Tax Robots, Fund People

What is SEBE?

A new way of funding society that taxes the energy and internet bandwidth used by automated systems (AI, datacenters, robots) instead of taxing workers’ wages.

Why do we need it?

Because robots and AI are taking jobs, which means fewer people paying income tax, which means the government runs out of money, unless we find a new way to raise revenue.

The Problem (In Plain English)

Right now, the government gets money mainly from:

Income Tax (taxes on your wages): £329 billion/year
National Insurance (more taxes on wages): £205 billion/year
VAT (tax when you buy things): £160 billion/year

Total from workers: £534 billion. That’s 42% of all government money.

But what happens when robots do the work?

Fewer people have jobs
Less income tax coming in
More people need support
Government goes broke

Meanwhile, companies making billions using AI and robots pay hardly any tax (they shift profits to Ireland, claim tax breaks, etc.)

The Solution (SEBE)

Tax what robots actually use:

1. Electricity (kWh)

Datacenters use massive amounts of power
AI training uses as much electricity as small countries
Tax the electricity instead of the workers

2. Internet Bandwidth (Mbps)

Cloud computing, AI services, automated systems all use data
Companies pay for bandwidth already, now they pay tax on it too
Tax the data flow instead of the workers

How Much Money Does This Raise?

SEBE starts at £38 billion per year (2030 launch) and grows automatically with automation

By 2040: £93 billion per year By 2045: £159 billion per year

As machines replace workers, the tax grows with the scale of automation. The more robots do the work, the more revenue comes in to support people.

What Do We Get From It?

It works in two stages:

Stage 1 (starts immediately): Universal Basic Income

Every adult gets a basic income that starts at around £650 per year and ramps up as SEBE revenue grows. It’s on top of whatever you already earn or receive. No conditions. No job required.

If you work, you keep your wages AND get the UBI
If you’re on benefits, you keep your benefits AND get the UBI
If you’re retired, you keep your pension AND get the UBI

Children get more (paid to parents):

Babies and toddlers (0-2): £5,000/year
Children (3-11): £3,500/year
Teenagers (12-17): £4,000/year

These amounts are based on what it actually costs to raise a child at each age, not an arbitrary percentage.

Plus: Universal Basic Services (phased in over years)

Free buses and trains (all public transport, introduced first)
Free energy (electricity and gas, to a reasonable amount)
Free internet and mobile (basic service)

Total value of free services when fully rolled out: £2,500 per person per year

The UBI and UBS roll out together as SEBE revenue grows. Transport comes first (highest impact, easiest to implement), then energy, then broadband.

Stage 2 (as robots take more jobs): Universal Living Income

As automation grows, SEBE revenue grows with it. The UBI payment increases over time from its initial ~£650/year until it reaches £29,000 per year (tax-free).

Why £29,000? Because that’s what the average full-time worker actually takes home after tax. A median earner makes £39,000 gross, but after income tax and National Insurance, they take home about £31,500. Take away the £2,500 of free services you’re already getting, and £29,000 is the right number.

Combined: £29,000 cash + £2,500 free services = £31,500 spending power. That’s the same as a median salary, without working.

Who Pays For It?

Not you. The companies using automation.

Big datacenters (Google, Amazon, Microsoft) use:

Millions of pounds of electricity per month
Massive internet bandwidth
They pay the tax

AI companies running servers:

Training AI uses huge power
Running AI uses constant bandwidth
They pay the tax

Automated factories:

Robots use electricity
Automated systems use data
They pay the tax

Small businesses (under 500kW) are exempt. This only affects large-scale automation.

Common Questions

“Won’t companies just leave the UK?”

No, because:

Datacenters are physical (can’t just move them)
If they use offshore servers, we tax it double (makes it cheaper to stay in UK)
UK becomes attractive for datacenter investment (clear rules, good infrastructure)

“Won’t prices just go up?”

Some prices might, but:

You’re getting free transport, energy, and internet as they phase in (saves you thousands)
Plus the UBI cash payment (starts at ~£650, grows from there)
Even if some prices rise, you’re still much better off
Companies will invest in efficiency to reduce their tax (good for environment)

“Will people still work?”

Stage 1 starts at ~£650/year. Nobody quits their job for £54 a month.

The payment only grows to meaningful levels (£5,000, £10,000, eventually £29,000) as automation scales up. By the time we reach full ULI (£29,000/year), robots will have taken most of the jobs anyway. That’s the whole point: the income replaces the jobs that automation destroys.

And evidence from around the world (Alaska, Finland, Kenya) shows that when you give people a basic income, they don’t stop working. They start businesses, retrain, care for their families, and do better work because they’re not desperate.

“Why not tax the AI computations directly?”

Some people suggest taxing “FLOPS” (the calculations AI does). This sounds logical but doesn’t work in practice:

There’s no standard “calculation” to count. Different chips measure it differently. A company can switch hardware and their count changes even though the work is identical.
There’s no meter for calculations. Energy has physical meters that can’t be faked. Calculation counts come from software that companies control.
It punishes efficient technology. A newer chip that does the same job in fewer calculations would pay less tax. You’d incentivise keeping old, wasteful hardware running.

