Could online marketplaces tackle poverty?
The case for accessible Internet marketplaces which could create economic opportunities for people in poverty.
'National e-markets' would be safe, convenient, accessible Internet marketplaces with ultra-low overheads. The private sector alone cannot create these marketplaces, but they could quickly be realised using the same model that created the National Lottery. Recommendations include:
- Government should not fund, design, build or operate such marketplaces, but it could:
- provide a regulatory framework and access to validation procedures;
- divert public spending to local communities through the new markets, which could encourage the private sector to create regulated markets in return for a small cut of each transaction.
- Positive results for government could include:
- a new tool for tackling worklessness;
- more precise public services;
- a new model for skills; and
- benefits efficiencies.
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