Vivian Balakrishnan
Singapore
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs does not issue advisories on wait times at overseas airports. Travellers may wish to monitor airline and airport websites, as well as news reports for real-time information on wait times and potential disruptions at specific airports.”
“When the conflict in the Middle East deteriorated and commercial flights were halted in March 2026, the Singapore Government mounted four repatriation flights from Muscat, Riyadh and Jeddah to bring stranded Singaporeans home.”
“The Government has stepped up public engagement to explain our foreign policy fundamentals and responses to key international developments to Singaporeans and to hear their views. We do this through dialogue sessions across segments of society, including students, youths, businesses and community leaders.”
“And the larger point during the Committee of Supply was that precisely, because the world is in such a difficult, prickly, volatile and dangerous state, actually, if we keep our wits about ourselves, we maintain unity and we continue to have this clear eye-realistic, but principled, approach, there are many opportunities for Singapore.”
“Well, in short, I completely agree with you. And that is why we have indeed been hosting these events and in your own capacity as a national athlete and also as an official now, you have seen how it works in practice.”
“Since 2022, about half of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) employees are women. The proportion of women in senior appointments has remained stable at about a quarter. We recognise that overseas postings are disruptive for officers with families, especially female officers who bear greater caregiving responsibilities.”
The complete record
Every one of 2,437 lines we hold for Vivian Balakrishnan, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 32 of 49.
“I thank the Member for asking this rather topical question. It gives me an opportunity to set out the facts. The Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) conducts routine joint patrols with NParks at public beaches and parks on a regular basis. These patrols aim to identify, to investigate and to provide assistance to any persons found begging or squatting in these public areas. MCYS will conduct a thorough evaluation of their social and financial situation. We work closely with the Community Development Councils as well as the voluntary welfare organisations in order to provide comprehensive social and financial assistance. There are a variety of housing options available to potentially homeless people. Wherever possible, the Housing and Development Board (HDB) will assist them to buy a flat within their means. But for those who need temporary accommodation whilst working on a longer-term solution, HDB will refer them to interim housing managed by the private sector. If they are unable to afford their own accommodation and have no family members who can help them, then HDB will assist them with rental flats under the Public Rental Housing Scheme. For persons who need short-term accommodation over and above, these other options, then one other possibility is transitional shelters which are run by voluntary welfare organisations. Currently, these are run by New Hope Community Services and Lakeside Family Centre. We are in the process of appointing a third operator for these transitional shelters. The last resort for those who are unable to work and lack family support is to be admitted to a Government-funded welfare home for destitute persons.”
“This is something that is still work-in-progress and I will be the first to admit that we can do much better in this area.  Mdm Cynthia Phua (Aljunied): I would like to ask the Minister, with this integration, the most important thing is the shared information of the family in need with all the social organisations. Will the Minister look into all the shared information from CDCs to the rest of the social organisations in the network?  Dr Vivian Balakrishnan: I agree there is a need to share information. Actually, a significant start has already been made. There is a ComCare database where all the agencies involved are supposed to upload the relevant data. For instance, all the advisors on the ground have a password-protected access. The advisor will then know who has received what help. The key objective is to ensure no one falls through the cracks and, at the same time, to make sure there is no unnecessary duplication of services. But we can still do better.  Mr Speaker: Mdm Halimah, last question.”
“Sir, I agree with Mr Wee that we need to ensure that the FSCs are accessible, especially for people who may be needy and who may not be able to afford to travel long distances, as well as the elderly or the disabled who have physical difficulties if FSCs are far away. But we also have to achieve an optimal balance between decentralisation and ensuring that these satellites have enough staff to be able to provide the full range of services that are needed. As far as the linkage between the main FSC and the satellite FSC, usually, the administrative overheads are shared. For instance, you do not need multiple administrators; you may have one administrator who can oversee two or even maybe three sites. So wherever possible, there needs to be shared services. At the same time, the professionals, the social workers and their associates may also sometimes need to be re-deployed in order to ensure that wherever there is greater need, services are provided. Far more important than that linkage between the main FSC and the satellite FSC is the linkage on the ground with all the other organisations that I alluded to just now. Making sure we have appropriate links with the grassroots organisations, with the Mayors, with the other VWOs. What we need now is a social safety net which is well integrated. I think we have a lot of facilities, services, agencies, VWOs all out there in the community. We can do more. We can enhance their resources but the key thing now is integration. So we need better communication. For instance, there should be no "wrong door". Whatever the need is, even if the person has gone through the "wrong door", or the wrong agency, we should ensure that there is proper communication, collaboration and coordination.”
“Where necessary, we have also set up satellite FSCs, as Mr Laurence Wee has suggested, to bring social services closer to residents. These can co-locate with other social services to increase the outreach to the community. For example, Fei Yue FSC provides satellite FSC services within a multi-service cluster in Teck Whye, which also offers student care and eldercare services.”
“Mr Speaker, my Ministry completed a review of the Family Service Centre (FSC) programme last year. The review reaffirmed the core mission of FSCs to provide social intervention for families and individuals in need. We also agreed to provide more resources to FSCs, including additional social workers and social work associates. The review also proposed building stronger links with key community partners and establishing more FSCs to enhance their geographical coverage. Five new FSCs will be developed in areas with high demand over the next five years, to increase the total number of FSCs from 36 to 41. The first new FSC – to be run by PPIS (Persatuan Permudi Islam Singapura) at Bedok (Block 41, Chai Chee Street) – is on track to begin its operations by June this year. We have also begun preparations for the second and third new FSCs at Telok Blangah and Tampines respectively. We are in the process of identifying the VWOs and specific sites for the additional FSCs, and will make announcements at the appropriate time. Various factors are taken into account in the planning for the new FSCs. The aim is to ensure that FSCs have sufficient reach on the ground and are accessible to the needy families. New FSCs will be built in communities with high population densities, a large number of low-income families, and where the existing FSCs in the area have high sustained caseloads. It is important to emphasise that FSCs do not work in isolation. The outreach on the ground is amplified through collaboration with the key stakeholders – CDCs, schools, Government agencies, grassroots organisations, community and religious groups – in order to extend the delivery of services to the needy.”
“We do not currently have information on the number of foreign workers with work permits and employment passes entering the casino since its opening. However, should social problems arise from foreign workers entering casinos, we will consider taking steps to address the issue. SEASON PARKING LOTS (Allocation criteria) 33. Dr Lim Wee Kiak asked the Minister for National Development with the rise in car ownership (a) what is the criteria used by HDB in the allocation of season parking lots to residents; and (b) in the past six months, how many residents were unsuccessful in buying season parking tickets for these lots nearest to their flats.”
