Augustine H.H. Tan
Singapore
“There are instances when reserves should be used, but the govern- ment has to make a case to the President and if good arguments are used, the President is expected to concur. I therefore end by asking you, as you have done in your speeches, to support this Bill with a very loud "Aye" when it comes to the vote. [Applause].”
“We must have confidence that in the end, as Singaporeans, we know what is overall best for ourselves. We are a community of free citizens committed to making Singapore a great city to live in and for foreigners to come visit and admire.”
“There is such a thing as initiative. Who initiated the project? What was the objective of the project? And there is such a thing as economies of scale, the benefits of which are passed on to the taxi drivers. Let us not forget those elements. An hon. Member: They do not pay tax on their income.”
“They can still enjoy the seafood regardless of the indigestion. They can do the shopping and do other things in Johor Baru. I believe that what is important for us is that we do not preclude ourselves the option of setting our own national policies.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Minister stated that it is undesirable to employ foreigners to run child care centres because they affect the values of our children. Is it not also true that by having foreign maids in our homes that they too directly impact upon the values of our children?”
“It was a point which I brought out much earlier when a similar matter was debated here in Parliament. Because the government could borrow on the basis of the reserves even though the President has one key to the reserves because there is such a thing as credit-worthiness of the country.”
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“I fully agree with the observation, Sir, but I would like to ask why there is no provision of legal aid for criminal cases apart from murder cases. A poor person who is unfortunate enough to be involved in a criminal case and who cannot afford a lawyer is likely to suffer more injustice. I hope hon. Members who are in the legal profession will give some thought to this and perhaps even volunteer their legal services to the poor. Some hon. Members: Yes.”
“The Member for Katong is rather concerned about this. I think he has such flats in his constituency. Well, if they do not have private toilets, then I would say instal the private toilets. But make sure that the HDB does not add on to the rental for the inclusion of the toilets. Furthermore, as I said earlier, more recreational facilities for the poor people can be provided nearby. Sir, I would also like the HDB to reexamine its concept of family income used in its housing rules. A family income of $600 per month earned by the head of household is meaningful, but when the sum is earned by himself and three or four children, what the family has at its disposal depends on the generosity of the children and you cannot expect a young man earning $150 or $200 to contribute more than $20. $30 or at the most $50 per month to the family. A rigid application of the family income rules, therefore, imposes hardship on some people who are forced to buy instead of renting their flats or who are forced in many cases to accept bigger flats than they would wish. Sir, I would also like to suggest that the Ministry of Social Affairs should re-examine the quantum of welfare relief payable to needy and destitute persons. An old person with no children or relatives to support them and who has no savings and is unable to work cannot possibly survive on the $40 or $50 per month given by the Social Welfare Department. For such destitute cases, Sir, there is no question of disincentives for working that higher welfare payments might bring to the able-bodied, The Addendum on the Prime Minister's Office also states that we have achieved a more equal and more just society than it has ever been in the past.”
“An extra $10 per month in estimated charges is a big blow to a poor person; moreover, the extra estimate may require an increase in the PUB deposit, not to mention the surcharge. I have also noticed that the HDB tends to provide more open spaces and recreational facilities nearer the three-room, four-room and five-room flats, This is certainly true in Balestier Estate. The more pressing needs of the people who live in one-room flats should be given priority. I understand also that the HDB is planning to remodel the old one-room emergency flats to convert them into two-room units. My colleague, the Member for Kampong Chai Chee, referred to this earlier. Although this seems to be an improvement, I am wondering what will happen to the present dwellers. Their present rental of $26 per month will surely be increased. This happened to four blocks of the old emergency flats in Whampoa some three or four years ago. The people were just moved out of these flats and they had to move to more expensive flats as a result. I would therefore urge the HDB to make improvements in ventilation and lighting but without depriving residents of their cheap rental.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise to support the Motion in the name of the Member for Ulu Pandan. One of my friends was complaining the other day that he has to earn $1 in order to spend 50c, as he is in the 50% income tax bracket. He did not seem to realise that he is one of the fortunate few at the top of the income ladder and that in 1975, 141,485 out of 638,432 or 22% of the CPF contributors earned below $200 per month in wages. Many of these workers have families to support. Imagine. Sir, the plight of a widow in her forties, who is illiterate and has three or four children still in school. She qualifies only to be a sweeper or cleaner, earning no more than $200 per month. Out of this amount, $26 goes to the HDB for the cheapest one-room emergency-type flat, $30 or so goes to the PUB; the rest of the paltry wage must sustain a family of four or five. Sir, I am happy, therefore, to read the Addendum on the Prime Minister's Office that Government is committed to help the most needy. May I venture some suggestions? First of all, the Hawkers' Department should be less stingy in issuing hawkers' licences, particularly to widows, old people and people who are unfit for other work. Apparently, there is a 5% provision for hardship cases but, in practice, very few actual hardship cases are granted licences as the rules laid down are too rigid and nobody knows how the 5% rule is really interpreted. My second suggestion is that, when revisions are necessary in respect of health, education and rental charges, we should bear in mind the plight of the low-income people. A $2 charge means nothing to a Permanent Secretary or Deputy Secretary, but it means a lot to the poor. Another suggestion is that the PUB should make a special effort to estimate bills for the poor fairly and accurately.”
