Liang Eng Hwa
Singapore
“Sir, in Mandarin, please. (In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] I would like to thank IMDA for its flexibility in allowing the filming of "Dear You" in the Teochew dialect, and for approving additional screenings to meet public demand.”
“Thank you, Mr Speaker. Sir, we hope that there will be peaceful resolution to the Middle East conflict soon and that the Strait of Hormuz will be fully open.”
“Sir, I believe the political office holders have not replied or responded to my cut on traffic congestion, so can I perhaps ask the Minister, whether is it because he disagrees with me that the traffic congestion has worsened or that there is no non-pricing solutions to traffic congestion, which I had asked for.”
“Sir, Minister Chee, in his speech mentioned that this year we will be launching 19,600 new BTO flats. So, I would like to ask, how he sees the trajectory in the next two, three years.”
“Also, flexible work arrangements, through inter-agency coordination, could also help flatten peak demand. Sir, road pricing remains important, of course, but it must be a multi-pronged approach to manage congestions. And all these suggestions that I have made, I hope would also help to reduce congestions.”
“Thank you, Speaker. Sir, there are Singaporeans who felt strongly that the founding Prime Minister Mr Lee Kuan Yew's original wish to have the house demolished should be respected. It is not just because this is his personal wish but also the values that he espouse, which is not to have personal monuments.”
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“Sir, I would like to thank Minister Chan Chun Sing, Senior Minister of State Chee Hong Tat, Senior Minister of State Koh Poh Koon, Senior Parliamentary Secretary Tan Wu Meng for the comprehensive response to our cuts. Indeed, our economy is facing, among the most daunting challenges and circumstances in recent years, with serious implications on jobs and business survivability. So, it is reassuring that MTI as well as the Budget 2020 measures are there to help the businesses to tide through this period. We wish the MTI team every success in steering our economy forward and to emerge stronger. With that, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment, Sir. [(proc text) Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. (proc text)] [(proc text) The sum of $1,316,531,400 for Head V ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. (proc text)] [(proc text) The sum of $6,541,521,000 for Head V ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. (proc text)]”
“Sir, two clarifications. Yesterday, the Restaurant Association Singapore issued a statement reminding landlords to pass on the property tax rebates that they will be enjoying to the retailers. There are other retailers who are not happy that the landlords are not making it clear on passing on these rebates. So, can I ask the Minister if he is concerned that the good intention of the Government – which is to help the retailers impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak – is not being followed through by the landlords? And whether any measures can be taken to urge the landlords to pass on the rebates? Secondly, I appreciate Senior Minister of State Chee Hong Tat's reassurance that the Government will continue to strengthen our pro-enterprise environment. While stifling regulations can work against the enterprise eco-system and add costs, but we also know that adequate regulations do protect consumers, set high standards, build trust. In our context, regulations can be both a competitive advantage and a competitive disadvantage. Can I ask the Senior Minister of State to share a bit more where we should lean to and where is that sweet spot?”
“Singapore, like many economies, is unlikely to be spared from the further knock-on effects. How can we draw lessons from the impact of COVID-19 to build economic and national resilience? [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)]”
“I hope that the hiring incentive to employers who hire local jobseekers aged 40 and above, through re-skilling programmes, would appeal to employers and also change their mindsets. Employers should leverage on this re-skilling programme to help enhance their workforce and yet also enjoy the wage support. So, I call on employers to discard any age biases that they may have in their HR policy and re-pivot to the new environment of higher retirement age. Finally, let me speak about our response to the COVID-19 situation. The first wave impact to our affected businesses, such as tourism, aviation and retail, has been very sharp and severe. The Stabilisation and Support Package has rightly focused on tackling two critical situations: firstly, the weaker cash flow position of businesses and, secondly, to focus on saving jobs. The announced measures of Jobs Support Scheme, rental waivers, rebates, temporary bridging loans, among others, are relevant and practical relief measures to help businesses, especially in managing the tighter cash flow situations. However, I am concerned that if this COVID-19 situation is prolonged, we may lose capabilities and capacities in the tourism sectors as operators may downsize or shut their operations. I hope that the Government would monitor this closely and be ready to extend and step up the assistance further. Given the severity of the outbreak in China, its economy is likely to take a major hit. If the situation persists, its production capacity would be curtailed and we could see serious disruption to the supply chain and this has wider and deeper implication and impact to the world's trade flows. On the demand side, slower growth in China is also expected to dampen consumption and investments.”
“Given this diverse enterprise landscape, a one-size-fits-all approach may not meet the specific needs and achieve the desired outcomes. How could our economic agencies work with the relevant stakeholders to provide differentiated support for different types of companies? A pro-enterprise environment is also a necessary condition for a vibrant and entrepreneurial eco-system. The Pro-Enterprise Panel (PEP) was formed in 2000 as a platform for companies to provide feedback on regulations. Is there scope to adopt a light-touch approach in regulations so as to encourage more enterprises to innovate and venture? Sir, In his Budget speech, the Finance Minister also spoke about the Next Bound of SkillsFuture, which includes enhancing the role of enterprises in developing their employees. Having employers take ownership in developing their staff is the most ideal situation. The companies know best the skills needed for their businesses to grow and transform. The employers are in the best position to manage the resources, time and space to upgrade skills. They are also in the vantage position to plan out and execute job re-design, which can align the necessary training and re-skilling to the business need. In that regard, can I ask how would the Government promote and support more of such involvement by companies to build their workforce capabilities? I applaud the Government for introducing the SkillsFuture Mid-Career Support Package. It is the most tangible move to-date by the Government to help mid-career Singaporeans. It is another manifestation of the Government's commitment that economic growth must, ultimately, translate to good jobs and good outcomes for all Singaporeans.”
