Chong Kee Hiong
Singapore
“Chairman, I have two clarifications. The first one for Senior Minister of State Sim Ann. How will MND ensure that the expansion of the Budget Meal Initiative is sustainable for operators and individual stall owners?”
“In addition to crow attacks, frequent and longstanding complaints include bird droppings on laundry, windows and ledges, food and rubbish messes created by their scavenging, and noise nuisance. The bird droppings are hygiene and health concerns. They affect the general aesthetics of the town and lead to higher maintenance costs.”
“Chairman, the world is going through a phase of greater contestation, fragmentation and bifurcation on the global stage. This was born out of a fundamental lack of strategic trust between the major powers.”
“Mdm Chair, Singapore and Indonesia enjoy warm ties and has had a long history of strong cooperation across a range of sectors, including health, defence, education, culture and the environment. Singapore has been a top foreign investor in Indonesia in the last decade.”
“Mdm Chair, Singapore and Malaysia celebrate the 60th anniversary of our diplomatic ties this year. As close neighbours, our relations with Malaysia are built on a strong foundation of mutual trust and win-win cooperation.”
“Mr Chairman, Total Defence is the cornerstone of Singapore’s national security strategy. Total Defence is premised on the understanding that our security, stability and prosperity depend on the collective commitment and efforts of all Singaporeans and sectors of our country. Each of us has a part to play to defend Singapore.”
The complete record
Every one of 209 lines we hold for Chong Kee Hiong, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 5 of 5.
“To prepare for the future, the Government is investing more in infrastructure development, including healthcare, public transport and Changi Airport, upgrading Singaporeans through SkillsFuture, pumping more funding into research and development (R&D) and placing a stronger emphasis on technology adoption and innovation. It was announced in January this year that our Government's science and technology research budget will rise to a record of $19 billion in the next five years. This works out to be roughly $4 billion each year, which is around 1% of our GDP, comparable to the US' spending on R&D. In comparison, South Korea, Japan and China's investments in R&D are 4.3% in 2014, 4% in 2016, budgeted, and 2.05% in 2014 of GDP respectively. Apple alone spent US$8.1 billion in 2015 and Samsung spent US$13.8 billion in 2014. While I fully support this enormous investment in R&D, I would like to urge the Government to consider investing even more in science and technology R&D. This is because we have seen how technological development in robotics, automation, artificial intelligence and ICT are already disrupting business models around the world. To reap the benefits of this new Industrial Revolution 4.0, not only do we need to utilise and harness its power, we also have to develop, create and own the patents and IP rights in these segments, too, as profits will accrue to the owners. It is not easy for our local enterprises to do these on their own due to their smaller sizes. Where some of our local enterprises have achieved nascent success, larger and more established foreign competitors would naturally be interested in acquiring them. But is that the best option?”
“Mdm Speaker, the Finance Minister had announced a prudent Budget in the face of a number of constraints. Last year, we had lower revenue contribution from the traditional three main sources – corporate and personal income taxes and Goods and Service Tax (GST) – due to slower economic growth. The revenue contributions from these three sources are expected to be similar or less in 2016. One of the things that jumped out in Budget 2016 was the huge increase in the projected Net Investment Returns Contribution (NIRC) to $14.7 billion. Without NIRC, the 2016 Budget will be in deficit of $11.3 billion. In addition, the dark clouds hovering over the global economy is a stark reminder to spend within our means and save for rainy days ahead. Our open economy is vulnerable to external shocks. As the Minister had cautioned, we will meet strong headwinds. For 2016, MTI has maintained the GDP growth forecast at only 1% to 3%. While I agree with the Minister that we are coming from a position of strength and should not be overly pessimistic, I am quite concerned. Although our public finances are healthy, our social development expenditure has been growing at a faster rate than revenue growth. With a maturing economy and ageing population, expenses will increase and our fiscal position will be tighter. Whatever schemes we push out, such as the Silver Support scheme, has to be sustainable over time. How shall we sustain our ever-increasing social expenditures? The way forward is to increase our revenue pie through pursuing economic growth which I have touched on in the debate on the President's Address.”