“In the case of population control, why take on sterilisation and use that as a lever to get people to practise population control? Even in the case of abortion, it is clearly a very objectionable measure. The Catholic stand is very simple, namely, that human beings are more than mere animals, I can bring my cat or dog to the veterinary department for sterilisation because I do not want the cat or the dog to proliferate, but human beings are totally a different matter altogether. The Government is only a temporary guardian of the land. It is made up of individuals who are mortal and all are subject to the same law of God.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise to voice my deep regret that the Government has chosen to retain the use of sterilisation as an incentive for admission to schools. Sir, there is no disagreement on the need for population control; neither have I strong objection to preference being given to a two-child family, though one could argue reasonably about the human rights of every child born into this world by mistake or by intention. There are some questions that Government should consider carefully. Is it necessary at all to use sterilisation to achieve population control? Are there no other less objectionable means? In any case, how many babies are thereby prevented from being conceived? Is it right at all for the majority to ignore the strong convictions of a minority? What will it cost to the majority to reject the use of sterilisation as a means of obtaining priority of admission? Sir, let me emphasise here that the right to govern is not in question at all here. What I question is whether the same objective, namely, population control, cannot be attained by less objectionable means. Surely Government should try to accommodate as many points of view as possible without having to sacrifice its basic good objectives. And here, Sir, Members are aware of the valuable contributions that the Catholic schools have made in Singapore -contributions to the stability, growth and well-being of Singapore by producing good citizens with the right values and attitudes. People may choose to question about values and systems of values, but I think there are boundaries beyond which the Government should not intrude upon, unless there are good rational reasons for doing so.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise to support the point made by the Member for Jalan Kayu. At a time when we are facing economic difficulties I do think that we should not be too rigid in the application of rules and regulations, especially in the use of buildings or, as he has described them, cottage industries, or even to have self-employment at home. If we are too rigid, then I think we are going to exacerbate the problem of unemployment. Mr Ho Kah Leong(In Mandarin): Mr Speaker, Sir, several MPs from the rural areas have already spoken on the problems of housing and housing control. I would like to place on record my support for their sentiments expressed in this House. Sir, we always face such problems in the rural areas, for example, problems of alterations, renovations or repairs. If these people have to engage an architect to draw up a plan, it will cost them a lot of money. So they buy the standard plan available from the Building Control Division but such plans have certain restrictions on the land area which should not exceed 1 .000 sq, ft. But in the rural areas many of the families have more than 10 persons each, and all of them are crammed into a space of 1.000 sq, ft. I think this is too much. The Member for Punggol has raised this point and I fully endorse his suggestion that we should not be rigid and allow them to build the latrine outside the house. If built inside, the smell is not only there at meal times but also when they sleep. I do not know whether the plan designers have drawn up such plans in their own air-conditioned offices or whether they have really seen life in the rural areas. We can ask them: what is the reason for insisting that the latrine should be built within the four walls of the house?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I am happy to note that the Ministry of Labour has done so much and so well in the field of workers' safety. I have just a little question to ask the Senior Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Labour. He has said just now that the Ministry of Labour has printed many pamphlets for distribution to the workers in respect of safety. I recall that two days ago in this very Chamber he complained about the high rate of illiteracy in Singapore. I am just wondering how he can get the workers to read the pamphlets?”
“In the other four ASEAN countries, the key economic problem is not industrial but agricultural in nature. Yet, despite a resolution to stabilise commodity prices and to intensify cooperation in the production of basic necessities. particularly for food and energy, more attention seems to have been paid to industrial rather than agricultural development in the region. The urgent need is to improve the lot of the peasant if communist insurgency is to be contained. In order to attract more investments into the region, ASEAN as an organisation could jointly provide as well as seek investment guarantees for long-term foreign investment. Finally, may I offer some comments on some non-economic policy issues in Singapore? I am particularly concerned about the use of sterilization as a means of getting children into choice schools and as a means of obtaining marriage licences for non-citizens. Fifteen priests recently voiced their objection to these moves in an open letter to the Prime Minister. While the wording of the letter is too strong, the moral issue is a genuine one. Government is rightly concerned about excessive population growth but it should not advocate immoral means to attain its good objectives. "Render to Caesar the things which are Caesar's, and to God the things which are God's" says the Bible. Priests should not govern but neither should government attempt to influence individual moral choices. Mr Speaker, Sir, unfortunately I was abroad during the debate on the Abortion Bill. I take this opportunity to register my strong objection on moral grounds. I believe the Member for Punggol is with me on these issues. With these reservations, I give my support to the Minister for Finance. 3.43 p.m.”
“Our young graduates from the schools, colleges and universities should orientate their attitudes correctly - they should display eagerness to learn and proper team spirit, take great pride in their work and expect to work hard for their promotions and wage increases. In times of general economic boom even mediocre managers and executives can be successful; in times of tough competition, only the ablest and the fittest survive. Consequently, if our economy is to stand up to the rigours of international competition and if we are to weather future recessions successfully, our services and products must bear the hallmarks of quality and reliability and our people and leaders should demonstrate the capacity to bear sacrifices and to respond to changing conditions with minimum trauma. Our economy was hard hit in the last two years by the world recession, Let us make no mistake about that? The lesson should not be lost on us as we face the future. We should re-double our efforts to sell our goods and services abroad. In this connection, the recent move to set up the export credit insurance guarantee scheme is a step in the right direction. The Minister for Finance also mentioned that, last year, we sent six major trade missions abroad while 30 foreign missions came to Singapore. I hope we can reverse the figures in future years! Sir, may I now offer some comments about recent developments in ASEAN. The Prime Minister said rightly in Bali recently that "the basic question is how to ensure continuing stability by stimulating economic development to resolve social and political problems. Otherwise, increasing disaffection and discontent will fuel incipient insurgencies into full-scale revolutions".”
“Thus, from the analysis of the four factors of prices of petroleum, food and raw materials, technology and international monetary arrangements, we can conclude that while the world economy should do well this year, and perhaps the next, the longer term outlook is clouded with much uncertainty. Inflation is an abiding problem even though excess capacity of some 10-20% has been reported. Bottlenecks will occur as the excess capacity is not uniformly spread and the velocity of circulation of money will rise with increasing economic activity. Hence, unless the world has a good harvest this summer and OPEC exercises restraint, we can expect prices to be on the move again in the second half of the year. What then can we conclude about Singapore's economic prospects? This year, and perhaps 1977, we should do reasonably well, perhaps briefly even touching double-digit growth rates again. However, unemployment could become a serious problem, if sufficient new investments are not forthcoming. We should not forget that we are in keen competition with other countries and with other regions. We face what may be described as a sandwich problem. In low technology areas, our existing industries can expect, tough competition as other developing nations learn the ropes of industry. In higher technology fields, we must attract firms from the advanced countries and upgrade our existing ones. Both are not easy to achieve. It would consequently be fatal for us to indulge in euphoria as we recover from the recession. Instead, we should re-examine our work habits and attitudes. Do we take sufficient pride in our work, or do we care only for quick profits and quick returns? Do we deserve the wage and salary increases that we have had over the past several years?”
“In addition the IMF will sell off 1/6th of its gold to benefit poor developing countries and return another 1/6th to member-countries. The committee also agreed to boost IMF quotas by 33%, thus increasing their borrowing capacity accordingly. I view all these measures as inflationary. Already, the floating of exchange rates has made governments feel freer in disposing of their foreign exchange reserves, since they are no longer committed to defend exchange rates within fixed margins. Moreover. countries feel freer to pursue their own monetary policies to meet domestic objectives without worrying too much about the balance of payments. The agreement to contain exchange rate fluctuations is also inflationary because it attacks the symptoms and not the causes of the disease. As long as divergent domestic imperatives of unemployment and inflation result in different rates of money supply increases and budget deficits, exchange rates cannot be stable. To compound difficulties, relatively free capital movements between countries will mean that inflation will be freely exported and re-exported. If, for example, a major industrial country were to increase its money supply unduly compared to others, this will cause capital to move out, and its currency value to depreciate. By the Rambouillet agreement, the other major industrial countries will step in to prevent too large a depreciation of the currency in question. This results in unintended increases in their money supplies as domestic currency must be used to buy up foreign exchange. The abolition of the official price of gold increases the value of gold reserves by a factor of three as the market price is at least three times the official price of gold. This effectively increases world reserves by some US$80 billion.”
