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 thank the Senior Minister of State for sharing the various energy conservation efforts and initiatives. I have this sense that the public and businesses may not all be familiar with these schemes. So, given the rising energy costs and our push to decarbonise, can I ask the Senior Minister of State if we should step up on public communications and to build this consciousness about energy conservation and to have visibility in some of these efforts as well, so as to get more buy-in? My second question is whether, based on our current way of consumption, the Senior Minister of State sees further significant scope to conserve energy and whether it can really move the needle in terms of managing demand.”
“Thank you, Sir. The Minister mentioned about the non-urgent cases attended by EDs. I understand some are because the clinics could not cope and refer the patients to EDs – including some polyclinics, I understand. So, can I ask the Minister – he mentioned about TCF, whether that can also be another place? So, can clinics refer patients to a TCF instead of going to the EDs?”
“Well, Sir, nothing is cast in stone or is forever. But, in my view, we have not come to the dire state where we have to make changes in response to those differences, bearing in mind that we want to continue to accumulate the reserves, so that we can reinvest them and you can get the returns benefits straight, the year after. Looking at the expenditures that we are seeing – I mentioned a few, not just for healthcare but even some for the infrastructure, energy resilience and so on – the spending is just going to escalate. At this point in time, we should safeguard our finances as much as we can, always bear in mind that reserves are backstop that we want to be able to deal with situations, such as we have seen during the COVID-19 pandemic and we had to draw down $50 billion. There could be other crises along the way that we will be required to take some actions. So, there is no scientific rule about whether it is 50%:50%, or 40%:60%, but in my view, this is the best balance you can strike. In Hokkien, they say: "jit lang jit pua, kamcheng buay sua" (一人一半, 感情不散). That is how we strike a balance between future and current generations.”
“On sin taxes, we can raise more. Perhaps, it is good to hear also how high we should raise the tobacco tax rate to, to make up for the 2% GST. Sir, I have been scrutinising the Government's fiscal management for many years. I have also looked at the Workers' Party's current proposal which, like I said earlier, there are some aspects that I do not disagree. But when I look at all things in totality, I still prefer the Government's approach, which is that we continually build a diversified and stable source of revenue with income tax, corporate tax, wealth tax, property tax, GST and others, and augment with NIRC that we have to meet our current and longer-term spending commitments and continue to grow our reserves as they are our only backstop for our survivability. Growing our reserves will also help increase NIRC, which will reduce the overall tax burden, even as we plan to spend exponentially more in the future. For a tiny country with no natural resources, we need an even higher factor of safety to navigate through the troubled and more uncertain world that we are in today. Being more prudent in our finances has never failed us in our history; it has strengthened us. In the horizon ahead, we need this added strength, where we must be prepared for more and even bigger external shocks to come. This Parliament must be about doing the right thing and the right thing for us to do today is to secure our finances in a responsible way so that we can really take care and look after the different groups of Singaporeans – those who are growing older, the families who support them, the middle-income, the lower-income, the retirees, the young Singaporeans and the future generations. Sir, I support the Bill.”
“That can be another source, but the question is at what rate and how much can you raise it to? On corporate tax, it was also mentioned that there will be increased corporate tax revenue due to the BEPS Pillar Two. The matter is still not settled. Maybe yes, maybe not. At this point in time, there is no visibility on the actual figures. More importantly, it does not take into account the potential outflows from BEPS, as there is a Pillar One and Pillar Two. There is no certainty that the revenue from BEPS Pillar Two will be as what the Workers' Party had produced in their calculations, as we cannot assume that companies will not shift their operations in response to the tax rate increases. Having said that, I do not disagree that corporate tax should be another source of additional revenue that the Government should tap on as we do need all the revenue that we can get to fund a long list of our future spending needs – like I said, the economic capabilities building, transport, childcare, unemployment support and others. We need more funding and, if corporate tax can be another source, why not? The key balancing consideration is whether the increase in corporate tax rate will compromise our competitive position, which would have direct implications on jobs and other opportunities. On carbon tax and sin taxes, we are already tapping on these sources and, in my view, there are more upsides. On carbon tax, the question is how high and how fast we can increase. Can the businesses withstand it and how much would be passed on consumers, especially when we know that a higher carbon tax could mean higher household electricity bills. There is a carbon tax debate coming up and I look forward to hearing the Workers' Party's proposal on the carbon tax rate.”
“5 billion, reducing the retained NIRC to 40% would mean more than $4 billion will not be going into past reserves for reinvesting. This would reduce the NIRC that we can generate for subsequent years, including next year, and the cumulative impact over time will be even more significant. Our NIRC has grown from $7.6 billion in 2012 to $21.5 billion this year, based on Budget 2022 estimates. About three-fold increase in 10 years. We hope that NIRC can continue contribute more, not by changing the ratio but by growing this base amount of our reserves. If we have not saved enough in the past, the NIRC today would be even lower and we would end up needing higher taxes or we may have to cut spending and subsidies. Surely, we want this NIRC annuities to keep growing to fund more spending and to reduce future tax burden for Singaporeans. The Workers' Party also mentioned about land sales which was earlier dealt with in the earlier Parliamentary Questions, both answered by Minister Indranee. So, I will not talk about that, except to just mention about the property tax that the Workers' Party mentioned for the expensive properties. The Government has already made some moves this year, in this year's Budget for the non-owner-occupied residential properties. It was raised from 10% to 20% range to 12% to 36% range. So, a significant increase there. But the point is whether raising property tax from just the high-end properties would be enough – unless we raise it so high that it is untenable. If want to keep it tenable, then we may have to increase the taxes on other owner-occupied properties – which will impact the middle-income households and HDB owners. Do not get me wrong, we are not in a disagreement about increasing property taxes.”
