“Minimum Income as a building block to the right to a life in dignity. If there is no Minimum Income what hope is there for Europe?” these were the remarks of Hugh Frazer, Independent expert on Social inclusion, in his closing remarks at the recent EMIN European Conference.
The real opposition to adequate incomes for all is not lack of resources but is the dominance of competition as a value underpinning our political discourse and decision making for too long now. This is undermining cohesion and solidarity and has an enormous negative cost for European societies. I hope we collective remember what a treasure our ‘social security systems’ are, perhaps Europe’s finest achievement, even while we struggle to make them fit for the form of globalisation we are living through in this time.
It is true that as well as being simple comprehensive Minimum Income Schemes are also complex and change should be developed carefully. The national work of EMIN is preparing the ground for the needed positive changes as shown in the latest reports available from
EMIN - European Minimum Income Network 