“In the current world economic recovery, therefore, the advanced countries and the developing countries in consequence, may suffer from prolonged unemployment, if there is inadequate investment of the innovative type. If this should be the case, more inflation will result as Government frantically try to prevent unemployment by Keynesian pump-priming techniques of deficit financing and increases in money supply. Moreover. Governments, hard-pressed by unemployment, may try to export it via competitive devaluations of their currencies and via protective trade measures The recent turmoil in European money markets involving sterling and the French Franc is a symptom of what I am describing. Unfortunately, we can only watch with anguish to see if new investments are sufficiently forthcoming in the advanced countries. Members will note that virtually every report indicates the seriousness and persistence of unemployment in the industrial countries for several years to come, and I believe the Member for Telok Blangah made an earlier reference to the same point. 4. International Monetary Arrangements My fourth point concerns international monetary arrangements. In November last year, the leaders of the six largest industrial nations met at the Rambouillet Summit to try and coordinate their economic policies. Among the agreements reached were presumably those measures adopted by the International Monetary Fund's committee on monetary reform in January this year at Jamaica. In particular, the major industrial countries agreed to contain gyrations in exchange rates of their currencies by mutual support operations. The official price of gold was abolished.”
“Investments can be viewed as comprising three components: (a) replacement investment of aged equipment (b) investment to meet demands of increasing population and affluence for existing goods and services, and (c) investment stimulated by new technology which result in new goods and services being demanded Economists and governments usually act as though, with the right incentives via tax rebates and lower interest rates, new investments are easily forthcoming. The first two categories of investment that I mentioned earlier do indeed respond accordingly. However, the third type of investment depends on technological innovations about which economists know very little. Yet. I strongly suspect that, without such innovative investments, the industrial countries will suffer from dynamic under-employment as opposed to the static kind of Keynesian unemployment. In my view, technical innovations take place in two stages. The first occurs when some new idea strikes some obscure scientist in some humble laboratory. Years, perhaps decades or centuries later, such new ideas may be implemented commercially via the much vaunted Research and Development of corporations. A breakthrough like the steam engine, jet engines, the transistor and petrochemicals leads to the creation of whole new industries, resulting in much economic growth and new employment because even old industries benefit from the input demand and expenditure from rising incomes, The trouble is that we cannot guarantee sufficient innovations. Witness the meagre results of billions of dollars of expenditure of brilliant manpower and expensive equipment in cancer research.”
“On the basis of facts presented, it is difficult to tell who is right and who is wrong. However, we should bear in mind that vested interests are involved. Interestingly enough, since the energy crisis and the formation of other commodity cartels, the Club of Rome has back-tracked from its earlier pessimistic forecasts. In my view, however, the success of OPEC and the recent volatility of food and commodity prices, plus the inexorable march of world population, should be sufficient causes for alarm. Singaporeans should not expect the recent falls in the price of rice to be a permanent and continuing process. For the world as a whole, shortages of food, materials and energy will mean lower standards and higher costs of living unless counterbalanced by technological progress. 3. Technology This brings me to my third point. I have been watching the economic recovery in the U.S, with great interest. So far, the recovery has been based upon replacements of inventory and some rise in consumption demands, but very little investment, The weekly magazine. The Economist, has noted that "the average age of industrial equipment in Europe at the end of this 1974-76 recession is older than it was at the end of the 1970-71 recession; while in America all capitalists have ambitious contingent investment programmes for the future". So The Economist concluded that the prospects are cheerful that the industrial countries may pull out of this recession with investment-led recovery. However, I would hesitate to leap to the same conclusion.”
“The economic outlook for the world economy over the medium and long term depends on four interrelated factors: 1. Price of Petroleum Despite this morning's headlines, at least over the short and medium term, I believe we can expect the price of petroleum to rise inexorably. Hon. Members will note that OPEC was able to raise the price of oil by 10% last year in the face of world recession which had reduced the demand for oil. This June or July we can expect a 10-15% rise in the price of oil, for two reasons. Firstly, world demand will rise significantly with economic recovery. Secondly, contrary to expectations, most OPEC countries have been able to spend substantial amounts of their oil revenue. Hon. Members should be warned not to mistake the public posturing for real. Some OPEC governments are in the process of buying back oil concessions at the least price possible; hence they would not wish to encourage anticipation of further increase in the price of petroleum. 2. Prices of Food and Raw Materials The second factor concerns the prices of food and raw materials. Hon. Members will remember how food prices contributed significantly to our inflation particularly in 1973-74. World grain stocks are generally low so that minor harvest variations can lead to big swings in food prices. Had the Soviet Union not reportedly slaughtered substantial numbers of cattle and poultry last year, thus reducing their grains import requirements significantly, our food prices would have gone up instead of going down. As the world economy recovers, we can also expect raw material prices to rise. Members will note the extensive world debate about whether or not there will be shortages of food, basic materials and energy.”