“The GST offset support has been in existence for about 15 years. It has very much been a permanent feature in our GST system to help neutralise the impact of GST to lower-income Singaporeans. The offsets focus rightly on essentials like utilities, S&CC, MediSave and a cash component as well. On the ground, I have seen these being very helpful to reduce the cost impact of GST to low- to middle-income Singaporeans, especially to the seniors. This is the uniqueness of our GST system, where the lower-income groups have largely been cushioned, while we raise a larger proportion of the GST from the higher spending group, which tends to be the wealthier, the high-income and also includes the foreign visitors. These two approaches are designed to cushion the middle-income, the lower-income and the retirees against both cost of living and the GST increase. This tells us we can be assured of support to get through this tough time and that those who need more help will get more. At the same time, we can also be assured that when we get older, we will also get healthcare and other support because we will have a diversified and more stable source of revenues to pay for our various spending programmes. What about the Workers' Party’s four alternative sources? I believe these were debated in the Budget debate earlier this year. I found Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s round-up speech very helpful in understanding why there are reservations and doubts about the Workers' Party’s proposals. Firstly, on raising NIRC from 50% to 60%. What that means basically is that we will put back less into the reserves. It also means less for our young people when they get older. To dive a little bit more, based on the Budget 2022 NIRC estimates of $21.”
“But at the same time, the Government would have to make sure that we have the stable base of revenues that can cover our long-term recurring expenditures, especially healthcare, as our population ages rapidly over the next few years. So, the Government's strategy is to strengthen our revenue sources, which also includes increasing the GST rate, but balance this with a two-pronged approach to cushion the middle income, the low-income and the retirees against both cost of living and the GST increase. For cost of living, there are support packages. Earlier in the year, Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said that if there was a need to do more, the Government would do more. This year I saw how the Government had made good on this commitment. We have a $560 million package, the Household Support Package, in the Budget 2022. There was an additional $1.5 billion package in June. More recently, another $1.5 billion package in October to help Singaporeans to cope with the cost of living. So, there is a total of $3.5 billion of targeted support. To help with the GST increase, the Government has another set of support measures, which is the Assurance Package that was announced and has since been enlarged to $6.64 billion. The Assurance Package effectively delays the GST increase by five years for the majority and 10 years for the lower-income. There is also the Enhanced Permanent GST vouchers, separate from the Assurance Package, with additional cash payouts. This is not a temporary scheme. It is actually permanent. Separately, the Government will also absorb the additional GST on publicly funded healthcare and education. The Government will carry out the GST increase in two steps: 1% over two years, rather than one step of 2% this year.”
“This is the Government's approach, which is to build a diversified stream of revenues that is stable and sustainable to pay for our current and longer-term spending commitments. GST is one stream of revenue that adds to the diversification, where in our unique system, we actually take in more taxes from the wealthier groups through GST – those with higher purchasing power – and at the same time, mitigate the impact to the lower-income or no-income Singaporeans. This is the Government's approach. The Workers' Party disagrees, saying that current cost of living and inflation is high so we should not add further to the costs; that GST is regressive and it hurts the middle and low-income; and that there are alternative sources of revenue. In their recent Hammer article, they said there are four alternatives to raising GST: (a) raise NIRC from 50% to 60%; (b) to use a portion of land sales for recurrent expenditure and raise property taxes for more expensive properties; (c) to increase corporate tax revenue from the compliance with BEPS 2; and (d) raise other taxes like carbon tax and sin taxes. In the article, they even said that the amount we can get from any of these four, will produce the same amount of revenue annually as a 2% GST increase. Therefore, just do any one of these and there is no need to raise GST. Is this really the case? What does the Government say? Looking at the previous debates and what the Government has been doing, this is what I see. Firstly, the Government acknowledges that inflation is indeed high and that costs have been increasing. The Government understands that the GST will add to costs.”
“Besides ageing and healthcare-related spending, we would also need more funding for capacity building, climate mitigation, energy resilience, security, education, childcare and the various social and employment support that we want to do more of. So, there is no dispute on the need for higher spending and hence, the need for higher revenue to fund these escalating expenditures. Sir, the main difference between the Government and the Opposition positions is how this additional revenue should be raised. The Government believes that a major bulk of our recurrent expenditures should be funded by recurrent revenues so that our fiscal finances are on a sustainable footing. Every year the Government draws revenues from a diversified sources of taxes to pay for our current expenditures, with corporate taxes and personal income taxes among the top contributors, at 18.3% and 13.6% of total revenue respectively. Property taxes, which tend to be cyclically driven, is expected to contribute about $2 billion in FY2022/23. The GST contributed 12.2% or $12.8 billion, our third largest revenue contributor; while the NIRC at 18.7% is now the largest revenue contributor to balance our Budget. The Government does review our tax rates from time to time and adjust them as appropriate. In recent years, due to higher funding needs, the Government has indeed been raising tax rates. In Budget 2022, income tax and wealth taxes, including property and vehicle taxes were raised. The Government has also increased the stamp duties and the ABSDs, which is another form of wealth tax, besides using it as a tool to cool the market.”
“Mr Speaker, this GST Bill comes at a time when we are facing rising global inflation and heightened economic uncertainties. The effects of the war in Ukraine and the never-ending pandemic have led to rising energy and food prices among others, which are now being felt at all households and businesses. Singaporeans are feeling the strain, with many households’ essential items like electricity bills, groceries at the supermarket, food at the hawker centre and coffee shops rising sharply. The low- to middle-income and the retirees are particularly impacted as they do not have the higher wages or savings to offset the cost increases. So, the question then is whether should we go ahead with the GST increase at the current time? To answer this question, we need to go back to the fundamentals. Why do we need to raise the GST in the first place? The Government has explained that our expenditures are rising and in the decades ahead, we will need to spend even more. Our population is rapidly ageing and along with it comes rising healthcare needs. I have seen that first-hand in my constituency Bukit Panjang, where the demand for healthcare and senior care facilities has risen. We have recently opened a polyclinic in our town and it has been full house since day one of opening. There are increasing demand for places, for more senior care centres, dialysis centres and rehabilitation centres – there are always queues waiting – which we intend to further expand our capacity in coming years. These are all necessary expenditures. If we postpone them, then we will not be doing right for our seniors, who could be our parents and grandparents of today and the future.”
