIDENT MEETS BASIC INCOME COALITION
*NEW ZEALAND: UNIVERSAL INCOME TRUST ACTIVELY PROMOTES BASIC INCOME
*SPAIN: DISCUSSION ABOUT A BASIC INCOME FOR FARMERS

6. Publications
*English
*French
*Italian
*Spanish

7. New Links
*Alaska's Digital Archives
*GBI Foundation
*FIAN International

8. About the Basic Income Earth Network
_____

1. EDITORIAL

The fundamental justification for Basic Income rests in its support for 
human dignity. It is a right that all societies must respect. Nevertheless, 
many economists and social policy analysts are researching the 
developmental impact of universal income grants. In part, researchers are 
responding to the spurious arguments of Basic Income’s opponents, who hide 
behind the straw figures of dependency and unsustainability. More 
importantly, analysts are finding that universal income programmes 
effectively promote people’s accumulation of human capital­health, 
education, skills, nutrition. Basic Income strengthens labour markets, 
providing a springboard to more sustaining livelihoods. Basic Income is 
developmental. The main theme of the 2006 Basic Income Earth Network 
Congress will explore how strengthening universalism in social protection 
will foster a more developmental State, with greater economic freedom and 
opportunity for all People.

Following the success of the 2004 Congress in Barcelona and the 
transformation of the Basic Income European Network into the Basic Income 
Earth Network (BIEN), BIEN and the Basic Income Grant Coalition (BIG 
Coalition) of South Africa invite you to spend a few days on the tip of 
Africa to participate in the first international “Earth” BIEN Congress. It 
will form part of the Conference that will take place on 2-4 November 2006 
in Cape Town, South Africa. Further details about the official 
<http://www.etes.ucl.ac.be/BIEN/Files/BIENCongress2006.doc>Call for papers 
in this NewsFlash.

BIEN's Executive Committee

2. CALL FOR PAPERS / BIEN 11th CONGRESS: 2-4 November 2006, Cape Town, 
South Africa.
Title of Conference and Congress: UNIVERSALISM STRENGTHENS DEVELOPMENT

BIEN's 11th International Congress will be held in Cape Town, South Africa, 
on 2-4 November 2006. The organizing committee invite you to submit a 
proposal for your presentation at the Conference. Our theme for this 
Conference has a twin focus: to strengthen demands for universal provision 
of social protection and to illuminate the impact of universalism on social 
and economic development. Proposals on all aspects of Basic Income are 
welcome, and the committee will endeavour to accommodate as many of the 
proposals outside the main theme or sub-themes as possible.

For this Conference BIEN is adding another dimension to the proceedings. 
While the main focus of the Conference will be on the more academic and 
formal papers presented in plenary and panel discussion sessions, we invite 
participants who wish to participate in a less formal manner to put forward 
proposals for the workshops. These workshops will focus on issues of 
mobilisation and implementation of Basic Income. The workshops will be 
practical and some even hands-on. In this way we hope to embrace the new 
challenges countries are experiencing in accepting and promoting the ideals 
and ideas of Basic Income in the world.

Full details can be found in the official 
<http://www.etes.ucl.ac.be/BIEN/Files/BIENCongress2006.doc>Call for Papers 
that has been posted on BIEN's website
Proposal Submission deadline: 15 March 2006
Please send proposals to: papersbig-biencongress at mail.ngo.za
Please forward questions to: infobig-biencongress at mail.ngo.za
Registration is R600 (EURO 85, USDollar 100).
In coming weeks the registration form will be made downloadable at 
www.big.org.za as well as at www.basicincome.org

Sub-themes (for further details about the sub-themes, please download the 
official <http://www.etes.ucl.ac.be/BIEN/Files/BIENCongress2006.doc>Call 
for Papers)

1. Formal presentations:
*1.1 Strengthening Universalism strengthens Development
*1.2 Income Security and HIV/AIDS
*1.3 Basic Income and Race, Gender and Class Inequalities
*1.4 The Dynamics of Universal Basic Income
*1.5 The Labour Movement and Universal Social Protection
*1.6 Care Work and Basic Income
*1.7 Basic Income, Human Rights and Justice for all
*1.8 Prospects and Challenges faced by in-country programmes
*1.9 Issues in Financing and Implementation of Basic Income

2. Workshop:
*Mobilising Support for Basic Income

Information about the BIG Coalition / BIEN Congress 2006 Working Committee:
Organising Committee Chairs: Sibonile Khoza (Chair of BIG) and Ingrid van 
Niekerk (BIEN)
Guy Standing (BIEN)
Isobel Frye (National Labour and Economic Development Institute - NALEDI)
Nceba Mafongosi (Black Sash)
Pumi Yeni (BIG organiser)
Sharon Ekambaram (Chris Hani Institute)
Sidney Kgara  (Congress of South African Trade Unions - COSATU)
Albert Dlwengu (Council of Churches - SACC)
Annie Leatt (Children’s Institute- CI)

3. BASIC INCOME STUDIES SIGNS AN AGREEMENT WITH THE BERKELEY ELECTRONIC PRESS

Basic Income Studies (BIS), the new international academic journal for 
basic income research, is pleased to announce that it has signed a 
publishing agreement with The Berkeley Electronic Press (www.bepress.com). 
Bepress is a well-known electronic publisher of a wide range of academic 
journals particularly in the fields of economics and law and a 
representative of the "new standard in scholarly publishing". Founded by 
academics in 1999, Bepress produces innovative and effective means of 
content production and dissemination for journals and publishers.

