Yu-Foo Yee Shoon
Singapore
“I thank the Member for her suggestions. PRICING GUIDELINES ON CANTEEN FOOD FOR STUDENTS 19. Er Lee Bee Wah asked the Minister for Education (a) what are the Ministry's pricing guidelines on the sale of food to students in school canteens; (b) how does the Ministry balance the needs of the students and those of the canteen operators to mee…”
“[For vernacular speech, please refer to Appendix A*.] Sir, I would like to say that Mr Calvin Cheng must have thought deeply about what I have said. I have mentioned that 80% of singles actually wanted to get married. The responsibility of providing a social network used to be borne by the Government.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Centre-based Financial Assistance Scheme for Child Care (CFAC) and Kindergarten Financial Assistance Scheme (KiFAS) provide fee subsidies to help low-income families send their preschool children to childcare centres and kindergartens respectively.”
“The childcare philosophy is to encourage the women to work. We have already relaxed the criteria because for those housewives who send their children for half-day care, we would still help them, so that they can get half subsidy.”
“I think we can consider that. INCOME CEILING FOR CHILDCARE FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE SCHEMES 16. Mdm Halimah Yacob asked the Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports whether the Ministry will consider increasing the family income ceiling for eligibility to the Centre-based Financial Assistance Scheme for Child Care (CFAC) and Kinde…”
“Very soon. IMPROVING ROAD SAFETY FOR ELDERLY PEDESTRIANS 17. Mr Laurence Wee Yoke Thong asked the Minister for Transport (a) what are the measures in place to (i) promote the safety of elderly pedestrians, especially at traffic crossings; (ii) encourage the able-bodied public to assist the vulnerable frail elderly crossing alone; and (b)…”
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“She is a good singer but she has to go to Taiwan for packaging, before she became famous and returned home. Earlier on, my fellow MP also asked us to consider whether or not to proceed with a worldwide exhibition on toilets. Our reply to the organiser was that the event has to be hosted successfully overseas before it is held here in Singapore. There is feedback that we should search and unearth talents in all areas by giving them scholarships to assist them with re-packaging as well as to help them upgrade their skills. These are the so-called software industry. Another industry that I am more familiar with is education. MOE encourages the development of Singapore into an educational hub, with regard to professional training, primary, secondary and university education. We have spent more than 20 years to develop our early childhood education. And our nursery and kindergartens have plenty of experiences in the operations. But now, we are still looking forward to Australia and US as our learning model. Should we not encourage our people, schools and institutions that are experienced in this area to develop Singapore into an early childhood education hub, as well as a training hub for teachers in early childhood profession? I do believe that we have a role to play in the international arena. This will also be part of our software development, and it is also an industry. Finally, I want to discuss about "Wow, Charming Singapore." I have briefly mentioned earlier that, to achieve this, one needs to look charming and the place must look beautiful too. Currently, in terms of development of our hardware, we have emphasised mainly on Marina South, Clarke Quay and Boat Quay. But if we are using the 6.”
“I hope that we will cultivate our students and Singaporeans to greet people with a flattering smile, and to carry oneself with ease and confidence. I say that this can also become an industry. Another area will be the food and beverage industry, which is also considered as software. Recently, some chefs said that they want to go for overseas international competitions but there is a lack of sponsorship. Under our software development, we hope to encourage more celebrity chefs to participate in overseas international competitions, so that when they come back, they can also improve the quality of our food. I remember Minister Lim has earlier talked about a book that says that if you have to visit one thousand places in this lifetime, you should come to Singapore for the food. "吃在新加坡" [Chi Zai Xin Jia Po]. Come for the food in Singapore. The Chinese saying goes, "衣食住行, 人以食为天" [Yi Shi Zhu Xing Ren Yi Shi Wei Tian ]. Among the basic necessities of life, food is termed the most important. This is our advantage in Singapore - good food. And I do believe our chefs are good at fusion cooking techniques, combining eastern and western styles. For these small industries, we should continue to encourage and reward them. As for the performing arts, I believe that Mr Baey can put in extra efforts to promote our performing arts industry such as MediaCorp, our movies and computer animation. It seems that we are lagging behind Korea in these aspects. But I do not believe that we lack talents. We have many talented people, but usually they have to be packaged and marketed overseas. A good example is Stephanie Sun.”
