We set out proposals to address Britain’s increasingly unequal society, including twice yearly ‘helicopter money’ for all adults, carbon tax dividends for young people and a regular payment based on a share of a ‘sustainable GDP’. 

The report looks at existing radical proposals to redistribute wealth, such as a universal basic income (UBI) or a job guarantee scheme, both of which have been gaining favour since the pandemic, but rejects them as neither financially nor politically viable. 

The paper identifies three alternative unconditional payments schemes:

• A payment of £150 twice a year to individual bank accounts whenever inflation falls below the Bank of England’s target, which would have a positive re-distributional impact while helping to reinflate the economy
• A Carbon Dividend, which would be distributed to all young adults aged 16-30 as compensation for the impact of climate change – funded from carbon taxes
• A modest payment of about £1,000 to working age adults linked to the country’s success in achieving a redefined sustainable GDP, compatible with the UK’s net zero commitment