Level 1 l Pre-intermediate / Intermediate

Transcription

1 1 Warmer a. Write five words that you would expect to read in an article about universal basic income. b. Scan the article to see how many of your words you can find. 2 Key words Match the key words with the definitions. Then, find them in the article to read them in context. The paragraph numbers will help you. aspects community in favour of pilots unaffordable 1. something that costs too much money and so it is difficult to pay for (para 1) 2. projects that test an idea in one place or with only a few people to find out if it will be successful or popular (para 2) 3. parts (para 3) 4. If you are something, you support it because you believe it is right. (para 3) 5. a particular area and the people who live there (para 4) abuse nutrition recipients unconditional social security 6. people who receive something (para 4) 7. If something is, you receive it without limits and a certain situation does not need to exist before you receive it. (para 5) 8. the system by which the government regularly pays money to people who do not have a job or who are too ill or old to work (para 6) 9. use of alcohol or illegal drugs in a way that is bad for your health (para 8) 10. food considered as something that keeps you healthy (para 10)

2 Universal basic income is becoming an urgent necessity Guy Standing 12 January, Recently, there has been a lot of interest in basic income. The idea is that a monthly income should be paid to everybody. Many people criticize the idea and say it is unaffordable and creates laziness but basic income is now getting support from many places. 2 There are already basic income pilots around the world. One pilot started on 1 January, 2017 in Finland. Others are planned in Ontario, Canada, Oakland, California, Aquitaine, France and Catalonia, Spain. And there are discussions in Fife and Glasgow, Scotland. A US non-governmental organization, GiveDirectly, is raising $30 million for a 12-year experiment in Kenya. 3 It is important to emphasize that pilots can only test some aspects of paying a basic income and seeing what people do differently. People in favour of a basic income say that the main benefits of a universal basic income are social justice, freedom and financial security. 4 Most pilots are not exactly the same as a universal basic income system, in which everyone in a community receives a basic income so its benefits cannot be tested. And if only a few people get a basic income, recipients may soon be under pressure from relatives and neighbours to share it. 5 At the moment, Finland s pilot is receiving global attention. Two thousand unemployed people aged between 25 and 58 have started to receive 560 as a tax-free monthly unconditional benefit. They will receive this money for two years. It will not be reduced if they earn income and they will not have to search for jobs. 6 The reason for the experiment is that the complicated Finnish social security system no longer works. A basic income removes benefit conditions that say people must look for and take employment. It encourages unemployed people to take low-income jobs because their basic income is not taken away when they earn money. The people who designed the pilot are trying to answer the question: could a basic income simplify the social security system and increase employment? 7 A well-known experiment in the Canadian town of Dauphin in the 1970s showed that recipients of the basic income had better health and less mental stress. 8 And in an accidental basic income pilot in North Carolina, when a Cherokee community decided to share casino profits with all members of their tribe, children did better in school and were less likely to commit crimes. Alcohol and drug abuse also reduced. 9 In a pilot in India, about 6,000 people in eight villages received a small basic income for 18 months. Their experience was compared with what happened in 12 similar villages where nobody received the basic income. 10 There were four positive effects. Firstly, there was better nutrition, health and schooling. Secondly, it supported equality because the basic income helped the disabled more than other people and women more than men. Thirdly, a basic income led to more work. And lastly, more people were able to start self-employed work. Guardian News and Media 2017 First published in The Guardian, 12/01/17

3 3 4 5 Find the information Answer the questions using information from the article. 1. Where has a universal basic income pilot recently started? 2. Where is it planned? 3. Where are they discussing the introduction of a universal basic income pilot? 4. For which country is a non-governmental organization raising money for a 12-year experiment? 5. Where has a pilot already happened by accident? 6. In which large country has there already been a pilot? Comprehension check Match these sentence halves to summarize the article. 1. Current social security systems aren t working and they are Universal basic income has been criticized because some people say People who are in favour of universal basic income say that In a pilot in Finland, 2,000 unemployed people have started to Universal basic income would encourage unemployed people to take low-paid jobs because A project in a Native American community showed that A pilot in India showed that people who received the money... Using the language 1. In the article, what a. is unaffordable? b. are some people in favour of? c. no longer works? 2. Now, briefly talk about a. something that you think is unaffordable. b. something that you are in favour of. c. something that no longer works. a.... receive 560 every month for two years. b.... had better health and nutrition, and worked more. c.... too complicated. d.... it supports financial security, fairness and freedom. e.... children did better at school. f.... it costs too much money and it makes people lazy. g.... it is not taken away when you earn money.

4 6 Discussion In your country, can unemployed people get social security money and/or other benefits? Can people who receive this money work part time or in temporary jobs at the same time? Do people who receive social security benefits have to look for jobs, go to regular appointments or follow any other rules? Could a basic income simplify the social security system and increase employment? What do you think?

5 KEY 1 Warmer Teacher s note: You may want to offer a simple definition of universal basic income a monthly income paid to everybody and/or give some example words to get students started, such as unemployment and poverty. 5 Using the language 1. a. universal basic income b. a basic income c. the Finnish social security system 2 Key words 1. unaffordable 2. pilots 3. aspects 4. in favour of 5. community 6. recipients 7. unconditional 8. social security 9. abuse 10. nutrition 3 Find the information 1. Finland 2. Ontario in Canada, Oakland in California, Aquitaine in France and Catalonia in Spain 3. Fife and Glasgow in Scotland 4. Kenya 5. North Carolina, USA, in a Cherokee community 6. India 4 Comprehension check 1. c 2. f 3. d 4. a 5. g 6. e 7. b