“Two important points may be noted. One is that, while imported inflation subsided substantially, our GDP deflator, which is an index of inflation, still rose by at least 5 percent. Table XIII on cols. 85-6 shows that our wages rose on the average by 7 percent last year. The question that must be posed is whether our NWC recommendation last year and in previous years did not result in cost push inflation last year. The other point that Hon. Members might wish to note in Table XX is the surprisingly low increase in the deflator for the Service Sector of only 3%. In particular, the deflator for Wholesale and Retail Trade, Restaurants and Hotels rose by only 1 percent. Given the share of this sector of 28 percent of GDP, another 4 percent rise in the deflator would reduce our overall real GDP growth to about 3 percent. Now. I am not saying that a mistake has been made but I would feel more comfortable with some official explanation for the much below average increase in the deflator for the Services Sector. Let me now turn to our prospects for the current year. As the Minister for Finance has rightly noted, the economies of the U.S., Europe and Japan are in the process of recovery from the worst recession since the Great Depression. Given the slack in our trade and manufacturing, our immediate prospects are good. particularly if we can find new markets for petroleum products. Members will note that the value added for petroleum products in 1975 was barely two-thirds of that in 1974. Our medium-and longer-term prospects are more worrisome. Much would depend on the economic performance of the advance countries and on how potential investors look at Singapore as a base for their activities.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Hon. Minister for Finance has described our economy's performance in 1975 as a fair one though disappointing compared with the double digit growth rates of earlier years. I have studied carefully the figures that he presented to this House, and I reach the conclusion that our economic performance last year was a very poor one. Unemployment rose to at least 6%. Our two engines of growth, manufacturing and entrepot trade, went into reverse thrust, though signs of recovery became evident in the second half of last year. We cannot congratulate ourselves that our services sector provided some compensatory growth. Hon. Members can refer to columns 47-52 of the Economic Survey where they can see that we increased our GDP last year by making more telephone calls, riding in more taxis and buses, living in more HDB flats, and using more electricity, gas and water in our homes. These things certainly improve our welfare but they hardly provide us with any wherewithal to sustain our future standards of living. In other words, we were living on the fat of past capital accumulation! Hon. Members can refer to Tables 2.3 and2.6 of the Economic Survey (cols. 135-6 and 143-4) where they will see the heavy contribution by the Government sector in both consumption and capital formation last year. What is particularly disturbing is the negative rate of real private capital formation of -7.5%. Despite the substantial increase of 21.9% in the Government sector's capital formation, overall capital formation turned Out to be -2.1%. This means a diminution in the rate of growth of our productive capacity and employment generation. I would also like to refer Hon, Members to Table XX on cols. 95-6 of the Economic Survey entitled "Changes In GDP Deflators. 1973-75".”
“If our students really want to make their voices heard and want to make an impression on the people of Singapore and in the world at large, then they should be able to meet argument for argument and to present facts and to confront whatever opposing arguments in a manner befitting people who have received the benefit of higher education. Sir, I have appeared at many University forums and debates and I have found that the great majority of our students are rational and are responsive and responsible, and if we can somehow reach out to them to try and explain things to them, try to reason with them in a proper dialogue, my own feeling is that many of them would respond. Unfortunately, it is the radical lecturers and so on who seem to make the effort to reach out to these students. But fortunately the vast majority do not respond to them. 5.20 p.m.”
“I would hope that our student leaders will learn quickly that to be truly influential the leadership must be sound, must be constructive, and their honesty and integrity must he beyond question. At the recent meeting between the Vice-Chancellor and the students, the question of financial probity was raised because the auditors' report indicated some malpractices and misuse of Union funds. This is something which I am very disturbed and very concerned about as a University teacher, because if the younger people with the intellect and with higher education do not have financial responsibility and are not able to assert leadership which is sound, constructive and honest, then what kind of leadership can they subsequently offer to the people of Singapore? Sir, as I look at their publications and statements, I find that they do not reflect appropriately the intellectual standing of a University. The intellectual and factual content of debate is appallingly low. The standard of the Undergrad, in particular, has deteriorated over the years. The articles which are published are emotional and full of ideological blinkers. They do not reflect what the students have been taught at the University, and I have challenged my own students often to make use of the economic principles that I have taught them to appraise economic policies and problems of Singapore, of the region and of the world. I challenged them to make constructive replies to the garbage which is thrown up in the Undergrad from time to time on all manners of social, political and economic issues.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise to give my full support to this Bill. The Bill in no way hinders the basic rights of our students as citizens of Singapore. As a university lecturer I can vouch for the fact that the vast majority of our students are hard working, well motivated and taking full advantage of the higher education that we are affording them. Most of them are not concerned with Students' Union politics. As the Minister has pointed out, they are only a small minority of radicals, most of whom are not Singapore citizens. These radicals do not realise that attendance at the University is not a right. The cost of attending it is very heavily subsidised by society. Foreign students are here as guests of Singapore, paid for by the people of Singapore. The Government of Singapore, as the elected representatives of the people, have every right to restrict whatever freedoms and whatever privileges that these foreign students enjoy in Singapore. As for Singapore students, since society is paying for their higher education, let them not forget that only a very small proportion of our population are afforded higher education. Therefore, society has every right to expect that both students and lecturers at the University make constructive use of their time and facilities and that the University should not be used as a privileged, a protected political platform. As a matter of fact, Sir, the Minister in his statement has generously allowed for the formation of political clubs in the University. These clubs will allow the students to express themselves politically and would serve as an outlet for their exuberance, for their social concern and to increase or heighten their political awareness in their capacity as citizens of Singapore.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I am in general support of the amendment Bill. However, I feel that clause 5, which prohibits persons who have sold property within 30 months prior to date of application, has the unfortunate effect of penalising widows and orphans who may be forced by circumstances to sell their homes. Such widows and orphans will then be forced to wait six or seven years before getting a flat. I hope the Minister: will amend this particular clause of the Bill.”
“We can, however, by being vigilant, insulate ourselves to some degree. We can ensure our viability by working harder, by being prudent, and by maintaining a proper longer-term and national perspective. Our younger people must acquire greater skills and diligence. Perhaps the current difficulties will bring a dose of realism to the spendthrift and the job-hoppers, spurring them towards thrift and greater endeavours. 4.15 p.m.”
“Increasing output with a given input is only one way of looking at productivity. More important to us at this stage is to minimise inputs for any desired level of output. I therefore welcome the Labour Ministry's move to set up an Industrial Relations Division and the reorganisation of the NTUC. Tripartism must be exercised, not just at the top level. To achieve results, Sir, the principle must permeate down to the rank and file. What we should learn from the mistakes of the advanced countries is that wages are too important to be left to ordinary collective bargaining and that a spirit of mutual cooperation must prevail. Workers should be committed to the viability of the firm and both workers and management should keep in view the national interest. The fourth lesson we can draw is that fiscal and monetary policies should he made to serve the long-term interests of the nation. Short-term expediency leads to traumatic stop-go policies. We must indeed educate our people to accept unpleasant, even painful, measures that will pay off in the long run. We complain about high PUB bills, bus fares and HDB conservancy charges. It would be expedient, easy and popular for the Government not to raise such charges. But how will these services be financed? Higher taxes or printing more money are the alternatives - the first penalises the hard-working and enterprising, and the second produces inflation which, as hon. Members know, is indirect taxation. In the end, if we follow expedient measures, we shall all be the losers. Mr Speaker, Sir, there are many difficulties ahead as there is considerable uncertainty and instability in the world economy. As a small, open economy, we are highly vulnerable to external events.”
