Low Thia Khiang
Singapore
“Mr Speaker, my question is for the Minister for Health. The official communication channel to the people who subscribe to the WhatsApp group quoted the Prime Minister saying that "Experts think that the Wuhan virus may be less deadlier than SARS". So, can we have some verification whether this is true so far?”
“In Mandarin, Sir. (In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] So, Member Mr Gan Thiam Poh meant to say that although the Minister has the decision-making power under this Bill, you can still go to Court to challenge the decision.”
“Mr Speaker, clarification in Mandarin. (In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] I have stated clearly that the Government already has a lot of power under existing legislation. They can even shut down websites.”
“(In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] First and foremost, you must follow the Minister's decision to take down the message, you cannot go to Court. According to this Bill, you must comply with the Minister's order. Otherwise, you will be charged.”
“In Mandarin, Sir. (In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] Our Secretary-General is in the Committee. He told us about the contents of the Committee's discussion, so we know what was discussed in the Committee.”
“(In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] You assume that the Minister will not do this, but is your assumption correct? It may be correct now, but will it be correct in the future? Even the Minister cannot guarantee that, he said he cannot be sure that future governments will not abuse their power. Can you be sure?”
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“Sir, I would like to ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs how he has taken this whole episode of the Indonesian reaction to the sand and granite ban on exports, and obviously it is coming against us. Is it a diplomatic failure on the part of Singapore or on the part of ASEAN in which we are supposed to be good neighbours and we help them along?”
“A statistical profile of older workers by MOM released in February this year reported that 68% of older workers, 50 years and above, were employed in low-skilled jobs. Amongst full-timers, older workers tend to work longer hours, compared to those who were younger. After contributing the prime of their lives to building Singapore, are we going to leave them to the fate of the market simply because their skills are much less appreciated in our knowledge-based economy? Sir, the challenge of structural unemployment is much more than just a simple mismatch problem. All employment is not created equally and offering the same level of income. The structural problem is particularly complicated on the basis of quality and adequacy of incomes of available employment opportunities. What is MOM's assessment of the situation of structural unemployment in Singapore? Does it foresee the phenomenon as a transitional process in changing economic circumstances due to the effect of globalisation, or is that going to be a permanent feature of the globalised economy? If the reason is the latter, then what is MOM's long-term strategy to mitigate the issues? 6.00 pm”
“Sir, although the job market was at its peak in 2006, with 173,300 new jobs created and unemployment rate down to 3.6%, there are still 69,000 jobless, based on a Straits Times' report. Economic growth results in job creation, but if people are not equipped with the skill set to take up such jobs, they will still be affected. On the other hand, I am concerned that the current boom in the economy could be hiding the ongoing problem of structural unemployment. Buoyed by economic growth and high demand, companies in all sectors are expanding and hiring workers, including the lower skilled ones. When these workers take on such jobs, they are likely to be less willing to subsequently try out new growth industries, especially when pay cuts and extensive training could be involved. If these workers do not get upgraded, they may lose their existing jobs during another economic downturn. I am aware that MOM has employed a number of initiatives, such as the Job Recreation Programme and the ADVANTAGE! scheme to combat structural unemployment. With regard to the Job Recreation Programme, how many jobs were created under this programme last year? Once a job is created, are there measures in place to track the success of this scheme? For instance, how long do workers stay in the jobs created for them? What are MOM's future plans and targets for the scheme? As for the ADVANTAGE! scheme, it was reported in the Straits Times that approximately, 300 firms are currently supported by WDA. These firms are committed to hiring about 2,000 older workers and re-employing about 3,500 workers, approaching or above the retirement age of 62. I would like to know whether this position is confined to low-pay jobs with longer working hours.”
“I would be grateful if his Ministry studies my suggestion of a standardised single comprehensive assessment and a study team may be set up to look at the various models in different countries and choose the model that suits us best and work collaboratively with MCYS. It will take a few years to set it up and get it running, hence, the urgency. I am aware that this idea may not be new to MOH or MCYS. However, if some plans are already underway for such an idea, I would request the Minister to update the House on its status. Elderly Depression and Suicide”
“In fact, the homecare protocol is also used to educate families in cases where nursing home admission is not required. It is recommended that the assessment be re-administered annually as well as whenever a major crisis has occurred. The beauty of RAI version II is that not only medical information is elicited, but also data on social, financial, functional, psychological, nutrition, dental, care-giving and service utilisation is also collaborated. For the information of the House, I am aware that there is a waiting list in the ICS of about 40 elders who are waiting for a place in nursing homes in Singapore. In our Singaporean nursing homes and sheltered homes, mainly the physical needs' fully shelter safety are met. In our nursing homes, their medical needs are addressed. However, their psycho-social needs, such as need to be treated as an individual, need to be mentally stimulated, need for self-worth, are often not met, except for those nursing homes that employ a professional social worker. There is a strong need to increase the professionalism in our eldercare services. On Social Workers' Day, 20th January this year, Minister Vivian Balakrishnan stated in his speech that he would look into greater professionalisation in the social service sector. My proposal may be in tandem with his goals too. With our population ageing rapidly, the importance of providing good medical and social care in Singapore, I feel that the Health Minister has brought many positive changes into the Singaporean's healthcare system. I applaud his efforts to enable ordinary Singaporeans to assess outpatient treatment for major chronic illnesses through Medisave and increasing their cap for hospitalisation expenses and MediShield.”
