Non - Marcus Rashford

[klaus_afcb]

My apologies as this veers off topic.

As a complete layman who's read a few bits and pieces both pro and anti UBI and hasn't really formed a firm opinion, do you as someone more involved have any thoughts on price inflation?

One of the main potential criticisms I've seen, suggests that if you just give everyone in a population a regular sum of X, then the price of everything, particularly bread and butter daily items, will inflate in proportion to X. In doing so wipes out the benefit to the people who need it most, leaving them no better off in real terms?

Where I like it is in generating public funding efficiency in cutting swathes of welfare means testing and administration. And as SDD says doing away with a system where Government kind of dictates how people use their money.

The inflationary argument basically focuses on the demand and not on the supply side effects. Unlike luxury goods, basic goods tend to have a high elasticity of supply, meaning that an increase in demand leads not to an increase in their price, but to an increase in their supply (assuming the absence of artificial scarcities, as we see in the housing market, for example). By increasing the liquidity of small businesses and the free time of ordinary people, the argument goes that a BI would facilitate an increase in the production of basic goods and services. This has been shown to increase local job numbers (see the Madya Pradesh pilot in India for example). So effectively, the supply side effects of BI are actually argued (and evidence from pilots suggest this to be true) to result in lower prices for basic goods and services rather than higher ones.

As a basic, thought experiment; if a BI allowed people to spend more time growing their own veg then the supply of veg goes up and the costs stay the same or go down. Alternatively, the increase in free time afforded by a BI would allow people to spend more time caring for family, increasing the supply of care and decreasing its cost. More research is needed on this though, as pilots so far haven’t been large enough to really examine economy wide effects.

A key question on all this is the ecological implications – i.e. do the supply side effects increase the overall material throughput of the economy and therefore increase environmental pressures. Much of this will depend on how a BI is implemented, and what complimentary policies / funding methods go along with it. For clarity, I am in favour of a UBI but not at any cost. I'm wary that implemented in the wrong way it could have very negative effects.

(Sorry to anyone not interested! Happy to continue in PMs)

 

[Audenshaw Cherry]

The Spectator
Racist
Xenophobic
Tory Supporting
Right wing
Looking after its mates

Marcus Rashford
A very rich black footballer with a social conscience
Forced government into u turn over free school meals
Supported other charitable causes
Plays for Manure (but on this occasion I will make allowances)

The motive of this rag is so obvious and very bleak. It would appear that the Tory press will do anything to darken the reputations of those who disagree or campaign against this corrupt and divisive government. This is just another example.

One problem, at the moment, is that too many people believe the rubbish they spout and still think that #JohnsonVariant is trying his best and is doing a good job. God knows why or how but while the Tory press have almost a monopoly on the English media it will continue.