“How can we help our companies diversify their markets and adjust to the shift in supply chains to increase business resilience? Next, and still related to diversifying our economy, I would like to seek an update from the Minister on the progress of building new economic clusters. In particular, how have we leveraged on the technological advancements to open up possibilities in new sectors? Beyond agri-tech and sustainability solutions, are there more new growth sectors that we are developing? Continued rapid advancements in technology are likely to add to further disruptions and even lead to the demise of some sectors. We need to open up new industries and growth sectors to keep generating the positive deltas to our economy. Fostering new economic growth sectors can also help create new and more exciting jobs and it can help boost the overall productivity and innovations. We know that investing into new growth sectors carry significant investment risks. It requires sectoral expertise and talents, it requires products that meet the addressable markets, the necessary eco-system players and, importantly, the entrepreneurial acumen and aspirations. How can the Government facilitate the development of new growth sectors and its necessary eco-systems? What are the resources and support to be provided? In Budget 2020, the Finance Minister also mentioned about improving support for deep-tech startups. Can the Minister also share on how the Government plans to nurture and help promising startups? Next, on enterprise development. There are more than 200,000 enterprises in Singapore and they come in every size, different stages of growth, uneven productivity capabilities and resource adsorptions and varying value-add to the economy.”
“Capabilities, such as deep understanding of the target markets, ability to mobilise and deploy resources and talents across markets and jurisdictions, ability to obtain local funding and manage currency risks, among others. Our economic agencies already provide both financial and non-financial support to help companies internationalise, such as in in-market landing pads, overseas centres and so on. Here, I would like to ask the Minister if the support has been adequate and has there been good traction. Beyond the more familiar markets like China, India and the developed economies, do our economic agencies need to step up expertise and presence in newer and more frontier markets as we know that these markets tend to have less developed market data and more challenging regulatory and operating environment? How can the Trade Associations and Chambers (TACs) play an enabling role to help businesses seeking to internationalise, especially in less familiar markets? On diversification of international markets, the COVID-19 outbreak reminded us on the urgency to seek more and newer markets, especially in emerging economies and to minimise concentration risk on any single market. China's GDP has increased fourfold since 2003 and its share of the global GDP has more than doubled from 9% to 19%. Singapore's trade with China has also increased almost four times since 2003. Even in the area of tourism, the Chinese tourists account for about 20% of Singapore's total international visitor arrivals. So, I would like to ask the Minister as to how we can manage our economic exposure to China, balancing the opportunities versus the risks. Even without the COVID-19 outbreak, global supply chains are already showing signs of disruptions and are likely to be re-organised.”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, I beg to move, "That the total sum to be allocated for Head V of the Estimates be reduced by $100." As a small and open economy, Singapore can only be a price-taker in the global marketplace realistically. Staying competitive is a given but that just puts you in the starting line. We need to develop both value-adding capabilities, which I will touch on later, and, equally important, our market connectivity capabilities, so that we can sell our products and services to the consumers of the world. Having both sets of capabilities and the intensity of them will determine how much of a livelihood we can make for ourselves. In Singapore's context, staying open and connected to the world is key and our only pathway to continued economic growth and progress. Today, our international linkages and market connectivity enable us to transcend our limited domestic market and create for ourselves a bigger hinterland to operate in. We need to continually expand and upgrade our network of trade partnerships and investment agreements so that our companies can not only have a bigger economic space to do business in but are also able to ride on the growth and opportunities in the emerging markets. Over the decades, we have done very well to strengthen our air, sea and land connectivity. In the new landscape, we need develop other new sets of connectivities, such as regulations, data, talent, finance and technology. These efforts are primarily Government-driven but, importantly, we also need businesses to step up to seize these opportunities from the enhanced connectivity. It requires the companies to build up the required capabilities to internationalise both at the enterprise and the workforce levels.”
“Mr Chairman, Singapore is a member of the global coalition to defeat ISIS. There have been a number of successful operations in recent years against ISIS and its leadership. Notwithstanding, terrorism unfortunately continues to happen in various forms and places around the world. Counter-terrorism is a cross-border and crossed jurisdiction effort. It requires a strong intelligent sharing network amongst countries, particularly cooperation arrangements between frontline law enforcement and security agencies and like-minded countries forging strong alliance to fight the threat, often via multilateral and bilateral platforms. Can I ask the Minister to share on MFA's role and efforts in helping to secure Singapore from the threat of terrorism? 4.15 pm Middle East Relations”
“Sir, on behalf of the Members of this House, I would like to thank Deputy Prime Minister and the Finance Minister for a massive and far-reaching Budget, if befitting of the challenging environment that we are in today. He has not only shown fiscal fire power but also standing power – speaking and standing for more than two hours in both speeches. I also want to thank Minister Wong and Minister Indranee for responding to our cuts and also the various engagements that we have with the GPC. And finally, to the MOF colleagues, they must have worked really hard this time with the fluid circumstances. I hope the young officers can now make up for their Valentine's Day that they missed out as the Deputy Prime Minister has mentioned. With that, Sir, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. [(proc text) Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. (proc text)] [(proc text) The sum of $877,537,300 for Head M ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. (proc text)] [(proc text) The sum of $158,428,400 for Head M ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. (proc text)]”
“Sir, I noticed in the revenue estimates that the NIRC has grown from $17 billion last year to $18.6 billion for FY2020. So, can I ask the Minister if this continued growth in NIRC is realistic, sustainable, given the grimmer outlook now, not just because of the current COVID-19 fallout but also of more concern are the longer term global structural stresses that we saw and the persistent near-zero interest rate environment that is still there? Can we expect this NIRC to grow to fund our Budget in the future?”
