Ireland has made history by establishing the world's first permanent basic income scheme for artists, with Arts and Culture Minister Patrick O'Donovan launching the groundbreaking initiative in Dublin this week.
Revolutionary Support for Creative Professionals
The Basic Income for the Arts (BIA) programme will provide €325 (approximately £283) weekly to 2,000 eligible artists based in the Republic of Ireland, with payments structured in three-year cycles. This landmark scheme follows a highly successful pilot programme that ran from 2022 to 2025, originally designed to support artists through the challenging Covid-19 pandemic shutdowns.
A Pioneering Approach to Cultural Investment
Minister O'Donovan declared the initiative "a gigantic step forward that other countries are not doing" during the official launch. He emphasised that this represents the first time in Ireland's history that a permanent basic income structure has been established specifically for creative professionals.
"For the first time in the history of the state we now have, on a permanent basis, a basic income structure that will really revolutionise and, in many ways, set Ireland apart from other countries with regard to how we value culture and creativity," O'Donovan stated.
The minister described the scheme as "a start" that he hopes will be expanded in future years, signalling a significant shift in how governments can support artistic communities.
Proven Success Through Comprehensive Pilot
The decision to make the scheme permanent follows compelling evidence from the initial pilot programme, which involved 2,000 artists randomly selected from 8,000 applicants. A comprehensive government-commissioned study revealed multiple positive outcomes from the trial period.
Measurable Benefits and Economic Returns
Research demonstrated that the pilot scheme actually recouped more than its net cost of €72 million through several mechanisms:
- Increased arts-related expenditure by participants
- Productivity gains within the creative sector
- Reduced reliance on other welfare payments
Furthermore, the programme significantly lowered the likelihood of artists experiencing enforced deprivation and reduced their levels of anxiety and dependence on supplementary income sources.
Transforming Artists' Working Lives
Peter Power, a member of the National Campaign for the Arts steering committee, described the scheme as "a real-world test of what happens when people are given stability instead of precarity."
"Artists on the scheme spent more time creating and less time trapped in unrelated jobs just to survive, and many became better able to sustain themselves through their work alone," Power explained.
He highlighted that a more vibrant arts sector brings "myriad" benefits including greater economic activity, improved mental wellbeing, enhanced critical thinking and increased innovation throughout society.
Practical Implementation Details
The permanent scheme operates with specific eligibility rules designed to ensure broad access over time. Artists can receive support for three out of every six years, meaning an artist selected for the 2026–2029 cycle must skip the following cycle but can reapply for the subsequent one.
With an initial budget of €18.27 million (approximately £16 million), the programme will publish detailed guidelines in April. Applications for the cycle beginning in 2026 will open in May, with payments commencing in September and continuing until September 2029. Selection will continue to be conducted randomly from eligible applicants.
Balanced Perspectives on the Scheme
While artists have broadly welcomed the initiative, Jenny Dagg, a sociologist from Maynooth University who studied the scheme, noted that eligible artists cannot live solely on the weekly payments, which are designed as supplementary income rather than complete financial support.
Many artists have pointed out that they continue to face significant challenges including the ongoing cost of living crisis and housing affordability issues. In Dublin particularly, rents have doubled since 2013, forcing many young creatives to continue living with their parents despite the new income support.
International Context and Comparisons
While cities like New York and San Francisco have experimented with similar pilot schemes for artists, Ireland is believed to be the first country worldwide to establish such a programme on a permanent basis. This positions Ireland as an international leader in innovative cultural policy and creative sector support.
The establishment of this permanent basic income for artists represents a significant commitment to valuing cultural production and recognising the economic and social contributions of creative professionals to national life.