“However, I would urge Government to keep careful track of monetary policy at the highest level. This is because of the instability in the international monetary system and because, under floating exchange rates and capital mobility, monetary policy is a major instrument of control over economic activity. The lessons that emerge for us should be quite obvious. Firstly, we should continue to exercise financial prudence, making sure that new expenditures are properly justified and that the means to pay for them are available. Any fiscal deficit can only be justified if the projects enhance development and will eventually directly or indirectly pay for themselves. Secondly, we should maintain our climate of confidence for investors, ensuring that we do not erode incentives for hard work and enterprise. Thirdly, wages should be related to productivity. Workers must not get the attitude of wanting higher wages without acquiring the skills, the experience, or putting in the effort. In this connection, Sir, the National Productivity Board will do its best to promote productivity committees, and to help formulate policies to gear wages to productivity. The National Industrial Relations Committee has already met to discuss these issues. The members of the committee are drawn from the NTUC, the Singapore Employers' Federation, the National Employers' Council, the Singapore Institute of Management and the Labour Ministry, under the aegis of the National Productivity Board. Acquiring skills and raising productivity are the keys to our survival and prosperity. Some people have argued that it is meaningless to increase productivity at a time of recession because firms already have difficulty in selling their products or services.”
“For us in Singapore, we have no choice but to accept floating rates as our trade and sources of investment are diversified. We can have a fixed exchange rate if the international economy returns to a fixed rate system or if we tie ourselves exclusively to a particular currency and therefore a particular trading area. Our floating exchange rate poses a policy dilemma. On the one hand, allowing our rate to float upwards, as it has recently, may be helpful in reducing imported inflation, provided our importers and wholesalers pass on the benefits to retailers and consumers. On the other hand, allowing our dollar to appreciate would penalise the competitiveness of our goods and services abroad. To hold down the value of our currency would require the Monetary Authority of Singapore to buy up foreign exchange. However, unless such foreign exchange is sterilised, this would result in an undesirable increased money supply generated by the banking system. Sound monetary management is vital to the health of our economy especially when our exchange rate is floating. Our problem is compounded by the international mobility of capital. If other financial centres raise their interest rates, we have to raise ours, or else money will flow out, and conversely. To maintain our own set of interest rates independently would require controls on capital movements or interest equalisation taxes, or both. Such measures, however, would hinder our development as a financial centre. We have therefore to balance the gains from being a financial centre against the loss of control over interest rates and money supply. I, therefore, welcome the amalgamation of the Currency Board with the Monetary Authority of Singapore to form a central bank.”
“What is disturbing to me is that, with so much global interdependence in trade, investment and money flows, there is hardly any attempt at coordination of policies as vital as monetary and fiscal. Therefore, I would expect another round of inflation, without much alleviation of unemployment. I hope that the harvest this year will be good, for, with world food stocks so precariously low, any shortage will send food prices soaring, thus compounding inflation. There are three reasons why I expect further inflation. Firstly, monetary and fiscal stimulation produce considerable price effects for a given reduction in unemployment. Secondly, not many people are aware that monetary and fiscal policies do not work the same way when the exchange rate is floating and there is considerable mobility of capital. Thirdly, although there is controversy among economists, I am inclined to the view that floating exchange rates are an engine of international inflation. This is because wages and prices are flexible upwards but not downwards. So a depreciation of the exchange rate causes prices and wages to rise while an appreciation does not do the reverse to the same degree. The result is a net increase in world inflation. Another worrisome aspect about floating exchange rates is that there is a loss of stability - a loss of a stable point of reference. As hon. Members know, the American dollar has been depreciating rapidly and the OPEC countries are concerned about the price of oil as it is currently denominated in the American dollar. So far as I can see, there can be no return to stability and fixed exchange rates until and unless the major industrial countries are willing to coordinate their monetary, fiscal and trade policies.”
“However, in the meantime, demand-pull inflation, which was caused by the monetary and fiscal excesses, becomes wage-push inflation, as trade unions attempt to compensate for cost-of-living increases. The problem is made worse, because trade unions demand wage increases in excess of productivity and cost-of-living increases. Thus, inflation continues; at the same time, recession is brought about, as business firms experience a liquidity crunch on top of increasing costs of production. Since recession, which causes unemployment, is politically dangerous, the next reaction is to stimulate the economy by cutting taxes and easing credit. It is politically difficult to cut expenditures. In the meantime, tax revenues in a recession tend to decline, as income and employment are lower. Therefore, the tax-cut results in a huge budget deficit, which must be financed by borrowing or by easing credit. Borrowing at a time of recession is supposed to depress the economy further; hence, printing more money or easing credit is the standard solution. Thus, we see in America, President Ford's proposal to cut taxes to the tune of US$16 billion, and we read about his difficulties in getting Congress to trim expenditures. The two most depressed sectors in America are housing and the motor vehicle industry. Whether people who get the tax rebates will spend on housing and motorcars is one question. What happens to the money supply is a more critical question. And the rate at which the economy will turn around and with what degree of inflation depends on how much the confidence of businessmen has already been eroded. In the meantime, the Europeans are also easing fiscal and monetary policies and the Japanese are expected to do likewise shortly.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise to support the Motion of the hon. Member for Kim Keat. The President of our Republic has reminded us that we have thrived in the past because of self-discipline, hard work, thrift and enterprise. He also exhorted hon. Members to be guided by the long-term interests of our people and not to be swayed by short-term political considerations. We should take his reminder and his exhortation seriously. We have only to ponder upon the twin problems of inflation and recession, affecting the advanced countries and the international economy, to realise the truth of the President's words. In the advanced countries, government expenditures tend to increase inexorably, spurred by misguided, if well-motivated, compassion for the unemployed and the underprivileged. Every congressman and senator tries to get government projects for his own constituency. Subsidies are used as vote-catching devices. Such expenditures and subsidies must be financed by higher taxes or by printing more money, or both. Higher taxes hit those who are able to pay, penalising in the process not only the feudal rich but also the hard-working and the enterprising. Since higher taxes are politically unpopular, governments then resort to the additional, and easier, way of printing more money to finance the higher expenditures. The net result of the process is, firstly, the erosion of incentives for hard work and enterprise, and secondly, inflation, which penalises the thrifty, pensioners and fixed income-recipients, and which causes disorientation in production and consumption. Governments then react to curb inflation, principally by reducing the rate of increase in money supply.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the hon. Minister mentioned that the Housing Board has got to acquire land from the Government at market prices. Obviously this is pushing up the cost of these flats. May I suggest, Sir, that the Government refrain from making too much profit in selling land to the Housing Board? Mr Barker: That is a difficult question for me to answer, because I represent the Housing Board. I also represent the Commissioner of Lands who sells the land, and the Housing and Development Board comes under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of National Development. But it is not exactly taking from the left hand and giving it to the right hand. I cannot do a thing without reference to the hon. Minister for Finance who rightly looks after Government's money. BILLS INTRODUCED 3.11 p.m. LAND ACQUISITION (AMENDMENT) BILL "to amend the Land Acquisition Act (Chapter 272 of the Revised Edition)", presented by the Minister for Law and National Development (Mr E. W. Barker); read the First time, to be read a Second time on the next available sitting of Parliament, and to be printed. TIMBER INDUSTRY BOARD (INCORPORATION) BILL "to provide for the incorporation of the Timber Industry Board as a body corporate, for the purposes of promoting, regulating and improving the timber industry and trade, for the establishment of a Timber Industry Board Fund and for matters connected therewith, and to repeal the Timber Export Industry Board (Incorporation) Act (Chapter 203 of the Revised Edition)", presented by the Minister for Finance (Mr Hon Sui Sen); read the First time, to be read a Second time on the next, available sitting of Parliament, and to be printed. CONTROL OF ESSENTIAL SUPPLIES BILL First Reading”
“Together with its activities to encourage the formation and transmission of skills for our workers, enabling them to be more productive with a higher standard of living, Government should also look closely at the training of executive, managerial and marketing personnel, especially in the foreign firms. For without the development of skills and organisational know-how, we shall never achieve real development. Rapid development also makes skills obsolete fast; hence in the years ahead we would have to have a number of re-training programmes. Thirdly, as we develop rapidly, we shall have to face problems of phasing out the cottage-type industries. As long as land is available, these industries can be, and are, re-sited. However, the process must end inevitably for we have limited space. Government would need to study the problems of these industries, balancing equity with the efficiency needs of our country. Perhaps a system of outright subsidy can be implemented to encourage change to more desirable trades before costs of production push them out. For the low technology industries, like textiles and electronic circuitry assembly, the safety valve against the shortage of labour and rising wage cost may be to employ more married women. Factories can be more suitably located in housing estates and more creches built to help working mothers. Mr Speaker, Sir, with these observations, I give my full support to the Government's financial policy as outlined by the Minister for Finance. 3.08 p.m.”
