Ireland’s basic income scheme for artists is to become a permanent fixture, with research showing that for every €1 of public money invested in its pilot form, wider society received €1.39 in return.
In July this year, politicians had announced a six-month extension to the trial programme, which first began running in September 2022.
But findings prepared for the Irish Department of Culture, Communications and Sport by alma economics reveal that the programme has produced a wealth of benefits for both artists and the society in which they live.
Minister for Culture Patrick O’Donovan has now liaised with other government departments to continue and expand the scheme, which first worked with some 2,000 participants.
Speaking ahead of Ireland releasing its budgetary plans for the coming year, O’Donovan said: “The Basic Income for the Arts pilot scheme, which I extended this year, will end in 2026, and I will bring a successor scheme to government with the intention of embedding a permanent basic income in the arts and culture sector.
“This scheme is the envy of the world, and a tremendous achievement for Ireland, and must be made futureproof and sustainable.”
Improving artists’ autonomy and well-being
Over a three-year period, hundreds of Irish creative professionals have received a payment of €325 per week.
The regular payment came without conditions, and aimed to address what the Cost-benefit analysis for the Basic Income for the Arts (BIA) report called “longstanding challenges in the sector, including low and unstable earnings and limited job security”.
Early research into the pilot had previously found that six months on from joining the scheme, artists receiving the weekly stipend had experienced improvements in mental well-being. After one year, recipients said they were spending, on average, eight hours a week more on their artistic practice.
But the latest findings reveal recipients were nearly 20 percentage points less likely to feel they had to struggle to make ends meet.
Notably, psychological and well-being improvements were particularly felt among female recipients.
Those benefits, however, were felt by those enjoying the fruits of artists’ work, as well as participants, according to the report.
Researchers found “gains in cultural and arts value for audiences”, writing that “engagement with the arts generated an estimated €16.9m in social value over the three pilot years”.
“This reflects wider benefits that extend beyond individual recipients to reach
broader communities from public policy supporting the arts in Ireland,” the report states.
Income growth
Meanwhile, recipients’ personal income from the arts rose across all groups participating, in what the report terms “meaningful increases”.
Those working in theatre earned an average of €702 more each month, those in music €673.4 more, and those in film €496 more.
“This suggests that the BIA broadly supports income growth from artistic work across disciplines, although the scale of improvement varies,” the findings state.
Arts-related income increased by more than €500 per month on average, while income from non-arts work decreased by around €280, suggesting participating creative professionals could focus more deeply on their practice rather than finding unrelated jobs simply to subsist.
“One year into the programme, BIA recipients spend 2.7 fewer hours per week in
non-arts work, with this reduction increasing to 4.3 fewer hours spent working outside of the arts by the final wave,” the report authors write.
“This reduction likely reflects both a shift in artists’ need for supplementary income and an increased ability to prioritise their artistic practice.”
In addition, dependence on social protection declined, with participants receiving €100 less per month on average. They were also 38 percentage points less likely to receive Jobseeker’s payments.
Going forward
Applications for the next stage of the scheme, which is not means-tested, will open in September 2026.
Eligibility criteria is to be broadened to include additional artistic disciplines not covered under the original pilot.
Culture Minister O’Donovan said: “The economic return on this investment in Ireland’s artists and creative arts workers is immediately having a positive impact for the sector and the economy overall.”