Extreme poverty and human rights on universal basic income 2017, para. 21

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Scholars from different disciplines have played a key role in debating the merits of the concept and it is appropriate to undertake a brief review of their contributions. The most active proponent is a Belgian philosopher, Philippe van Parijs. In a highly influential paper in 1991 he focused on the fairness of making basic income unconditional, thus making it available even to those who opt to spend their life surfing waves. Invoking the philosophy of John Rawls, he argued that “a defensible liberal theory of justice, that is, one that is truly committed to an equal concern for all and to non-discrimination among conceptions of the good life, does justify, under appropriate factual conditions, a substantial unconditional basic income”. Others have strongly contested this element in the case for a basic income. In a recent book, Van Parijs and Vanderborght go beyond the philosophical dimensions to explore the concept’s history, economic justifications and politics.
Legal status
Non-negotiated soft law
Body
Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
Document type
Special Procedures' report
Means of adoption
N.A.
Topic(s)
  • Economic Rights
  • Governance & Rule of Law
Person(s) affected
  • N.A.
Year
2017
Paragraph type
Other
Paragraph number
21