Publication with Bepress will have numerous advantages for BIS: invaluable 
assistance in the editorial and production process through the use of 
Bepress' licenced editorial management software; administration of 
individual and institutional subscriptions; access to Bepress' worldwide 
advertizing network to assist us in promoting basic income research. In 
addition the close association with a recognized publisher will give BIS 
recognition as a serious academic publication.
Over the past months the BIS editorial team and Bepress have put a lot of 
work in putting together a website with electronic submission facilities. 
Our new website will be officially launched at the USBIG conference in 
Philadelphia on 25 February. We invite all of you to visit our site afterwards.

The BIS inaugural issue with contributions by G.A Cohen, Erik Olin Wright, 
Robert van der Veen and Philippe Van Parijs and many others is due to be 
published in June 2006. In the meantime BIS is constantly on the look-out 
for research articles and book reviews.

Please get in touch with the editors at
editor at basicincomestudies.org
or the book review editor at
book at basicincomestudies.org for information about making a contribution.

4. EVENTS

*ZURICH (CH), 6 October 2005, BIEN-Switzerland organizes open discussion on 
basic income
BIEN-Switzerland has organised a panel discussion on unconditional basic 
income on the 6th of october in Zurich, at the "Bernhard-Theater". Main 
discussants were Joachim Mitschke (Professor for economic in Frankfurt), 
Michael Opielka (Professor for Social Policy in Jena), and Peter Ulrich 
(Professor for Business Ethics in St. Gallen). Rather than a scientific 
exchange it was a controversial "political discussion" in front of about 
hundred spectators, and no specific papers were presented. The newspaper 
"Neue Bürcher Zeitung" reported on the conference in its October 8th issue.

*SAO PAULO (BR), 23-25 November 2005, National Seminar on Income Transfer
This event was organized and coordinated through an academic cooperation 
among the following institutions: "Public Policies Post Graduation Program" 
from the Universidade Federal of Maranhão; "Post Graduation in Social 
Services" from the Pontificia Universidade Católica in São Paulo and the 
"Studies Nucleus on Public Policies" from the Universidade Estadual de 
Campinas. The National Seminar on Income Transfer was based on the 
experiences of the programs in progress in the country and the researches 
that are being developed in the institutions which promoted the event, 
taking into account the 10 years of the implementation of these programs in 
Brazil, the implementation of these experiences in all Brazilian 
municipalities, the importance of these programs in remodeling the content 
and the dynamics of the Brazilian System of Social Protection today, and 
the proposal of the unification of the programs at the National Level.
The Seminar was directed by the following targets:
a) The follow-up and the assessment of the developing process in the Income 
Transfer Programs that are being implemented in Brazil;
b) To explain the experiences and the scientific works on these programs;
c) To foster the national exchange between organizations and entities 
responsible for the experiences;
d) To produce general or specific recommendations aiming at certain programs;
e) To present the Citizen's Basic Income Brazilian Network.
The programme was constituted by the presentations of experiences and of 
research results in the following conferences:
"Income Transfer Programs in the Context of the Social Protection Brazilian 
System" ("Os Programas de Transferência de Renda no Contexto do Sistema 
Brasileiro de Proteção Social") (Profa. Dra. Maria Ozanira da Silva e 
Silva, Universidade Federal do Maranhão);
"The Income Transfer State Programs and its linking to the Municipal and 
Federal Programs" ("Os Programas Estaduais de Transferência de Renda e sua 
articulação com os Programas Federais e Municipais") (Profa. Dra. Maria 
Helena Guimarães de Castro, Social Development State Secretary in São Paulo);
"The Income Transfer Municipal Programs and its linking to the Bolsa 
Familia Program")(Os Programas Municipais de Transferência de Renda e sua 
articulação com o Bolsa Família") (Dr. Antônio Pereira Pesaro, Social 
Assistance Municipal Secretary in São Paulo);
"The Federal Government Income Transfer Programs: nowadays and unification" 
(Os Programas de Transferência de Renda do Governo Federal: atualidade e 
unificação")(representative of the Social Development and Combat against 
Hunger Ministry);
Presentation of the Citizen's Basic Income Brazilian Network (Rede 
Brasileira de Renda Básica de Cidadania) (Senator Eduardo Matarazzo Suplicy)"