“Mr Chairman, I do not think there is time to give a comprehensive answer except to refer the Member to the entire second half of the speech delivered by the Minister for Finance where he outlined the entire Government's efforts to provide resources, training, opportunities and uplift for the lower income in Singapore. For dysfunctional families and for children, we spent many hours yesterday explaining what we are doing and I do not think there is time for me to do that now. If the Member wants, she can submit a parliamentary question and we will tabulate everything again. But rest assured that, overall, this House and this Government is fully committed to making sure that every Singaporean will be able to cope, will be able to compete and will be able to stand on their own two feet. Whilst there is a lot more that we can do to make sure that our implementation of these plans and the way we utilise resources can be improved, let there be no doubt about our commitment to help.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I beg to report that the Committee of Supply has made further progress on the Estimates of Expenditure for the financial year 2010/2011, and ask leave to sit again tomorrow.”
“On the suggestion to study further, the answer is yes. Assistance to Malay/Muslim families”
“That is a useful point. With regard to the psychological needs of the single elderly, the Member is absolutely right. I think lonely old men are perhaps the most vulnerable, and that is why he should get married. But assuming he cannot get married, the second thing I would say is that there are other reasons why he must have friends, particularly old friends, who will still put up with him in his old age. The third and more serious point is that MCYS and our partners on the ground will certainly look at making sure that everyone who wants and is willing to be engaged and active will stay engaged. It is important, therefore, to have activities and to go out of the home to stay engaged socially. We will also look into opportunities to keep the mind active, which could mean attending courses or even pursuing education. So there are many things which can be done. On the macro scale, I also need this House to understand that if we say families and children are important, it means necessarily and logically that we have to allocate more resources to invest in families and children. Therefore even while we do our bit to help singles, I need singles to understand that we cannot allocate as much to them as a group as we allocate to families and children. This is a trade-off which we have to make as a society. We make this trade-off because this is the only way to keep ourselves viable, self-replicating and ensure that we have a future. That is the fact of life.”
“Mr Mah is smiling but I do not think he intends to answer that question. Would the Minister like to answer?”
“On the Special Needs Savings Scheme, the Member is absolutely right. Once we announce the details, we will have to go on a public education campaign to inform all the parents as to the schemes available. I want to point out that what we are doing is constructing a couple of different options because no one size will fit all. Depending on the individual circumstances of each family, they will have to opt accordingly – whether to just buy, for instance, an insurance policy or to put money with the Special Needs Trust Company or use the Special Needs Savings Scheme. Every family has different needs. We will also have a one-stop referral point, ie, the CEL, which will sit down, discuss and advise accordingly. On the question that she posed to the Minister for Finance, I do not think it is fair to ask him to answer it now. Nevertheless, I have heard both the Member as well as Mr Laurence Wee's call to help professionalise and uplift the capabilities of social enterprises and voluntary welfare organisations, so they can do more. We have the VWO Capability Fund. If we need to put in more resources into that, I will be perfectly happy to do so.”
“On filial piety, I would say that filial piety begins at home. Children watch how we behave to our parents. I doubt they will behave any better to us. While we can always make pleas to the schools in Civics and Moral Education, I think there is a limit to how much an outsider can affect our deeply held values and relationship with our parents. There is a limit to how much schools can do. The Government will focus on making sure that we all discharge our responsibilities. On this note, I am very glad the Member is willing to take up the challenge on moving a Private Member's Bill to amend the Maintenance of Parents Act. I assure Mr Seah and all other interested Members that MCYS will provide full support in the drafting of the amendments. On paternity leave and maternity leave, Mr Seah is basically telling us, "do not wait". I will bring this message to the rest of my colleagues.”
“Mr Chairman, I suggest we spend the next, say, 15 minutes on clarifications.”
“In the online component, instead of a test, we will make it a mandatory process in which we will provide material for new citizens to read and understand. They will then have to answer questions based on that. If they get it wrong, they have to re-do until they get it, so that it sinks into them. So it is not a test but it is a mandatory component and I think this will help us improve our naturalisation process. We will also be working on improving the sense of ceremony and significance of our citizenship ceremonies, which we conduct in all our constituencies. Let me conclude by saying we need to be confident and secure in who we are and what our values are. We need to be a society in which our core values do not change, even as we adapt to the dynamically changing world around us. We need to remain a family-centric people. We need to focus on building strong intra- and inter-generational ties. We need Singaporeans to remain hardworking, be self-reliant, and take pride in what we can achieve for ourselves and our families. We must commit to continuing to invest in our children and the future. And, as long as we do so, I am confident we will survive and thrive, and turn our hopes and dreams into reality. I will stop here and ask for some time for clarifications before we go on with the other cuts.”
“If we fall prey to populist or protectionist measures, on both the economic as well as the social front, we will basically damage our own future irrevocably, and the future of Singapore citizens. So, I agree with the Member but I also ask him and others outside this House to reaffirm these two fundamental principles: that we will make sure that Singapore is for Singaporeans, and that Singapore remains open, cohesive and capable of integrating talent and any new members who want to join our team, and able to win, whether it is winning medals at the Olympics, or winning in the race of life. Let me quickly touch on some of our latest initiatives of the National Integration Council (NIC), which I chair. One key area we have been looking at is the whole process of naturalisation, and how to refine it so that our new Singaporeans will have a better understanding of our norms and values, and also have more opportunities to meaningfully interact with us. One specific question I want to deal with is this issue of having a citizenship test. I agree with the feedback that a test cannot measure commitment nor can it ensure long-term commitment of new citizens. However, there is merit in having a more structured naturalisation process that will ensure that all new citizens understand the fundamentals of Singapore society and our values. We will do this in two ways under the Singapore Citizenship Journey, which we will make mandatory in future for all new citizens. There will be both an experiential as well as an online component. In the experiential component, we will bring them to Parliament, and other areas which are the repositories of our history and our values.”
“Mr Chairman, let me just respond to Mr Viswa and then we will take clarifications. Mr Viswa is quite right that Singaporeans need to feel more assured that Singapore remains the best place for Singaporeans to live, to work, to play and ultimately even to die in, and to die for. So let me reaffirm that Singapore is for Singaporeans. The Government's only and most sacred duty is to look after the long-term interests of citizens first and foremost. The Government will be held accountable to that at elections when only Singaporeans are allowed to vote. It is worth also reminding ourselves that, in fact, over the past one year – I have lost track of the number of exact announcements, which should make it very obvious to all Singaporeans now – we have ensured that Singaporeans have far more benefits than non-citizens, particularly in housing, education, healthcare, workfare, and family support measures like the Baby Bonus. In fact, over $700 million of my Ministry's budget on marriage and procreation flows exclusively to Singaporeans. But having said all that – that Singapore is for Singaporeans – we also need to also reaffirm the fact that Singapore must remain open to global talent. We are a small city state with no natural resources. We cannot afford to unplug ourselves from the global economy. In fact, in this day and age of globalisation, it is not even an option. And that means we must continue to attract and retain our fair share of global talent even as we nurture our own Singaporeans and give ourselves a head start. This is how we succeeded in the past and this is how we will have to succeed in the future.”