“In England, a different model has been launched for this purpose. We can see an international trend for a standardised comprehensive assessment, so that not only do we reduce wastage of resources but efficiency and efficacy of services to older populations are increased. In the long run, we hope the quality of care and best practices in gerontological care can be improved. 6.00 pm Accreditation can be introduced to distinguish the better care providers from the ones with poor quality. A single assessment process helps to address gaming or strategies used by nursing home managers to cherry-pick the applications. Research based on the data that is collected over time using locally derived outcome measures or KPIs would assist us in identifying which method of care is effective or ineffective. In this way, research and improvement in services and policies can become a dialectical process. I shall cite the case of Hong Kong to illustrate a country that has adopted this idea. A colleague, Prof. Iris Chi from the University of Hong Kong, started talking to the Hong Kong Bureau of Health and Welfare a few years ago about the need for such a standardised instrument in order to streamline the long-term care service system there. After much consultation and review of the pros and cons of introducing InterRAI, the Hong Kong government decided to introduce it in small steps. For government and non-profit providers, this assessment is available free of charge. At first, a simpler version of the instrument, which is referred to MDS, was launched. As there was a heavy backlog of older people waiting to get into nursing homes, the homecare protocol was used so that while waiting, these people could be assessed and helped by community-based services.”
“Quality assurance and accountability to taxpayers, whose money is used to subsidise the patients in nursing homes, are at stake here. A good assessment provides the blueprint for a well thought out care plan. Currently, there is an international initiative underway that seriously promotes such streamlining of processes of service delivery in several different contexts, such as home care, nursing homes, day care, home help, and so on. It is called "InterRAI", with R-A-I representing Resident Assessment Instrument. It is a not-for-profit organisation aiming to improve the care of elderly worldwide. The Minimum Data Set (MDS) Version 2.0 is now being implemented in more than 20 countries, including the US, Canada, Japan, Hong Kong, and so on. The main objective for developing this instrument was to introduce the idea of a comprehensive assessment as the foundation for care planning. Once the initial assessment has been made by a trained assessor, the information can be shared by all the relevant service providers. And because it is a standardised instrument, all the different professionals concerned with taking care of one patient have the entire set of information for them. In countries where there are different Ministries looking after their healthcare and social needs of older people, the information on health may not be accessible to the professionals in the social sector, and vice versa. Unfortunately, the patient or the client suffers, of course, due to the structure of the systems. In Australia, there is an Aged Care Assessment Service (ACAS) which is highly developed. They use the Resident Classification System (RCS) across the board and funding available to each individual patient is calculated on the full assessment.”
“This will enable the development of a seamless delivery of services for the elders, a goal that has been mentioned in earlier reports on ageing population. On top of that, quality of services for the various sectors would be better monitored. Currently, we have a situation where there is much disparity between the care rendered by nursing homes in the private sector as compared to voluntary welfare homes. I have members of the public voicing views like: "We pay more at the private nursing home but the quality of care received is even worse than the VWO nursing homes. But there is no space in the VWO nursing homes." I want to cite a recent article on 31st January 2007 in Today which was entitled "Where did the bruises come from?", a case reported of a 96-old-year gentleman in a nursing home mysteriously suffering from severe bruises. Subsequently, he died at Tan Tock Seng Hospital. Members of the House, can you imagine the anguish of the adult children who have made a police report? When questioned, the nursing home staff said they had no idea how it happened. I have not read any further articles on this episode. I was surprised that there were not many letters in the Forum page regarding such an unfortunate death. It makes me wonder if there is a societal attitude of paying less attention to violent death of elderly as compared to violent death of a young adult. It would be a negative reflection of our value system if it were really so. I would like to know from the MOH, an update, if possible, on this episode. Madam, as a responsible and developed society, we need to be concerned not just about availability and accessibility of services but also the quality of care provided.”
“How is the Ministry helping fellow Singaporeans to understand and to be aware of the nature of mental illness? Are there public education programmes to help the public and family members of the patients to better understand mental illness and to foster a positive attitude among Singaporeans to be inclusive and not shun away from fellow Singaporeans who suffer from mental illness? Assessment for Eldercare Services Assoc. Prof. Kalyani K Mehta (Nominated Member): Madam, this budget cut emphasises the need for a single comprehensive assessment process which will ensure that older people receive appropriate, effective and timely responses to their health and social care needs, and that professional resources are used effectively. Currently, in Singapore, there is a great deal of duplication of resources as well as delays when older persons are referred from one agency to another, because each agency has its own assessment procedure. For example, when an older patient is referred from a hospital to a nursing home for step-down care or from a community hospital to a case management service where there is not only unnecessary delay but also frustration on the part of the caring families. If there are family relationship problems, the delays could cause rapid deterioration of the older person's physical and/or mental well-being and, in some extreme cases, even elder abuse. With the rapid greying of Singapore's population, we need to implement ways to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of our service sector. Health and social care are inextricably linked to the total care system for older people. Hence, health and social sectors will be required to work closely together, if such a single comprehensive assessment system is implemented.”
“Madam, I would like to ask why the Institute of Mental Health suspended its night outpatient clinic. Previously, mental patients who are working in the day could go to the night clinic for their regular follow-up treatment. When the night outpatient clinic is not available, patients would have to ask their employers for leave or time off to seek treatment during the day. In doing so, they would have to reveal their condition to their employer, which may affect their employment prospects. This is because mental illness today is still a very much misunderstood illness. I would also like to ask the MOH to consider the possibility of training polyclinic doctors who handle mental patients so that their follow-up can be done at polyclinics. Next, I understand that there is this early psychosis intervention programme to treat newly-diagnosed psychosis, as early intervention is a key factor in effecting management of the illness. I would like to know what the programme has achieved. I also understand that some patients are not complying with the anti-psychotic treatment because conventional therapy brings with it some side effects. Although there is new treatment on the market with lesser side effects, these drugs are expensive. Are there available measures to help farm the treatment of patients with good prognosis or who respond well to the new treatment? I understand that this group of patients can be treated effectively to a stage of continuing employment, thus helping them to be economically independent. It is difficult for people who are suffering from chronic schizophrenia to take on complicated work tasks. I would also like to ask whether there are assistance schemes available to maximise employment of Singaporeans who suffer from such illness.”
