If he lives up to his promises – and the early signs are good – Justin Trudeau is shaping up to one of the most ambitious liberal premierships in modern history. He has welcomed refugees into Canada while EU nations have begun a backlash against them, stood up to Putin over land grabs in the North Pole and, in a show of respect across the ideological divide, has confirmed he will work with Donald Trump should the situation become necessary. He’s even been photographed with two Canadian baby panda bears this week. Little practical impact there, but sterling PR work; he knows how to polish a reputation, the perfect veil under which to smuggle policies so radical that they had previously been cast adrift.

The province of Ontario, we learn this week, is set to become the first region of the country to test a “basic income”, a social support system that does away with means-tested welfare and replaces it with a single, universal payment that every citizen is entitled to. It is the ultimate leveller – and, as such, is the latest fad in leftish circles. And, apparently, Trudeau and his party are interested in extending this idea further.

First suggested by such figures as the philosopher Bertrand Russell in the inter-war years, the idea of a universal basic income – a monthly income, just enough to cover essential bills, paid as a benefit of citizenship, and which prevents anyone resident in a wealthy economy falling needlessly into poverty – has gained popularity in recent years, since the welfare systems of developed nations have begun to crack under pressure, leading to calls from the right to dismantle them altogether.

The idea is exciting for three reasons. First, it creates a system of social support that removes the stigma created by means-tested welfare. Those who are out of work because they are disabled, studying, between jobs or caring for a child or relative are all treated in the same way as those who are, in fact, working. Second, with a basic income to rely on, work always pays, encouraging enterprise and creativity. Tax takes rise as personal allowances are axed, while earned income is taxed at a higher level.

cont'd...