“Can I also ask your permission for clarifications on MCYS' topics to be held after Ms Joscelin Yeo has spoken on "Greater Synergy to Groom Local Athletes"?”
“The Government will continue to discourage gambling amongst people resident in Singapore. The National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) has set up the casino exclusion framework. So far, 29,153 people have been excluded. The majority of these are third-party exclusions because they were undischarged bankrupts and persons receiving Public Assistance. We have 426 who applied for self exclusion orders and 37 for family exclusion orders. I want to encourage all who are financially vulnerable, and families or religious organisations who know of people who are financially vulnerable, to avail themselves of the self exclusion orders which are run by the NCPG. I would point out that these orders are available to citizens, permanent residents (PRs) and others who are resident in Singapore. I would urge all Singaporeans to continue to value their families and look after their loved ones. The Government will continue to provide support mechanisms to strengthen marriages, and enhance early childcare. We will enhance the legislative framework to ensure that people fulfil their basic financial obligations to family members. However, as I said just now, the Government cannot mandate strong family relationships. We cannot mandate unconditional love. The family must remain our first line of support. The Government and community, through many helping hands, must continue to help and empower people to be self-reliant and to be as resilient as possible. Only then can we avoid entrenching an entitlement mentality, help people break out of a downward spiral of apathy and self-defeat, and give them hope for the future. Mr Chairman, my Minister of State will continue with further details.”
“If a child is not doing well at school, or has dropped out of school, or has gotten into trouble with law, or gotten into glue sniffing or other drug addictions, or landed up having to depend on MCYS protection and services – these are early warning signs. Not only are these children at risk, there are also probably siblings at risk. There may also be dysfunctional parents in the equation as well. Again, this calls for greater collaboration between the Ministry of Education (MOE), Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Ministry of Community Devlopment, Youth and Sports (MCYS), Ministry of Health (MOH), Community Development Councils (CDCs) and Family Service Centres (FSCs), so that we have an early warning system and a comprehensive safety net for these children and their families. Mr Seah has also asked about the Home Ownership Plus Education (HOPE) scheme. HOPE encourages young, low-income families to keep their families small so that they can focus their resources on their children. HOPE was enhanced last year in response to the Member's suggestion and eligible divorced women with two or fewer children were allowed to join HOPE. As at end of last year, 58 divorced women had joined HOPE and 205 mothers were able to find employment and tap on the enhanced education bursaries. So, the Member can claim personal credit for that. As we discuss the plight of the low-income and needy, let me also reiterate my views on protecting the financially vulnerable in Singapore against casino gambling, even though no question has been asked specifically on the issue. It is useful to remind the House that we agreed to open two Integrated Resorts with two casinos in order to attract tourist dollars.”
“We need to make sure that social workers get the respect and remuneration which they so richly deserve. We are also studying how we can address the current shortages of social workers from minority groups. We are working with the Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura (MUIS) and Mendaki to review the options of providing niche funding and training support to boost the supply of Malay/Muslim social workers. I would thank Dr Fatimah Lateef and Mr Seah Kian Peng for their concern about dysfunctional families. We all know this is a complex topic because they face multiple problems on multiple dimensions. A whole-of-Government approach, in fact, a whole-of-society approach is needed to deal with this. I chaired the Inter-Ministry Committee on Dysfunctional Families (IMC-DF) two years ago and I am pleased to report that all the recommendations have been or are in the process of being implemented. We have spent $11 million so far and we have set aside $20 million for this financial year. A key initiative, as the Member has suggested, is Intensive Case Management, which aims to provide a more systemic, holistic and family-centric model to vulnerable families with inter-generational issues. We ran a pilot which we started this year with referrals from multiple touchpoints such as the Singapore Prison Service, the schools, the community and MCYS. These families receive intensive casework support from dedicated social workers with a caseload ratio of 1 social worker to 10 families. This is much less than the usual FSC caseload. Another key recommendation is to strengthen early identification of children from vulnerable families at key touchpoint agencies.”
“The additional funding will allow the FSCs to get more clinical supervisors, pay for consultancy services and provide enhanced staff training. As I promised the House last year, we will have five additional FSCs which will be developed in areas with high demand over the next five years. That means we will have a total of 41 FSCs island-wide. The first new FSC will be sited in Bedok, at Block 41, Chai Chee Street and it will be operated by PPIS, which is the Young Women Muslim Association, which has done very good work and we want to encourage them as they expand their services. They expect to be able to commence operations by June 2010. The second and third new FSCs will be in Telok Blangah and Tampines in financial year 2010 and 2011 respectively. As for the FSCs' effectiveness, we used to just track the numbers of times that they solved cases. But we know that actually, what is far more important is the adoption of a client-centric and outcome-based approach, which refers to how many clients have actually achieved self-reliance after accessing the services of the FSCs. This is a KPI, but it is also one which I would say is more of an internal guide for the Ministry and NCSS to work with the FSC. This is because it is not meant to be a carrot-and-stick approach. Otherwise, you will end up with all kinds of invidious and sometimes perverse outcomes or incentives. Qualified and competent social workers are absolutely essential. We are proposing that from 1st April 2010 we will raise the salaries of social workers by providing additional funds to the VWOs who employ them. We hope that there will be a salary increase of between 14% and 16% for our social workers. We will benchmark their pay to the pay of medical social workers.”
“For FY 2010, we expect that MCYS will provide $96 million for ComCare and HOPE programmes, and we will spend another $131 million which we will funnel through the VWOs in order to provide the services on the ground. For the amount that comes from the public, we estimate that it will increase to $240 million. We believe that this is achievable as the economy recovers. I had some good news which I actually announced in Parliament last month, which is that despite the downturn last year, there was a drop in donations, but that drop was due mainly to a reduction in corporate donations. At the individual level, Singaporeans remain as generous as they always were even in a downturn, and I think Singaporeans should be congratulated for that instinct to be generous and to extend a helping hand to their fellow men. The Ministry of Finance has extended the 250% tax deduction for donations by another year. I hope this will continue to encourage Singaporeans to be generous. But beyond giving money, people are also giving time. The volunteerism rate had doubled from 9.3% in the year 2000 to 16.9% in 2008. The National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre (NVPC) and the Singapore Cares platform will continue to do their best to encourage more Singaporeans to provide their time, their mentorship, and their expertise for social services. Dr Teo has also asked me to set out the Masterplan for the FSCs. The FSCs are a critical part of our social safety net. Their operating costs are almost fully funded by MCYS, the Community Chest and the Singapore Totalisator Board. *Cols. 3913-3914. 5.30 pm Since 2009, MCYS has provided FSCs with additional funding of up to $430,000 each in order to hire more staff.”