“We can well afford the adjustment, Sir, provided the rate of inflation is higher in the advanced countries. I also applaud the substantial allocation to Social Services -- an increase of almost 50 per cent. In particular, the accelerated Housing and Development Board programme will benefit the lower-income group. Housing constitutes a major pillar of social stability. Besides, improved housing conditions and better recreational facilities for the working class will contribute substantially not only to their stability but also to their productivity. I also welcome the move by Government to provide tax reliefs for the support of parents and grandparents. However, as the last but one speaker said, the relief should be extended to include those parents and grandparents who are not living with the claimant. Extended families living under one roof, Sir, have become impractical in one and two-room flats. Looking ahead, in the longer run, I believe three major areas need attention. Firstly, real development would require that our industries upgrade or acquire higher technology. On the one hand, with rising wage costs and the increasing drive of other developing countries to industrialise, our low technology industries will face stiff competition. On the other hand, it is difficult to induce the middle- and higher-technology industries to come out here as these are not so pressed by escalating production costs in their own countries. I note with concern the figures quoted by the Minister. As he stated, manufacturing investment commitments fell from $716 million in 1971 to $252 million last year. This, Sir, reflects the difficulties I have mentioned. Secondly, I also welcome the setting up of the Industrial Training Board.”
“Sir, I believe Government should restrict ownership of residential properties to Singapore citizens and permanent residents, except for designated enclaves. Proxies may still be used to buy up property but severe penalties could he laid down. Countries like Switzerland have already long had such restrictions. In addition, all property transactions should be allowed no more than a rate of return of 15 per cent a year (with some flexibility for escalation of building costs). I prefer this to a capital gains tax because capital gains tax is expressed in terms of percentage, and you can always jack up the price to get more, and paying the Government taxes at the same time. But if you specify the rate of return, then, in this way, you can control the market better. In this way investment in properties will not be unduly profitable, speculation will be dampened and legitimate home-owners given the chance to be owners of property. The third area where inflation needs to be checked is the Stock Market. I welcome the Securities Industry Bill and the accompanying controls on Stock Market activities. As the Prime Minister and other Ministers have pointed out, the get-rich-quick mentality will prove detrimental to our productivity and work ethos. The regulations must, however, be designed in such a way as to control speculation which hurts the small investor while providing a smooth capital market for long-term investment. Mr Speaker, Sir, this year inflation will hit the lower income groups through the increase in import prices and the cost of services. I believe the National Wages Council should build in a component of cost-of-living adjustment, particularly for the lower wage earners.”
“In an unsettled international monetary arena, a small country like ours must apply exchange controls on the import of speculative capital or else we shall be overwhelmed by excess liquidity and unhealthy inflation. It would not be necessary to control export of capital as long as our economy remains vibrant. Besides, this would be unwise as it would be a deterrent to inflow of productive long-term investment. Mr Speaker, Sir, the recent move by the Monetary Authority of Singapore to increase reserve requirements of banks to 9 per cent is a necessary one to check excessive growth of money supply and corresponding inflation. However, I fear the measure will be ineffective, and I think it is discriminatory. Foreign banks are still free to bring in funds from abroad. This will place local banks at a disadvantage. Moreover, we should stipulate the absolute levels of foreign funds held by banks as well as maintain the higher reserve ratio. Otherwise with the increased inflow of funds, no matter what the reserve ratio, the money supply can be extended indefinitely. Paradoxically, Sir, we seem to have better control over our hawkers than over our bankers and stock brokers. The second major factor that would need to be considered in checking inflation is the property market. The boom is induced in part by the general level of economic activity, but is greatly exacerbated by speculation, fuelled particularly by the inflow of hot money. The unhealthy boom in the property market has severely penalised the middle and lower-middle income groups, the executive and the professional people. It has also contributed significantly to the Stock Market boom as shares were re-valued in the light of higher property prices.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise to congratulate the Finance Minister for his lucid presentation of the Budget. The growth rate of 13 per cent in our GNP has been greeted with applause, especially in the context of a turbulent world economy. The Government's financial position is excellent and a boom psychology prevails in the banking sector, the property market and, until recently, the Stock Market. Close examination of the financial statistics, however, reveals evidence of distortions in the economy which are hidden in exciting growth rates. Instead of euphoria, I think we need to pay close attention to a number of what I consider to be potentially disruptive factors. First, as the Minister rightly pointed out, is the problem of inflation. The turmoil in the international monetary system is one major factor to contend with. Unless we can apply proper monetary and exchange controls, we shall continue to import inflation in two ways: (1) via higher import prices, because of inflation in the advanced countries, which will affect our cost of living and costs of production, and (2) via uncontrolled speculative short-term capital which swamps our property market and the Stock Exchange. Every time the U.S. Dollar is devalued and other currencies are up-valued, we have to decide on our exchange rate, keeping in mind four factors: (i) to preserve our competitive edge in the major trading blocs; (ii) to keep the cost of living from being pushed up by higher import prices; (iii) to maintain full employment at a good rate of growth; and (iv) to ensure a healthy balance of payments.”
