Universal basic income (UBI) has the air of an idea whose time has come. Basic income, defined as a regular income paid to all members of a society on an individual basis without work requirements, has rapidly gained attention and support in recent years, in spite of a political climate that remains largely hostile to the Left.

Finland has received international attention for its basic income experiment. A basic income initiative in Switzerland has collected enough signatures for a nationwide referendum. The Greens and some left parties and figures have long supported a UBI, including Die Linke co-leader Katja Kipping.

At a time when the Left is in search of innovative ideas to mobilize the people hardest hit by austerity, a basic income has enormous promise. Yet as demonstrated by the politics of some of the idea’s backers — from Milton Friedman in the US to the major centrist parties in Canada and Ireland — a basic income isn’t inherently radical. Without the right design, it could do little to achieve egalitarian objectives — or even backfire badly.