“I do not believe that we have too many Helping Hands, but I accept the point that we can improve our coordination of those Helping Hands. For me, the key Hands in the community are the Community Development Councils and the Family Service Centres, and the ComCare Local Networks which have developed in every constituency to ensure coordination and collaboration between these Helping Hands. So let me give an example. All Government-funded schemes flow through the CDCs. So whether a person is eligible for Public Assistance is decided at the CDC. But when someone has a social problem, a personal problem, a family problem, I do not believe that a civil servant, or a CDC employee, is the best Hand to hold the person in such circumstances. That is why we need Family Service Centres and we need social workers. I have more to say about what we are doing to expand the number of Family Service Centres as well as the social workers who work in these places. So the key is continue to work on our Many Helping Hands model, but even as we do so, to never, never lose sight of the fact that we still want people to own their own lives. Owning their own lives also means owning their problems, taking responsibility for them, making the right choices, and living with the consequences of those decisions. [Slide* shown to hon. Members.] The bar chart on the left shows what we actually spent in 2008, a total of $414 million. You will notice that out of the $414 million, $231 million came from donations from the public. This is a very real example of Many Helping Hands, because the amount that my Ministry put in is only about half of that. You will notice obviously that the numbers are increasing over the years.”
“I think for most of us, self-reliance basically means enabling a person to work, to provide for his family, to save for his rainy day and to do his best to build a better future. Self-reliance does not mean selfish individualism. It recognises that we all have responsibilities to our families and to the community that sustains us. This year's Budget has focused on raising Singaporeans' productivity, so that we can hold better jobs and earn higher incomes. We cannot ensure equality of outcomes. And there will be people who, based on their current skills, will not be able to find a high-paying job. In such situations, we have Workfare to supplement their incomes, and the Government will also work to ensure, wherever possible, equality of opportunities for Singaporeans. But in order to take advantage of these opportunities, Singaporeans will still need to be hardworking, forward-looking, and to embrace lifelong learning. You see, the problem for Singapore is that we will never be able to stop being hardworking. That is the reality of Singapore. Nonetheless, we recognise that there will be some amongst us who will fall on hard times and will need a helping hand. And the first step to self-reliance is earning an income and getting a job. To answer Dr Teo, there are many factors that prevent people from making that first step. Like Dr Teo and Dr Lily Neo, I would agree that it is a complex multi-dimensional problem and it requires intensive hand-holding. It requires someone, and I say someone, because it is not something that a computer can generate, to determine the trigger that releases a person onto the path of self-reliance. Much has been said about our Many Helping Hands, and there have been suggestions that maybe we have too many Helping Hands.”
“So we will continue to emphasise vocational and pre-vocational training in Special Schools and also provide an additional three years for the students who are work-able. MCYS and NCSS will complement MOE's sterling efforts in this area, and we will also work with employers through the Enabling Employers Network and the Open Door Fund, so that there will be more job prospects for people with disability. Mr Christoper de Souza has asked for more support for caregivers. Anyone of us who has done home visits would have come across cases like this: a severely disabled person, wheelchair bound or confined to the bed for years, and often there is a totally dedicated caregiver – usually a lady, the wife or a daughter, who has spent years looking after this person. Caregivers do need our support. We cannot replace them because, quite frankly, it is their love and dedication which keeps these people alive. But as Mr Christopher de Souza has suggested, we do need to make sure there are more opportunities for respite care, to give them some time out – they can recharge, or get additional training, or just rest, so that they can go on with the task of caring for a disabled person which is a very, very heavy burden. We have a Caregiver Training Grant which we make available to families. We also have a foreign domestic worker levy concession of $95 per month for families with disabled members who want to employ a Foreign Domestic Worker. But I think we will continue to study how else we can lighten the burden on such persons. Let me move on to Dr Teo Ho Pin's points on self-reliance. He has asked us to define self-reliance.”
“The operational details will be announced by the Minister for Manpower. For children with mild disabilities, as Mr Laurence Wee has suggested, my Ministry will facilitate wherever possible getting them into a mainstream school. Beyond the 18 existing childcare centres which run an Integrated Child Care Programme, we are working with the Ministry of Health and the hospitals to build the capabilities for more childcare centres to run special programmes for these children. I hope the House will agree that we have made significant progress for the disabled and their families over the years. We are now in the fourth year of the Enabling Masterplan and we have achieved key milestones. The norm costs of services and programmes, including adult disability services, were revised just last year, and we have made further adjustments to wage costs this year. Basically that means more money has moved into this sector. I will give Members an example. The day activity centre per capital norm costs were revised over the last four years. It used to be about $740 and it is now $788 for FY 2010. I would like to assure Ms Phua that we will continue to regularly review these norm costs and adjust them accordingly. As to her question about when we are going to review the Enabling Masterplan, since it expires in 2011, I think some time between now and next year, we need to reconvene and decide what the next five-year plan will be. She can rest assured I will send her an invitation. MCYS will also work with MOE, WDA and NCSS to enhance employment and employability of persons with disabilities, because this is a key strategy – as Mr Laurence Wee has mentioned, if you can teach a man to fish, it is much better than giving a man a single fish.”
“Nevertheless, I also want to acknowledge that these programmes would not be possible without the hard work and dedication of the voluntary welfare organisations that champion, advocate and push for this, and provide services. So people like Ms Phua and many other leaders out there deserve our support. I am also pleased to announce that MCYS is working with the Ministry of Manpower and the CPF Board on a new scheme. I almost wanted to call it "Denise Phua's scheme", but the civil servants said "no, we will call it the Special Needs Savings Scheme". This is exactly the proposal which Ms Phua put up when she led a subgroup about three years ago. Normally, what would happen when a parent with a disabled child passes away is that his CPF account will be closed, and a lump sum will go to his nominee. In this new scheme, the CPF Board will amend the disbursement rules so that when the parent passes away, the disabled child can draw a monthly stream of income from the money that is left behind in the account. This has got two big advantages. One, the remaining amount in the CPF account will continue to earn interest. Two, because it is a constant stream of income, there is less danger of a lump sum being dissipated or misappropriated. And together with a care plan which I hope all parents with disabled children will make before hand, I think this will help reduce some of the anxiety that all parents with disabled children go through when they wonder about what will happen to their children after they pass away. So this new scheme – the Special Needs Savings Scheme – will complement the Special Needs Trust Company. Parents will have more options to save and prepare for the long-term financial security of their children with disability.”