“Some friends and grassroots organisations have reminded us of the need for a full-scale development in our creative spirit and humanities, so that when people come to Singapore, in terms of our hardware, they will feel that it is a fresh and beautiful place and, at the same time, they will also be impressed by our software. In this regard, we have earlier mentioned a few areas of development, such as human resource, technical and cultural developments. Most importantly, we have to develop our spiritual civilisation in areas such as culture, television, radio broadcasting, language, communication skills, our appearance and attire. So we must be consistent in our inner thoughts and outward behaviour. This means that we must also attain inner qualities of virtue. So whether we have achieved a world-class standard is another question. Recently, during the World Bank conference, it was mentioned that we would like to achieve our goal of four million smiles. Have we consistently been encouraging our people to meet others with a smiling face? If we want to develop the IRs and to enhance our city as a cultural city and to attract top talents from overseas, it is important to develop this aspect. The development of these software qualities can become an enterprise itself. If we link this up with the concept of an “enterprise”, perhaps it can be more easily understood by our Finance Minister. In other words, the enterprise here is referring to an industry that specialises in grooming and packaging, so as to sell certain abilities. We should not say that the Filipino ladies have the sweetest smile or the Shanghainese women are the sweetest. In our context, this will also apply to the men, not only the women in Singapore.”
“As for harmony, my Ministry is still working hard and the Minister will be speaking on this. Sometimes, we must also think about the perception of a so-called Charming Singapore. Many of my friends gave their feedback on a "Charming Singapore" and they said that over the past few years, Minister Mah Bow Tan has put in great efforts and we must acknowledge that we have made many changes in the appearance of our city. Our roads are much more beautiful and we have more greenery. A few persons have commented that during the day time when we take a drive from Changi Airport to the city, the scenery on either side is very attractive. The water is clear and clean, the trees and flowers are green and scenic. But at night, when we drive along the same highway, travelling along East Coast Parkway, it is rather pitch-dark. Therefore, to become more charming, some people suggest that we need to have better designs for our lighting and lamp lights. Of course, we do not want to be like some countries where they have lightings in disorganised confusion. Rather, we should have more sophisticated, graceful and artistic designs. We may need to engage the French designers to work on it so as to make the lightings more romantic. I am not sure if this will have any positive impact on our population but we may be able to attract more tourists. On another point, the Second Minister has mentioned earlier that for us to build a successful nation, we need to have supporting infrastructure.”
“Most importantly, I have heard discussions on the issue of Medisave contributions: how we can encourage informal workers to open a CPF account so that it will enable them to contribute one-third to Medisave Fund, while the Government will top-up the remaining two-thirds. I believe that the Minister for Health, Mr Khaw Boon Wan, is appearing in local papers almost every day, urging us to open a Medisave account for our families, our spouses and our children. And now, the Second Minister for Finance also urges us to make use of this opportunity to make contributions to CPF as well as open an account. Earlier on, our NTUC Secretary-General also quoted a few examples on the benefits of having a CPF account. Therefore, I believe that Singaporeans no longer can claim that they have not heard anything or know anything. I hope that all of us will do our part. It is for our own interest because one day we will fall sick or we will retire and it is thus necessary for us to open a CPF account, contribute over $20 every month and the Government will subsidise a portion for us. If the effort is still not enough, we may even have to launch some campaigns among the communities to raise the awareness of our residents. But if you still refuse to listen after much advice, then the description of "坐以待毙" [zuo yi dai bi ] - meaning “do nothing and die” will inevitably happen to some of us. During conversations with friends, we discuss about the future policies in Singapore, and how we can achieve the Prime Minister’s vision to transform Singapore into a highly efficient and vibrant global city. Minister Mentor has envisaged that Singapore will become a world-class city. Personally, I think that we have a high level of efficiency.”