“Sir, I am glad that we do have many options now, for the seniors to monetise, to achieve financial security, by renting out, downsizing to smaller place and the Lease Buyback Scheme. In my view, the ageing-in-place offered by Lease Buyback Scheme is the most suitable for seniors, especially when there is no change in the environment; and unlike renting, they have to live with someone as well. So, I would like to ask the Minister, he mentioned about 9,200 households so far, since the implementation. How can we promote the scheme, so that seniors understand the scheme and the help it can provide, the financial security without having to move out to a new environment? The second question is, most of the concerns I hear from residents, are that they are worried that they outlive the 30-year tenure of the buyback. And they may have no place to stay thereafter. So, can I ask the Minister if the Government can give a stronger assurance that this would not be the case?”
“Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. Sir, I am really happy that the Minister mentioned about the Elderly Centres, and the plan to build more in the community. I agree fully there is a real need for that. But the problem is, like in many of the estates, like my constituency Bukit Panjang, we are running out of void deck spaces to build such centres. And we need to reserve some of these void deck spaces for other activities like funeral wakes and so on which is also a reality of ageing. So, can I ask the Minister whether would MOH be open to allowing standalone centres, those outside the void decks, which understandably will cost more to build? But there are some spaces that can actually allow such facility to be built. And specifically, my question is whether MOH will fund this this facility that is outside the void deck centres which may cost a bit more but, because of the space constraint, we have to do that.”
“Thank you, Sir. Sir, I appreciate the extensive community outreach effort by the SG digital office, helping the seniors to be familiarised with the digital tools, and also the scam preventions. I would like to ask the Minister, in going forward, should the focus be more on practical applications, for example, the apps and functions that can help the seniors in their daily life. For example, how to use Singpass, calling a cab, ordering food, TeleConsult and so on. And if I may come back to my Parliamentary Question, on the polyclinic appointment bookings. With COVID-19 cases still high, the polyclinics are obviously very busy with high numbers of visits. Many of the seniors were told to book online and there are only limited walk-ins that you can book, but they are feeling helpless about how they can make a booking through the online platforms and how to go through the whole process – including using a Singpass, Singnet profiles and so on. Can I ask the Minister, if the digital office could also look at how to assist seniors to help them in some of these functions for their daily lives?”
“Thirdly, would the changes have any impact our competitiveness as a premier destination to attract international investments, now that we can disclose this information to the agencies? Fourthly, with this expansion of the scope for data disclosures and sharing, would there be further safeguards to ensure data confidentiality and privacy? Sir, it is worth noting that the intent to allow disclosure of data without taxpayer consent apply only to corporate entities and not individual data. Sir, we need to continuously review and strengthen the safeguards to protect confidentiality and privacy of taxpayers’ information so that we uphold the public’s trust and confidence in the public sector’s handling and use of taxpayer data. It is on this basis of high public trust and integrity that we can then look to further harnessing the value of data within the public sector system to provide more effective government and better public service. Sir, notwithstanding my questions, I support the amendments.”
“Mr Speaker, I support the amendments to implement the tax changes announced during Budget 2022 as well as the other changes to enhance the progressivity of our tax structure. My speech, in particular, will focus on the amendments to facilitate the sharing of information by IRAS for official duties. The first change grants powers to IRAS to disclose information to other Government agencies for the purpose of performing official duties as long as the taxpayers have given consent. Under the current section 6 (Official Secrecy) of both Income Tax Act (ITA) and Goods and Services Tax Act (GSTA), IRAS is obliged to preserve the confidentiality of a taxpayer’s information unless it is for the administration of any written law or public scheme. The second change allows IRAS to disclose to other Government agencies company-related information without the consent of taxpayer. Both changes are intended to support data-driven policy setting, improved public office operations and integrated service delivery. Sir, I support the intent. Better and judicious use of data can significantly improve the effectiveness of Government, operations and also better service to the public. However, the obvious concern is how do we safeguard taxpayers’ confidentiality; especially where IRAS may be privy to documents containing sensitive commercial information. In this regard, I have a few questions for the Senior Minister of State. First, whether the agencies requesting the information from IRAS would need to justify the specific purposes and use of the information? Secondly, is there an evaluation and approval process for each of these requests for information and is IRAS the approving authority? What is the governance and accountability structure here?”
“Thank you, Sir. I thank the Minister and also commend MOT and LTA for the significant build-up of public transport connectivity. It is, indeed, money well-spent and value-for-money, I would say. The Minister mentioned about the upcoming fare adjustment formula review and, of course, in every fare review, we wait with bated breath on the outcome. Can I ask the Minister how he sees the fare adjustment formula being improved upon and what can the public expect? Also, it would appear that, under the current formula, the balancing item to square up the costs versus the revenue is the fare adjustments. Can I ask the Minister if this is, indeed, the case and whether the Public Transport Operators (PTOs) as well as the subsidies from the Government can also help to take a bigger share of any cost increases? My final point is whether the Public Transport Vouchers can also be part of the household support or GST Offset Package.”
“Sir, we do have a significant pool of mature PMET talents – those that may be between the age of 50s and 60s. And we should do more to help improve their employment opportunities as there is still a very sticky bias against this group of PMETs. Can I ask the Minister whether the reductions in the job advertisement period under FCF from 28 days to 14 days for EP applications reduces the impetus for employers to hire local PMETs, especially those in the more mature age groups? In other words, would employers take this reduction in the advertisement period as a signal to look to foreign hires as the first resort rather than the last resort?”
“Thank you, Sir. I wanted to seek clarification from the Minister of State for Home Affairs, whether SCDF indeed have the authority to carry out enforcement or issue decluttering notices to household with excessive hoarding, especially those that pose fire risks? If yes, is the Ministry or SCDF stepping up these inspections and issuing such notices? If no, would the Ministry consider empowering SCDF with this authority so that they can ensure fire safety in our residential areas? Assoc Prof Dr Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim: Sir, I thank the Member for the supplementary question. As I shared earlier, SCDF does not assess cluttered homes, in general, to be a key fire risk. So, at the end of the day, we have to look at the different cases. However, that said, we understand the Member's and the public's concern; and we are working closely with the inter-agency HMCG to look into the issue.”