*ROME (IT), 2 December 2005, Conference on new social guarantees
Italian interest in a basic income is growing. On December 2, 2005, a 
public conference was organised in Rome to discuss 'the right to a basic 
income'. More than 200 persons, among whom numerous members from trade 
unions, social movements, journalists, local administrators were present at 
this meeting promoted by the Councillor’s Office on Labour of Regione 
Lazio.The invited plenary speakers were Alessandra Tibaldi, Stefano Sacchi, 
Guy Standing, Rafael Pinilla Palleja, Jose Iglesias Fernandez, Luigi Nieri, 
Alessandra Mandarelli and Giuseppe Mariani. The interventions of the 
participants pointed out the need and the possibility to start experiments 
of basic income as part of a new redistributive policy.
The meeting pointed out the need to launch a wider plan of reconstruction 
of the Italian welfare state system which takes the matter of basic income 
into account. A basic income in cash or in kind must be the core of future 
social policies.
Recent reforms of the Italian Constitution now give more power to the 
regions in the field of welfare. The political actors who were present such 
as the Member of  the Councillor’s Office on Labour and the Member of the 
Counillor’s Office on Budget declared that they are in favour of taking a 
course which leads to the introduction of a regional bill about basic income.
With the General Election due to take place in 2006, there is much debate 
about what platforms should be presented on welfare by the opposition 
parties. As is well known, the Italian welfare state is particularly 
undeveloped by comparison with all the European countries to the north of 
Italy. But there is considerable disquiet about the growth of precarious 
labour contracts and the pressure on the pension system, as well as the 
shrinking Italian family and the ageing of the population. Economic 
insecurities are pervasive, and in that context movements towards a basic 
income are conceivable.
For further information: infoxoa at infoxoa.org

*BOSTON (US), 6-8 January 2006, Allied Social Science Association Meeting
On January 6, 2006, a panel on "The Basic Income Guarantee and Living 
Standards" was organized within the framework of the 2006 Allied Social 
Science Association Meeting.
For further information: http://www.socialeconomics.org/ASSAProg.htm

*DORTMUND (DE), 10 February 2006: Panel discussion on basic income
A panel discussion about an unconditional basic income will take place at 
the University of Dortmund, February 10, 2006. Participants: Wolfram 
Richter (Economist, Univ. of Dortmund), Lutz Wingert (Philosopher, Univ. of 
Dortmund), Sascha Liebermann (Sociologist, Univ. of Dortmund), Götz Werner 
(Owner, DM Drugstores, and Univ. of Karlsruhe), Claus Offe (Political 
Scientist, Hertie School of Governance Berlin).
For further information: 
http://www.wiso.uni-dortmund.de/lsfg/as/de/content/aktuell/aktuell.html
and <S.Liebermann at freiheitstattvollbeschaeftigung.de>

*KARLSRUHE (DE), 23-24 February 2006: Symposium on basic income
A two days symposium on basic income (in German) will be held at the 
University of Karlsruhe on Feb. 23-24, 2006. For further infomation: André 
Presse <andre.presse at iep.uni-karlsruhe.de>
See also: http://www.iep.uni-karlsruhe.de/grundeinkommen/

*PHILADELPHIA (US), 24-26 February 2006: The Fifth Congress of USBIG
The Fifth Congress of the U.S. Basic Income Guarantee Network will be held 
in conjunction with the Eastern Economic Association (EEA) Annual 
Conference in Philadelphia from Friday February 24 to Sunday February 26, 
2006. The general theme shall be: "Resources and Rights". The programme 
includes twelve sessions and more than forty speakers. A tentative schedule 
has been posted on USBIG's webiste http://www.usbig.net/.

*HEIDELBERG (DE), 18 March 2006: Panel Discussion on "Unconditional Basic 
Income"
A public panel discussion on basic income will be organised by the 
Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung, Baden Württemberg, on march 18, at 5 pm. Sascha 
Liebermann (Sociologist, Univ. of Dortmund) will be one of the speakers.

5. GLIMPSES OF NATIONAL DEBATES

*GERMANY: PRESIDENT KOHLER SAYS BASIC INCOME IS WORTH CONSIDERING
In an interview with the weekly "Stern" (28 December 2005), German 
President Horst Kohler suggested that the idea of a basic income should be 
considered as a key strategy to prevent social exclusion of the long-term 
unemployed. He refered to discussions about a negative income tax in the USA.
For further information: http://www.stern.de

*GERMANY: FREEDOM, NOT FULL EMPLOYMENT
In recent weeks the group "Freedom, not Full Employment" has been actively 
trying to give more visibility to the idea of basic income. It advertised 
the idea of an unconditional basic income in subway stations in Cologne 
(Dec. 6-12, 2005) and Hamburg (Dec. 9-18, 2005) (see 
www.freiheitstattvollbeschaeftigung.de/plakataktion.htm.) One of its more 
active members, sociologist Sascha Liebermann, has been discussing "Work 
and Income" in a radio show on Bayern 2 Radio (Bavaria), January 5, 2006, 
10-11 AM (http://www.br-online.de/programme/bayern2/). Liebermann also 
wrote a reply to a paper by Ulrich Busch ("The Land of Milk and Honey - a 
Leftist Utopia? Critique of the Idea of an Unconditional Basic Income", 
which was published in "utopie kreativ", no. 181, November 2005. This reply 
is entitled "Freedom is a Challenge, not the Land of Milk and Honey", and 
will be published in "utopie kreativ", no. 184, February 2006.
Several German newspapers have echoed the activities of the group "Freedom, 
not Full Employment". See for instance an interview in "Thüringer 
Allgemeine " under the titel: "Freiheit zur Muße" (Freedom for Leisure), 
with Sascha Liebermann, published on January 13, 2006; or an interview in 
"Tageszeitung" (Taz - regional edition of North Rhine Westfalia) with 
Sascha Liebermann and Ute Fischer, published on January 28, 2006.
The main Theses defended by the group are now translated into French on its 
website: www.freiheitstattvollbeschaeftigung.de