“The accumulated surpluses in the last four years for this term of Government gave the Finance Minister the fiscal firepower and the critical resources to decisively respond to the virus outbreak and help businesses and Singaporeans that are impacted by the crisis in a timely way. We have very ambitious spending programmes and plans ahead in the decade ahead, including big-ticket infrastructural items like the Cross Island MRT line, Terminal 5, the ramp-up in healthcare infrastructure, climate change adaptation projects and so on. How do we ensure that the Government will spend carefully and prudently on these mega items? Given its complexity where the projects may cut across Ministries and agency lines, how would the Government ensure that there will be no overlapping of efforts and costs? Are there clear working protocols established to streamline and harmonise the whole-of-Government efforts here? Finally, I would like to ask the Minister to update on efforts to transform the public service processes, in particular, how MOF intends to leverage on digital capabilities as well as the community partners to deliver more thoughtful and joyful services to businesses and to citizens. [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)] Fiscal Sustainability and Accountability”
“Mr Chairman, I beg to move, "That the total sum to be allocated for Head M of the Estimates be reduced by $100". Sir, I sit in Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC). Every year, the Committee would scrutinise the findings listed in the Auditor-General's report. While we do not expect zero gaps and weaknesses for a government machinery of this scale and complexity, what concerns the PAC Members is that many of the audit issues brought up in the Auditor-General's report were recurring items that happen year after year. For example, lapses in procurement and contract managements, weaknesses in IT controls and gaps in management of grant programmes. Some of the lapses this year concerned the PAC Members so much that Permanent Secretaries from four Ministries were also asked to meet the Committee to explain the reasons for the lapses and what are the detailed follow-up measures taken to address the lapses. The PAC was concerned that given the increasing size and complexity of the work in the public sector, such lapses, if not addressed fundamentally, may compound over time and weaken the governance and accountability over the judicious use of public funds and resources. Can I ask the Minister on the role that MOF plays in ensuring good governance and accountability within the Public Service? How does MOF ensure that value-for-money practices and culture are strongly embedded in the public service? Also, does the Public Service track and measure the effectiveness of Government spending for better decision-making? Sir, Budget 2020 clearly demonstrated that prudence and disciplined financial management will always pay off for Singapore.”
“Businesses around the world have increasingly been using digital technologies to upscale their operations, seek better efficiencies and create value for their entities. There are now countless mobile phone apps and online platforms where businesses can use to acquire, engage and transact with their customers. This has brought about better conveniences, accessibility, outreach and also, importantly, lower transaction fees to their customers due to efficiency gains. The cost savings from better efficiency and outreach benefited both the businesses and customers. Can I ask if the Public Service would do likewise to tap on digital technology in a bigger way to transform service delivery to citizens and businesses? The Public Service is not starting from ground zero. It has launched the Moments of Life app for birth registration a couple of years ago and it has just been announced that there will be an enhanced version. Such service apps can help eliminate the unnecessary inconveniences where businesses or citizens need to go to more than one agency to get things done. If properly designed, it can also avoid duplication in resources or situations where different sets of officers are serving the same customer in different agencies. The Public Service should look towards integrating its services and, where possible, establish a one-stop user-friendly digital platform, which can also reduce the need for manual delivery of services. I would like to seek an update from PMO on the progress in this area.”
“Each of us and our businesses can do our part, big or small, each in our own way, to help out fellow businesses that are affected. All these efforts add up and go a long way in helping Singapore ride out this difficult period and emerge even stronger. Sir, I support the Budget.”
“At our communities, we have seen spontaneous acts by fellow residents, such as coming together to bottle hand sanitisers and placing them in lifts for residents to use, volunteering at masks distribution centres to distribute masks at Residents Committee (RC) centres or expressing gratitude and cheering on our frontline healthcare workers. Social organisations, artists, sports persons and many others have also organised various efforts to help vulnerable groups. We have also seen commercial organisations like banks, insurance companies, multinational corporations (MNCs) coming up with relief packages to help their clients tide over the difficult period. Budget 2020 represents a very strong set of decisive actions by the Government to deal with the COVID-19 situation. But these counter-crisis efforts can be even more effective or powerful if more stakeholders can also facilitate and reinforce the relief measures introduced by the Government. For example, landlords who enjoy the new 15% property tax rebates should quickly pass this on to their tenants in the form of reduced rentals or do even more. I have just gotten confirmation from the coffee shop operator at my Community Club (CC) who promised me that he will completely pass on half a month's rental waiver to the self-employed stallholders who are impacted by the crisis as well and I would like to urge other coffee shop operators to do the same, especially those in Housing and Development Board (HDB) estates. Companies that are not adversely affected by the crisis could consider using the wage support received from JSS meaningfully, for example, to invest in their employees' skills upgrade or on their welfare or flow some of it to their clients that may be impacted by the crisis.”
“Hence, the most significant announcement in this package is that the Government is providing hiring incentives to employers who hire local jobseekers aged 40 and above through the reskilling programme. For each eligible worker, the employer will receive 20% salary support for six months, capped at $6,000. This salary support is equivalent to a negative workers levy and I hope that it will move more employers to consider these experienced workers. Of course, we need employers to collaborate and give these jobseekers a chance. The Deputy Prime Minister also announced that the Government would review the support package for talent hiring and retention to maximise its impact. To further encourage lifelong learning, the Minister has also announced a special SkillsFuture top-up of $500 to every Singaporean aged 40 to 60, so that this group of Singaporeans will get $1,000 SkillsFuture Credit in total. The Government Parliamentary Committee (GPC) for Finance has raised its concerns and views with the Minister for Finance in our Budget engagement and I thank him for hearing us out with this substantial upgrade in package to help our workers in their 40s and 50s, so that they can benefit and have peace of mind. (In English): Mr Speaker, in his Budget speech, Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat also called on Singaporeans to work together in partnership to build the future of our choice. It is in difficult times like this that we need to rally the spirit of SG Together.”
