UNIVERSAL BASIC INCOME
Canada handed out free money to help homeless people. It reduced rough sleeping and busted stereotypes
What if you gave homeless people £4,400 in cash? No strings attached, just a lump sum to see how it changes their lives. A group of researchers have done just that – and found that everybody benefits.
A landmark study in Canada found the $7,500 cash transfer shortened homelessness by 99 days per person, improved cognitive function and mood, and saved the state $777 (£459).
Cash was given to those who had been homeless for less than two years and who did not have issues with substance or alcohol use. Generally, within a month participants had moved into housing.
From there, mood and cognitive function increased, as well as spending and saving. Then from three to six months, there was “spillover” where cash was used to help their family and friends. By six months, most had spent all the money, but the benefits were clear.
Alongside the wide range of benefits, there was no increase in “temptation” spending on alcohol, cigarettes and drugs.
“If you think about it, this makes perfect sense. This is what you and I would do if we are homeless,” Jiaying Zhao, an associate professor at the University of British Columbia and one of the co-authors of a study examining the trial’s results, told The Big Issue.
“They know exactly what they need to do. All they need is cash.”
This busts stereotypes,