*NAMIBIA: PRESIDENT MEETS BASIC INCOME COALITION
According to the January 27, 2006 issue of the daily newspaper "The 
Namibian" (Windhoek), Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba met 
representatives of the Basic Income Grant Coalition (BIG) at State House. 
The Coalition, made up of a host of different organisations, is lobbying 
for the introduction of an unconditional N$100 minimum grant to every 
Namibian not yet eligible for a Government pension. The President met the 
head of the delegation, Bishop Zephania Kameeta, BIG coordinator Reverend 
Philip Strydom, Legal Assistance Centre (LAC) Director Norman Tjombe and 
academic researcher Reverend Dirk Haarman, in a closed-door session to 
discuss the implementation of the proposed grant. At the end of the day, 
Pohamba had "not committed himself to anything", Kameeta said after 
emerging from the hour-long meeting, although the President did promise to 
take the matter up with Cabinet. "That's all we can ask," Kameeta said. "We 
cannot give the President of Namibia a time frame, but for us this was 
enough. The most positive thing is that he said we must stay in 
consultation, stay in communication. We had a very open and frank 
discussion. He asked very frank questions, so the meeting went beyond our 
expectations."
The idea for a Namibian basic income started in 2002, Kameeta told the 
President before the closed-door session began, when Government's Namibian 
Tax Consortium (Namtax) stated that it found the best method of addressing 
poverty and inequality to be a universal income grant. The grant would 
retrieve the money from those not in need, Kameeta said, through 
progressive tax adjustments. In this same way, the grant would overcome the 
threat of people becoming dependent on it. Last year, BIG Coalition 
representatives met the then Speaker of the National Assembly, Theo-Ben 
Gurirab, and the Parliamentary Committee on Human Resources, Social and 
Community Development. According to Reverend Haarman, both entities were 
supportive of the idea.

*NEW ZEALAND: UNIVERSAL INCOME TRUST ACTIVELY PROMOTES BASIC INCOME
In 2005 the Universal Income Trust (UIT) has promoted and made available 
its educational brochures and other resources extensively throughout New 
Zealand, in both urban and rural areas. This has been done via telephone, 
email, physical post and in person. As a result, the Trust's support 
networks have been greatly strengthened and extended. It has received help 
from an increasing number of organisations and individuals who have wished 
to display and/or distribute Universal Income resources. The types of 
organisations have included the tertiary education sector especially 
student associations, citizen advice centres, information centres, 
recycling centres, community houses, pre-school centres, cafes, and 170 or 
so public libraries which constitutes almost the entire public library 
network in Aotearoa. The Asian translations have been appreciated in many 
areas. The Trust now has two static vertical displays: Universal Income for 
a Sustainable Future and Universal Income Systems: A Global Vignette. One 
or both have been mounted in various public libraries.

*SPAIN: DISCUSSION ABOUT A BASIC INCOME FOR FARMERS
In the context of the reform of the European Common Agrarian Policy, 
Spanish Ministry of Agriculture held a meeting with the Deputy Director of 
the General Secretariat for Underprivileged Zones and a small group of 
Basic Income supporters at the end of December 2005. The main topic of 
discussion was the differences between a universal unconditional Basic 
Income and a guaranteed income focused on farmers. Although the 
representatives of the Ministry did not make a substantial commitment, they 
showed disposal to give support to a symposium on Basic Income. The aim of 
the participants at the meeting was to convince the Ministry of Agriculture 
to raise the cause of Basic Income at the debates on the reform of the 
Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union.
For further information: 
http://www.diariodeleon.es/inicio/noticia.jsp?CAT=111&TEXTO=4340551

6. PUBLICATIONS

*ENGLISH

DAHMS, Harry F. (2005), “Globalization as Hyper-Alienation: Critiques of 
Traditional Marxism as Arguments for Basic Income,”  Social Theory as 
Politics in Knowledge (Current Perspectives in Social Theory, vol. 23) 
(London:  Elsevier, 2005), pp. 205-76.
Basic income-related schemes both try to retain and overcome certain 
aspects of the social welfare state. Combined with Keynesian social and 
economic policies, the social welfare state helped to secure social and 
political stability, and facilitated unprecedented economic expansion and 
development. Yet in retrospect, the social policy paradigm that emerged 
during the Cold War does not appear to have been directed at eradicating, 
nor at alleviating once and for all, those inequalities. Rather, it 
sustained a network of enduring social and economic inequalities. Both van 
Parijs and van der Veen's argument about basic income that began with "a 
capitalist road to communism" (1986), and Moishe Postone's 
“reinterpretation of Marx's critical theory” (1993), are critiques of 
“traditional Marxism” that complement and support each other in important 
ways, as they strengthen arguments for basic income by emphasizing how the 
thrust of critical Marxism is directed at illuminating how the dominant 
social policy paradigm is a mechanism that maintains forms of social, 
political, cultural and economic life in a state of stasis that is 
increasingly immune to qualitative transformations.