“Thank you, Sir. My question is more for seniors who used to receive and depended on the payouts, and subsequently, the payouts stopped because of changes in their household income and so on. I understand that the CPF Board does review seniors' eligibility annually but I want to ask the Minister whether for those who used to receive and subsequently do not receive payouts, how does the CPF Board communicate this to those seniors? What are the reasons that are given to them – whether they used to receive for many years and then they do not receive payouts. Should there not be a clarification as to how that happens? Secondly, for those who have received payouts for many years, can the Minister consider, perhaps, a phased stepdown from the Silver Support Scheme? Because many of the seniors depended on the payouts for some years and suddenly, it just gets removed. There could be some problems for them to manage their monthly expenses and so on. Would the Minister consider that as well?”
“Thank you, Sir. I would like to further ask the Deputy Prime Minister this. We know that for the investment returns, we do have the NIRC framework where it smoothens out over a long period of time. We call it the long-term expected real returns. So, I would like to ask the Deputy Prime Minister, why are these investment returns from OFR, and hence, the foreign exchange translation effects and fluctuations, not counted under the NIRC framework where the returns are smoothened out over the long period of time, through that methodology? The second question, in MAS' annual report, it also mentioned the higher interest rate expenses. Can I ask if the rising interest rates will add to the overall interest expenses of the Government, given the size of securities the Government intends to issue going forward?”
“Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. My question to Minister of State is, since the decisive move towards living with COVID-19 earlier this year, we have actually seen a hive of economic activities picking up, possibly due to the pent-up demand the catch-up growth but also the new investment activity, perhaps due to our hub status and so on. I have been hearing businesses lamenting about the shortage of labour, the intense poaching of manpower, the turnovers are very high, we are seeing that traffic is getting jammed up with more commercial vehicles on the roads, ERP has made a comeback, the construction sector is also back to full swing. My question to the Minister of State may be quite contrarian to the question being filed by my colleagues in the House. Firstly, is our economy on over-drive mode at the moment, notwithstanding the backdrop of rising global interest rates at this point in time? Secondly, is this sustainable and is this healthy growth for us? Do we need to better curate this growth so as to avoid this intensed poaching or pricing up of resources, and also the undesirable effect of crowding?”
“I thank the Finance Minister for the new measures that were just announced and also the response to my Parliamentary Question about the timing of the payouts. Sir, much of the cost increases are supply-driven. So, the COVID-19-related situation, the supply chain stressors, the war in Ukraine and the wages in which we want to have wage uplift. So, my concern is that there is this series of cost increases and price increases, it will inter-feed into each other and whether that will trigger off an inflationary spiral. So, I would like to ask the Finance Minister what can the Government do to break this chain of interaction in the prices and the costs and then to counter this momentum of price increases. My second question is for Minister Tan See Leng. I appreciate the Committee Against Profiteering (CAP) to check on unjustifiable profiteering. But we also know that this is not a magic bullet. You still need competition to counter all these profiteering and there must be choices for consumers. So, I would like to ask Minister Tan See Leng whether CAP would focus more on those sectors or businesses that have less choices for consumers, less competition where their businesses have bigger market power. How can we focus on those and, in particular, whether CAP or CCCS has identified any of these sectors?”
“Thank you, Sir. Sir, it is, indeed, good news that SMR and the new fusion technology can allow us in Singapore to tap on nuclear energy at very low risk and that it is viable. Sir, the EMA report also mentioned that nuclear energy can supply 10% of our total energy by 2050. Can I further ask the Minister of State, if we are, indeed, embarking on or making this significant move to tap on nuclear energy and will have to build the required capabilities and infrastructure, why are we only looking at tapping 10% and not a higher percentage, given the very significant undertaking? My second question is how soon can we build up these required specialised capabilities, the R&D set-up and the necessary investments, so that we can be among the early adopters?”
“Thank you, Sir. Sir, in the Minister's reply, he mentioned that SafeEntry is still needed to protect 3.5% of the eligible population who are not vaccinated. It is now down to 3.5%. So, can I ask the Minister, from an equity standpoint, does it make sense to inconvenience the 96.5% of the population, just so that we can deter the 3.5% unvaccinated from entering the premises? Does it really make a difference in terms of the public health outcomes? Or is it just a move to basically disincentivise those unvaccinated from going there or to nudge them to get vaccinated?”
“Sir, the Certificate of Entitlement (COE) premiums for motorcycles hit new highs and stayed above the $10,000 level since January this year. The premiums now can cost more than two times the price of an entry level motorcycle. Does this make sense? And how does it impact those who are dependent on motorcycles for their livelihoods? Sir, while the market-based approach to allocate COEs is efficient, it may not always lead to the desirable economic and social outcomes. Motorcycles is one the essential mode of transport that have helped many meet many critical and general business needs, such as delivery and dispatch of goods and documents. It is less impacted by traffic jams and hence, can be a more reliable transport mode to get around, including delivering essential items like medicines or attending to emergency repairs and many other economic activities. Many full-time and freelance workers are also dependent on their motorcycles for livelihoods. Hence, the sharp rise in COE premiums do cause anxieties to these riders. Their concerns are whether would the COE premium continue to rise higher and to stay high. Like any markets, there is always room for interventions when the price actions do not reflect fundamentals, or where there are market distortions that cause imbalances in demand and supply. What are the reasons for the recent record high premiums of motorcycle COEs? What can the Government do to moderate or bring down the premiums to more affordable levels? Should we look at the supply of the motorcycles' COE as one way to meet the higher demand? Otherwise, would the Government consider other additional measures to help those who are impacted and dependent on their motorcycles for livelihoods? Increasing Number of Motorcycle COEs”
“Thank you, Sir. I thank the Minister for his assurance that MOM will be very watchful of companies who will game the system and I am referring COMPASS. So, can I further ask Minister, under this framework, if the employer were to meet all the requirements under COMPASS, is MOM obliged to give the EPs? And if that is the case, will that lead to a situation where the total number EPs issued would be even higher than before? My second question is to Senior Minister of State Koh. I am really happy that Senior Minister of State is going to continue the Skills and Future Centre at the 24 HDB hubs. We have one in Bukit Panjang and the residents are really grateful for the convenience and advisory provided there. So, can I ask the Senior Minister of State whether would the centre go further to beef up capabilities to do more local job-matching and with the intent to bring back or facilitate stay-at-home mothers or the seniors to rejoin the workforce?”