Energy is the honest measure. Every computer, every AI, every robot uses electricity. You can’t fake a power meter. Tax the electricity.

“Is this socialism/communism?”

No, it’s capitalism adapted for automation:

Companies still compete and make profits
Markets still work
But society captures some of the automation benefit
Like how oil countries use oil wealth for their people (Norway does this)

“What about inflation?”

Stage 1 won’t cause inflation because:

Starting at ~£650/year is a tiny supplement (minimal demand shock)
The money comes from taxing companies, not printing money
Free services actually reduce your costs (deflationary)
SEBE pulls money out of corporations (anti-inflationary)

It’s just shifting money from corporations to people. Total amount in the economy stays balanced.

What Does This Mean For You?

If you’re working:

You keep your job and your wages. On top of that, you get a cash payment (starting small, growing over time) and free public services as they roll out. Transport, energy, broadband. Every year, as automation grows, the payment grows too. You are strictly better off than today.

If you’re a parent:

Your children get their own supplement (paid to you), on top of your own payment. Children’s rates are set by what it actually costs to raise a child at each age, not an arbitrary percentage. Free transport means getting to school costs nothing. Free energy means heating the house isn’t a choice between that and food.

If you’re retired:

Your state pension stays exactly the same. The UBI is on top of it, not instead of it. Free buses mean you can visit family. Free energy means you don’t have to choose between heating and eating.

When Stage 2 arrives:

As automation grows, so does the payment, eventually reaching £29,000/year (matching what a median earner takes home today). By then, many of today’s jobs won’t exist anyway, because automation will have replaced them. The income replaces the job. See the full distribution model for detailed workings.

How Does It Get From Stage 1 to Stage 2?

Here’s the clever bit:

SEBE starts (taxes automation infrastructure)
Everyone gets ~£650/year (plus free transport phases in first)
People spend that money (shops, restaurants, local businesses)
Local economy booms (especially in poorer areas)
Government gets more tax from the extra economic activity
Combined revenue grows (SEBE + extra tax from the boom)
UBI increases (to £1,000, then £2,500, then £5,000, £10,000, and so on)
Meanwhile, automation grows (more robots = more SEBE revenue)
Eventually: £29,000/year (Universal Living Income)

It’s a positive spiral. The more automation replaces jobs, the more SEBE revenue there is to fund the income that replaces those jobs.

Why This Matters Right Now

The UK is at a crossroads:

Path 1: Do Nothing

Automation continues
Jobs disappear
Tax revenue collapses
Government cuts everything (austerity forever)
Social breakdown

Path 2: SEBE

Tax the automation
Fund everyone’s living
Keep society running
Share the automation wealth instead of letting companies hoard it

What Happens Next?

If Green Party (or any party) adopts SEBE:

2026-2028: Put it in the manifesto, build public support 2028-2029: General election (coalition government) 2029-2030: Pass the law, build metering infrastructure 2030: Stage 1 begins (~£650/year UBI, free transport phases in) 2031-2040: UBI increases as automation and SEBE revenue grow 2040+: Approaching full ULI (£29,000/year)

From day one of SEBE: you get ~£650/year plus free transport starting to roll out.

Whether you work or not. Whether you’re young or old. Whether you’re rich or poor.

Everyone gets it. Because the robots are doing the work.

The Bottom Line

Technology should make life better, not worse.

Right now:

Robots take jobs
Workers suffer
Companies get rich
Society gets poor

With SEBE:

Robots take jobs
Workers get income (and free services)
Companies still profit (just pay fair share)
Society thrives (everyone shares the wealth)

This isn’t science fiction. The revenue starts from day one.

The technology exists. The wealth exists. We just need the political will to tax robots instead of people.

Three Things You Can Do Right Now

1. Join a party that supports this

Green Party has 195,000 members and is growing. They support UBI and need a funding mechanism. This could be it.

2. Tell your MP you want automation taxed

Don’t let them say “we can’t afford it.” £38 billion at launch (growing to £159 billion) says we can.

The more people understand that taxing robots is possible, the harder it is for politicians to ignore.

Questions?

“This sounds too good to be true” It’s not magic. It’s just: tax the actual productive infrastructure (robots) instead of the human workers they’re replacing. SEBE starts at £38 billion and grows automatically with automation. It starts modest and scales up as the economy transforms. The numbers work.

“Why hasn’t anyone done this before?” Automation wasn’t advanced enough. Now it is. We’re the first generation where this is both necessary and possible.

“What if it doesn’t work?” Stage 1 starts very modestly (~£650/year) and ramps up gradually. If it works, it increases naturally with automation growth. If something needs adjusting, we adjust it. That’s why it’s two stages with a gradual ramp, not one big leap.

The future is automated. The question is: Do the robots work for everyone, or just for the people who own them?

SEBE is how we make robots work for everyone.

For technical details, see the full policy paper (SEBE: Green Party Policy Submission or Infrastructure-Based Taxation for the Post-Employment Economy). For revenue derivation, see SEBE Revenue Model. For distribution workings, see SEBE Distribution Model. For questions, contact [your details].

This is a citizen proposal. It needs your support to become reality.