THE BASIC INCOME: a conversation with HUGH SEGAL

In a mixed-income neighbourhood like Regent Park, basic income could have a hugely positive impact. Regent Park possesses a unique mix of subsidized housing and market properties, meaning a sizeable class disparity between residents. Basic income would eliminate the bureaucratic difficulty and the stigma of applying for welfare. The increased income would not only stimulate the local economy, but would further integration between people of different socioeconomic classes. The more connected a community is, it’s more likely to thrive and find strength.

Former Senator Hugh Segal has supported the idea of basic income (a guaranteed minimum salary for all citizens) since the beginning of his career. Through hard work, determination, and a willingness to work across party lines, Segal rose above his own economic obstacles to help create a social program pilot that if implemented will support and benefit all Canadians. Low-income communities especially benefit from basic income, where it can help close the wealth gap. COVID-19 has put millions of Canadians out of work, and a basic income similar to CERB could revitalize our economy and society. Similar pilot projects have found huge success, and now Hugh Segal explains why this is the time to bring basic income to Ontario.

From a young age, former Senator Hugh Segal has known struggle. Born into a low-income family, his parents worked minimum wage jobs to make ends meet. At age 12, Prime Minister Diefenbaker spoke at his school, referring to Canada as a “family table” where all people were welcome: newcomers, refugees, senior citizens, and people of classes. It was a moment he’d “never forget”, and that ethos guided his career in government and public service.

In spite of the hardships he has faced--or more likely because of them--Segal has made it his mission to support basic income: a set minimum income that’s guaranteed to every Ontarian. Currently if you are underemployed and making less than the basic taxable income amount, you would receive a payment from the government when filing your taxes. For those of us that are unemployed, Hugh Segal believes our current welfare program is not working.  According to Segal, to apply for unemployment benefits and welfare, you must go through the red tape of proving you are poor, unemployed, and looking for work; any money you make while receiving benefits is paid back to the government. Rather than try to lift low-income people out of poverty, Segal believes it merely keeps them at the same level. Studies have shown a direct correlation between poverty and crime, health, substance abuse, education, and more. Segal argues that by investing in a basic income for Ontarians and making active efforts to reduce poverty, the government ends up saving money.

Segal points to similar projects, both in Canada and worldwide, that have seen success. In the 1970s, the Guaranteed Annual Income Supplement gave Ontarians over 65 an automatic top-up if their income fell below a certain line. This initiative reduced the poverty rate among seniors from 35% to only 3%. In Dauphin, Manitoba, a basic income pilot project created a ripple effect. Segal believes that without having to worry about employment, teens could finish high school and young mothers could take care of their children. More recently, governments in Spain, Scotland, and California have introduced plans to implement basic income. The data shows that when basic income projects are implemented, they yield significant results.

By Chloё Nguyen-Drury
Chloe is a staff member of the FOCUS Media Arts Centre