Ireland will soon start a universal income program for arts and culture workers. They plan to develop a three-year plan that will in total cost about $28 million a year; close to 2,000 artists will be paid $370 a week and granted venues to perform in public.

Deirdre Falvey of the Irish Times said, “It has the potential to be a historic milestone for the arts in Ireland, a reflection of a nation that truly and authentically understands and supports the artistic process.”

According to Business Insider, reports in October found that one-third of jobs in the music industry in the United Kingdom were lost during the pandemic; employment in the sector fell “from an all-time high of 197,000 in 2019 to 128,000 in 2020, a 35% decrease.” 

Ellen Nelson, a senior master teacher of the arts at Hill, agreed with the effort and the ideas of Ireland but believes in a different approach. She believes that instead of taking money from the government, citizens can instead try to donate personally to the artist, using services like Kickstarter or Patreon. Nelson elaborated, saying that using money from the government is unfair because it takes away from the general population; however, if people can instead decide whether or not they want to help an artist, not only is the artist bound to receive help, citizens will feel like they are a part of something.

“I’m glad Ireland is doing this for the ARTS that in return will help benefit the world,” Diane Deery, the chair of Hill’s Arts Department, stated in an email. Deery also said that she is very excited to see artists continue doing what they love. She worries about the selection process; however, she does not see a better way of doing it.