“Sir, credit to the hardworking team of the MOM family, past and present, we have made great progress in improving the employability, employment and well-being of our workers in the last decade. However, one segment of workers where their employability and employment continue to face steep challenges is that of the mid-career jobseekers, those in their 40s and 50s. They are most vulnerable to disruptions and restructuring at the workplace. It is a more uphill task for anyone in the middle of their careers to reskill for new jobs. Hence, we need to intensify support and encourage continuous learning. But, of course, there are some who face age discrimination, biasness by their employers and that, we will address it through TAFEP as well as workplace fairness legislation. We already have a range of support measures to help mid-career workers. So, can I ask the Minister for an update on the outcomes of these schemes so far? I welcome another new scheme that was announced by the Finance Minister, namely, the SGUnited Mid-Career Pathways Programme – Company Attachment. Securing attachments to companies for these mid-career jobseekers can be a good way to help overcome the skills or experience mismatch issues. Can the Minister share the details how this scheme would work and does he anticipate any difficulties? Also, can I ask the Minister to share the details on the SkillsFuture Career Transition Programme which would be enhanced to achieve better outcomes? Local Workforce”
“Sir, the joint NTUC and SNEF PME Taskforce recommended a points system for Employment Pass (EP) applications which factors in whether the employer has been hiring and developing local workers and the diversity of nationalities within the company. The Minister for Finance also mentioned in his Budget Statement speech that beyond qualifying salary, MOM will assess EP applications on the basis of complementarity and the diversity of our foreign workforce. Can I ask: what is MOM's assessment of whether a points system will be useful in improving the complementarity of the local and foreign workforces? If, indeed, we are going on this approach, can the Minister share details on the basis of determining complementarity and how the system will be administered? Is this approach of assessing applications expected to lead to a higher total number of EPs issued and whether could it also lead to a situation where an employer who can find a local hire but choose to hire an EP instead, because the company is able to meet the complementarity and diversity criteria? Would it go against the spirit of this proposal? Foreign Workforce”
“Chairman, allow me to thank Minister Gan Kim Yong, Minister Tan See Leng and Minister of State Low Yen Ling for responding to our cuts and clarifications; and also wishing Minister of State Alvin Tan a speedy recovery. Sir, the road ahead is full of uncertainty. Our economy is facing challenges and stresses from multiple fronts. But we take comfort that we have a best-in-class MTI team there and now helmed by Minister Gan, who is, of course, no stranger to managing crises. We wish MTI all the best and, with that, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. [(proc text) Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. (proc text)] [(proc text) The sum of $2,804,739,800 for Head V ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. (proc text)] [(proc text) The sum of $6,266,508,900 for Head V ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. (proc text)]”
“Thank you, Sir. Just two clarifications for the Minister. Firstly, I am glad to see the COVID-19 cases come down in the last few days. I hope we have seen the peak. I would like to ask the Minister whether our growth projections as well as our transformation efforts and the economic plans that we have, would hinge on us further opening up and the further relaxation of our SMMs. Is that an important part to it? The second clarification is on the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). Singapore is the chairman for this year and we read about interest from China and Taiwan. I would like to ask the Minister whether he can share whether are we still engaging the United States to rejoin the TPP?”
“To guide and align the different stakeholders in moving towards a common goal, can I ask the Minister for his overall vision of the Singapore economy? [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)] Access to Manpower”
“How has the Government supported firms, especially local SMEs, in developing their digital capabilities? Mr Chairman, it is not just the disruptions from external events but also disruptions from technological developments that our firms need to deal with. Nonetheless, we also have forward-thinking firms in Singapore which are the ones driving this disruption through innovating and creating new products and services. How can we spread this culture of innovation to more firms in the economy, including for more SMEs to start innovation projects? How are we supporting the firms which are interested but may need some help in developing the needed capabilities to innovate? Sir, we need to continue to invest in our people as well so that they are able to benefit from the economic growth and, in turn, participate in or even create the innovation that we would like to see in our local firms. This cannot be left solely to the industry nor can it be driven purely by the Government. How would the Government work with the industry and workers to build a future-ready workforce? Sir, my final point. The world has changed at a faster pace due to human-led developments like technological changes, innovations, climate change actions and so on. But the world has also become more unpredictable and less stable due to unexpected events like the pandemic, political conflicts, tensions and higher interdependent risks. We need to remain even more agile to adjust to these expected and unexpected changes and events as well as the emerging new challenges in the overall economic environment. Against this backdrop, it is important for the Government to share how we intend to respond and position ourselves in this challenging landscape.”
“Sir, while global supply of energy is beyond our control, I believe we can do more to manage our domestic demand for energy and electricity. I feel that there is enormous scope to manage down our consumption of energy and to cut wastage of electricity by both households and commercial entities. For households, we can encourage more conscientious use of electricity, and it is often about reminding consumers on good habits. Simple steps such as setting your aircon temperature higher, more conscious to turn off appliances like TV, lights when not in use, lesser use of water heater, for example, among others; all these add up and move the needle to save electricity. In the commercial area, there is also more that we can do to reduce energy consumption. Many of our commercial and office buildings are more than adequately brightened during after office hours and on weekends. The Government could also advise shopping areas, industries and other public spaces’ management to review their energy consumption and institute electricity saving measures. I believe if the Government can take the lead in driving the overall energy conservation, we could achieve significant energy savings that can manage down the demand of energy consumption. This would absolutely fit into the efforts of the Singapore Green Plan as well where we aim to reduce carbon emissions. So, can I ask if the Government has any plans to mount an energy conservation campaign to encourage businesses and household to save electricity? 7.00 pm Sir, amidst the uncertainties, there are still opportunities for Singapore to pursue. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated growth in the digital sector and highlighted that firms, regardless of industry, would benefit from developing stronger digital capabilities.”