“Would the relatives of the brain-dead patients have any say in the decision? What processes are there in place to handle such requests from relatives to delay the turning off of life support? Would the hospital have respected the relatives' decision in this case if the patient was over 60 years old and whose organs were not suitable for transplant? Madam, in light of the strong public concern over the incident, I would like to know whether the Ministry have any plans to educate the public and to build up public confidence on the issue of brain-dead and the implementation of HOTA I would also like to know whether the Minister would consider amending the Act to respect the wishes of the family members should they have strong objections towards the organ donation, notwithstanding the fact that the deceased has not opted out. Dementia in an Ageing Population”
“Madam, the long waiting time, especially at outpatient clinics, which according to MOH's survey, was due to the uneven workload. Would the MOH study the possibility of centralising the scarce medical resources and set up specialist-based HQs, and let these HQs handle the workload and distribute manpower according to the patients' workload of individual hospital? This would reduce the resources, wastage of specialist manpower in specialist outpatients clinics, with lower patient load. For example, the ENT and Eye Clinic of Alexandra Hospital and Changi General Hospital have a lower utilisation rate than those at SGH, TTSH and NUH. I believe that it is time for MOH to examine the cluster model of healthcare, particularly to assess how a better integration of medical services and administrative systems can be achieved and an efficient delivery of healthcare services. The clusters could be restructured into centres based on services, such as polyclinic service, hospital in-patient services, etc. Human Organ Transplant Act The recent scuffle between the relatives of a brain-dead man and the SGH team over the harvesting of the deceased's organs has raised a few disturbing questions about how the SGH implements the HOTA. Could MOH release more details of the case as the public has so far been relying on media reports and blogs for information about the incident? The public understandably is concerned about the case because it raises the question of how HOTA is implemented and how organs are removed from brain-dead patients. I would like to know: does the hospital has the discretion to unilaterally determine when should life support be turned off when the patient is declared brain-dead? What are the considerations in deciding when to switch off life support?”
“The healthcare clusters, mainly SingHealth Group and the National Healthcare Group, were set up when public hospitals were restructured in the 1990s. In my view, it seems that the intended objective of promoting competition with the presence of two healthcare clusters has led to some unnecessary shortcomings and wastage as a result of this artificial market competition created. Firstly, there is duplication of services. All public hospitals have cardiology, respiratory unit, ENT, Eye Department, etc. These disciplines require costly specialised equipment. Secondly, having two clusters incur double the overhead costs, such as manpower and resources in administration, corporate support functions, as well as management staff needed to manage these two clusters. Thirdly, there are different IT set-ups and technical requirements for the two clusters, for example, the software used by SingHealth and NHG Polyclinic is different and not integrated. When a patient changes his healthcare provider from one cluster to another, the patient's record cannot be transferred seamlessly between the two clusters because they are not integrated. This lack of integration increases the administrative hassle and potentially impacts the efficiency and effectiveness of delivering healthcare, particularly for patients who have chronic diseases, such as hypertension and diabetes. This is because the patient's history is critical for proper referral to ensure a complete handling over of care between the previous and the current doctor managing the patient. The two clusters may also have different policies and treatment protocols. This may also result in confusion for the patient.”
“I am also of the view that MOH should also consider waiving the $4 administrative charge, since this charge will be significant compared to the actual bill which will be incurred by this group of patients. Awareness of Medisave, MediShield and Medifund”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, the Government has allowed Medisave to be used in the Chronic Disease Management Programme with the following conditions: A deductible of $30 is set on each outpatient bill; bills below $30 will continue to be paid in cash; a cash co-payment of 15% on each outpatient bill in excess of the deductible will be set; and an annual withdrawal limit of $300 per Medisave account. Sir, I would like to know what is the average bill size incurred by such patients at polyclinics. The feedback I had was that the majority of patients seeking treatment for chronic diseases at polyclinics would cost around $40 to $50 for a two-monthly review. Due to the $30 deductible, the amount of benefit to patients from using Medisave to defray the cash payment under the Chronic Disease Management Programme is minimal, since based on the average bill size of $40 to $50, only about $10 to $20 is payable using Medisave. On top of this, an administrative fee of $4 is also levied. It seems that the effect of the $30 deductible and co-payment requirement runs contrary to the intention to ease the financial burden of the patients who have chronic disease. Many of such patients are senior citizens with no active income and are relying on their cash savings and children's contribution to pay their medical bills. The deductible and co-payment requirement pose the same heavy burden as before. So, I would urge the MOH to consider reducing or waiving the deductible of $30 and cash co-payment for senior citizens who have reached retirement age, but maintain the annual withdrawal limit of $300.”
“Sir, my first clarification pertains to the procurement irregularity I spoke about. Since this involves an overseas office, and I understand that MINDEF has more overseas offices in the past 10 years or so, my concern is how does MINDEF supervise their overseas offices pertaining specifically to expenditure of the overseas offices as well as procurement? Is there any specific oversight agency in MINDEF itself scrutinising expenditures and looking after the procurement procedures in the overseas offices? Sir, the next clarification I have pertains to the Minister's speech about the 3G SAF. I understand that one of the features of the 3G SAF is actually network-centric and force integration. These two important features are dependent very much on computer and communications systems. I would like to ask the Minister for Defence what is the strategy that MINDEF employs in terms of ensuring the security and integrity of the communications system and I believe that communications system is going to be the backbone of the 3G SAF.”