HILL, Ronald Paul (2005), "Do the Poor Deserve Less Than Surfers? An Essay 
for the Special Issue on Vulnerable Consumers.", Journal of Macromarketing, 
Dec2005, 25 (2), p215-218.
In his seminal work on an unconditional basic income for each citizen, 
Philippe Van Parijs provides a new paradigm to facilitate a discussion on 
the morality (or lack there of) inherent within our global distribution 
system of goods and services. He also (implicitly) challenges the field to 
consider the impact of greater exchange parity upon our material world and 
the quality of life afforded our most vulnerable consumers. After briefly 
presenting his approach, the work of John Rawls on distributive justice and 
this author's own research on consumption adequacy is integrated into this 
perspective to form a powerful model for policy makers. Ronald Paul Hill is 
Bank of America Professor of Corporate Social Responsibility and founding 
dean, College of Business, University of South Florida St. Petersburg.

HUMPHREYS, John (2005), "Reform 30/30: Rebuilding Australia's Tax and 
Welfare System", CIS Policy Monograph 70, 27pp.
Much has been said about the need for tax and welfare reform in Australia. 
In this paper the author argues that the tyranny of the status quo and 
self-imposed limitations such as ‘budget neutrality’ and 
‘no-person-worse-off ’ has doomed any radical reform proposal to failure. 
He advocates what he calls a “tax revolution” for Australia: “Reform 
30/30”. Under Reform 30/30, all income taxes (company, Capital Gains Tax 
[CGT], Pay As You Go [PAYG], Fringe Benefits Tax [FBT]) would be equal at 
30%, and the "Medicare levy" removed. The tax free threshold (TFT) would be 
increased to A$30,000 per person and all tax expenditures (tax deductions, 
offsets, and so on) would be removed. The current welfare system would be 
replaced by a sliding scale of payments (a Negative Income Tax or NIT) that 
phased out at 30% and finished at an income of A$30,000. The NIT would 
allow the removal of the minimum wage which would lead to the creation of 
500,000 new jobs. The incentives for low-income earners will be improved as 
their effective marginal tax rate (EMTR) is reduced from over 60% to 30%­so 
that people have an incentive to take the new jobs. According to the author 
of this study, these two policies represent the best solution to 
unemployment and Reform 30/30 is unambiguously beneficial to the 
economy­with estimated benefits of A$90 billion as well as higher ongoing 
economic growth. Reform 30/30 is unambiguously simpler than the current 
system­with no tax return, no tax avoidance opportunities and much lower 
administrative costs. Issues of equity will always be contentious, but 
Reform 30/30 is more equitable than the status quo for several reasons. 
First, it massively reduces unemployment and poverty. Second, it ends the 
discrimination against couples. Third, it ends the discrimination against 
risky business and inconsistent income. Finally, this reform will actually 
pay for itself. Rough estimates suggest a medium-term impact on the budget 
of +A$15 billion per year, and more in the long run. Reform 30/30 offers 
500,000 new jobs, less poverty, a A$90 billion bigger economy, higher 
growth rates, lower tax levels and a simpler, fairer tax/welfare system and 
more money in the budget. The price is that some sacred cows of politics 
(‘progressive’ tax, minimum wage, no- person- worse-off ) will have to be 
sacrificed. It’s worth it, the author concludes.
The paper can be downloaded at 
http://www.cis.org.au/Publications/policymonographs/pm70.pdf