“We do not want these workers who are still in their prime to prematurely experience unemployment and even stay as long-term unemployed. This would be a high social cost to the individual, their families and the society. The economy will also be deprived of a major source of human resource (HR) and talents. The situation calls for direct interventions from the Government, including more upstream and pre-emptive actions, including stronger retrenchment and job placement support. The Government saw this problem coming some years ago and that is why we have packages, such as the Adapt and Grow and the Professional Conversion Programme (PCP). The best way to do this is to help workers stay employable when they still have a job and for them to have the option to move to new jobs and new roles if need be. We need to reduce difficulties in job transition and enhance their capabilities to better match jobs so that jobseekers can be re-employed faster. Hence, I welcome this new SkillsFuture Mid-Career Support Package which aims to do that. Under this initiative, the Government aims to double the annual job placement of local workers in their 40s and 50s to around 5,500. The capacity of our existing reskilling programmes will also be stepped up, such as the PCP, career transition programme and sector-specific programmes. I would urge the agencies that run these programmes to also focus more on helping jobseekers to overcome psychological barriers and make mental adjustments. On the other hand, we know that there are, indeed, biases on the part of employers, including ageism, when hiring.”
“Those who, unfortunately, lose their jobs at this age face an uphill task to find another job that is commensurate with their work experience and expectations, even though they may be prepared to lower their expectations by a few notches. I have met many such jobseekers at my Meet-the-People Session (MPS). I can fully understand what they are going through. They are often under tremendous pressure to find a new job quickly and the entire family is also impacted as these jobseekers are often also the sole or main breadwinner. As what the Deputy Prime Minister has related in the Budget speech, for people in their 40s and 50s, when they started work, it was normal to stay with one job, in one or two companies, for life. They lived through the period when Singapore’s economy experienced high growth, and technology was not changing very fast as to have a major impact on the workplace. So, overall, their jobs were stable. But, now, economic growth is a lot slower and the workplace is undergoing major changes at a rapid pace. This has a direct impact on job market stability. Of course, as our economy transforms, new jobs are created while old jobs disappear and never return. The issue is that these new positions are often not filled by this age group of jobseekers. Reasons often cited are that there is mismatch in skills or expectations from both jobseekers and hirers. There are also situations where, even after the training and skills upgrade, employers are still not willing to take on these workers as they have younger ones to choose from. This trend is particularly worrying, especially when we are now raising the retirement and re-employment age.”
“Here, it would be useful if the Finance Minister can share on the proportion of GST collected that is being contributed by the higher-income groups and foreigners. The Assurance Package that will come into effect when the GST rate increase kicks in after 2021 is specifically targeted at helping the lower- and middle-income Singaporean households and seniors. Under the Package, every adult Singaporean will receive a cash payout of $700 to $1,600 over five years. The majority of Singaporeans will receive offsets to cover at least five years' worth of additional GST expenses incurred. In other words, to the majority of Singaporeans, the effect of the GST increase will be further pushed back by another five years when the new increase kicks in because of the Assurance Package. Mr Speaker, Sir, I am heartened that in the midst of a long list of agenda items in this year's Budget, the Finance Minister has not forgotten on a group Singaporeans who are increasingly worried about their job security and employability. These are workers in their 40s and 50s. I would like to speak for them today. In Mandarin, please. (In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] Mr Speaker, I am heartened that Finance Minister has pointed out in the Budget speech that in the next bound of SkillsFuture, there will be a dedicated focus on mid-career workers, those in the 40s and 50s. Indeed, many of the workers in their 40s and 50s, especially the Professionals, Managers and Executives (PMEs), are very worried about losing their jobs and they feel a great sense of insecurity.”
“As our population ages, the recurring annual costs to provide healthcare services will surely rise. And our expectations for higher subsidies, better quality healthcare and better accessibility will also keep rising over time. For example, at my constituency, we are building a new 12-storey polyclinic which comes at a cost of more than $100 million and thereafter, millions of dollars in recurring costs to run the centre. We are also looking at sites within our estates to build more senior day-care centres that come with medical facilities to handle long-term chronic illnesses. I understand the costs of each such centre is minimally $1 million and, again, the costly recurring expenses. While I dislike seeing the GST rate increase, I do understand that the Finance Minister would need additional funding to help pay for these new expenditures as well as other increased spending in social areas, such as in education, security and so on. I am convinced that our system of GST that is stapled with a massive and almost permanent GST offset package does mitigate its impact on lower- and middle-income households and re-tilt it from a regressive to a progressive tax system. GST taxes everyone who consumes. But those who spend more, especially on more expensive items, will contribute more GST. These tend to be from the wealthier or the higher-income group. Even foreigners who are here for work, business or leisure also contribute to our GST coffer when they spend in Singapore. Just like if I travel to Japan, I would also have to pay the 10% consumption tax for my spending there and, in effect, directly helping to fund Japan's budget deficit.”
“I am glad that the Government has also introduced the Jobs Support Scheme (JSS) to provide wage support to companies. It not only helps companies with their cash flow situations but also incentivises employers to hold on to their workers. Coupled with the enhanced upskilling measures that were also announced, the message to employers is to tap on these assistance schemes to send workers for training and skills upgrade during this lull period and be ready to seize opportunities again when the recovery comes. I would like to make a technical suggestion here to the Finance Minister. The qualifying period for the Job Support Scheme is for salary paid during the months from October 2019 to December 2019. Hence, there is this possibility that employers who enjoy this cash grant could still lay off the workers in the months later. While I believe most employers will be grateful and understand the Government's good intention, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) could eliminate this possibility by adding another condition, which is that the wage support will only be valid for those workers who remain in employment from January to July 2020. Sir, I welcome the update by the Finance Minister on the timing of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) rate increase and that it will not happen in 2021. The $6 billion Assurance Package does help to address the concerns of Singaporeans on the GST increase. The COVID-19 outbreak and the resulting sudden surge in demand for its related medical services further underscored the critical need to allocate sufficient funding for healthcare services and that we not only need to have the right capacity but also the deep specialisation and expertise to deal with any public health threat of this scale.”