“Given the ever-increasing amount of public monies being poured into defence, how do we ensure Singaporeans that public interest is protected and that MINDEF will have an efficient internal control mechanism to effectively scrutinise their expenditure in accordance with established Government financial procedures? National Day Parade”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, MINDEF incurs the largest amount of Government expenditure budgeted for the current year, at $10.6 billion. It is alarming that, given a multi-billion-dollar budget managed by MINDEF, the latest report of the Auditor-General revealed three cases of procurement irregularities. I am of the view that public confidence in MINDEF should be addressed. The following are reported by the Auditor-General. In one case, an overseas consultant was engaged to prepare tender documents, evaluate tenders and certify completion of work for an overseas renovation office project costing more than $200,000. Five companies were invited to participate in the tender. Audit found that the consultant was also the General Manager of the company which was subsequently awarded the contract. This is clearly a conflict of interest. 4.45 pm In the other two cases, three companies were invited to submit quotations for overseas office renovation works amounting to more than $20,000. Two companies, A & B, out of three shared the same address and telephone number. The best part was that the stamp of company A was used by company B that acknowledged receipt of payment by MINDEF. How could the quotations from the two companies be considered as competitive? I understand that MINDEF has convened an investigation. I would like to ask the Minister for the status and outcome of the investigation and what measures have been taken to ensure Government procurement procedures are adhered to. What steps have been taken to mitigate the risk of such occurrences that undermine the Government's procurement system? Sir, MINDEF's budgeted expenditure does not decline even when our other Ministries are subject to budget cuts during recession.”
“Sir, two clarifications. First, why did SDC not first seek approval from MOF on the so-called alternative mode of sale? Second, does the Minister see a need to impose a limitation period for retired board members who participate in tender of projects, and who were also involved in the discussion and deliberation of matters pertaining to the project? Because, to me, I think it is clearly a conflict of interest in this case.”
“For Singapore to aspire to be first world standards, statutory boards, such as EDB, should lead by example to implement and to maintain a high standard of governance and internal control, especially in light of the Government's new economic initiative to promote Singapore as a centre for "a range of high trust services from legal, financial services to highly specialised niche services", as highlighted by the Second Minister for Finance, Mr Tharman, in his Budget speech.”
“(3) What measures have been taken to ensure adherence to a principle of fair competition, maximising total returns to the Government and transparency in future land sales? Sir, now I move on to EDB. Economic Development Board Sir, Singapore ranks highly in many surveys on our level of corporate governance in the public sector. However, I wonder whether such rankings are well-deserved as one of our statutory boards, namely, the Economic Development Board has been found by the Auditor-General for numerous lapses in governance, structure and practice. For instance, the Board of EDB dedicated its powers to a sub-committee to approve big amounts for incentive loans and grants, but without requiring it to report back to the Board. The delegation of the Board's powers to certain staff to make borrowings and to grant loans was not allowed under the EDB Act either. As a result, an expenditure of $5.8 million was only approved 15 months after the completion of the transaction. The Auditor-General also found that a project of $9.2 million was split into smaller contracts which were approved by lower level approving authorities. There was also an overpayment of salaries totalling more than $400,000 for the period November 2001 to 2004. I would like to know what oversight mechanisms are there in place to ensure that EDB is functioning in line with the Act passed by Parliament and complying with Government's financial procedures, especially in respect of procurement, tender and approval of expenditure.”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, the report of the Auditor-General has revealed deficiencies in procedures for land sales. It is disturbing that the land sales by Sentosa Development Corporation through its subsidiary, SCPL, were not seen as transparent, fair and competitive. The following instances were reported by the Auditor-General. In one tender in November 2004, 24 land parcels were sold to a sole tenderer significantly below valuation. The result of the tender was neither published nor was a required advice of the Chief Valuer obtained. In another sale, 33 land parcels were sold in August 2005 through a process in which the award criteria were not made known at the beginning to all 170 invited parties. Subsequent extension of deadline was only disclosed to a much smaller group. In a third case in December 2003, a former director of SCPL was allowed to tender for sales of land through a company he controls 33 days after he retired from the Board of the SCPL. Before his retirement, he was involved as Board Member in deliberating the land sales. SDC subsequently sought approval of the Ministry of Finance for exemption for breaching the financial code for reason of flexibility needed to market Sentosa Cove. MOF decided that no retrospective exemption will be given for the deviations from IM detected by Auditor-General for past Sentosa Cove's property sales. Sir, these deviations are significant, given that one of the sources of building reserves is from sales of State land. I would like to ask the Minister for Trade and Industry: (1) Who approves the sale of land parcels listed above? (2) Was the Minister aware of the breach of the Government Land Sales procedure?”
“Sir, the electricity retail market is liberalised to promote the efficient supply of competitively priced electricity. A review of the performance of the national electricity market of Singapore revealed a net benefit of $128.6 million to the economy over a period of two years. However, the price of electricity remains high, despite market competition. Hence, I would like to ask the Minister in what ways the national electricity market has benefited the economy and whether the consumers enjoy any of these benefits. I understand that Phase 2 of the electricity retail market liberalisation was completed in February 2006 leaving 25% of the total electricity demand still closed to retail competition. These remaining consumers comprise mainly households. It was announced that a decision would be made on the introduction of full retail contestability by EMA in 2006. However, EMA did not release any further news on this after that. Will the Minister give us some indication of the expected schedule of full retail contestability? In respect of this, I would also like to ask the Minister why should household consumers be made contestable eventually, instead of keeping them on the current regulated electricity tariffs. My concern is that surges in wholesale price had happened between two and four times from 2003 to 2005. How would household consumers be protected from such fluctuations when they become contestable? What would be the other impacts to households? Sir, I understand the need for the liberalisation of electricity market. However, we have to keep in mind that our household consumers should not be made worse off due to the liberalisation. Electricity is a necessity and keeping its price as low as possible should be our top priority. Utilities”
“Sir, I have two clarifications for the Second Minister for Finance. The Minister has mentioned in his speech that revenue projections, such as stamp duties, land sales, projections for corporate tax growth were uncertain and subject to spikes and volatility. Therefore, it should not be considered as an estimate for the Government revenue. But, Sir, I thought all Government revenues in the Budget are estimated, and there is an element of uncertainty. The question is whether the Government is overly conservative in projecting revenue and thereby under-estimated the revenue. Sir, the Government has refused to take the proceeds from land sales as part of revenue estimates for whatever reason the Minister has mentioned. But these are incomes for the Government, and it is a huge sum of money. It runs into hundreds of millions of dollars. So is it fair that the Government collects such money, put it into the left pocket, and you open the right pocket to show people, "Look, I do not have enough money for new initiatives and thereby I need to tax you, and tax you more"? So my next clarification is whether the Government is over-taxing the people by increasing the GST by 2%.”
