A Canadian province just killed one of the world's largest basic income pilot projects

[applegrove]

Jeremy Berke at Business Insider

https://www.businessinsider.com/ontario-just-killed-one-of-the-largest-basic-income-pilot-projects-2018-7

"SNIP........

The new government of Ontario, Canada's largest province, killed its basic income pilot project on Tuesday.

Nearly 4,000 people in Ontario were receiving a no-strings-attached monthly stipend through the project, which was put into place by former premier Kathleen Wynne's Liberal party.

People who made less than $34,000 (CAD) per year were eligible to receive up to $17,000 annually, and couples who made under $48,000 received up to $24,000 per year, minus 50% of any earned income, The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) reports.

The program was started in July of 2017 and was slated to run for three years. The previous Ontario government estimated the cost of the pilot project to be around $50 million.

......SNIP"

They said during the election they would not kill it. Conservatives always hate science that might help people.

[True Dough]

1. When I saw your thread title

I immediately guessed it was Doug Ford's Ontario. It's gonna be mean streets for the duration of his tenure.

[applegrove]

2. I was worried. I didn't mention it because i hoped somehow if nobody talked about

it then it would not give Ford and Conservatives ideas.

[True Dough]

3. He's got the knife out

with a target on all kind of social programs. Health and education could be in a world of hurt.

[applegrove]

4. How could people have forgotten Mike Harris. I don't understand. I think

the woman who ran for the leadership of the Ontario Conservatives kept mentioning 'teaching anal sex in the sex ed curriculum' over and over and over again was a plant. I don't know if she was witting or unwitting. IMHO

[Saviolo]

5. Yeah, Doug Ford started fast.

But anyone who believed "a party spokesman" back in April who said the UBI pilot would continue is hopelessly naive. Toronto Star article here: https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2018/04/24/ontarios-basic-income-experiment-would-continue-under-doug-ford.html

Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives support Ontario’s basic income pilot project, a three-year experiment to determine whether regular, no-strings-attached payments improve health, education and housing outcomes for people living in poverty.

“We look forward to seeing the results,” a party spokesperson said Monday about the Liberal government initiative launched a year ago today.

After a slow start due to disbelief among many that it was too good to be true, the project has reached its goal of enrolling 6,000 participants between the ages of 18 and 65 in Hamilton-Brant, Thunder Bay and Lindsay.

Read more:

From ‘barely surviving’ to thriving: Ontario basic income recipients report less stress, better health

I seriously doubt they'll even release the results of the pilot if they have any control over it. There was no way it was going to continue under Ford. The grifters will say anything to anyone to gain power to enrich themselves.