“Such an unjustified and unfounded preference is undesirable and will have severe repercussions on our economy and social make-up. I am happy that the Government has embarked on the SkillsFuture programme where both types of jobs are given equal recognition and prominence. Together, let us create an environment that will boost the confidence of every Singaporean. One would feel safe in the knowledge that no one will be left behind. With peace of mind and confidence in the future, we can be free to pursue our dreams and soar. With that, Mdm Speaker, I Page: 45 support the Motion. 4.48 pm”
“The Government needs to do more to help these groups of Singaporeans. One of the ways would be to provide more publicity and create greater awareness for our National Jobs Bank and CaliberLink, which provides training advisory and employment assistance for our local Professionals, Managers and Executives (PMEs). Both are set up and administered by the Workforce Development Agency (WDA). I checked their websites a few days ago – not that I am looking for a job. There are over 56,000 jobs listed on JobsBank; there is a wide range of jobs at different levels, including many jobs for PMETs, though the exact number of jobs for PMETs was not available. JobsBank is user-friendly and browsing through it, I found jobs with monthly salaries ranging from $800 to $30,000. These include cleaners, air-conditioning technicians, construction managers, data security analysts, pilots, senior managers in various industries and even a retail banking CEO. I believe that many of these jobs could be filled by Singaporeans but why are there so many vacancies not taken up on the website? How long do these listings remain, on average? Traditionally, PMETs go to placement agencies and head-hunting firms for jobs. Can more be done to make JobsBank the go-to site for those seeking employment? Perhaps more frequent advertisements on our free-to-air channels and newspapers will be helpful. As a society we must respect all jobs and take pride in all occupations, "敬业乐业" as we say in Chinese, which means to take pride and derive joy from one's chosen vocation. There is still a general perception in Singapore that jobs that require abstract thinking – "using brains" – are superior to jobs requiring skills – "using hands".”
“I would like to ask if the Government can consider streamlining the procedures for SMEs seeking assistance. Time to market is of the essence in particular for innovative industries. (In English): Prime Minister Lee mentioned in 2008 that about 25% of the top A-level students who had gone abroad to study or work did not return. The number of Singaporeans overseas has also increased by more than one-third from about 158,000 in 2004 to 212,000 in 2014. Page: 44 In five years' time, our local Universities will take in up to 40% of each school cohort. We must do what we can to provide the most attractive work and living environments so that we can retain as many talents that we have nurtured as possible. In the past two years, I have met many management level executives in the course of my work who have been retrenched. They are mid to senior managers in their 30s and 40s, who are unable to find a job for many months. Some are still unemployed. They are at the stage in their lives when they have young children and old parents to provide for and mortgages to pay. During the period of unemployment, some even have to pretend to go to work so as not to pass on their worries to their family members. They suffered a big blow to their ego and confidence. There are many reasons for this unemployment, one of which is lack of matching of skills; another is their reluctance to lower their expectation. The latter attitude could be attributed to their faith in the Government to lead the economy out of this low growth situation and the return of good jobs. Hence, we cannot let them down. With the current economic conditions, I believe many more companies are looking to trim headcount and the situation would likely worsen.”
“Make hay while the sun shines. We cannot afford to slow down. Mdm Speaker, I would like to speak on the next few paragraphs in Mandarin. (In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] Seventy percent of our workforce are employed by small and medium enterprises (SMEs) which contribute half of our gross domestic product. Human capital is critical to the success of our SMEs. We must help young Singaporeans see their own potential to grow with promising SMEs. We should also give recognition to successful executives in growing SMEs, so that the younger generation can see joining SMEs as an exciting career path where they can make a significant and different contribution building an international company with Singapore DNA. SME bosses must be open-minded and offer attractive remuneration packages when they hire professionals. They should also set up human resource management systems that are transparent and consistent, to show their staff that the company's promotion and leadership prospects are based on performance, not personal or family ties. Undoubtedly, SMEs will continue to play a critical role in our economy. Therefore, the Government must do more to develop our SMEs and help them grow as regional or international headquarters, for example, provide incentives that are similar to those given to MNCs that set up headquarters in Singapore. There are many schemes to assist our SMEs. The amount of the assistance funds which have been tapped would probably vary from scheme to scheme. If the draw-down rate is low, the Government must rethink and review to see if the reason for the low drawdown is due to the qualifying criteria or if there is a mismatch between the definition of the schemes and the needs of SMEs.”