“Fourthly, in the Budget this year, the Government has drawn up a list of all the expenses and it has tried to show the people that these are large expenditures. But over the next few years, whether the Government will reduce subsidy to public services for reason of the need to find more resources and to reduce expenditure, and therefore people be asked to bear a greater portion of this cost, it is still unknown. Fifthly, when the casinos start operating, there will be an endless and constant stream of income for the Government. As such, why is there a hurry to increase GST? After the General Election in 2006, when the PAP Government has received the mandate of the people, the first step it has taken is to hurriedly increase the GST with the grand signboard announcing to help the lower income group. It seems to me that the Government is fleecing the people. *Cols. 1757-1760.”
“As such, why is there a need to increase the GST? On 26th February, the Straits Times quoted an economist saying that companies, in deciding where to establish their location, will look at a number of different factors and not just the corporate tax rate. Other observers say that Hong Kong has the advantage of not having GST, especially so for the retail industry. Therefore, it is inconclusive that this move will give us the definite economic advantage. This is especially so when we are emphasising a shift towards the services industry. Let us not forget that the retail sector is an important partner in promoting tourism. Of course, the Government will have all kinds of reasons to persuade the people to accept GST, or even to say that the GST is beneficial to the people. I am not convinced and, in this regard, let me tell the House the following facts that I know. Firstly, although there is a deficit of $700 million in this year's budget, we do not need to use the past reserves. Since May last year, the Government has already accumulated over $700 million surplus over just a period of eight months. Secondly, if the Government does not increase GST, there is no need for the Government to provide an offset package to the poor and the expenditure of which then becomes another reason for increasing the GST. Thirdly, there had been schemes of the rebates and the distribution of such Progress Package in which the benefit was tilted towards the lower-income group. The budget before the last General Election was a good example. Even then, when the Budget had a large deficit, there was no need to increase GST and neither did the Government have to make use of past reserves.”
“For example, the lower-income group must first top up their CPF or contribute to Medisave before they can receive the Workfare Income Supplement (WIS). The pay out of the WIS will also be largely in the form of CPF. To the low-income earner, cash is the most practical help. To expect those who are doing odd jobs, with an irregular income to maintain a CPF contribution before they can enjoy the WIS is less attractive. It seems that the the Government is lacking the sincerity. Although I understand that it will take time for the scheme to work and for the Government to assess its operation and effect, I do hope that the Government will review the scheme in due course and, in particular, consider having a higher cash component of the WIS for those who are doing odd jobs with an irregular income. This WIS is estimated to require a yearly expenditure of $400 million and, at the same time, the Government has also announced an increase of GST by 2%. I do believe that the Government is able to finance the Workfare Income Supplement Scheme, without even increasing GST. To help the poor and to have additional revenue to help the lower-income group has become a splendid reason to justify the GST. The Government is merely using this as a convenient excuse to increase the GST. Another reason given is to increase our competitiveness so that more companies will set up their presence in Singapore and hence the need to reduce corporate tax thereby resulting in lesser revenue for the Government. Will a reduction in the corporate tax lead to an increase in revenue? We do not know. As the Minister pointed out, in the next five to 10 years, the economic outlook is good and has never been better. With better performance of the economy, the corporate tax will inevitably increase.”
“[For vernacular speech, please refer to Appendix A *.] Mr Speaker, Sir, the salient feature of the Budget this year is to consolidate our social cohesion and to strengthen our social safety net. The Workfare Income Supplement Scheme (WIS) will be another pillar in our social safety net. Last year, during the debate on the President's Address, I pointed out that with the restructuring of our economy and the changes in our economy, many people are worried about the new economic model. Although the economy grew, life was not easy, income did not increase and the cost of living continued to go up. If the people continue to live in such conditions, the values of the people and their attitudes will be changed and social cohesion will be put to a test. Even with economic growth, people will lose confidence in the country. It is for this reason that I support the new pillar for our social safety net. I believe that the WIS, being a permanent scheme, and not only when the Government has a surplus or to give away just before the General Election, is given on the basis of income and economic needs to help the lower-income group, and being structured as a pillar of our social safety net, should be able to mitigate the problem of income gap and the difficulty of the lower-income group to meet the cost of living brought about by globalisation and the changes in the economy. I noted that in implementing the Workfare Income Supplement Scheme, the Government has the intention to net in the lower-income group who are eligible for the scheme to become participants of the retirement, Medisave and MediShield scheme through the CPF system. Thus, the WIS basically operates like the CPF top-up scheme.”
“Sir, the Minister just mentioned that the price mechanism is, to him, the best way to solving the traffic problem in the city. I would like to ask the Minister what is his response to a motorist's comment and feeling that the price mechanism employed, especially on the CTE, serves as a means to squeeze money from a motorist and, at the same time, also face the same jam? So, you pay the money but, at the same time, you also face the traffic jam. What is his comment on that?”
