More BIG Ideas & Information

In this section we provide details regarding important new Basic Income Guarantee (BIG) initiatives in Canada, as well as links to informative briefs, statements, reports, articles, blogs and more:

A Proposal for a Guaranteed Basic Income Benefit (GBI) in Prince Edward Island (2023)

This influential report describes the framework for a financially and politically feasible GBI for PEI. It presents a model for a fully-funded 5-7-year demonstration program, which would reduce poverty for Islanders from 9.7% to 2.1%, while being more cost-effective than other basic income models previously presented. Championed by politicians, public servants, economists and advocates from PEI and across the country, this report is the outcome of more than 2 years of collaboration and will help guide crucial conversations on poverty reduction and income assistance in PEI and across Canada.

Along with our Canadian colleagues, Basic Income BC believes this PEI proposal is essential to demonstrate the beneficial effects of a basic income for an entire provincial population. Here are some key sources of information about this important initiative:

  • A Media Release describing the PEI proposal.
  • The full report: A Proposal for a Guaranteed Basic Income for Prince Edward Island (2023).
  • Coalition Canada’s 2025 pre-budget consultation submission to the federal Standing Committee on Finance supported by 20 Canadian organizations that support a GBI for PEI proposal, including Basic Income BC.
  • An Update from Canada’s Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) (February 2025) to their report on A Distributional Analysis of a National Guaranteed Basic Income (2021). Following a key finding in the PEI Proposal, the PBO did a cost comparison using two different definitions of a family unit for the purpose of economic analysis – the nuclear family (2 parents and their children) and the economic family (that includes more adult family members living together in a single residence). Like the PEI Proposal, the Update found that the cost of a GBI could be cut by roughly half using the broader definition of a family unit, and the poverty rate cut by 40% in 2025 dollars. See Senator Kim Pate’s media release about the PBO update.
  • A podcast, where Senator Kim Pate interviews economist and former senior federal civil servant Benoit Robideau, one of the key authors of this report. The interview goes into detail about the key features of this proposal and how this demonstration project can pave the way for a national basic income guarantee.
  • An article published in National Newswatch (July 7, 2024) by three former federal MPs, Wayne Easter (Liberal – PEI), Jean Crowder (NDP – BC) and Bruce Stanton (Conservative – ON), who were key members of the team that developed this proposal. They argue that the implementation of the PEI demonstration project can address the doubts and concerns that people still have regarding the merits and affordability of a basic income guarantee. They contend that a multi-year project in PEI is a practical and affordable way to demonstrate that a basic income guarantee for working-age Canadians (18-64) is a far superior way to eliminate poverty than the myriad of targeted, often dysfunctional social assistance schemes that are currently in place.
  • An op-ed published in the Halifax Examiner (March 2025)  by PEI MP Sean Casey, who made the case for the implementation of the PEI Demonstration project. This project will help answer important questions decision makers have regarding cost, administration, and impacts on poverty reduction, labour markets and cost savings in healthcare and the justice systems.
The Case for Basic Income Series

Coalition Canada basic income – revenue de base has developed a series of short briefs regarding the case for a basic income in different sectors:

While each case identifies distinct issues and concerns specific to each sector, there is a common thread that runs through them all – income insecurity – and how a basic income guarantee would enable many people to improve their security and well-being.

Consensus Statement on Basic Income Guarantee (February 2023)

This statement represents a wide consensus among organizations and individuals in the basic income movement in Canada regarding the key characteristics of a desirable basic income guarantee. It is endorsed by all three national Canadian basic income organizations, including Basic Income Canada Network (BICN), Coalition Canada basic income – revenu de base, and UBI Works, and it is widely supported by many regional and local basic income groups, and other allies, including Basic Income BC. It does not provide a detailed design but sets out the principles that any basic income guarantee program should adhere.

Green Resilience Project: Conversations on Climate Change, Income Security and Community Resilience (2022)

The Green Resilience Project was a series of conversations with 33 communities across Canada of varying size, geographic location and economic makeup to discuss the ways in which climate change and income insecurity affect their individual and collective wellbeing. Participants talked about the challenges they face in their day-to-day lives and explored solutions that have the potential to build or strengthen community resilience, ensuring everyone has what they need to navigate a changing environment and economy as Canada moves toward net-zero emissions. One of the key recommendations of this report was a national basic income guarantee.

Read the Final Report and Community Summary Reports prepared by community partners.