“I remember at last year's Budget Statement speech, the Finance Minister said this: "Our fiscal discipline and prudence gave us the resources to respond decisively to unexpected challenges, such as the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. We must not take this for granted." These words said last year may sound like the Finance Minister knew what was to come in 2020. But we know that the good old adage of "Saving for Rainy Days" has never failed Singapore. It is our most valuable 20-20 foresight and which so aptly shows up in Budget 2020. A case in point here is how we used the savings for rainy days to come up with this $4 billion Stabilisation and Support Package to deal with the impact from the COVID-19 outbreak. Indeed, the first wave impact to the affected businesses, such as tourism, aviation and retail, has been sharp and severe. Some hotels have almost immediately seen a 50% drop in occupancy as travellers deferred their trips and many international conferences and meetings were cancelled. Air travel has dropped significantly, especially for routes to the affected areas. Cinemas, restaurants, taxis have all seen lower patronage. Even neighbourhood coffee shops' businesses are affected as more eat at home and do less outings. The Stabilisation and Support Package has rightly focused on tackling two situations. Firstly, the weaker cash flow position of businesses due to a sudden drop in revenue; secondly, and actually more importantly, to focus on saving jobs as the sudden drop in businesses has also resulted in excess labour. The announced measures of rental waivers, rebates, temporary bridging loans, point-to-to point support package for taxis and private hire car drivers are practical and helpful relief measures to businesses and to Singaporeans.”
“And when the crisis does hit us, we respond decisively, purposefully and with ample firepower to make a difference and, thereafter, regroup, build up again and get ready for the next crisis. So, here we are again. Let me start with the fiscal management of the Government, which epitomises this psyche of preparing and readying for a crisis. Thanks to disciplined and prudent financial management as well as the Net Investment Returns Contribution (NIRC), the surpluses accumulated in this term of Government allow us to mount a massive and robust response to the current situation, yet allowing us to still press on with our longer-term agenda. Without NIRC, three out of the last four fiscal years would have ended in deficit positions. So, we are already spending more than what we have collected from taxes. The call to spend more, the need to spend more is expected to keep rising. The calls were even louder in Budget 2018, where there was a bigger than projected surplus of $10.9 billion for financial year (FY) 2017 due to a one-off contribution from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and stamp duty collections. It is understandable for all of us here in this Chamber to push for more spending and subsidies in areas that we feel strongly about. I do that a lot here. The Finance Minister would then have the unenviable task of allocating the next dollar based on our priorities, and also importantly, based on how these spending commitments can be sustainably funded. It is always tempting to be nice and popular – spend more today and worry about tomorrow later. Fortunately, this is not the case for Singapore's Ministry of Finance.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, there is never a dull moment for this tiny island. The Coronavirus Disease of 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak is the latest uncertainty to be added to our list of challenges the country faces, even as we grapple with growing stresses in the global trading system, the impending shake-up in the international tax regime, the increasingly difficult geopolitical dynamics that we have to navigate through, to name a few. These are all working against our operating proposition, where, as a small and open state, we thrive on a rules-based multilateral system and where each has its opportunities and livelihood based on competitive advantages. In the midst of navigating these daunting external developments, we have also our domestic challenges to contend with, such as the ageing demographics, peaking of the local labour workforce in the decade ahead, the friction that we saw in jobs matching and so on. At times like this, it may come across as the world is collapsing upon us. But then, this is Singapore. We are no stranger to crises. We have been hit by external shocks many times in our history. We have had to deal with many existential threats and challenges. Some, we have overcome and some are still out there, like rising sea levels. And very often, we turned the solutions to our domestic challenges into opportunities and possibilities, like the water story, or how we build physical and non-physical connectivity with the world to make up for our lack of size and hinterland. Singapore's exceptionalism story has always been about constantly in the mode of preparing and readying for the next crisis to come even as we hope that things can be smooth sailing.”
“China is a country where many Singapore companies have successfully internationalised into. Given the grim situation in the Chinese economy now, can I ask the Senior Minister of State what does he see the impact to our Singapore companies in China, and whether there are ways and means that we can also assist them?”
“Sir, while I agree with the Minister the need to remain open, given our circumstances, and the benefits of complementarity between the local and foreign workforce, I would still like to ask the Minister to explain why can we not work towards zero-foreign manpower growth in Singapore.”
“Sir, perhaps I can ask three further questions on this matter of ITMs. Firstly, have the ITMs made any impact on our economic growth and our job creation? Secondly, have the economic growth and job creation benefited Singaporeans? And thirdly, have the economic growth and job creation benefited Singaporeans more than foreigners?”
“Sir, while I support the Government's decision to ban PMDs on walkways, I am also a little concerned about how this will impact the food delivery businesses which do offer convenience to residents. So, I would like to ask the Senior Minister of State how he sees this decision affecting the food delivery businesses and, more importantly, the PMD riders who are dependent on the PMDs to earn a living and whether there will be existing measures to help them to continue to have a way to do their business.”
“Sir, while the Ministry conducts this comprehensive and thorough review, in the meanwhile, would the Government consider stopping new sales and new imports of PMDs at least, so that we do not add further to the problem that we already have to manage?”
