Finland will provide minimum income to unemployed – The Economist

They will deliver 560 euros per month for two years.

The Finnish government will bet to include the minimum income among its inhabitants. This program is intended to provide a fixed income to the unemployed, for about two years, from January 1, 2017 until the end of 2019.

The initiative is in charge of the federal institution of social security, KELA and it will distribute 560 euros (587 dollars) per month to nearly 200,000 finns unemployed —in the private sector the monthly income is an average of 3,500 euros, with the aim of reducing poverty, as well as boost employment.

The program has referred to that these people —now unemployed— can find a new job during those two years; however, the income will continue to arrive at the beginning of each month.

In reality it is a bet in order to discuss if basic income —one of the theories most popular in the last few years— it actually serves as a solution to poverty.

The theory of basic income argues that all residents of a country receive an income paper regardless of your conditions. This feature has to be from the government or any other public institution, regardless of whether those citizens receiving income by other activities.

in this regard, Marjukka Turunen, head of the Legal Benefits of KELA, stated that this test is already in progress in Finland, has as its purpose is to provide signals on two issues: on the one hand, if basic income can help to cleanse the security system in Finnish and by another, to know how people act when they get free money and how to help them with this benefit.

The critics of this initiative believe that the people will do nothing to change their "status" regardless of income; those who are in favor, think that the people will use the money to improve their conditions.

Turunen considered that the experiment will promote entrepreneurship. And he added: "The system of today is quite negative for the people that try to do something in their lives and make something out of it."

The unemployment rate in Finland, a country of 5.5 million inhabitants, was 8.1% in November, with approximately 213,000 people out of work.

The basic income, and its viability has already been discussed in Canada, India and the Netherlands. A pilot project led by the firm’s Silicon Valley called And Combinator will soon be launched in Oakland, California.