“This would encourage saving and discourage lavish consumption which can have bad social effects. Finally, Mr Speaker, Sir, I fully endorse the Government's intention of amending our Constitution to prevent Singapore from being bought over by foreign countries. I fully support the motion moved by the hon. Member for Bukit Batok. 3.26 p.m.”
“To ensure this, perhaps our industrial incentives could be revised to encourage expansion of existing enterprises, especially local enterprises. Perhaps we can also devise additional criteria for granting tax incentives to industries, e.g, a target number or a proportion of technical and managerial personnel could be specified so as to ensure that proper development of Singaporeans take place. One of the constraints to further development of industry is the availability of technical and professional personnel. I believe we should create a pool of such people from abroad by prior screening and granting of provisional permanent visas. Such visas can be exercised when an approved job is available to the applicant. This would cut down delays in recruitment. In addition, housing needs to be made available to the new immigrant for the initial six months or a year. Rapid development requires a corresponding capacity to cope with change. In industry, we shall have to deal with firms made uncompetitive by rising rents and wages or else by urban renewal. We shall have to balance the need for equity with the long-term interests of Singapore. Mr Speaker, Sir, I would like to add my support for the Finance Minister's decision to increase the pay of civil servants. The dedicated efforts of our civil service have been crucial to Singapore's development over the last 14 years. We must recognise and reward the dedicated. Moreover, as the President pointed out, we need to preserve quality in our civil service. I believe we should have periodic reviews of civil service salaries, especially in the context of rapid development. I also welcome the Government's policy of taxing luxury consumption.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the people of Singapore have voted wisely for political stability, for they know that economic and social progress depends upon a climate of stability and confidence. With such a favourable climate, we can address ourselves to the challenging task of developing our country into a great metropolis, with a cultured, well-educated and highly-skilled population. In his distinguished address, our President stressed two essential pre-conditions for Singapore to become a centre for excellence. The first has to do with family planning. People in the low income group should take particular note of this. They should not handicap themselves further by having more children than they can feed, more children than they can educate, or more children than they can accommodate decently in their one- or two-room flats. The second pre-condition the President mentioned, that is, the preservation of the work ethic and discipline, must be taken seriously by all Singaporeans. Parents, in particular, should not overindulge their children with liberal pocket-money or tolerate idleness and indiscipline. When I see students today driving their own cars to the Junior College, or to the University, I sometimes wonder whether parents are not making life too soft for their children. If our youth do not learn the value of money and do not acquire a measure of self-discipline, then our future as a nation is in doubt. For the immediate future, our task is to upgrade our industries, improve our technical skills, and acquire more sophisticated managerial and marketing expertise. In the past, we were more concerned with promoting foreign investment than with development as such. In the future, investment promotion must go hand in hand with development of technical and managerial skills.”
“Sir, I rise in support of this excellent Bill before this House. Students of economic history are well aware that industrial revolutions in the advanced countries in Britain, Europe, and elsewhere have all been achieved on the basis of the exploitation of cheap labour with little or no consideration for the human factor - the worker, his work and his living environment. As a late corner in the field of industrialisation, we can, and rightly too, learn from the mistakes of others. Had Karl Marx been an observer in Singapore today, instead of in Britain in the 19th century, he would not have found the material to write his Das Kapital, and we might not see the Communist regimes that we do find around us today. A free enterprise capitalistic system can work in economic terms, but it can work in humane terms only if there is a government which is socialistic in outlook and which cares for the distribution of income, for the environment in which the people have to live, and for the health, safety and welfare of the workers, Mr Speaker, Sir, we have such a government. I hope the people of Singapore fully realise this fact, and continue to support such a government. Because in our context, with the leeway that we are giving to free enterprise to an essentially capitalistic economy, a government which does not have a socialistic outlook will mean a society in which there is a lot of injustice and a highly skewed income distribution, a society with all the elements of instability and all the seeds of revolution.”
“As far as the Bird Park is concerned, we are trying to run it as a commercial proposition. There are zoos and other bird parks run on this basis. If the Jurong Town Corporation can succeed, so much the better for them, and this will be a feather in the cap of the Chairman of the Jurong Bird Park (Private) Limited.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, when I spoke to the Chairman of the Jurong Town Corporation, he told me that he was just trying to cover costs. But when I asked the Minister for Finance, he said it is a commercial venture. I do not know exactly where we stand. I appreciate the reason that maybe we should not subsidise by reducing the rate of interest to, say, four or five per cent on the loans to the Company. But I would think that six per cent, which is the rate of interest that people normally get on fixed deposits, would be the rate to charge, for then we would not be subsidising nor would we be making any profit. But by charging 7- per cent commercial rate, as the Minister rightly acknowledged, he is passing the buck over to the private company. I think we have got to make the decision whether the Bird Park should be run as a commercial proposition or whether it is to be considered as an amenity for the people to enjoy, and then determine the rate accordingly. I do not think we should keep on passing the ball to and fro, especially in new social amenities like swimming pools which are going to be provided by the Jurong Town Corporation. They have got to pass on the rate of interest which they have to pay, even if it is just simply to cover their cost of operation and not to make a profit at their end. It does not mean that the Minister for Finance should make a profit. Mr Hon Sui Sen: Sir, the question of covering costs and of perhaps making something above that is not inconsistent. First of all, they should try to cover their costs. If they cannot, then perhaps there would be a question of a subsidy, in which case, of course, it would be properly accounted for as a subsidy under Contributions and Charitable Allowances.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, may I just add a minor suggestion here? I notice that quite a few of the trees have shed their leaves. Could the Trees and Parks Unit not choose the trees more carefully so that fewer leaves are dropped and the job of sweeping the roads made easier? This is a very minor point. However, I join in the general congratulations to the Unit. The job has been done very well indeed.”
