Coming from a nation which has very generous benefits for not working and very high taxes for low income earners, there is one thing I've learnt in economics that actually does apply: people respond to incentives. If you pay people a lot not to work, they won't work.

This means I think this idea is really, really bad. Not even the Greens support it around here anymore.

In my opinion a much better alternative is a high basic tax discount - for example not paying any taxes at all for the first 1000 euros earned every month. After the first 1000 the tax can be as progressive as you feel like.

Peak oil is not an energy crisis. It is a liquid fuel crisis.