It has been revealed that plans are being made for the first trial of Universal Basic Income payments in England.
The no obligation payments will mark the first ever trial of Universal Basic Income here in the UK.
UK think tank Autonomy is seeking financial backing for a two-year pilot programme that would pay individuals a set monthly salary of £1,600 – a figure roughly in line with the living wage – regardless of their means.
The no-obligation payments will be paid to around thirty participants in north-east England and north London, with anyone living in the areas able to put themselves forward.
Following the success of the furlough scheme in the UK during the coronavirus pandemic calls for the adoption of Universal Basic Income schemes have picked up serious momentum.
Scottish Liberal Democrat politician Christine Jardine previously commented that the pandemic “has meant that we’ve seen the suggestion of a universal basic income in a completely different light”.
Autonomy said it hopes its proposed pilot will “make the case for a national basic income and more comprehensive trials to fully understand the potential of a basic income in the UK”.
“No one should ever be facing poverty, having to choose between heating and eating, in one of the wealthiest countries in the world,” said Cleo Goodman, co-founder of Basic Income Conversation, a programme run by the work-focused think tank.
Image: Unsplash
Will Stronge, director of research at Autonomy, said: “All the evidence shows that [a UBI] would directly alleviate poverty and boost millions of people’s wellbeing: the potential benefits are just too large to ignore.”
Participants can either elect to apply or they will be drawn at random, with people able to remain anonymous throughout.
The organisers have also planned for the trial to use a representative group, made up of 20% of people with disabilities.
Two years of community consultation has taken place in the area where the trial will be held in the lead up to its launch.
Universal Basic Income is not a new concept and trials have already been run successfully in other parts of the world.
Closest to home, a trial currently taking place in Wales means that 500 care leavers are now being given £1,600 a month as part of a £20m experiment.
Elsewhere, Iran saw a huge reduction of poverty and inequality in 2010, without people leaving the labour market, after giving citizens transfers of 29% of the median income each month. The country found that people used the extra money to invest in their businesses which led to the growth of small enterprises.
However, some critics of the concept in the UK say it could be extremely costly, divert funding away from public services, and might not help to alleviate poverty.
She's big, she's green and she's ready to ruin your figure.
A lot of you will have seen the viral ‘Bertha’ cake by Leeds born beloved sweet treat specialists Get Baked.
They recently opened another site in Manchester's Northern Quarter, where queues literally formed round the block of hungry punters wanting to get their hands on the infamous sugary treats.
And now it's going to happen all over again, as they've recently unveiled their newest flavour which is sure to go down a storm.
We’ll give you a hint: it’s a current food and drink trend that’s about as big as Bertha herself – it’s not matcha, it’s not hot honey (duh), and it’s not Guinness…
Images: Get Baked
Yes—scratch that; HELL YES!Get Baked is set to welcome Bertha’s equally beautiful twin sister, and she’s officially a pistachio girlie.
Having started out life simply as ‘Bruce’, after taking inspiration from the iconic scene from Matilda, this thing has become a phenomenon in its own right, and who doesn’t like more flavours of a good thing?
Probably one of the biggest foodie crazes going at the minute, thanks to the popularity of pistachio cream, cookies, lattes and the similar social media sensation that is the ‘Dubai Pistachio Bar' people are rather fittingly going nuts for this particular flavour of almost absolutely anything.
With that in mind, the Leeds-born bakery and dessert shop – founded by Rich Myers over in Headingley back in 2011 – have shown no hesitation in hopping on the bandwagon and creating a new twist on their own viral menu item.
Teasing the full details in a post on their Instagram this week, they wrote: “What’s big, green, and is going to destroy your life in a couple of weeks’ time? Pistachio Bertha. Strictly limited to 5,000 slices. Coming oh so soon. GB.”
In case you were wondering just how mad those with a sweet tooth could possibly go for a slice of cake, just look at the recent queues when they finally launched in Manchester city centre:
Speaking on the grand opening here on our turf and his partner Amy’s hometown, Myers said simply: “Manchester, what a launch. Thanks for much for the warm welcome. Stay baked.”
Leeds Tattoo Expo to return to the First Direct Arena for 10th anniversary
Clementine Hall
The tenth annual Leeds Tattoo Expo will showcase some of the best in tattooing both local and internationally.
If you fancy getting yourself a fancy new bit of ink, then look no further than the iconic Leeds Tattoo Expo that will be returning to the First Direct Arena this June.
Taking place on Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 June 2025, over 200 tattooists and 70 traders will be flocking to the city to show off their skills.
And not only that, but there’ll also be a whole host of market traders for you to browse as well as live music to have a boogie to.
The artists will be tattooing with options for both pre-booked appointments and walk ups available throughout the weekend.
Image: Leeds Tattoo Expo
There will also be a piercer, tooth gems and a henna artist ready to adorn your body.
Alongside getting tattooed, there’s plenty to do and to see over the whole weekend; there'll be an alternative drawing class, an illustrators market with kids’ workshops provided by Art Gecko, an art fusion event on the main stage, burlesque performances and competitions, a small vintage clothing pop-up, fire breathing and break dancing demonstrations in the square outside the arena.
The annual tattoo competitions will also be taking place each evening, where tattooists showcase their work to a panel of judges, sponsored by Killer Ink!
To celebrate Leeds Tattoo Expo's tenth anniversary, they'll be hosting a Pre-Party at Belgrave Music Hall on Thursday 5 June which is a completely free entry event complete with live music and free pizza.
You can find out more about the event and book your tickets here via the First Direct Arena's website.
Georgina Pellant -
5th June 2023 