PAXTON Will, WHITE Stuart, and MAXWELL Dominic (eds.) (2006). The citizen's 
stake. Exploring the future of universal asset policies. Bristol, The 
Policy Press, 224 pages, Paperback ISBN 1861346999, Hardback ISBN 1861347006.
Can and should asset-based policies such as universal capital grants become 
a new pillar of the welfare state? Can they form the basis for a more 
egalitarian form of market economy? The citizen's stake throws open the 
debate by bringing together the ideas of leading thinkers in academia and 
policy to explore the future scope of asset-based policies in Britain.
The book examines asset-based welfare in connection with a wide range of 
issues, from tax policy to childcare, and includes the results of two 
innovative studies of public opinion on capital grants and inheritance tax. 
It is the first time that public opinion work has been integrated with 
theory into a serious and cohesive consideration of practical options for 
the future of asset-based welfare.
The citizen's stake is accessibly written and aimed at a broad audience of 
academics, students and policy-makers. Indeed, anyone interested in how 
this new policy field can and should develop will want to read this book. 
The discussions are relevant to academics, researchers and policy makers 
overseas, particularly in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, 
Ireland and Sweden, where there is a high level of interest in this topic.
Will Paxton edited this volume whilst a Senior Research Fellow at the 
Institute for Public Policy Research. In the past, he has published on 
savings policy, volunteering and democratic participation, financial 
exclusion and poverty. Stuart White is Fellow in Politics at Jesus College, 
Oxford University. He researches in political theory and public policy and 
is the author of The Civic Minimum: On the Rights and Obligations of 
Economic Citizenship (2003) and co-editor of The Ethics of Stakeholding 
(2003, with Keith Dowding and Jurgen De Wispelaere). Dominic Maxwell is a 
Research Fellow at the Institute for Public Policy Research. Before joining 
IPPR he was a Research Assistant for a Labour MP, and has previous 
experience at HM Treasury and Progress.
Publisher's website: https://www.policypress.org.uk/
Third editor's address: "Dominic Maxwell" <d.maxwell at ippr.org>

*FRENCH

PERREAULT Jean-François (2005), Basic Income and labour market related 
issues (« Analyse des enjeux d’une Allocation Universelle sur le marché du 
travail »), Master Thesis, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières (UQTR), 
Département Sciences de la gestion, Supervisor: Benoît-Mario Papillon 
(benoit-mario.papillon at uqtr.ca), 2005.
In the literature, labour market considerations in the analysis of Basic 
Income (BI) policies have generally focused on labour force participation. 
In the first part of the thesis, after a short historical review of the 
origin of the idea of a BI policy, the author briefly discusses some 
justifications for this type of policy. In order to take a broader 
perspective over the issues, BI policies are compared with other policies 
having similar objectives: welfare payments and a negative income tax. The 
second part of the thesis looks into the effects of a BI policy on labour 
markets. In doing so, the author synthesizes what has been found on labour 
force participation effects in light of various BI policy experiences in 
North America over the recent decades, and then goes beyond labour force 
participation effect and hypothesises a number of other effects pertaining 
to various dimensions of labour markets.
As argued by most critics of BI policies, researches have confirmed that 
the effect on labour force participation is negative but much less than 
expected. Furthermore, a broader view at dimensions of labour markets 
suggests that BI policies could contribute in various ways to the 
improvement of labour market performance in terms of wage level and job 
satisfaction; BI policies give the means to low income class people to stay 
longer at school; it is also sensible to conjecture other positive effects 
in terms of job search and contract negotiation.  In addition, impacts are 
also predictable at other levels, labour market flexibility and 
non-profitable activities to name a few.
For further information: Jean-François Perreault 
<jean-francois_perreault at uqtr.ca>

*ITALIAN

VAN PARIJS Philippe (2005). "Reditto di base e diritti umani",in Il Mercato 
giusto e l'etica sociale della società civile (Stefano Semplici ed.), 
Milano: Vita e Pensiero, 2005, 205-210. Translated as "Renta básica y 
derechos humanos" in Sin Permiso. Republica y socialismo, tambien para el 
siglo XXI, Barcelona, 18/12/2005.
An interview with Philippe Van Parijs (chair of BIEN's International Board) 
conducted by  Italian philosopher Benedetta Giovanola (University of 
Macerata) on the relationship between basic income, justice and human 
rights, and on the prospects for basic income in Europe and beyond.

*SPANISH

PEREZ MUNOZ, Cristian (2005). “Ingreso Básico Universal y libertad real. 
Algunos apuntes críticos”, Revista de Estudios Políticos, núm. 129, Madrid, 
julio-septiembre 2005, pp. 163-192.
This article by Uruguayan philosopher and BI supporter Christian Pérez 
Muñoz offers a critical revision of the notion of “real freedom for all” 
and its institutional implications. Pérez Muñoz argues that Van Parijs’ 
egalitarian scheme partially fails since it does not consider individuals’ 
capacities to convert their resources into true freedom. Following 
Elisabeth Anderson line of argument, the author stresses that the 
achievement of individual freedom is closely linked to individuals’ 
responsibility when actions, preferences and choices are to be faced. This 
is why he suggests, as Richard Arneson does, that the main problem into the 
“real freedom” scheme is the lack of an in-depth analyse of the – both 
social and psychological - constraints that influence over the way 
individuals make their choices and form their preferences. In effect, 
people normally lack the necessary information to responsibly decide. 
Although it is true that the use of the metrics of preferences and welfare 
leads to conceptual problems that the “real freedom” perspective sorts out, 
we must go beyond a mere initial equalization of opportunities and build a 
theory of justice taking into account, as Amartya Sen has suggested, the 
real capacities of individuals to use the resources at their disposal. As 
the author stresses, “it is desirable that individuals make whatever they 
want to make with themselves; but only in the case they possess the 
necessary information to evaluate the consequences of their choices”. This 
is why “the construction of institutions in a ‘free society’ cannot rest on 
the assumption that individuals enjoy a status of full self-ownership”. A 
solid idea of freedom is not possible if individuals lack a relevant degree 
of autonomy to decide on their own life plans from genuinely formed 
preferences. This argument leads the author to the conclusion that the 
institutional scheme suggested by Philippe Van Parijs is incomplete because 
it disregards agents’ capacity to choose. This is, then, an objection to 
the idea of “real freedom” rather than to Basic Income: in fact, Basic 
Income can be seen as an excellent instrument to compensate those 
inequalities that erode individuals’ capacity to decide. Something like 
educational institutions is also required not to inculcate values – the 
author is always committed to a liberal perspective -, but to provide 
people with the necessary information to evaluate preferences and beliefs 
and to anticipate the consequences of their actions. Such a set of measures 
is a necessary condition for the achievement of effective “real freedom”.