“Specifically for EIPIC – the Early Intervention Programme for Infants and Children – we have increased the number of centres from nine to 11 in the last two years. This means that we now have a capacity of 1,600. I think our current enrolment is between 1,200 and 1,300 children. EIPIC is a means-tested programme. The VWOs have tried their best to keep the fees affordable but, quite frankly, it is an expensive programme. Anyone who has been involved in this would know – the true costs are probably somewhat in excess of $1,000 per child per month. Well, I am pleased to announce that we will have a new subsidy of $300 per citizen child attending EIPIC. This is a brand new subsidy which will then apply across the board to all citizens, and it will make EIPIC far more affordable. But we will continue to have means testing for the sum of money in excess of that, so that we will adhere to the principle that the less well-off deserves more support. Overall, I hope this will allow us to have an EIPIC sector which is viable, which has got high standards, and which is affordable. Because, ultimately, we need to make sure that more parents can afford it. Means-testing cuts off at the 50th percentile, and we need to make sure that even those beyond that will still be able to access these services. So I hope he will agree that this is a significant move. What this means, of course, is that my Ministry's budget will increase, so between us and the National Council of Social Service (NCSS), we will spend about $14 million on EIPIC per year. If the number of students increases, we will have to look at further increases in the level of support.”
“My Ministry will also consider ways to attract former staff who may have left in the bad old days - when they did not get paid well enough, and they did not get sufficient respect - to return into this sector. My Ministry also welcomes the suggestion for kindergartens with extra capacity to run childcare services. I think this is an interesting proposal which MCYS and MOE will study. It will help achieve better utilisation of space as well as the staff, and provide additional opportunities for parents to be able to go to work, knowing that their children are safely cared for. So this is an idea worth pursuing. We will be amending the Children and Young Persons' Act this year to provide better protection for vulnerable children and young persons. We will license all children's homes and will review all cases of children residing in these homes, particularly those who have been there for a long time. Furthermore, we intend to accede to the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. This is basically a Convention which seeks to ensure the safe return of children who were wrongfully removed from their state of habitual residence. Basically, it is about parental kidnapping against Court orders in the state of habitual residence of the child. My Ministry will be working with relevant agencies to finalise operational details, to set up the necessary mechanisms and to enact the new legislation, which we will come to this House for. 5.15 pm We will also do more for young children with special needs. This is something which Ms Denise Phua campaigns vigorously for every year. And I hope Ms Phua would agree that we have done well over the years.”
“We will provide greater funding support for eligible childcare operators to attract and reward better qualified childcare teachers. We will develop a professional development framework for the childcare professionals, so that peer review and cross-fertilisation of ideas can result in higher quality, skills and competencies, and ultimately higher qualifications. I agree totally with Mr Zaqy that we need to ensure that there is an adequate inflow of qualified teachers. Over the last year, the labour market for early childhood educators has tightened. This is due partly to the fact that we raised the minimum teacher qualifications, and it has also resulted in salaries for kindergarten and childcare teachers rising by about 18% since 2007. I think Members in this House will agree that that is a reasonable increase, which they deserve. This is a good development, as I believe it will help attract and retain more of the people in this crucial sector. The attrition rate has also fallen from 23% in 2007 to 17% in 2009. Seventeen percent is still quite high; we will keep working on trying to bring that down further. The Member is right that the situation will probably tighten in the next two years as we roll out more childcare centres. We will closely monitor the situation and, if need be, we will moderate the build-up so that there is a match between hardware and software. To improve the supply of qualified childcare staff, we will work with the Workforce Development Agency (WDA) and industry partners to promote the childcare profession and to attract more talent to this profession.”
“Now, let me move on to several new initiatives which we are rolling out to enable children to have a better life in the future. In the 2008 National Day Rally, the Prime Minister announced that the Government will facilitate the establishment of 200 new childcare centres by 2013. We have made good progress in the last two years. Another 59 new childcare centres have been established, which have provided an additional 6,700 places. Today, our enrolment in childcare centres has climbed to a high of 58,400. This represents about 83% of our total capacity. So we still have space and we are still continuing to roll out more centres. Over the next year, MCYS will establish a Child Development Network (CDN) which will promote quality early childhood care and development in Singapore, focusing specifically on professional development and research. The CDN will reach out to all our 800 childcare centres across the island and 10,000 childcare teachers and professionals in this sector. We will work with industry stakeholders to provide technical assistance, consultancy, professional guidance, career counselling, research and development as well as public education. MCYS will also establish an Early Years Development Framework by 2011. This will focus specifically on the care of infants and young children below the age of three. They are even more vulnerable and we need to take even extra care of this group. The framework will review the relevant professional training, licensing requirements and quality standards for infant and toddler care. We have also set up an Inter-disciplinary Advisory Committee that will include the Government and industry professionals to drive this initiative. We will also be going further to upgrade the early childhood profession.”
“Whilst we want to make sure we nurture and protect the children who are caught in such situations, we also have to be mindful not to incentivise wrong behaviour. I would also then remind all men that we are responsible for all our children, even if they are illegitimate. You have heard cases where the man said, "Well, I told the woman to have an abortion, she decided to still have the child, so it is her responsibility." Well, the legal position is that the man is still responsible and, in fact, as we put more teeth into the enforcement of maintenance, such men can and, I believe, hopefully, will be held liable to take responsibility for looking after their children. I would also like to thank Mr Ang Mong Seng for sharing his views on adoption. Over the last five years, there were 450 babies adopted per year in Singapore. Of this number, about 60% were foreign. In adoption, our primary duty is to ensure that the child's safety and well-being are catered for. Adoption is not a major plank of our marriage and procreation policy. We have to be very careful to assess each couple to make sure that they are capable of bringing up the child securely and well for the long term. Our current process takes about 19 weeks, which includes the necessary legal as well as social investigations. Nineteen weeks is not inordinately long compared with overseas jurisdictions. I also want to emphasise that we will not take short cuts in this area. I think all Members who have children will appreciate that every child deserves the best chance in life. Members can be rest assured that I lean very heavily and regularly on my officers on this, to make sure that there is no unnecessary red tape which is delaying the process.”