“I think we have plenty of room, Sir, given the current rates, and I would once again very strongly urge the Minister for Social Affairs, the Minister for Finance, and the Government as a whole, to seriously revise these rates and as quickly as possible.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I am glad to see this year so many voices in support of a plea which I made last year for an increase in the rates of public assistance allowances. I think the only case that we can make against raising the rates is making it too high. But we are so far below the disincentive point that we can safely proceed to double, if not triple, the current rates. We must have in mind the people who are old, especially those who are decrepit. As I pointed out in the past, we are a rapidly changing society. The traditional extended family has been breaking down. One of the effects of living in high-rise modern-type flats is the breaking up of families into smaller units. People no longer stay with or take care of their parents. Furthermore, Sir, as we modernise, as we build spanking new hotels, new roads and so on, I am afraid we are restricting options to people. The land for cultivating simple things to live on is shrinking. The opportunities for hawking are also shrinking. One has to be on the register of hawkers for the last two years in order to qualify for a licence in a new hawkers' centre. One cannot just go out and try to make a living. One could get hauled up before a court and fined $5 for the first time and $15 for each subsequent offence. We are trying to build a modern, dynamic, progressive society, double or quadruple our national income. But, at the same time, we should be a society with a heart, a society that does not neglect people who cannot keep up with the competitive pace because they are old, decrepit and because they simply lack the education and the skills to keep up with modern times. An hon. Member: Hear, hear!”
“In particular, the increased tax relief for low income taxpayers and remission from estate duty on small estates deserve our full support because they are steps towards a more just and equal society. Over the last 12 years the Government has worked for Singapore's long-term viability. It has never made empty election promises and has never hesitated to take strong and painful measures to secure Singapore's future. There is great concern for equity as the Budget shows, but not at the expense of our future. If Singapore is to achieve the bold targets laid down in the Budget in the next ten years, we have to ensure a continuing political stability. Mr Speaker, Sir, I fully support the Government's policy as presented in the Budget. 3.20 p.m.”
“I believe an overall advisory body to develop a consistent pricing policy for public goods and services is needed. Capital Market In his speech the Minister referred to the importance of developing a capital market. The abolition of stamp duties on credit instruments is a right step. I believe some thought should also be given to the development of a secondary stock exchange to deal with securities which are riskier and do not meet present Stock Exchange regulations. The development of a capital market is important because modern corporations require more capital than the traditional family enterprises can provide. Social Adjustments One area which the Minister could not cover in his long Budget speech is the problem of social adjustments to rapid economic development. On recent occasions I have talked about the tensions arising from urban renewal, a growing income gap and the demonstration effects of spending by the rich on luxury goods. Immigration of workers will give rise to social frictions, since non-citizens do not enjoy the same housing, health and educational privileges. Recently, Government announced the provision of some housing for immigrant workers. Nevertheless, I foresee pressures developing for the easing of permanent residence and citizenship qualifications as young immigrant workers get married to Singaporeans. I am fully confident that the Government will be able to deal with these social problems. There is much more room for adjustment in an economy which is expanding! I welcome Government's move to narrow the wage-gap between the public and private sectors and to narrow the income-gap.”
“(2) Increases in wage rates in the leading sectors affect adversely the supply of labour to other sectors. Wage adjustments in these sectors are necessary and can lead to closure of firms unless increases in productivity are made via better organisation, modernisation or incentive schemes. Here is where the National Productivity Centre can play a decisive role. (3) From time to time, wage adjustments are also required in the public sector to prevent a drain of manpower and expertise. Here, the Wages Council can help via regular surveys of wages. (4) In a rapidly growing economy, the income gap between the haves and the have-nots tends to widen, unless a conscious effort is made to prevent it. Here, the Government can set a good example by allowing a higher percentage increase in wages for low-wage earners and a lower one for high-wage earners. Rentals and Land Policy Apart from wage policy, attention must be paid to development of a coherent land and property policy. Appreciation in property values leads to higher rents which are passed on to consumers through higher retail prices. More crucially, production costs are increased, affecting our competitive position in world markets. Long leases on industrial land give windfall gains for some. Quite clearly, in the interests of equity and efficiency, a coherent land and property policy needs to be defined. Pricing of Public Goods and Services A further point I wish to discuss is the pricing of public goods and services, especially public utilities. These are public monopolies and their pricing policy affects producers and consumers. At present, each statutory board sets its own pricing policy, whether to cover costs only or to make a profit.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise to offer my heartiest congratulations to the Minister for Finance for his very lucid presentation of the Budget. Of greater consequence than the Budget details for next year is the ambitious development plan for this decade revealed by the Minister. The policies outlined are far-reaching in scope and are designed to implement vast economic and social changes in this decade. The economic changes targeted are tremendous for, at the rate of 15 per cent a year growth in Gross National Product, our G.N.P, will double in five years and quadruple within a decade! The immediate question that comes to mind is whether the rate of 15 per cent is feasible. I believe it is attainable because the technology gap is still large and we can bring in the necessary expertise and manpower. Moreover, the strategy is to produce for world markets and to increase local skills. The Minister has outlined five basic areas of policy, namely, manpower, science and technology, infrastructure, taxation and promotion. I would like to draw attention to four policy areas, two of which are not covered by the Minister's speech. Wage Policy The first concerns wage policy. The key terms of reference of the National Wages Council is to assist in the development of a wage structure, consistent with long-term economic and social development. There are four aspects here that need attention: (1) Major wage changes will occur if demand greatly exceeds supply of labour. To prevent this, it is necessary to co-ordinate manpower supply and demand and to recommend appropriate immigration and increased supply of local skills. This is, by far, the most critical task in formulating wage policy.”
“Sir, the main intent of this Bill is salutary and I welcome it for the protection of the small investor. However, I am wondering whether it is not too comprehensive in embracing the so-called hwei or tontine. The function of the tontine, usually run on a village level or among friends and relatives, is basically to make consumption loans available for festivals, wedding ceremonies or for educational purposes. I think the present Bill, by institutionalising the system, may penalise the small subscriber who cannot readily produce the two required guarantors, or who may be precluded from membership because he is not sufficiently creditworthy. Perhaps the Minister might want to consider exempting tontines with operations below a prescribed number of subscribers or sum of money from the provisions of this Bill. I would not like to see financial options foreclosed to low income people if they fail to meet modern institutional requirements. At the village level or among relatives and friends, social penalties are usually enough to deter tontine operators or subscribers from embezzlement of funds. 6.37 p.m.”
“I hope, therefore, that the National Statistical Commission will be able to channel our research manpower resources to more relevant uses. The researcher can be given access to confidential material with the understanding that only aggregated data may ultimately be presented. Mr Govindasamy, Sir, I give my full support to this Bill. Question put, and agreed to. Bill accordingly read a Second time and committed to a Committee of the whole House. The House immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill. - [Mr Hon Sui Sen]. Bill considered in Committee; reported without amendment; read a Third time and passed. PARLIAMENTARY PENSIONS (AMENDMENT) BILL Order for Second Reading read. 6.02 p.m.”