“Mr Chairman, I beg to move, "That the total sum to be allocated for Head V of the Estimates be reduced by $100". Sir, just when we thought that the global economic recovery is gaining momentum, the Ukraine crisis was unexpectedly thrust upon us. It will have very severe implications for the world economy that is yet to recover from the pandemic shock. Oil price has hit beyond US$100 per barrel and gas prices as well had increased by more than 50% just last one week, and more price upside moves are expected. Both Russia and Ukraine are also major food and commodity exporters. So, the crisis will have both a demand-side and supply-side impact. All these grim developments paint a gloomy outlook for the Singapore economy, notwithstanding the 7.6% growth we registered in 2021, on the back of a 4.1% decline in 2020. So, can I ask the Minister if we would be able to still grow at 3% to 5% growth rate in 2022 as forecasted, or that the assumptions are no longer applicable and that we are back to the drawing board to determine a new forecast? Of major concern is the impact on inflation, with CPI expected to range between 2.5% and 3.5%, based on earlier forecast. Do we have further scope to moderate imported inflation with the stronger Singapore dollar and the other measures? Sir, energy prices will stay high, with the Ukraine crisis likely to be a longer-term conflict between Russia and the West. But price is not our only concern. The other concern is the supply of oil and gas. In particular, whether the conflict in Ukraine will disrupt the supply of LNG to Asia. This would have implications on our energy security as LNG is our critical contingent source of energy.”
“Sir, given the increasing geopolitical tensions and rivalry between major powers, ASEAN centrality, unity and credibility become even more vital in order to stay relevant and not being sidelined on matters of strategic importance to the region. It was not how the concept of ASEAN was originally founded on where the grouping's role is meant to be limited, with a strong adherence to the principle of non-interference in each member state's internal affairs. ASEAN has strengthened its engagement with external partners over the years with the setting up of extra-regional platforms such as, ASEAN Plus Three, ASEAN Regional Forums, ASEAN Defence Ministers Plus, Extended ASEAN Maritime Forum, to name a few. The engagement agenda has also gotten more substantial and taken on a more ASEAN-centric stand to regional or global issues. Can I seek an update from the Minister on how Singapore will continue to play its part in maintaining ASEAN's centrality, unity and credibility?”
“Mr Chairman, are multinational platforms still relevant and effective in dealing with our global problems today? We have seen our multilateral platforms like the WTO, World Health Organization (WHO) and UN being helpless and ineffective in dealing with crisis and resolving deep-seated global issues and very often end up just being a platform for grandstanding and rhetoric. In an increasingly polarised world, we have also seen major powers manoeuvring and wielding disproportionate influence at such multilateral platforms. Why does Singapore continue to place a heavy emphasis on multilateralism? Should we instead channel our efforts and resources more to bilateral and regional forums like the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and so on where we can better galvanise actions and make real impact? US-China Relations”
“Mr Chairman, allow me to, firstly, congratulate the Finance Minister for his maiden Budget, which is very well-structured and far-reaching; and also to thank the Second Minister for Finance for answering our questions as well as the MOF team for the tremendous work. Sir, we have seen multiple Budgets in the last two FYs due to the crisis situation. I hope that FY 2022/2023 will be a one-Budget FY, which will mean that we are back to a normalised or stable environment. Nevertheless, I am sure Members in this House would be ready to consider any additional fiscal measures should the situation deteriorate and the need arises to support Singaporean families, households and businesses as well. With that, Chairman, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment. [(proc text) Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. (proc text)] [(proc text) The sum of $974,778,400 for Head M ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. (proc text)] [(proc text) The sum of $141,671,700 for Head M ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. (proc text)]”
“Are there other targeted support and assistance that we can render these companies? Cash flow is important, especially to small businesses. Whenever there are major event risks, especially, or uncertainties, cash liquidity and credit tend to tighten. If the interest rates are to rise, as some have forecasted, it could worsen the liquidity situation. Can I ask if the Government and its purchasing agencies have a policy of paying its vendors in a timely manner? In fact, in an economically stressed situation, would the Government be even more proactive in making payments to the vendors? Sir, the Government is a major buyer of goods and services in the domestic market, some of which are of high operational importance. I would like to take this opportunity to ask if the Government’s suppliers have also been impacted by the global supply chain disruption, such as delays and cost increase challenges? And how can the Government help these suppliers during this difficult period? Sir, Budget 2022 stepped up focuses to build a fairer tax structure, uplift our lower-wage workers and transit to a low-carbon society. These are major shifts for businesses and the public to manage, adjust and cope with. It is a whole-of-society effort and also a whole-of-economy undertaking. How and what can MOF agencies, as well as the whole-of-Government do more to help and support businesses and the public in this whole transition? For example, in the area of procurement, will the Public Service now have new features in the tender specifications to require vendors or suppliers to achieve the Progressive Wage Mark or to adopt sustainable practices? [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)] Accountability and Governance”
“Mr Chairman, I beg to move, "That the total sum to be allocated for Head M of the Estimates be reduced by $100". Sir, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to the largest public spending intervention in the history of Singapore. Over a series of Budgets in FY2020 and FY2021, the Government had spent close to $100 billion, or almost 20% of GDP, in economic and social support as well as public health management measures. Many of these support measures were implemented in a compressed timeline due to the urgency of the situation as well as to achieve timely impact. Now that the pandemic has entered a more stabilised phase, can I ask if MOF would be reviewing whether the public spending has been effective in achieving its intended outcomes? Have the controls and governance procedures been adjusted or waived due to the exigency of the situation? Are there valuable lessons to learn as to how the Public Service can better manage future crises? How can we be more agile and nimble and how can we achieve better outcomes with the same or less resources? Sir, the Job Support Scheme (JSS) and the Rental Support Scheme (RSS) have been the lifeline for many companies and workers in the depth of the pandemic crisis. Without these two schemes, we could have lost capabilities in some sectors of our economy and suffered severe economic scarring. While the economic outlook has improved this year, barring the situation in Eastern Europe, there are still businesses that are directly impacted by the pandemic, such as the tourism and hospitality sectors. I understand that the construction sector is also facing challenges of labour crunch, high material and energy costs and snowballing delays among their subcontractors. Can I ask if the Government will continue to assist these businesses in 2022?”
“(In English): Sir, Budget 2022 to charge the new wave forward to realise our vision as a fairer, greener and more inclusive society, we want to level up our society, secure the well-being of our people and at the same time, we need to grow our economy, create exciting future opportunities to build our best home. Every of the above that we want to do for the good of Singapore and for the good of people require financial resources. It is meaningless to have big plans and big ideas, but does not come with sound and sustainable financial plan to fund them. We need to have a clear mind how we intend to charge the way forward. But at the same time, we also need to have a clear mind how we can find the means to pay for these new ways. Budget 2022 strengthens the foundations of our long-term funding plan, which is sustainable and fair, and it opens up further exciting possibility ahead for Singaporeans and Singapore. Sir, I support the Budget.”
