Pathways to a Universal Basic Pension in Greece
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Manos Matsaganis
Although basic pension had failed for years to catch the imagination of policy makers in Greece, the severe crisis raging since November 2009 has caused it to be quickly put on the agenda. In May 2010 the government committed to a harsh austerity programme, aimed at fiscal consolidation, in return for a rescue package easing the sovereign debt crisis. The July 2010 pension reform, a key provision of the austerity programme, provided for the introduction of a near-universal basic pension starting in 2015. This paper explains why, paradoxically, the crisis made a universal basic pension in Greece more realistic. We argue, first, that social insurance pensions may be ripe for path-breaking reform if heavily subsidised in a non-transparent way, and, second, that any progress towards basic income is likely to be gradual, uneven and specific to the national policy context.
©2012 Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co. KG, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Front Matter
- Content
- List of Contributors
- Research Article
- The Basic Income Road to Reforming Iran's Price Subsidies
- Overcoming Dividend Skepticism: Why the World's Sovereign Wealth Funds Are Not Paying Basic Income Dividends
- Pathways to a Universal Basic Pension in Greece
- Basic Income From the Bottom Up? Allocating Jobs and Incomes With the Job Sharing Doodle
- Research Note
- The Case for a Global Pension and Youth Grant
- Book Review
- Review of Peter Baldwin, The Narcissism of Minor Differences: How America and Europe Are Alike
- Review of Joseph Hanlon, David Hulme and Armando Barrientos, Just Give Money to the Poor: The Development Revolution From the Global South
Articles in the same Issue
- Front Matter
- Content
- List of Contributors
- Research Article
- The Basic Income Road to Reforming Iran's Price Subsidies
- Overcoming Dividend Skepticism: Why the World's Sovereign Wealth Funds Are Not Paying Basic Income Dividends
- Pathways to a Universal Basic Pension in Greece
- Basic Income From the Bottom Up? Allocating Jobs and Incomes With the Job Sharing Doodle
- Research Note
- The Case for a Global Pension and Youth Grant
- Book Review
- Review of Peter Baldwin, The Narcissism of Minor Differences: How America and Europe Are Alike
- Review of Joseph Hanlon, David Hulme and Armando Barrientos, Just Give Money to the Poor: The Development Revolution From the Global South
