Irish gov to pay ‘basic income’ to 2,000 artists

The Irish government is set to pay approximately 2,000 artists, actors and musicians a basic income for three years.

Recipients of the scheme may receive a basic payment of €10.50 (£8.75) an hour to pursue their creative work.

A consultation on how the Basic Income for the Arts scheme will run has opened and details are yet to be determined.

Irish minister for culture Catherine Martin previously said that the government was committing about €25m (£20.87m) to the scheme and it would be up and running in early 2022.

In a statement, Martin called the Basic Income for the Arts a “once-in-a-generation policy intervention”

According to the consultation, if there are more people eligible for the scheme than there are places available then participants may have to be selected at random.

In a statement, Martin called the Basic Income for the Arts a “once-in-a-generation policy intervention”.

The scheme is the top recommendation from an arts and culture task force, set up by Martin to suggest ways in which the arts could recover from the “unprecedented damage” caused by the pandemic.

The consultation opened on Thursday (6 January) and closes on 27 January.

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