As Canada's social safety net continues to be eroded and the gap between rich and poor in our society continues to grow, it becomes increasingly urgent to confront the problems of poverty in fresh and creative ways.

Political scientist François Blais offers a bold new proposal to assist the poorest and most disadvantaged in our society: a guaranteed basic income, or allowance, to be paid to every Canadian citizen. Elaborating on ideas endorsed by two Nobel laureates, Blais outlines how a program might be implemented that would replace the present profusion of social assistance programs with a single, universal benefit.

Stimulating and original, Ending Poverty offers an important contribution to the ongoing debate over social justice in this country.

Originally published in French as Un revenu garanti pour tous.

Translated by Jennifer Hutchison.

FRANÇOIS BLAIS was one of the most exciting contemporary voices of Quebec literature. Considered an underground superhero of French writing, he was the author of 10 novels, two collections of short stories, and four children's books. In 2020, Blais won the Governor General's Award for French-language children's literature for Lac Adélard. Document 1, which was released in French in 2013 to great critical acclaim, was his first novel to be translated into English. Blais passed away on May 14, 2022. He was 49.

François Blais' profile page