Over the past few weeks, we’ve watched our politicians do something truly unusual. Something we, as Greens, have been calling for for many years. MPs started to work across party lines to get money into the pockets of Canadians affected by COVID-19. They’re showing us what Canada can do when we join forces to take care of everyone.

Friend, to ensure a just recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic we need to make sure we don’t go back to “normal”. Normal isn’t good enough for workers living on minimum wage, for Indigenous Peoples without clean water, adequate housing or necessary access to health care, for contract workers without benefits, for students, for mothers who can’t afford daycare, for so many of us.

We can lift everyone up. We can make sure that everyone is taken care of. We can make poverty a thing of the past. The Green Party of Canada has long advocated for basic income, a Guaranteed Livable Income (GLI) that will make sure no one gets left behind.

While the Liberal pandemic relief plan is a good start for right now, it isn’t the answer long term. As Green MP Paul Manly told the House of Commons on Monday, this bailout isn’t a bucket – it’s a sieve. Too many people are still struggling. Only GLI will ensure that every Canadian has a roof over their head and food on the table.

Under the Liberal plan, many Canadians are falling through the cracks. A basic income guarantee is the only way to protect everyone and a vital step in ensuring a just recovery from COVID-19.

What is Guaranteed Livable Income?
The Green Party has long argued that Canada can eliminate poverty by adopting a Guaranteed Livable Income (GLI), a kind of basic income. The GLI replaces separate federal and provincial programs with a single, universal, unconditional cash payment delivered through the tax system.

The GLI means every Canadian receives a regular minimum payment, establishing an income “floor” but with incentives for recipients to continue working and earn more. Payments would be based on a calculated “livable” level for different regions of the country.

Unlike existing support programs, additional income will not be clawed back. People earning above a certain total income will pay the GLI back in taxes. The GLI will replace the current complex array of income supports – social assistance, income supplements for seniors, disability payments, etc. – with a single payment. Replacing those programs with a single regular payment to every Canadian eliminates the vast bureaucracy and associated costs needed to administer them. These savings will help to pay for the GLI program.