Our energy system is broken. We need to rethink it.
At the centre of the cost of living scandal is the soaring price of household energy. It is time for a new approach to make sure everyone...
Blogs
Maeve Cohen
- Apr 27
- 4 min
Austerity isn't over. So why have we stopped talking about it?
The biggest hit to disposable incomes since records began in 1950 is forecast by the Office of Budget Responsibility. A crisis without...
Rachel Statham
- Apr 5
- 5 min
Universal Basic Services – the view from Scotland
As the cost-of-living crisis intensifies, responses from governments at Westminster and Holyrood have taken distinctly different tones. ...
Daniel Button
- Mar 22
- 4 min
A fresh look at the cost of living: the role of universal services
Soaring energy bills have opened up a debate about living standards and costs in the UK. But the cost-of-living crisis goes well beyond...
Tom Schuller
- Mar 10
- 3 min
Lifelong Learning and the Social Guarantee
Lifelong learning – the opportunity for adults to take up learning across all stages of life – is rising up the political agenda. Unesco...
Jill Wales
- Feb 17
- 3 min
Staying connected: the pandemic highlights the need for more internet training
The Covid-19 pandemic has increased reliance on digital technology, widening the gap between internet users and non-users. This...
Ann Pettifor
- Feb 10
- 3 min
On UBS, UBI and Silicon Valley
Martin Sandbu of the Financial Times echoes Silicon Valley titans by calling for a Universal Basic Income. In a lengthy video broadcast...
Maeve Cohen
- Jan 27
- 4 min
The North needs a Social Guarantee
The Government’s ‘levelling up’ agenda is failing the North of England, which needs real transformation not empty political rhetoric....
Milena Büchs
- Jan 13
- 4 min
Free green services can significantly reduce emissions and energy poverty
In a recent study, we find that giving everyone in society a basic amount of free, renewable electricity and access to free public...
Maeve Cohen
- Nov 12, 2021
- 4 min
Decarbonising Public Services
A report launched this week by Unison details why it is so important to decarbonise public services. They account for 8% of UK carbon...
Ian Gough
- Nov 3, 2021
- 5 min
Public services are more sustainable: the NHS example
Planned emissions reductions by the UK National Health Service (NHS) in 2020-21 are on target to reach 1,260 kt of CO2 equivalent. The...
Eun Kyung Kim
- Oct 26, 2021
- 2 min
Support for UBS in South Korea’s election campaign
The idea of Universal Basic Services (UBS) is becoming a hot topic in the run-up to next year’s presidential elections in South Korea. ...
Maeve Cohen
- Jul 5, 2021
- 3 min
The Social Guarantee
Originally published in LabourHub on 30th June. There’s growing interest in a new social settlement and understandably so. The Covid-19...
Baz Ramaiah
- Jun 23, 2021
- 4 min
Three important features of a Social Guarantee for young people
Reading ‘The Case for Universal Basic Services’ was a revelation for me. But I couldn’t help but feel there was something crucial missing...
Ian Gough
- Jun 15, 2021
- 2 min
Covering All the Basics
British Columbia channels the Social Guarantee An intriguing trio of leading thinkers - Adam Smith (1759), Chief Joseph Gosnell of...
Isky Gordon
- May 19, 2021
- 3 min
GP practices taken over by US health insurance giant
The recent take-over of 34 GP practices in London by a US health insurance conglomerate offers a stark reminder of why we need a Social...
Tom Schuller
- May 10, 2021
- 2 min
Having each other's backs: UBS and social trust
Where are the natural allies for those of us engaged in promoting a Social Guarantee as central to a healthy recovery? Having unhitched...
Maeve Cohen and Anna Johnston
- Apr 27, 2021
- 4 min
Caring for the planet and for people
Why a Feminist Green New Deal is urgent Originally published by the Women's Budget Group Living with the Covid-19 pandemic over the past...
Maeve Cohen
- Mar 24, 2021
- 3 min
After COVID-19, we need a new social guarantee
Originally published in Open Democracy As the long-neglected ship of our public services collides with the colossal COVID-19 iceberg, the...
Anna Coote and Neal Lawson
- Mar 13, 2021
- 1 min
Post-Covid Britain needs a new social guarantee
Anna Coote and Neal Lawson, Director of Compass write in the Guardian Read the full article here