7. NEW LINKS

*ALASKA's DIGITAL ARCHIVES
Alaska's Digital Archives (http://vilda.alaska.edu) presents a wealth of 
historical photographs, albums, oral histories, moving images, maps, 
documents, physical objects, and other materials from libraries, museums 
and archives. It includes a 72 second film clip, color with audio track of 
Jay Hammond talking about the budget gap and bridging the gap with taxes 
vs. Permanent Fund Dividend: see http://vilda.alaska.edu/cdmg11/image/4502.mov

*GBI FOUNDATION
A Dutch website has been integrated into the website of the Global Basic 
Income Foundation: www.globalincome.org > Nederlands. These new pages 
should make the GBI website more accessible to a broader audience in 
Belgium and the Netherlands. The website is not just a translation of the 
pages in English, since some texts have been re-written. Furthermore, a new 
page has been added to the English as well as to the Dutch site: an online 
questionnaire which makes it easier for people to give their opinion about 
a Global Basic Income.

*FIAN INTERNATIONAL
KUNNEMAN, Rolf (2005), “Basic Food Income – Option or Obligation?”, FIAN 
International, Defending the right to food worldwide. January 15, 2005, 31 
pages.
About a quarter of those people facing food insecurity are so 
undernourished that they are unable to work. Others are unable to engage in 
agricultural work or wage labour due to infirmity or responsibilities such 
as family care (e.g. HIV-positive people and orphans). Even access to 
resources and minimum wages cannot help either of these two groups. A 
universal basic income paid to every citizen without means-testing and 
irrespective of age and employment status, which is recouped through 
taxation from better earners, is an effective way of remedying the abject 
poverty and destitution faced by the lowest quartile of the poor. Pilot 
programmes in different countries have shown that such cash transfer 
programmes can raise the standard of living of this group by providing the 
means for procuring food. FIAN supports civil society efforts towards the 
creation of basic income programmes in different countries of the world. 
The full text of this article can be downloaded from: 
http://www.fian.org/fian/index.php?option=com_doclight&Itemid=100&task=showdocument&dl_docID=43.
Author’s email address: kuennemann at fian.org.

8. ABOUT THE BASIC INCOME EARTH NETWORK

Co-chair:
Eduardo SUPLICY, Federal Senator, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Guy STANDING, Director of the Social and Economic Security Programme, ILO, 
Geneva, Switzerland

Further details about BIEN's Executive Committee and International Board 
can be found <http://www.etes.ucl.ac.be/BIEN/BIEN/EC_temp.htm>on our 
website, as well as further details about the 
<http://www.etes.ucl.ac.be/BIEN/BIEN/Recognized_Networks.htm>Recognised 
National Networks.

MEMBERSHIP

All life members of the Basic Income European Network, many of whom were 
non-Europeans, have automatically become life members of the Basic Income 
Earth Network.
To join them, just send your name and address (postal and electronic) to 
David Casassas  <dcasassas at ub.edu> Secretary of BIEN, and transfer EUR 100 
to BIEN's account 001 2204356 10 at FORTIS BANK (IBAN: BE41 0012 2043 
5610), 10 Rond-Point Schuman, B-1040 Brussels, Belgium. An acknowledgement 
will be sent upon receipt.
BIEN Life-members can become “B(I)ENEFACTORS” by giving another 100 Euros 
or more to the Network. The funds collected will facilitate the 
participation of promising BI advocates coming from developing countries or 
from disadvantaged groups.

B(I)ENEFACTORS:
Joel Handler (US), Philippe Van Parijs (BE), Helmut Pelzer (DE), Guy 
Standing (UK)