“Cutting food waste requires both system and regulatory changes, as well as lifestyle and cultural changes. For example, mooncake was just mentioned by Members, as we tend to give and receive multiple boxes of mooncakes from one another. It is really a waste in most cases. Also, the 10-course dinners that we have – do we really need an eight- or 10-course dinner? Often, it would lead to more food waste, as well as over consumption – both undesirable. Earlier in the year, I read in the news about this year-long drive as part of the Towards Zero Waste campaign where consumers are encouraged at food outlets to, firstly, order what we eat; secondly, ask for less rice or noodle if unable to eat that much; and thirdly, say "no" to side dishes that we will not consume. While I applaud this worthy initiative, I have not seen this message reaching out to enough people. Many people that I saw at food centres continue to not practise the three suggestions mentioned. There has been actually no noticeable impact, in my view. I urge the Government to do more and step up the campaign so that more people are conscious of this effort that we should do our part to reduce waste. Sir, with that, I add my support to the Bill.”
“Hence, an all-stakeholder coordinated approach at every stage of the food cycle is needed to make a significant difference. I support NEA's three-pronged strategy to reduce food waste, that is, firstly, to prevent and reduce food wastage at its source; secondly, to redistribute unsold and excess food; and thirdly, to recycle and treat food waste. Whilst today's Bill would in a large way address the food waste recycling and treatment issues, more can be done in the area of prevention and reduction of food waste, and I hope that the Government can play a more instrumental role here and continue to look at more game-changing policy measures to reduce food waste, working closely with the industries and community stakeholders. We have read about the many ways and ideas how we could reduce food waste. I am sure we will continue to come up with and discover more new ways. For example, with the advent of technology and data, we should leverage more digital means to better match the supply and production of food with the demand and consumption of food. Often, there is over production of food due to misreading or misjudging consumer demand. If there are more digital channels to place order for food, mobile apps to plan our meals and so on, businesses and producers would be able to better right-size their production and reduce food wastage. Hopefully, this could lead to cost reductions, possibly benefiting consumers when there is sufficient competition. Sir, the foremost priority here, hence, must be to minimise the food produced that is not consumed. If we can reduce food waste as a major thrust of our efforts, it is half the battle won. The other half of the battle would be to look at how we can reuse and recycle the food where possible.”
“The approach is to initially target commercial and industrial buildings that generate large amounts of food waste, such as large hotels, malls, as well as industrial facilities that house food manufacturers and caterers. I agree with this approach, as a start, essentially focusing on the big food waste generators where it can move the needle in terms of food waste recycling. The industry needs to comply with this new requirement by 2024. While I support these new measures, I would also like to ask the Minister how difficult it would be for the businesses to implement these regulations. Are the costs likely to be very high to the businesses? Can I also ask if there are already existing premises that adopt food segregation practices onsite? What are the results and benefits so far? For example, how successful have we been in recovering energy from food waste? Beyond expanding the practice to the industrial and commercial spaces, does the Government intend to expand the practice of recycling food to residential areas as well? Back to my first point with regard to the lack of awareness in the area of prevention and reduction of food waste, I strongly believe that more can be done. I read in some studies that, on average, about one-third of all the food produced for human consumption is not consumed but actually wasted. This is not only a waste of money for businesses and consumers, but it is also costing the earth and worsening global warming. When food is wasted, even more food is needed to be produced to meet the demand. Consequently, the resources used to cultivate, deliver and distribute the food will also go to waste. Every one of us contributes to this wastage in some way: the food producers, the food businesses, as well as all of us individually – the consumers.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I would like to focus on the food waste part of this Bill. In preparation for this speech, I researched on some information regarding food waste in Singapore, particularly at the NEA website. And like Members who have spoken before me, I do find the food waste situation very worrying. Firstly, I was very disturbed to learn that the amount of food waste generated in Singapore has increased at an alarming rate of 40% per year over the last 10 years. And this is expected to increase further with our growing population, economic activity and affluence. Despite earlier efforts to promote conservation of food, food waste is still mounting year by year. The second worrying fact is that only 17% of the food waste that we generate gets to be recycled. In other words, the main bulk of our unconsumed food ends up mostly in our usual rubbish trash and is eventually sent for incineration. Whether from the food resource optimisation or from public health standpoint, the current state of affairs on food waste is not sustainable. We are not doing justice to our precious food source. I am glad that the Government is making policy moves now to reduce and manage food waste. In my view, the key contributing factor to this situation is, firstly, the lack of awareness to prevent and reduce food waste at its source; and secondly, the lack of food waste treatment infrastructure in Singapore. Sir, let me touch on the second point first, which is primarily addressed by this Bill, that is, to require mandatory food waste segregation by large food waste generators.”
“Sir, the Senior Minister of State described the 10-week process to nab the culprit of the high-rise littering and so on. But the fact of the matter is that the Police take about 10 days to arrest the suspect. So, there must be something that they have done that can expedite this whole process. Perhaps, NEA should look at how the Police have done it and, maybe, reduce the pain points that NEA officers have to face trying to find the culprit.”
“Sir, the Member mentioned about the recent unfortunate incident where a man was fatally struck by a falling glass bottle at a condominium and the Police took swift action and made an arrest all in about 10 days, likely with the help of forensic capabilities that the agency has. Can I ask the Senior Minister of State whether NEA can also have that kind of resources and, hence, the efficacy and urgency to deal with some of these situations, some of which are actually fatal near misses as well? With that kind of capabilities, they can better deter as well as increase the chances of catching litter bugs at our estates.”
