While the COVID-19 pandemic and cost of living crisis has exacerbated social inequalities and economic insecurity, it has also opened a window of opportunity to explore new forms of policy innovation to build back a fairer and more economically secure society. In a new report for the Work and Equalities Institute (WEI), Professor Anthony Rafferty and Alex Macdougall from The University of Manchester evaluate universal basic income and the case for a Greater Manchester (GM) pilot of guaranteed basic income as pledged by Mayor Andy Burnham.