“But that is not a safety net which I hope people will want or need to rely on in the future. On housing, I should remind the House that we have allowed singles aged 35 and above to purchase HDB resale flats, and orphans can get together with their siblings and buy a flat as long as one of them is over the age of 21. Singles can also qualify for the Singles Grant of up to $11,000. And if the singles are staying with their parents, they can get a higher grant of $20,000. So the point is we have not forgotten singles and we have not forgotten that they are also part of our families. Mr Wee Siew Kim was concerned about whether or not we were providing adequate support for single mothers. Single mothers and their children are eligible for the universal infant and childcare subsidies, Government subsidies on healthcare and education, social assistance as well as the two days' statutory childcare leave per year under the Employment Act. It is true that they are not eligible for the Baby Bonus and for the extended Government-paid maternity leave. The reason we did not extend this is because the Baby Bonus and the extended Government-paid maternity leave are incentive schemes. These incentives schemes are to encourage married couples to have more children. We are very wary of, unwittingly, encouraging singles to have children. Now, I understand, of course, that every single mother that I have met has told me it was not by choice, it was by circumstances. But I am also always mindful that, whenever I meet a lady in such circumstances, there is also a "missing" man. She did not conceive and deliver a child because of only her decision or mistakes. We need to remind ourselves, therefore, that the State cannot be a surrogate husband or a surrogate father.”
“Mr Seah has also enquired about our Public Service – since Public Service is the largest employer – to make sure the Government "walks the talk". Let me assure the House that the Public Service Division policies on maternity benefits, childcare leave, part-time work, tele-commuting and staggered hours are all entirely consonant with our national policies. So, we will lead by example. We will also take Ms Yeo's comment on encouraging greater work-life balance, and this is something which both MCYS and MOM would continue to work on in the future. I have spent a lot of time talking about marriages, families and responsibilities. But I have not forgotten Mr Calvin Cheng making his plea for singles. Well, my first offer to him is to use the services of the Social Development Network (SDN). We would be most happy to help him and maybe by next year, we can report progress – that would be useful. But having said that, we do actually take care of all citizens. There are benefits which are given to everyone, regardless of marital status – for example, public healthcare, education, childcare, and training subsidies, and Workfare and tax reliefs. And for singles who fall into hard times, they can also tap on our national assistance schemes. Eligibility for ComCare is not dependent on whether or not you are married. However, having said that, I was also struck the other day by the fact that the overwhelming majority of people on Public Assistance are single elderly people. You can draw your own conclusion from that – that singlehood is a risk – or you can also draw the converse conclusion which is that, even if you are single and you are in trouble, there is still a safety net for you.”
“The Government will lift the Whip on this, and we can have a full and thorough debate both inside as well as outside this House. And we would like MPs to vote according to their conscience; hopefully, we will then have a revised Maintenance of Parents Act that will reflect the aspirations and needs of our society on this most sensitive issue. So, I hope we will see progress on this in the next few months. We have also liberalised the CPF Minimum Sum Topping-Up Scheme to encourage children to voluntarily top up their parents' accounts. Tax relief is given for such voluntary top-ups. On Mr Seah's proposal to have another scheme to encourage people to express filial piety by making voluntary donations, I want to say that, in fact, the avenue is already available, and I hope more people will consider doing so. The Ministry of Finance has also enhanced the parent relief to provide greater tax benefits. This parent relief covers parents, grandparents and great-grandparents. I suppose if some of you are supporting great-great-grandparents, we can negotiate with the Minister for Finance. Mr Seah has brought up for the third time his plea for paternity leave. Well, I think he would have heard Deputy Prime Minister Wong Kan Seng tell us that, in fact, we had just announced a major suite of procreation benefits – I think it was at the 2008 National Day Rally. So we are not ready yet to make another slew of adjustments. Nevertheless, I heard what the Member said and I have sympathy for both his suggestions on paternity leave as well as expanding the criteria for maternity leave, so that more women who currently do not qualify would qualify in the future.”
“Last year, we introduced some pre-filing processes at the Commissioner's Office so that elderly parents can opt for alternative avenues to resolve their issues. Basically, people do not want to jump into a legislative process – they do not want to go to Court, in the first instance. It will be better if we can work more with social services, with counsellors at Family Service Centres (FSCs) to try to patch relationships, and to gently remind people about their filial responsibilities and avoid going to Court. But this often requires us to give the elderly parents a helping hand. I have instructed that the Commissioner for the Maintenance of Parents will play a more active role in providing a helping hand to vulnerable elderly parents. Where appropriate, we can also apply enforcement measures for the maintenance of children and ex-spouses, to orders for maintenance of elderly parents. I may need to explain this. The Maintenance of Parents Act can result in a maintenance order to be issued. The enforcement of that maintenance order rides on similar provisions in the Women's Charter. So, in fact, when we tighten the enforcement measures in the Women's Charter, it will also make it easier for parents to make and to enforce claims on their children. 5.00 pm But do we need to do even more, given the rising numbers? I think the answer is probably "yes". The Maintenance of Parents Act was first tabled in 1994 as a Private Member's Bill by the then Nominated Member of Parliament, Prof. Walter Woon. This time round, I would like to suggest Mr Seah Kian Peng gets together a group of like-minded MPs to table a Private Member's Bill to amend this Act – put down your suggestions, translate them into legislative amendments and put it to this House.”
“I have hardly ever seen a man come in and say, "I am divorced. My wife is very rich. I wish she would hand over some money to me." That has not been the case. I guess my answer to the Member would be that I do not think we are ready yet to abandon the key principle in the Women's Charter, which is that women still need protection in our society. Mr Seah Kian Peng and Mr Wee Siew Kim have also made excellent suggestions on making amendments to the Maintenance of Parents Act (MPA). I generally agree with the suggestions that had been put up. The MPA should reflect the centrality of filial piety in our society. I think all Members would agree with me that we need to ensure that adult children discharge their duty to provide for their parents. Unfortunately, there has been a rising incidence of applications being made to the Tribunal for the Maintenance of Parents (TMP). In 2009, 199 applications were filed. This was higher than the 127 applications the year before, and 109 in 2007. So it is almost a doubling in two years. Also, we have all seen cases in our MPS – cases where elderly parents, having been forsaken by their children, are coming to us asking for rental housing and assistance or going to other charitable organisations. The problem with this is that every unfilial child who does not support his or her parents is, in effect, expecting someone else to pick up the tab, and to fulfil their filial responsibilities. The HDB and CDCs have tightened their criteria. As we have noticed in the last few months, we would refer needy elderly parents who apply for rental flats – when we find that there is actually a child who is capable of looking after them – to the Commissioner for the Maintenance of Parents.”