“At this juncture, perhaps we should critically re-examine our divestment policies to ensure that the divested entities are indeed past its relevance to our economy. Today, we face mounting challenges on many fronts. Rapid developments in many sectors have brought about shorter business cycles. The relentless pace of change can be intimidating and disconcerting, even for those who are prepared. It is not just the older employees who are under Page: 43 pressure to upgrade constantly and face the threat of redundancy. Even younger ones are subject to similar stresses. Indeed, staying relevant and competitive is increasingly difficult. However, if we can take advantage of developments in technology and R&D, Singapore is in good shape and well-placed to seize these opportunities. We have a well-educated workforce with a "can-do" spirit. Through SkillsFuture, the Government is helping Singaporeans equip themselves with the skills to elevate their relevance in the workplace. At the same time, we need to think ahead. What are the plans to diversify drivers and industries of growth so as to satisfy the aspirations of the greater proportion of skilled workers who as individuals would have different aspirations, interests, expertise and goals? Clearly, we are in the process of transiting to a higher-value economy and innovative society. In fact, Singapore was recently ranked the sixth most innovative country by Bloomberg Innovation Index. An innovative economy will provide more jobs, better pay and longer employment security. We are aware that growth and transitions can put a strain on existing capacities and disrupt the status quo. Unfortunately, investments and projects do not come in neat packages at desired intervals. We have to adapt to their schedules instead.”
“This is needed to generate sufficient revenue to defend our shores, build infrastructure and help the disadvantaged and underprivileged amongst us, and even build surpluses so that future generations will not have to shoulder our debts. The world economy is increasingly difficult to forecast. Over and above market forces, frequent government interventions have contributed to the volatility and uncertainty of global markets. The World Bank had just reduced its forecast for 2016's global growth, from 3.3% it made in June 2015 to 2.9% this month. The International Monetary Fund had to repeatedly downgrade its forecasts for global economic growth. Its current forecasts for 2016 and 2017 are 3.4% and 3.6% respectively. The world is expected to be in a prolonged low growth environment. Singapore's GDP grew by 2.1% last year. The road ahead remains bumpy. How can Singapore achieve moderate growth in this environment? An advanced economy like ours has the advantage of a more educated and skilled workforce but we also have a higher cost environment and an ageing population. The Government has emphasised the focus on higher value-added and less labour intensive sectors, more productive industries and in particular, those where we have a comparative advantage, such as services. Investments and projects in these fields should be further strengthened and built upon. I am glad that the Committee on the Future Economy, headed by our Finance Minister, will be looking into five key areas essential to our economic growth. We all know that it takes many years, lots of resources and efforts to build up skillsets, talents and capacity.”
“Mdm Speaker, I rise in support of the Motion of Thanks to the President for his Address at the Opening of Parliament. Following the President's speech on our Government's priorities, our Ministries had announced a series of policy outlines and measures to support these goals. Many of the schemes will require substantial investment and expenditure. I am very grateful that we have the resources Page: 42 to implement them. Our predecessors had accumulated significant assets through sacrifice, hard work and discipline. Building a nation from almost nothing – not even water – they had not only survived but thrived, raised children and grandchildren, and left us something extra. This is how we celebrated our 50th National Day in style and substance last year. Let us work even harder to ensure that we get ahead for our future generations, just like what our forefathers and the Pioneer Generation have done for us. We must continue to pursue economic growth. Growth is necessary for progress. A growing economy generates good jobs for Singaporeans. It will also help retain the talented and our young who are mobile and attractive to other competing economies. Historically, our growing economy has created wealth through asset ownership, which helps to build retirement security, especially with new HDB schemes. If this form of wealth preservation for retirement purposes is no longer viable in the absence of similar rates of growth as in the past, how do we ensure Singaporeans are well-prepared for retirement as leasehold assets would generally depreciate over time? There is wisdom in the continual pursuit of economic growth and wealth.”