“Eventually, it is our responsibility to ask and find out, and if you think that the plan is too complicated, you do not have to learn about the details. You can make your enquiries, ask your MP during the meet-the-people session, check out at the Community Clubs or the Family Service Centres, or maybe even at the market place where there are grassroots members who can provide you with some information. Therefore, it is impossible for any one to say that they are not aware. I hope that every one of us could pay more attention to the Budget package, and understand how it will affect us. As such, I describe this package and WIS as tools that will help us to take off. Before the plane takes off, we will have to tighten our safety belt and not safety net, because when we refer to safety net it means giving social welfare to the unemployed, but the safety belt means that all of us will take off together. You will have to be on board the plane to have the safety belt and, therefore, we must prepare ourselves and get ready for the take-off. Recently, I asked my friend for comments regarding the Budget announcement and was told "无为不治" [wu wei bu zhi] - meaning the Government should operate on a policy of non-interference. My friend said that the Government has done too much. "无为" [wu wei] is a Taoist saying - meaning non-interference. But, in this instance, our PAP Government will not agree to "无为" [wu wei] - not doing anything, because we are "有为" [you wei ].”
“In my younger days, after my graduation, I attended a booking-keeping course at the Adult Education Board during the weekend, and so I have some accounting experience. I feel that every one should recognise the fact that the knowledge they receive in school, polytechnic or university, has a limited knowledge value lifespan, and this lifespan is getting shorter now - it is only five years. Similarly, it is just like our doctors. After a few years, they have to go for re-examination. We must think of some ways to enhance the technical skills of our people. However, this will require the tripartite cooperation and we can only achieve this objective through joint efforts by all parties. In this regard, we have various measures in place. For instance, NTUC offers different schemes, and WDA has many such schemes as well. But the question is really whether we have personally done anything. I think what we should do is to find ways and means to encourage our people. In some countries, there are some cases whereby people are not aware, they do not want to ask or they do not want to find out. Therefore, the people must be more pro-active in this aspect and they must take the initiative to find out about the Government policies. The people need to understand the schemes that are made available to them. We should not behave "do nothing and die". Of course, we should not be "忧天忧人" [you ren you tian ], meaning too worrisome. Also, we should not put the blame on others for our failure or our hardships. The Government can only do this much by providing us with basic facilities, education and training opportunities and opening up pathways for us.”
“It means that when we try to match a job for the unemployed, we also advise them to go for training. After the training, more than 50% of the workers get a new job and their pay has increased by an average of more than $300. I think that is a very encouraging situation. Therefore, our challenge is to design a training programme that is linked up with the Workfare scheme. This will apply to all existing workers as well as elderly workers. As we know, we are facing an increasing life expectancy, while technology, knowledge and product life cycles have been shortening. I have a friend who works in a Sony factory and he designs electronic products. He said that, for the mobile phone design, there will be a new product every three months. I asked him what the latest product is now. Maybe even I am not able to catch up with the new technology. This will mean that for every three months or six months, we have to learn how to use a new product. So time is not going to wait for us. This also applies to our university undergraduates, because their knowledge may be outdated in five years’ time, particularly for those who are in the engineering and technical fields. In fact, I have received a lot of feedback regarding the restructuring taking place in MOE, and many feel that it is a correct move. It is right for us to develop our only resource - the human capital - and give it 100% support. But we cannot just stop at MOE. We must also extend such training programmes to MOM and to those people who are seeking for jobs. Is it possible that we continue to have such a lifelong learning education account, so that job seekers or existing workers can apply for some form of subsidy for learning or continuing education in their profession?”