“In other words, the subsidy that this family will receive is more than 10 times the additional GST they need to pay. Retirees living in 4-room flats will receive subsidies that can fully offset the extra GST they have to pay. For utilities, 1-room and 2-room households will receive rebates of up to eight to 10 months, 3-room and 4-room households will receive rebates of up to four to six months, and 5-room households will receive rebates of three months. Mr Speaker, our tax and grant regime has always been inclined to helping the poor. The tax changes this time round further strengthen this characteristic by raising the income tax and wealth taxes for high-income earners on one hand and expanding the assistance and subsidies for lower- and middle-income families on the other hand. Those with better incomes or wealth can afford higher taxes because of their better economic conditions. Most of them are also consumers who spend more, so their GST contributions are also higher than those of the lower-income groups. According to MOF figures, 60% of the GST collected come from high-income earners and tourists. Under our overall tax and grant system, low-income earners will receive a $4 subsidy for every $1 of tax paid. The middle 20 percentile will receive a $2 subsidy for every $1 of tax paid. High-income earners will receive a subsidy of $0.30 for every $1 of tax paid. These figures demonstrate vividly that our tax and grant system is really focused on taking care of lower-middle-income Singaporeans. I think this is a fair tax system that we aspire to. This year's Budget reflects our pursuit of the spirit of social cohesion and joint advancement of all Singaporeans.”
“As the international situation and global supply chains continue to be unstable, I hope the Government will continue to pay close attention to consumer price fluctuations, especially utilities, and expand the package when necessary to help Singaporeans cope and tide over this difficult period. Mr Speaker, I am also glad that the Finance Minister has responded positively to Singaporeans' concerns about the impact of raising GST this year. He has postponed the timetable to next year and the following year and will raise the GST one-percentage point per year in two years' time. This will significantly reduce the inflationary pressure. Many Singaporeans feel that while GST increase is inevitable, it is better later than early. It is better to raise it in two tranches than two-percentage points in one go. Most importantly, we will have a $6.6 billion enhanced Assurance Package to help most Singaporeans offset the impact of higher GST. For example, under this package, each adult Singaporean will receive a cash grant of between $700 and $1,600. The Government will also give out $600 to $900 in GST vouchers to lower-income elderly Singaporeans. Other subsidies include a U-Save rebate of up to $570, and $200 worth of CDC Vouchers for each household next year and the following year. The total amount of these rebates is substantial and will be sufficient to offset the increased GST amount that most Singaporeans will have to pay over the next five years. For low-income families, the increased GST amount can be offset over the next 10 years. For example, a family living in a 3-room flat with two children will receive nearly $5,000 worth of assistance from this Assurance Package, but roughly, this family will only have to pay an additional $400 GST.”
“Finally, Sir, I would like to touch on the current waves of cost increases. I have raised this concern in earlier Parliament Sittings, including whether we can delay the increase of GST, given the cost pressures at the moment. I thank the Finance Minister for listening to the feedback from Singaporeans and on the ground, firstly to delay the GST to start from 2023 and in two staggered one percentage point steps; and secondly, to introduce the $560 million Household Support Package to help Singaporeans to cope with their daily expenses arising from the current cost pressures. Sir, allow me to continue in Mandarin. (In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] Mr Speaker, the recent spate of price increases is a cause for great concern for Singaporeans. Whether it is electricity, food or transport, we can feel the overall trend of inflation and the pressure of rising cost of living. Most of the goods we consume are imported, so any rise in international inflation, especially energy prices, will have a direct impact on domestic consumer prices. While we have comprehensive measures to cope with the inflation, such as using a strong Singapore dollar to offset rising prices of imported goods, expanding and diversifying our sources of imports, and a slew of packages to help the low-income group, they do not fully offset external inflationary pressures. Fortunately, in this year's Budget, the Finance Minister has added a $560 million Household Support Package to help Singaporeans cope with rising cost of living. The package offers up to $285 worth of U-Save rebate per household living in HDB flats, an additional $200 top-up to every child and student's Edusave account and another $100 CDC voucher which is very popular among Singaporeans.”
“The announced carbon tax increases are steep, increasing five-folds, from $5 to $25 per tonne in 2024 and thereafter, by ten-folds and more by around 2030. It is thick enough to bite or hurt and can nudge and change behaviours and business practices. The sharp carbon tax increases demonstrates the Government's resolve to achieve net-zero emission by around mid-century. Since our founding, we have always kept long-term environmental sustainability in mind and, in fact, have been ahead of the curve. In the 1970s, we have already scaled up the greening of our island by sustained tree-planting programmes and safeguarding our nature reserves. We mounted ambitious efforts to clean up our rivers, build comprehensive sewage, waste infrastructure, amongst others. But this coming series of carbon tax increases will be our most ambitious move. It will have significant cost implications to businesses and households. Hence, without transitory support, some businesses may not be able to cope and some may exit. So, I welcome the clarification by the Finance Minister that the Government does not expect to derive additional revenue from the carbon tax levy. The carbon tax raise will be used to cushion the impact to households and businesses, as well as make decisive investments in new, low-carbon, more energy-efficient solutions. Sir, although Singapore accounts for around 0.11% of the global carbon emissions, we strongly believe in contributing to the global efforts and see it as our moral obligations as citizens of the world. We should leverage on this major decarbonisation effort to catalyse the development of the green economy and to entrench ourselves in this global green transition and to create jobs, create opportunities.”