“This will ensure prompt payment. To facilitate the issue of AEOs, MCYS will amend the law to allow complainants to obtain information on the respondents' employment status from the Central Provident Fund (CPF) Board. Finally, the prospective new spouses of defaulters need to be aware of the outstanding financial obligations of the defaulters. We will not stop them from remarrying – that would be going too far. But we will require people who have maintenance debts to declare them, when they register for marriage at the Registry of Marriages (ROM), so at least the next wife knows that the defaulter has a record. But as someone said just now, "love is blind" so I do not think that will stop the marriage. However, it is to create a culture of responsibility and compliance. Let me at this point also reply to Ms Ellen Lee's suggestions on changing the Women's Charter to a Family Charter. The Women's Charter is a very special piece of legislation. It was passed in 1961 and was, I think, one of the early signature pieces of legislation by the PAP. And if you think about it, it was ahead of its time to, in 1961, insist on monogamy and on women's rights, and create an unlevel playing field to protect women. So will we consider a change in its name? I think the Member is already going for more than just a change in name. We should ask ourselves how much has changed in these 50 years. Obviously, a lot has changed for women in Singapore in these 50 years. But every Member of Parliament here, including the Opposition MPs, will know there is still a gender gap. Our female labour force participation rate was 55% in 2009, which was significantly lower than that for men at 76%. For the cases who come to see us at the Meet-the-People Session (MPS), they are almost always women.”
“We have also had preliminary discussions with the SCWO, and I expect them to make an announcement shortly as to how they would step up to the plate and provide more services to women in such circumstances. Furthermore, we will amend the law such that the Courts will be empowered to order parties to provide information on their financial status when hearing cases. This means that a person cannot hide and say, "I do not have a job" or "I am not employed". We will get access to the needed information. The Government will also deter defaults by amending the Women's Charter to give the Courts powers to impose further sanctions and penalties. One measure will be to require the defaulter to pose a security, such as a banker's guarantee, to set aside funds against future defaults. If he defaults, the money will still be drawn out of the banker's guarantee, whilst he squabbles in Court as to whether or not the payments are due. Another is to allow the Courts to impose community-based sentences when the legislative framework for this is ready. This will address the situations where the man says, "It is all right. Put me in jail. Then I cannot work and I cannot pay." So, the Courts need to have an additional menu of options in which they can penalise or deter the recalcitrants without necessarily stopping them from working. The Women's Charter will also be amended to enable complainants to report maintenance debts to credit bureaus. In other words, if a man is in default of his alimony to his ex-wife, this will also affect his credit standing. To better secure maintenance payments, the Subordinate Courts have also announced that they will be issuing more Attachment of Earnings Orders (AEOs) where maintenance payments will be deducted directly from salaries of the man involved.”
“First, we will make it less onerous for women to seek and enforce maintenance orders. Second, we will introduce new and enhanced measures to deter defaults and secure payments. Let me go through some details. I am glad that the Courts have announced – in fact, it was the Chief Justice himself who announced two weeks ago – that they will be improving their processes in order to make it easier for complainants. This will reduce the need for complainants to make multiple trips to the Courts in order to enforce maintenance orders. The current system often entails the women having to go to the Courts three, four or even more times in order to secure an Order. Once the person defaults, the process also starts all over again. All of us here would have seen women coming to us and saying they are too tired, too emotionally stressed, and unable to take the time-off to secure their maintenance. Their employers ask them why they keep going to the Courts and coming back empty-handed. We will work on reducing this onerous process. One measure is that we will enable women to lodge their complaints through a video-link, which would mean that they do not have to go to the Courts to begin the process. They can go to a service centre which would have all the proper facilities and the necessary technological link-up. The Subordinate Courts will also create the HELP (Helping to Empower Litigants-in-Person) Centres. It basically would help complainants navigate the legal process, and explain to them what they need to do and what comes after step 1, step 2 and step 3. MCYS will explore how to further help complainants through appropriate referrals to social assistance services.”
“There are also many other religious groups which also run these one-stop referral and help centres. Despite our best efforts, we know that some marriages will fail. A divorce is always a disaster. There will always be people who will suffer as a result of the divorce, especially in cases where children are involved. We do have schemes to ensure that divorced families can access financial assistance, employment and childcare. There are also many voluntary organisations that provide support for divorced families and help people adjust to the new realities on the ground because almost always, there are both social and economic penalties on the remaining family members. What I want to focus on today is the duty of care, which is in line with what several MPs, including Mdm Cynthia Phua, have asked for in terms of doing more to help women claim their alimony payments. I had flagged this issue last year when I asked for feedback from members of the public. My Ministry also worked with the Courts, the NFC, Singapore Council of Women's Organisations (SCWO) as well as people on the ground who sent us many suggestions and recommendations. First, let me give Members some numbers. In 2009, 3,585 applications were made in Courts for maintenance orders. This represents a 10% increase over the previous year. Ten percent increase in one year. For maintenance orders that were issued in 2005, 21% of them had defaulted within three years. Of these 21% who had defaulted within three years, half of them were actually recurrent defaulters, which means they had defaulted twice or more. The point is, we do have a problem with maintenance. We intend to adopt a two-pronged approach to strengthen enforcement of maintenance.”
“But even as we reaffirm the importance and the centrality of the family in Singapore, we also acknowledge that the family in Singapore is under pressure. 4.45 pm Mdm Cynthia Phua was rightly concerned about the increasing divorce rate. After five years, 5.8% – almost 6% of the couples who were married in 2004 were divorced by 2009. I then asked my staff to track the 1987 cohort, because that was when I was married. For the cohort that got married in 1987, after five years, only 3.2% of us were divorced. What this means is that in the last two decades, the likelihood of a marriage failing within the first five years has doubled. But having said that, I also want to caution and to remind all of us that ultimately a marriage is about a relationship between two people. It is not primarily about the Government. The Government cannot legislate love or commitment, when these crucial elements have been neglected by the two key partners involved. Quite frankly, we all know that there are some circumstances in which divorce may even be the preferred option. I would not judge anyone who has to make such a wrenching decision. Nonetheless, my Ministry would do its best to help families and to help people who want to work on their marriage. We work with the National Family Council (NFC), family service providers, educators and religious groups, to equip couples with skills to help them prepare and weather the challenges encountered in a marriage. We encourage marriage preparation courses, but these should not be run by the civil servants or Government. The NFC's Marriage Central has set up a one-stop resource point at the Jurong Regional Library. This complements their online presence.”
“Mr Chairman, this is the sixth year my Permanent Secretary and I are in the Committee of Supply (COS) representing the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS). In six years, I have heard a lot of suggestions from this House. For this year, I can honestly say I actually agree with most of what I have heard. But by now, my staff are also used to my usual response when I am presented with new ideas and new suggestions, and that is to go back to first principles. First, what problem are we trying to fix? Second, what are the values that underpin the solution being proposed? And third, what evidence is there to back up the proposal and equally, in the long term, what evidence do we have that the solutions that we have rolled out are effective? This is the general approach to the many issues that surface in MCYS and, perhaps, it would be worthwhile starting again with the first principles. Today, we have a successful, modern, dynamic society, and a first-world city, that have arisen out of an island with no natural resources, and that resulted from a congregation of people from many different places in the world. Therefore, the first question you should ask is how and why have we succeeded. So, answer that question, and also bear that in mind when we propose solutions for the social safety net. It is the same reason why we should start today with the family. The family remains the basic building block of Singapore society because it goes far beyond the need to merely reproduce ourselves, although we are not doing that very well either. The family shapes our identity, it transmits our deepest held values and it represents our ultimate investment in the future. A society with no children would be a hedonistic society with no interest in the future.”