BIEN's Life Members:
James Meade (+), Gunnar Adler-Karlsson (SE), Maria Ozanira da Silva (BR), 
Ronald Dore (UK), Alexander de Roo (NL), Edouard Dommen (CH), Philippe Van 
Parijs (BE), P.J. Verberne (NL), Tony Walter (UK), Philippe Grosjean (BE), 
Malcolm Torry (UK), Wouter van Ginneken (CH), Andrew Williams (UK), Roland 
Duchâtelet (BE), Manfred Fuellsack (AT), Anne-Marie Prieels (BE), Philippe 
Desguin (BE), Joel Handler (US), Sally Lerner (CA), David Macarov (IL), 
Paul Metz (NL), Claus Offe (DE), Guy Standing (UK), Hillel Steiner (UK), 
Werner Govaerts (BE), Robley George (US), Yoland Bresson (FR), Richard 
Hauser (DE), Eduardo Matarazzo Suplicy (BR), Jan-Otto Andersson (FI), 
Ingrid Robeyns (UK), John Baker (IE), Rolf Kuettel (CH), Michael Murray 
(US), Carlos Farinha Rodrigues (PT), Yann Moulier Boutang (FR), Joachim 
Mitschke (DE), Rik van Berkel (NL), François Blais (CA), Katrin Töns (DE), 
Almaz Zelleke (US), Gerard Degrez (BE), Michael Opielka (DE), Lena Lavinas 
(BR), Julien Dubouchet (CH), Jeanne Hrdina (CH), Joseph Huber (DE), Markku 
Ikkala (FI),  Luis Moreno (ES), Rafael Pinilla (ES), Graham Taylor (UK), W. 
Robert Needham (CA), Tom Borsen Hansen (DK), Ian Murray (US), Peter 
Molgaard Nielsen (DK), Fernanda Rodrigues (PT), Helmut Pelzer (DE), Rod 
Dobell (CA), Walter Van Trier (BE), Loek Groot (NL), Andrea Fumagalli (IT), 
Bernard Berteloot (FR), Jean-Pierre Mon (FR), Angelika Krebs (DE), Ahmet 
Insel (FR), Alberto Barbeito (AR), Rubén Lo Vuolo (AR), Manos Matsaganis 
(GR), Jose Iglesias Fernandez (ES), Daniel Eichler (DE), Cristovam Buarque 
(BR), Michael Lewis (US), Clive Lord (UK), Jean Morier-Genoud (FR), Eri 
Noguchi (US), Michael Samson (ZA), Ingrid van Niekerk (ZA), Karl Widerquist 
(US), Al Sheahen (US), Christopher Balfour (AND), Jurgen De Wispelaere 
(UK), Wolf-Dieter Just (DE), Zsuzsa Ferge (HU), Paul Friesen (CA), Nicolas 
Bourgeon (FR), Marja A. Pijl (NL), Matthias Spielkamp (DE), Frédéric 
Jourdin (FR), Daniel Raventós (ES), Andrés Hernández (CO), Guido Erreygers 
(BE), Alain Tonnet (BE), Stephen C. Clark (US), Wolfgang Mundstein (AT), 
Evert Voogd (NL), Frank Thompson (US), Lieselotte Wohlgenannt (AT), Jose 
Luis Rey Pérez (ES), Jose Antonio Noguera (ES), Esther Brunner (CH), Irv 
Garfinkel (US), Claude Macquet (BE), Bernard Guibert (FR), Margit Appel 
(AT), Simo Aho (FI), Francisco Ramos Martin (ES), Brigid Reynolds (IE), 
Sean Healy (IE), Maire Mullarney (IE), Patrick Lovesse (CH), Jean-Paul 
Zoyem (FR), GianCarlo Moiso (IT), Martino Rossi (CH), Pierre Herold (CH), 
Steven Shafarman (US), Leonardo Fernando Cruz Basso (BR), Wolfgang 
Strenmann-Kuhn (DE), Anne Glenda Miller (UK), Lowell Manning (NZ), Dimitris 
Ballas (GR), Gilberte Ferrière (BE), Louise Haagh (DK), Michael Howard 
(US), Simon Wigley (TR), Erik Christensen (DK), David Casassas (ES), Paul 
Nollen (BE), Vriend(inn)en Basisinkomen (NL), Christophe Guené (BE), Alain 
Massot (CA), Marcel Bertrand Paradis (CA), NN (Geneve, CH), Marc 
Vandenberghe (BE), Gianluca Busilacchi (IT), Robert F. Clark (US), Theresa 
Funiciello (US), Al Boag & Sue Williams (AU), Josef Meyer (BE), Alain Boyer 
(CH), Jos Janssen (NL), Collectif Charles Fourier (+), Bruce Ackerman (US), 
Victor Lau (CA), Konstantinos Geormas (GR), Pierre Feray (FR), Christian 
Brütsch (CH), Phil Harvey (US), Toru Yamamori (JP), René Keersemaker (NL), 
Manuel Franzmann (DE), Ovidio Carlos de Brito (BR), Bernard De Crum (NL), 
Katja Kipping (DE), Jan Beaufort (DE), Christopher Mueller (DE), Bradley 
Nelson (US), Marc de Basquiat (FR), James Robertson (UK) [155 members in 29 
countries].

BIEN's NewsFlash is mailed electronically every two months to over 1000 
subscribers throughout the world.
Requests for free subscription are to be sent to bien at basicincome.org
Items for inclusion or review in future NewsFlashes are to be sent to 
Yannick Vanderborght, newsletter editor, UCL, Chaire Hoover, 3 Place 
Montesquieu, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium, vanderborght at etes.ucl.ac.be
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