“It will be extended to more sectors with an aim to cover 94% of our full-time lower-wage workers and through an accelerated pace of implementation. The Government will co-fund the wage increase of low-wage workers through the Progressive Wage Credit Scheme (PWCS). Businesses with workers earning up to $2,500 per month will be assisted with co-funding of 50% in the first two years and 30% in the next two years. Those earning between $2,500 and $3,000 will also receive support, but at a lower co-funding ratio. In a related move, companies who employ foreign workers will now be required to pay all their local employees at least the local qualifying salary of $1,400 per month. And to complement the Progressive Wages move, the Workfare Income Supplement (WIS) will also be significantly enhanced. The qualifying income gap will be increased to $2,500 and also extending to younger workers, aged 30, as well as increased payouts amongst the various WIS enhancements. These various measures amounted to a very substantial package to uplift the wages of the lower-income workers about $1.8 billion per year over the next five years or totalling $9 billion for both PWCS and enhanced Workfare. Of course, fiscal interventions alone cannot be the only way to uplift wages. Businesses and consumers will also have to contribute their share to help raise the income of our lower-wage workers. And we should continue to encourage and support our lower-wage workers to upskill, so that they can also move up the wage ladder. Sir, this is a realisable step to strengthen our social compact and to tackle inequality. On decarbonising Singapore, I applaud the bold moves by the Government.”
“Singapore has its very compelling proposition as a triple-A rated global hub, excellent infrastructures, deep and diverse talent pool, trusted and enforceable legal and regulatory structure, strong and stable Government, amongst others. We are rated among the best place to live in the world and we are a nation that is always passionate about excelling ourselves and constantly charting ahead and investing for a better future. And this is the Singapore premium. We cannot just count on low taxes or lower costs as a way to attract investments and talent. It is not sustainable. The significant moves on tax structure in Budget 2022 demonstrates our confidence and also our self-assuredness as to what Singapore can offer. We have to keep working on strengthening each of these fundamental propositions and not only safeguard but also keep growing the value of this premium. Sir, the other major move in this year's Budget is in the uplifting of income for the lower-wage workers and to tackle inequality. In a globally connected and knowledge-driven world, those equipped with in-demand skills and know-how tend to be duly compensated for their expertise. Salaries of the top earners have seen their income rise at much faster pace. We are not averse to that. On the other hand, the incomes of our lower-wage workers continue to stay stagnant or not keeping up with the rise in cost to live a better life. We are concerned with this widening income inequality and that is why we have Workfare and other skills upgrading programmes, among others, to intervene and uplift the wages of low-income Singaporeans. In this Budget, we saw significant expansions to the Progressive Wage Model (PWM).”
“On the other hand, the higher income and the wealthier will pay more GST, especially with the two-percentage point increase, as they tend to be higher spenders, bigger consumers and hence, will contribute more to GST. Sir, over the last decade, we have been adding more social support features into our social security structure, which has helped improve the progressivity of the overall system, such as Workfare for the low-wage workers which, in essence is a negative tax; Silver Support Scheme, which targets Singaporeans in the lower 20% in terms of lifelong income; higher permanent GST offsets targeted at lower-incomes, seniors and smaller housing types; means-tested subsidies in public housing, healthcare, education, tilted in favour of lower-income and that majority of Singaporeans do not not pay income taxes. Taken together, it attested to the system of social compact that we have always wanted where the better-off contribute more and those with less contribute less and will receive more benefits and support to help them cope with life. In recent years, as income and wealth disparities continue to widen, the view that the better-off should contribute more in taxes has gained traction and it is heartening that in Singapore, we are also hearing calls from the high-income earners and those who are wealthy themselves. This reflects our values and mutual responsibility amongst ourselves as a society and as a nation. Of course, there is often this argument that rising income or wealth taxes may diminish our competitiveness, or that wealth is mobile and can be easily moved to a jurisdiction with no or low taxes. Yes, we have to be watchful of this possibility but we should also not underprice ourselves.”
“Secondly, the stagnation of very slow wage growth for our lower-wage workers. Thirdly, climate change crisis. How do we manage the pace and the trade-off to pivot to a low or net-zero carbon society? Budget 2022 will stand out for how we have made decisive and bold moves to tackle these issues head-on and to build a fair, inclusive and sustainable society. Let me start with the tax changes announced. In the Budget, we saw significant increases in the income tax rate as well as the wealth taxes: property tax, luxuries car taxes in the ARF. These increases will bring in an additional revenue of $600 million for the Government, not quite a needle-moving number that can pay for the projected rise in expenditure due to its narrow base. But it helps to steepen the overall progressivity of our tax structure and towards a fairer system. Corporate tax changes are also expected to come next. The two-percentage point increase in GST will happen in 2023 and 2024, by one-percentage point step each. Coupled with this increase will be the massive upsized $6.6 billion Assurance Package to cushion the impact of the GST increase. The GST increase and the upsized Assurance Package put together, actually further enhance the overall progressivity of our tax structure. This is because the Assurance Package will have more than adequate payouts and rebates to cover at least five years of additional GST expenses for the majority of Singaporean households and about 10 years for the lower-income households. The existing permanent GST Voucher scheme will also be enhanced to provide continuing offsets for the GST expenses of the lower- to middle-income household and the retirees' household.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, following the Budget Statement on 18 February, we have watched, with grave concerns the tragic developments in Ukraine. I echo the statement by the Foreign Affairs Minister that we are shocked and appalled by the blatant aggression and are saddened by the loss of lives and destruction there. It once again reminded us of the importance of our own ability and our will to defend our sovereignty and our independence. We must expect no one else but ourselves to defend what is ours. Sir, the conflict may be half the world away from us, but its implications and ramifications will impact us in many ways, amongst others, its' effect on the global economic recovery as well as the elevated oil and gas prices. Can I ask the Finance Minister for an update, notwithstanding the Foreign Affairs Minister's Statement, as to whether the Ukraine situation will have a bearing on the Budget that he delivered on 18 February; and also, what other implication or impact will there be for our economy? Sir, now my take on the Budget. Social compact is not a new concept to us. It has always been the underpinning core values of the Government, manifested in many of our policy formulations. It is a vision that galvanises us as a nation and unites us in our commitment to care for each other. Yet, after listening to the Finance Minister's Budget Statement speech, the meaning of social compact took on a refreshed and more tangible feel and operationalised versions of sorts or more realisable. Over the last decade, countries and democracies around the world including Singapore, have been grappling with three deep-seated issues. Firstly, the widening income and wealth inequality brought about by globalisation and the proliferation of knowledge-based economy.”