In normal times, cash payments regardless of individual need would be too expensive, poorly targeted, and distortionary, says IEA Economics Fellow Julian Jessop.

However, as Julian argues in a debate column for City AM, these are not normal times, and “an initial sum payment of, say, £1,000 to each person of work age would go some way towards making sure that all households can continue to afford essentials.”

Read the full column here.