“Sir, what I understand is that university fees are allowed to be deducted from CPF but polytechnic fees are not allowed. Are they both not tertiary?”
“Sir, why was Subutex not classified as a controlled drug earlier? Why wait until there was widespread abuse, then the Government decided to take action? Secondly, I wonder whether it is a wise decision for the Government in the first place to allow Subutex to be used legally in a way to counter the impact of heroin drugs. Assoc. Prof. Ho Peng Kee: I think this point has been answered before, principally by the Minister for Health whose officers are in charge of bringing drugs into Singapore as prescription drugs. This was done in 2002. I think the officers at that time felt that this could be part of the overall scheme to help heroin abusers kick the habit. And, indeed, when it was introduced in Singapore, already six countries had it. So it was done. To the credit of the Government, we did not just do it and leave things as they are because we monitored the ground. When CNB fed back to MHA that there was abuse on the ground, steps were taken to try to arrest the situation, not immediately by making it a controlled drug but by various measures taken. For example, the CARDS system was started whereby all abusers of Subutex were required to register and this online registry was made available to doctors so that they would know if the abusers doctor-hop. A protocol was started, clinical practice guidelines where doctors were taught and informed, workshops were conducted to tell them what is the proper way to administer Subutex. When these measures were implemented and still did not stem the tide, we felt that we should do more and in a sense reversed the decision and hence we made Subutex a controlled drug.”
“The answer from the MOS seems to me that the logic and justification of the PAP to offer a package during the elections to their candidates are that the PAP Government has produced surpluses. You justify it because you have produced surpluses and your candidates will be entitled to spend the surpluses by offering a package of upgrading programmes. My question is: are the surpluses generated by the PAP, and the people have no part in it? Do not forget that the people in Potong Pasir and Hougang pay taxes and GST. So your justification and logic are a selfish one, a partisan basis. Secondly, Sir, I am quite pleased that the MOS has said that, if there is any need, Mr Chiam is welcome to put up a proposal for funds. That was what the MOS said just now. I am pleased to inform the MOS that Hougang Town Council has put up a proposal to the Ministry of National Development to request for funds. We calculated that $100 million is not enough. The estimated cost of the upgrading proposal is $140 million, and I am still waiting for a reply from MND based on the promise by the Senior Minister Mr Goh Chok Tong - he is not here today - that Hougang will get $100 million. I suppose it has been budgeted under the Ministry of National Development.”
“But if the economy is bad, if it turns later on, what are we going to do? People are going to be stuck with a heavier cost of living. I would urge him to consider carefully about the increase in GST, bearing in mind that though you have the offset package, our GST does not exempt anything. It practically taxes on everything under the sun. That also means essential things. How does that part of taxing on everything impact the lower income although you provide an offset package?”
“Sir, I do not quite understand why welfare is a "dirty" word. What is wrong with providing welfare to the people and looking after them? Sir, the Prime Minister has said that he spent about $10 billion before the last elections for whatever help packages, some of which I understand were only dished out when the elections were coming - the New Singapore Shares, Progress Package - where even people with a million-dollar income would still receive $200. Was that an equitable way of helping the people, the model that the PAP Government is talking about? I do not know. Sir, that is why we think that it is better for us to have a needs-based welfare safety net with permanent features, ie, arising from the change in circumstances of globalisation, people are uncertain when they will lose their jobs, and what will happen. We need to give some confidence to the people that there will be help if they are in need of help. Will the kind of system that the Worker's Party has proposed bankrupt the country? I do not think so. Sir, we are not talking about a welfare system like the UK where you provide retirement pensions or a weekly allowance. We are talking about helping the needy, which I think is more focused. Sir, the Prime Minister also talked about the increase in GST and the offset package, but I am sure he will agree that the offset package is for a period of time. And once you come to the end of the period of the offset package, the people are stuck with the increased GST. Has the Government considered the impact of another extra 2% increase of GST on the people, not only on the lower-income group, but also on the low-middle and middle-income? As what the PM has said, we had better do it earlier because the economy is good.”
“Sir, a clarification in Mandarin. (In Mandarin): Mr Yeo Guat Kwang said that we must teach people how to fish rather than give them the fish. I would like to ask him what would happen if there is no fish in the water. Even if there is fish, the weather is not always certain. What would happen if the weather is bad, there is lightning and they could not go out to fish? If the people persisted in braving the wind and storm and end up being struck by lightning and losing their lives in the sea, who is going to look after his family?”
“I want to come back to the Member's speech, the point which he made in his speech and this is from the translation, obviously. He said that the Government should not ignore the people who need help, just because of the fear of abuse. On this point, I want to say that I totally agree with him. This Government will not ignore people who need help simply because of a fear of abuse. At the local level, in my own constituency, my instructions are for anyone who needs help urgently, we will give help first and we will ask questions later. Because, if he is going to cheat me, he can only cheat me once. That is the attitude I operate on the local level, and I am sure all my fellow MPs do it on that basis. What I am still trying to persuade the Member is to move away from this "permanent unconditional needs-based social safety net", because that erodes the fundamental pillar of our society. He is absolutely right. People do need some assurance. The assurance is that so long as they are trying to be self-reliant, we will help them. Their fellow Singaporeans are generous and compassionate people. Both inside this House and outside the House, all of us can subscribe to that. I think we can, as I said earlier, create a society which is truly both competitive and compassionate. On that point, I am trying to persuade the Workers' Party to join us to make it better. That is the way we can ensure Singapore's survival. And more important than that, we can ensure that the social safety nets are sustainable in the long run. That is what all of us are really trying to create.”