“The Singapore Sports Council (SSC) initiated a Request for Proposal (RFP) in April 2009 for the four closed swimming pools. The exercise resulted in a private operator utilising Bukit Merah Swimming Complex as an aquatic and fitness centre. Six proposals were received for Jurong Town Swimming Complex, Pandan Gardens Swimming Complex and Yan Kit Swimming Complex. However, SSC did not award the tenders for these three swimming complexes because the proposals did not meet the objectives of the RFP exercise. Subsequently, SSC received further proposals from several national sports associations (NSAs) and private organisations to use the facilities for various sports and recreational programmes. However, these proposals were also unsuitable. Consequently, SSC will convert Jurong Town Swimming Complex into hard courts to provide more playing spaces for the residents in the area. These hard courts can be used for futsal or basketball. The two remaining swimming complexes at Pandan Gardens and Yan Kit will revert to the State. DEMENTIA PATIENTS IN SINGAPORE 10. Mdm Halimah Yacob asked the Minister for Health (a) how serious is the dementia problem in Singapore today and what is the projected rate of increase over the next 10 years; (b) what is the Ministry's plan in dealing with the greater number of dementia patients; and (c) how are the afflicted and their caregivers assisted and whether there are enough trained health care professionals to deal with this challenge.”
“Since the fostering scheme was introduced in 1956, more than 5,000 children have benefited from the scheme. Many of these children have been reintegrated back to their natural families, a small number are adopted whilst others have moved on to live independently. Foster care will continue to be an important part of child protection work and my Ministry hopes that more volunteers will come forward to serve in this area of need. APPENDICES”
“Applicants with past criminal convictions involving sexual offences or violence will be rejected. However, those who had committed minor offences may be considered. These applicants would have to provide more information on their past records, and be assessed by an independent panel consisting of professionals outside of the Ministry. When a child is matched with a foster parent, a fostering co-ordinator will oversee the placement and make regular visits to the foster home to assess the quality of care provided by the foster parents. Each home is visited once in two months. For certain cases requiring more support, weekly visits may be made. Unannounced home visits are also carried out to enforce the importance of providing a safe environment for the foster children. Throughout the period the child is with the foster family, there is regular contact with other professionals, such as social workers, teachers and psychologists, who are trained to detect any signs of abuse. Should there be any allegations of abuse, which is a rare occurrence, an investigation will be conducted and the foster parent can be suspended, pending the outcome. An emergency after-office hours hotline is also available for foster parents to contact the fostering co-ordinator at any time. Finally, training is also provided on an on-going basis to foster parents, to help them understand and practise positive parenting skills. To ensure the children’s safety and welfare are being met, their progress is reviewed by the Committee on Fostering. Members of this Committee comprise professionals such as doctors, social workers, counsellors, and individuals from other fields. Our current safeguards are adequate.”
“Foster care is an alternative home-based care arrangement for children and infants who have been abused, abandoned or neglected. It is the preferred option to a children’s home as the child is able to receive individual care and attention in a family setting. Each year, around 80 new children are placed in foster care. There are currently 198 foster parents under the scheme caring for 320 children. There are about 30 children on the waiting list. Most of them are older children above 10 years or with special needs, hence the greater difficulty in finding suitable foster families. These children are presently placed in residential care in the voluntary children homes. We will place these children in foster families only when suitable ones are found as we do not want to compromise the safety and welfare of these children. As foster parents are entrusted with the care of children, the Ministry has in place a stringent selection process. Potential foster parents and their families are screened and interviewed by trained staff. This is a rigorous process where their motivation for fostering, past experience in caring for children, family background, parenting and disciplinary styles are assessed. Among other factors, it is important that potential foster parents understand the developmental needs of children, and the needs of those who could have a history of abuse, neglect and abandonment, and are willing to work in partnership with the Child Protection Service. In 2009, the Ministry received 287 enquiries regarding our fostering scheme. Out of this number, 59 were found to be eligible for further interview and assessment. After detailed assessment, 24 were selected to be foster parents.”
“The Foundation helps these individuals give back to society, by providing them with independent advice on causes to support, and helping them manage their philanthropic giving. The National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre has also recently rolled out the Singapore Gives portal. This will be a first-stop portal for online donations to charities across the different sectors such as the arts, social service and sports. It will allow donors to easily search for and identify causes or target groups to give to, and offer a convenient way for the public to make regular donations. It is also crucial to develop confidence in the charity sector. The Charity Council and the Charities Unit have been providing guidance for charities to comply with charity regulations to enhance public confidence. For example, the Charities Unit conducts regular field visits to charities and IPCs to better understand their work, as well as to engage them on the need for good governance. Grants are also available for charities and IPCs to undergo training on governance. F1 GRAND PRIX IN SINGAPORE (Financial impact) 7. Mr Viswa Sadasivan asked the Minister for Trade and Industry (a) whether the Government has an accurate estimate of the losses incurred by commercial entities in the CBD as a result of the F1 Grand Prix being held here in 2008 and 2009; and (b) whether the Government plans to compensate those who have been financially disadvantaged directly by this event.”
“In 2009, the Government increased the tax deduction on donations for Institutions of a Public Character (IPCs) from 200% to 250%. While the increase provides an additional incentive to donate, many other factors, such as the state of the economy and public confidence in IPCs and charities, will influence the decisions of corporations and individuals to donate. Our preliminary estimates show that overall tax deductible donations has dropped by about 8% from $686 million in 2008 to approximately $630 million in 2009. This was due to a drop in corporate donations, which was likely a result of the financial turmoil in the past year. As our economy begins its recovery, I hope that corporations will once again give generously to charitable causes. But there is a bright spot in the past year – tax deductible donations by individuals have held steady at slightly over $200 million, showing that the philanthropic spirit is alive and well despite the economic crisis. To encourage both individual and corporate giving, the Government has extended the 250% tax deduction for an additional year. Most Singaporeans do give to charity. According to the Individual Giving Survey published by the National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre, about 90% of Singapore residents have been donating to charities over the last three years. There are a number of existing platforms to encourage giving in Singapore. The Community Chest has been established for 26 years, and continues to receive donations of close to $50 million annually. The SHARE programme, which is a payroll-based giving system, encourages regular giving and has over 200,000 donors yearly. In 2009, the Community Foundation of Singapore was established to promote giving among high net worth individuals.”