This project is part of the Freiburg Institute for Basic Income Studies (FRIBIS). It focuses on the use of microsimulation to evaluate Universal Basic Income’s likely effects, in comparison to ‘status quo’ base scenarios as well as basic income ‘cognates’ and alternative policy reform proposals (such as in-work benefits, targeted social assistance, or other types of universal transfer).

The main effects fall into the categories of fiscal costs and implications, distributional effects, and effects on financial labour market incentives, although there may be further applications of microsimulation techniques that fall outside this categorisation.

The aims of the research group are:

• To develop and refine microsimulation techniques with respect to their application to basic income research, through expansion into more advanced areas such as: dynamic models of behavioural (labour market) response and lifecourse trajectories; modelling implications for intra-household inequalities, by relaxing assumptions about income sharing within households; and modelling schemes organised at alternative levels (sub- and supra-national) of political organisation.

• To carry out substantive studies on specific basic income proposals, such as the Euro-dividend, or other specific national or sub-national schemes. In particular, to scrutinise the detailed proposals of political parties and civil society / advocacy organisations groups, where these are available.

• To provide a bank of technical expertise and resources, and produce basic analysis of specific schemes on commission - for example in response to queries from policymakers, media, and other interested parties – as well as to facilitate the research community to carry out their own microsimulation studies.

Research team

• Professor Ugo Colombino, University of Torino
• Dr Valerija Korošec, Government of Slovenia
• Dr Aida Garcia-Lazaro, Institute for Policy Research (IPR), University of Bath
• Professor Nick Pearce, IPR, University of Bath
• Professor Matteo Richiardi, University of Essex
• Dr Maximilian Sommer, Katholische Universität Eichstätt-Ingolstadt
• Malcom Torry, Basic Income Earth Network (BIEN)

Transfer team

• Jamie Cooke, RSA Scotland
• Cleo Goodman, Basic Income Conversation

Outputs

• First Annual FRIBIS Conference 2021: Monetary Issues of UBI, October 2021
• Feasibility study: A basic income pilot project for Wales – a response to the report Piloting a basic income in wales, 2021