“Are the front-line workers - the volunteers and the social workers - properly trained to handle and to manage people who request for assistance? Instead of helping, are they hurting people who are seeking help? The other feedback that I have is that I understand ComCare has been managed by CDCs as well as the CCCs. Is it possible for part of the ComCare fund to be managed by voluntary organisations on the ground, like Family Service Centres, because they are also the front-line people who actually come in touch with the needy cases? Dr Vivian Balakrishnan: I thank the Member for those questions. He is quite right. We are working on a decentralised model, and we will leave the first level of decentralisation to the CDCs. The CDCs, through the local ComCare networks, will work with the FSCs, the VWOs and all the other organisations on the ground. Do we have KPIs and are we monitoring and keeping track of their performance? The answer clearly is yes. If the Member wants detailed results, he can file a Question on that later. But, obviously, if I am spending taxpayers' dollars, I need to make sure that it is being well spent and that the people are actually benefiting from it. Social work is a very difficult job. Social workers see many people, not all of whom are grateful, some of whom are even trying to take advantage of them. So I would not cast the first stone at any social worker, because of the intense stress that they are under. Having said that, however, I think we can improve the professionalism of social workers. We are looking at means to elevate training, refresher courses, perhaps even sabbaticals, so that we make sure we recharge and sharpen the saw of social workers.”
“Clarification, Sir. First of all, I would like to clarify that the Workers' Party has not banned any member from participating in Internet forums. I would advise Ms Irene Ng not to fire such a cheap pot shot on every opportunity at the Workers' Party. With regard to the position of the Workers' Party on immigration policies, I would leave it to my Party Chairman to clarify later, Sir. The Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports has noted that we have not spoken about a permanent social safety net, and whether we have changed our mind. No, we have not, to his disappointment. We believe that people need some certainty, and we have got to give people that certainty, especially in the structural unemployment situation and under the condition of non-permanent nature of jobs now, because a lot of jobs are on contract. We should provide people with the confidence that the Government will help them if they are in trouble. I still believe that we need some permanent social safety net, though in my speech I said that we have to be careful. It is not the Workers' Party's wish to see people become dependent on welfare. Sir, it is quite familiar to me, and I think to old Members of Parliament, that almost in every budget debate, MCYS will provide answers on the services they provide, who are in charge and so forth. The Minister has mentioned that he looks at the big picture, as a Ministry, and let the VWOs carry out what they are supposed to do and provide funding. I would like to ask him how is he going to track the desired outcomes of the social services. In particular, I note that a lot of assistance is actually under the CDCs. Is he satisfied with the performance of the CDCs? What are the performance indicators? How do they respond to people who request for help?”
“As such, if Singapore wants to further assure ourselves of our security and our reputation in the international arena, we must not put all our emphasis on the hardware aspect. We should also pay more attention to our software aspect, like our social cohesiveness, our political ecology in fostering a civil society and our people's power of checks and balance on our political system, etc. Only when we have strong social cohesiveness, our people have strong political security, the nation rich and the people strong, can Singapore be a truly successful country! *Cols. 245-252. 2.43 pm”
“The society should ensure that everyone may live a dignified life, irrespective of whether or not he or she has any economic contribution. A country is respected internationally not just on its hardware, such as defence capability and economic strength, but also its software such as social cohesiveness and the strength of its people. With the Government’s intended policy of liberalisation, the flood gate is open for foreign immigrants to pour in. Out society is bound to receive certain impact. Competition for jobs, frictions in daily lives will intensify the misunderstanding and conflicts among the members of society. The Government should pay more attention in fostering our social cohesiveness. From the perspective of Singapore’s political system, the strong Government of Singapore has brought about political stability and efficiency and this is a good selling point internationally. But in the long term, this is also the weakest link in our country. Because the operation of the entire political system is in the hand of just one political party, and it depends on whether the leaders are capable, efficient and clean. The worrying part is that there is no supervisory mechanism. This is like putting all the eggs in one basket. Sir, Singapore is now in the hands of our third Prime Minister. We do not know who the next Prime Minister will be. However, if our people maintain this mentality of "in your good hands, I am assured" as in the Mao Zedong era of China, then should it come a day when the government is corrupt, the people live in an abyss of suffering and responded with attacks on the government, Singapore will be in deep trouble, and as a nation we may not be able to absorb the impact.”
“If you were me, would you dare to ask for money from the Government agencies?" I have also received similar complaints and dissatisfaction, and have to pacify such unhappy and hurt feelings. If such a sentiment is to spread over to a certain level in society and become an issue one day, then it will be a serious challenge to our social cohesiveness. In addition, when some people with history of mental illness applied to the CDC for help in securing a job, the CDC asked them to go to the clinic to get the doctor to certify that they were unable to work. Although the doctor was unable to certify that the applicants were disabled and hence were unable to work, the CDC too was unable to help the applicants get a job. The applicants were left neither here nor there. Another incident is when an old man went to the CDC for financial aid, he was given a cheque, and was told to open a bank account if he wanted to receive further aid in future. The old man was illiterate and had to turn to me for help. I hope that these are just isolated cases. If our Government departments and their staff are so trained that they can be totally oblivious to the pains and sufferings of the underprivileged in our society, then this will spell the beginning of our social division. This is the type of potential worry which we should pay attention to. In his conclusion, the President called upon us to build a competitive economy and an inclusive society for ourselves and our children in Singapore. I would like to remind the PAP Government that for ourselves and for the next generation, we should build up a nation, not just an economy. What we should build up is a society where everyone has a sense of belonging.”