“Notwithstanding the Minister's very reassuring reply, I still have two further questions. Firstly, as the Minister has just said, our global trade systems are under stress. Indeed, the way things are developing, the world may, indeed, be trading less with one another, or investing less with one another as well, and both are important. Trade and investments are always the key drivers for the Singapore economy. So, I want to ask the Minister: should we be concerned that more economies around the world are becoming more nationalistic, governments are increasingly looking at balance of trade, current account balances as a pure zero-sum game? How can tiny Singapore respond to this rising economic nationalism? Secondly, beyond exporting goods and services to the consumers of the world, what are the other ways we can sustain growth within our economy? How can it create opportunities for Singapore? Can Singapore break out from this traditional C+I+G+X kind of model of growth?”
“Operators will also now not require a notice period of two months to terminate their tenancies or require security deposits exceeding two months. To attract more to enter the hawker trade, we not only need to lower the barrier to entry but the barrier to exist as well. Does the Ministry have updates on whether those measures have been effective?”
“Sir, the Ministry had announced various measures in November 2018 to address issues pertaining to the Socially-conscious Enterprise Hawker Centre (SEHC) model. Firstly, the Ministry had committed to better support stallholders to manage costs. Currently, the Ministry has put in place measures to ensure that rentals are reasonable and not speculative. For existing centres, the reserve rent has been removed as well as subletting and assignment have been disallowed. For new centres, the tender evaluation favour tenderers who offer lower total rental and operating costs and prohibit any increases in rentals or operating costs for the duration of the tenancy. In this way, the interests of the hawkers are well-protected. In addition, I am glad that the Productive Hawker Centre grants have been extended for two years with effect from January 2019. This shall help the SEHC stallholders manage their costs. This means that the stallholders at the hawker centres can enjoy a 50% reduction in their centralised dishwashing costs for the first year and 30% for the second year. The productivity solutions, such as centralised dishwashing and automated tray return systems, are steps in the right direction and help to ease our tight manpower situation. I can see that the Ministry had attempted to strike a balance between the soft-touch regulatory approach towards SEHC operators and to exercise better oversight to protect hawkers' welfare. To that end, I welcome NEA's review of the key contractual terms between the SEHC operators and stallholders to provide more flexibility, while ensuring proper management. For example, operators will be more flexible on the stallholders’ operating hours and days of work required.”
“Can I ask the Minister to update on the current state of food waste in Singapore? What policies and initiatives does the Ministry have in mind to increase the recycling rate of the 810,000 tonnes of food waste generated every year?”
“Sir, in preparation for this cut, I did some research and was troubled to learn of the extent of our food waste. According to information from the National Environment Agency (NEA) and other related websites, Singaporeans generated about 810,000 tonnes of food waste in 2017. Every day, we are throwing away, on average, more than 2,000 tonnes of food. Food waste constitutes about 10% of the total waste generated, but only 16% is recycled. The rest of the food waste is disposed of at incineration plants. Over the past 10 years, NEA noted that food waste generated in Singapore has increased by about 40% and is projected to increase with our growing population and economic activities. Food waste is a concern because food that we throw away, in essence, also amounts to wasting the resources used in its production as well as their treatment and disposal. Besides wasting money, it also has negative environmental impact. There have been ongoing efforts to collect and dispose of food waste. By and large, there are four major strategies adopted by NEA. Firstly, Prevent and Reduce Food Wastage at Source. Secondly, Redistribute Unsold/Excess Food. Thirdly, Recycle/Treat Food Waste. Fourthly, Recover Energy from Waste. On the strategy of redistributing unsold and excess food, I feel that there is scope to do more. We could involve more of the community groups to redistribute unsold or excess food to help needy families. In my constituency, for example, our Zhenghua Indian Activity Executive Committee does that every month, collecting food from wholesale market and redistributing it to needy residents at our estates. By so doing, food unsold is not wasted and it can make a difference to low-income families.”
“Sir, if I may say something about Mr Teo Ser Luck. I am happy that he filed so many cuts this time for MTI. He used to be helping and supporting entrepreneurs and startups when he was in MTI, and now he is himself an entrepreneur and a startup. So, this is an indication of our vibrant startup scene. Sir, growing and transforming our economy is so very important for Singapore, so crucial. We can only now wish MTI and the economic agencies every success. With that, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment, Sir. [(proc text) Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. (proc text)] [(proc text) The sum of $1,032,517,000 for Head V ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. (proc text)] [(proc text) The sum of $4,755,830,400 for Head V ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. (proc text)]”
“Sir, I understand that Minister Chan Chun Sing has just returned from Siam Reap, Cambodia, where he attended the RCEP Ministerial Meeting. So, probably it is timely to ask him on the latest progress of the RCEP negotiations. We have a few elections in the region in the member states. Is there enough political will to overcome the specific sensitive issues and do we have reasons to be optimistic for the agreement to be concluded this year?”
“Sir, we saw several milestones in our relationship with India over the last two years. In 2017, bilateral trade between Singapore and India was S$25.2 billion. Singapore was India's second largest trading partner in ASEAN while India was Singapore's largest trading partner in South Asia. In June 2018, India's Prime Minister Modi visited Singapore and was the first Indian Prime Minister to deliver the Shangri-La Dialogue keynote address in Singapore. He acknowledged that the political relations between India and Singapore are among the warmest and closest. In the same year, in 2018, he made another visit to Singapore in November to speak at the Singapore FinTech Festival. During the event, he launched a global platform to connect FinTech firms and financial institutions, beginning with ASEAN and Indian banks, and FinTech companies. Prime Minister Modi noted that India and Singapore are also working to connect Indian and ASEAN's SMEs anchored on an Indian platform and expanding it globally. Sir, Singapore also overtook Mauritius to become India's top source of FDIs in the first half of financial year 2018. These are encouraging developments which we should continue to pursue, particularly given that India is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world and a bright spot for our Singapore companies to invest in. Could MFA provide an update on the Singapore-India relationship? Engagement of Middle East”
“Sir, as always, MOF has done it again very prudently and efficiently with not just the financial resources but time resource as well! I believe we have a pretty good accumulated surplus for our COS time now. [Laughter.] Sir, I want to thank the Finance Minister for a very caring Budget, especially the very strong commitment to our workers and seniors in this Budget, and also to Minister Lawrence Wong and Minister Indranee Rajah for their replies and also to the hardworking MOF team. With that, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment.”
