I'm not convinced these big bang experiments, in the context of a wider economy not organised around the concept, are that useful.<p>For me one of this big advantages of BI is not enabling more people to 'drop out' of the productive economy and become artist such. It's actually the way in which it subsidises low income jobs. One of the big problems we have at the moment is low paying work being squeezed out of the economy through automation and increases in the minimum wage. A basic Income enables more people dropping out of the labour force to get back into it, because with a BI low paying jobs become a more viable way to earn a living. This gets people out of the poverty trap and also makes businesses dependent on low wage work more viable. It could be a real shot in the arm for the employment sectors that the most vulnerable people in our economy depend on.<p>On that basis, rather than pick a few thousand people to give a large BI to, why not start by providing a very modest BI to everybody. Fund it by equally modest tax increases, so it's revenue neutral. You could start with on the order of a hundred bucks (quid, whatever) a month. If a BI is going to have a beneficial effect, then even at this level it ought to do some measurable good.