“At the same time, the President's Address also mentioned the three pillars of our social safety net, namely, the CPF system, the Home ownership scheme of the HDB and the third pillar being our 3Ms - Medisave, MediShield and Medifund. I wish to know under which structure of our social safety net shall the measures to help the lower-income and older workers, as mentioned in the President’s Address, be covered. I feel that the transition into a globalised economy and the Government’s determination to maintain its principle of a low tax regime, the uneven distribution of wealth and the widening income gap will become an insurmountable social problem in future. The Government should help the low-income people as soon as possible to correct the mechanism that causes the anomaly in the distribution of the fruits of our economic development, and incorporate the appropriate measures into our social safety net structure. Lianhe Zaobao reported on 27th October this year that Minister Lim Boon Heng had said that attention must be given to the grievances of the lower-income workers, otherwise our social stability may be undermined in the future. Mr Speaker, Sir, I think Minister Lim’s concern is justified. On 26th October, there was a letter in the Reader’s Forum in the Lianhe Zaobao reflecting the writer’s unhappiness with the CDC. He wrote, "The social worker remarked sarcastically that it was already a luxury to own a motorcycle. The social worker did not make an effort to calculate the cost of taking public transport as compared to the cost of using a motorcycle to move around, and he simply passed such criticism at random. I summoned my courage, bury my self-dignity, yet I ended up with such humiliation.”
“Worse still, many Singaporeans who are currently employed are facing competition from the so-called "foreign talents", resulting in job loss or income reduction. Crane operators voiced their lamentation in the Lianhe Zaobao last month. This is one typical example. If the Government lets the people to continue living in a state of insecurity, in the long run, people’s thinking and values will surely change, and the social cohesiveness will be put to test. Even when the economic growth is sustained, people will lose their confidence in the country. When people are worried about their living conditions and feel that they have no security in their jobs and income, they will naturally expect the Government to stabilise their living conditions through some policy changes to provide for a more comprehensive social safety net in order to cope with the challenges brought about by globalisation. I understand that the Government takes a very cautious approach as far as the social safety net and welfare scheme are concerned, for fear that the people develop a dependency syndrome, and becoming a heavy burden for the Government. Cautious as it should be, the Government should not ignore the people who are genuinely in need of assistance just because of the fear of abuse by certain people. The Presidential Address promises to provide more assistance to the lower-income people, helping them to progress alongside the entire society. It also says that with the increasing needs of the lower-income workers and the older people, we should enhance our social safety net.”
“According to a report by the Straits Times, more than 60,000 people in Singapore are out of job, among which about 16,600 people have been unemployed for a prolonged period of time, and 60% of them are over the age of 40. Even though the employment situation has improved, there are still many Singaporeans who are facing financial difficulties. According to a Straits Times report, the number of people coming to the Community Development Councils for financial assistance has increased from 14,300 in 2000 to 31,570 in 2003. In addition, about 12,500 families could not pay their utilities bills, had their supplies cut off and had their meters replaced by the prepaid type. Some 3,600 families could not settle their arrears of more than $500 in utilities bills. Sir, during the debate on the President's Address in 2002, I urged the Government to extend the benefits of economic growth to the ordinary citizens, so that everyone would feel the advantage brought about by the economic growth. I also warned that with the changes to the entire economic structure, there may be a phenomenon whereby the economic growth would benefit only the higher-income earners, while the older workers and the unskilled workers would remain as low-income earners. Regrettably, our economic development is moving along the worrying direction. People are worried about the new economic model. This is because even with economic growth, life is still not easy. There does not seem to be any increase in income, and the cost of living does not seem to go down. People struggle from unemployment to re-employment in other jobs, not knowing when they are going to lose the job again.”
“[For vernacular speech, please refer to Appendix A*.] Mr Speaker, Sir, in his Address, the President points out that Singapore is now facing three main challenges, ie, structural change in the economy, an ageing population and political generational shift. I feel that apart from these challenges, we must also pay attention to the sequela brought about by the policy to address these challenges. Government statistics over the past two years show that Singapore’s economy has been doing well. Our GDP has grown significantly. But the feedback from the people is that all is well for the Government but not so well for the people. What they mean is that the economy of the Government is good but the economy of the people is not so good. In fact, people are worried about the cost of living, and they lack a sense of security. Since the Asian financial crisis in 1997, we have been facing the challenges brought about by globalisation. Over the past decade or so, the Government’s policy has always been to ask the people to bite the bullet and tighten their belts. Although it is often said that if you can take the worst of hardship, you will be the man of men, in other words, "here is no sweet without sweat" yet, when I look at the people around me, they may have a job but their income is a far cry from what it was before, and they have problem making ends meet. Even when they have a job, there is no job security. In fact, many people are working on a contract or ad hoc basis. Although statistics indicate a strong growth in the economy and there has been great improvement in employment rate, there are still a good number of people who are unable to secure suitable jobs.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I wish to congratulate you on your re-election as Speaker of Parliament. Sir, you have been re-elected again and I believe that in your past years as Speaker of the House, your eyesight has been trained to be as sharp as a razor and to be swift as lightning, and I think we can all expect that whoever wishes to speak will catch your eye.”
“May I seek a clarification from the Minister? The Minister mentioned about this spirit of the law in withdrawing the CPF monies. On the withdrawal from the CPF account of the deceased to pay for the last hospitalisation bill, the Bill is crafted in such a way that it allows a "prescribed person" to be able to use the CPF for the payment.”
“Sir, I would like to seek a clarification from the Minister. Is there any reason, whether historical or statistical, that we classify PRs and citizens together as one category called "locals"? Would it be clearer to actually segregate the two categories?”
“How do we define "looks like"? Can he please explain? Dr Balaji Sadasivan: That is why, Sir, I said that in any case, the facts of the case have to be seen. But we have dealt with the Internet with a light touch and other than the party political sites and sites, like the Think Centre, this handful of sites is registered. All the rest of the individuals are expressing their opinions freely.”
“At which point would a person whom the law of the land defines as "an individual" becomes a political party or a political party machine? Can he please clarify and define it?”