“Sir, I am not sure whether the Minister has the figures, but I just thought I want to ask about the Pioneer Generation Package, that is, the $8 billion that we have set aside. Given the consumption rate and so on, is the $8 billion that was set aside ahead of utilisation or are we still in good shape in terms of the funding for the whole Pioneer Generation Package?”
“Sir, today, our economy is more innovative and technology-driven, and we do have a vibrant startup ecosystem. We are seeing more new‐to‐economy activities that have also been developed in recent years, such as the proliferation of financial technologies (fintechs), deep tech ventures, sharing economy apps and others. While we continue to strengthen the ecosystem for startups to flourish, we are also encouraging smaller enterprises to innovate and to scale up. Government policies, regulations and processes must, therefore, also keep up with the changes and stay abreast with the new business landscape. On this note, I would like to ask MOF three questions. Firstly, how are the Government procurement policies and practices supporting innovation and enterprises while ensuring value-for-money in its purchases? Procurement rules need to be evolved from being prescriptive to being more principles‐based so as to better support innovation and enterprise. Secondly, how is the Government tapping on digital technology to streamline corporate regulatory requirements? For example, can the Government consider allowing companies to conduct electronic or virtual annual general meetings (AGMs) to help them save costs? Finally, also importantly, how does the Government help small enterprises and freelancers understand their obligations with regard to business band tax-filing? Some of the businesses may be still less tax savvy and may still require some more support. Innovation and Value in Procurement”
“However, for the entity that builds the Government-invested infrastructure, borrowing at the project level does require higher financing costs because of the risks associated, such as construction risks. This could result in a negative carry situation from the Government's standpoint where the borrowing rates may be higher than the returns from investing the Reserves. Hence, it makes smart sense to tap on Government guarantee to reduce the borrowing costs. 4.45 pm I have a few questions for the Finance Minister. Firstly, can I ask the Minister how would this differentiated fiscal strategy impact spending flexibility, for example, in the event of a crisis or a severe recession where we need to inject an impactful assistance package? Secondly, we know that spending, especially in social, healthcare and security areas will rise in the years to come. Can the Minister shed some light as to how the Ministry of Finance (MOF) sees the spending trajectory in the next five to 10 years and how do we ensure fiscal sustainability? Thirdly, as I have said earlier, our investment income from our Reserves is now a significant source of Government revenue. How does the Government ensure that we will not be overly reliant on it, especially as the investment climate is getting more volatile? And finally, in the midst of changing to this new approach, how do we also ensure that our tax regime remains progressive, with the higher-income earners shouldering more of the tax burden? [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)] Diversity and Resilience of Revenue Base”
“I agree with the Finance Minister that for recurrent spending like healthcare, security and other social expenditures where it directly benefits the current generation, they should be funded with current taxation so that every generation pays its share. This approach would also instil the spending discipline as any further rise in recurring expenditures would have to be funded through more taxes. This in‐built discipline will not only help keep our operating Budget sustainable but also fairer as well across generations. For long-term mega infrastructure projects with high capital outlays, the Government should, as far as possible, set aside surpluses where possible, to use the savings accumulated to pay part of the lumpy investment, which is what we have been doing in the past. This pre‐funding approach demonstrates commitment and ensures that there is sufficient funding for projects with very high capital expenditures, such as the Cross Island Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Line. But I also agree with the Finance Minister that with the new financing approach for projects, especially where they generate future economic returns, and those that are long-term in nature with some uncertainty, the entity that undertakes the project can look to borrow to finance the project and potentially could draw on the Government's guarantee to lower the financing costs of these long-term borrowings. The Government is a net creditor and actually does not need to borrow other than the issuance of Singapore Government Securities, which is there to help create a risk-free bond market yield curve.”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, I beg to move, "That the total sum to be allocated for Head M of the Estimates be reduced by $100". Sir, our spending has increased by about 2.5 times in the last decade with healthcare and infrastructure among the steepest growth. On the other hand, our revenue, inclusive of Net Investment Return Contribution (NIRC), grew by about two times in the last 10 years. If NIRC is excluded, our operating revenue would have only grown by about one time in the last one decade. Therein lies our fiscal implications. Firstly, our total expenditures are growing at a faster rate than our operating revenue. In business budgeting, this phenomenon is known as the negative draw, that is, when the rate of growth in expenditures exceeds the rate of growth in revenue. If left unchecked, where expenditures continue to grow faster than revenues, we could end up with a ballooning deficit situation in the years to come. Secondly, we are now dependent on the NIRC to balance the Budget. Otherwise, our Budgets will run into structural deficits. NIRC now accounts for about one‐fifth of our total revenue, as the Minister for Finance has said earlier. Thirdly, both the short‐term recurring expenditures as well as the long-term infrastructure spending have grown larger and are projected to increase further in the decades ahead. In particular, social and healthcare spending will rise as our population enters into a faster pace of ageing and healthcare needs increase further. In his Budget Statement speech, the Finance Minister spoke about pursuing differentiated fiscal strategy to fund our various spending, namely, one approach for major infrastructural investments, and another for recurrent social and security expenditures.”