“After hearing from our leaders and reading a lot of reports, under this highly competitive environment and wave of globalisation, what should we do to attract investments? The solution is to reduce our tax rates in order to attract foreign investments. I believe Hong Kong, in their recent budget debate, may also reduce their tax rates. So what should we do as a small country? We are not able to further increase direct tax, we can only lower it. As such, our corporate income tax will be lowered by two percentage points in order to attract more foreign investments. Even personal income tax can hardly be raised. Some MPs even suggest that if we want to attract foreign talent, we should reduce the personal income tax rates. Under such circumstances, I feel that a more extensive tax regime whereby everyone can share some responsibility is a better tax system. However, we do face some challenges when we increase the GST, particularly in the area of helping the poor to cope with this pressure. In this regard, I am very glad to know that our Second Minister for Finance has announced a very generous GST offset package. It is able to offset the negative effects of GST for more than 10 years. Hence, I feel that this Budget is really very generous. It is so generous that it makes me wonder if there are any additional strings attached, or if it is subject to any conditions. The NTUC Secretary-General has earlier highlighted that Workfare is a very good scheme to help the low-income workers. However, I would suggest using a two-pronged approach: to raise their level of technical ability, so as to help them earn higher wages. Under the ComCare scheme, the Government has recently been promoting the work support plan and it has been doing well.”
“In fact, that has been our headache for many years and, therefore, I feel that this is the most resolute as well as the most generous Budget. Under the new leadership of our Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, he has decided to put in place a series of measures to help the poor and needy, so as to narrow the income gap. If you had read the Lianhe Zaobao two days ago, there was an article about the United States. It is a country that many people are dreaming of and a lot of people are eager to go there. They have done well and will continue to be a country that people look forward to go to. However, in the US, they are facing the problem of widening income gap for many years. Over the past 30 years, the US is poverty-stricken, and currently they have the biggest number of poor people, ie, about 16 million people are living in poverty or extreme poverty. The Morgan Stanley report also pointed out that when there is economic growth, the people who will get the biggest share are not the labourers or workers, but the capitalists. Capital returns have increased from 7% to 12%, and that is almost equivalent to the earnings of the nation. But what the worker is getting has been shrinking and their share has been declining from 60% in the 80s to 56% currently. Just now, Dr Fatimah said that the US is going to further decrease its health budget. Therefore, I must say that we are in a very fortunate era. I can say that this is a golden era for Singapore because we have quite a substantial sum of reserves, returns from overseas investments, and good economic progress. This is the best time for us to revise our tax regime and to help the lower-income group. This is the most appropriate time now.”
“[For vernacular speech, please refer to Appendix A *. ] Mdm Deputy Speaker, we would like to thank our Second Minister for Finance, Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam, who has prepared for our people an excellent, generous and forward-looking Budget. It has taken into consideration many factors including challenges faced from globalisation, our ageing population, etc. And just now, my fellow MPs have used different adjectives to describe the Budget. As I have been in Parliament for a long time, maybe I can make a comparison and conclude that this is the most generous as well as the most resolute Budget. Why do I say this? Just now, we heard some comments from Mr Sam Tan, and I do not quite agree with what he said. He said that this Budget is like returning to the fundamentals of socialism. Some say that the Budget is being too generous and thus it is really close to socialism. But we have done very well to help our low-income group and low-income workers through the Workfare Income Supplement (WIS) scheme. If we are not helping our people through the WIS, it will then become a form of welfare benefits for the people. If that is the case, I would be worried for our society. Hence, I feel that the Budget is worthy of our support because it is a wise move. In the last few years, during the discussions with our leaders, it was a big headache for us because as much as we wanted to achieve economic growth, we could see that many Singaporeans were not able to catch up. Although we want to enjoy a high quality lifestyle, some of the people are not able to catch up with the pace because they are not able to cope with the rising costs. In this *Cols. 2057-2066. instance, what should we do?”
“If you read the newspapers a few days ago, all the Mayors had launched this ComCare network. The purpose is to get the Mayors to drive this platform by getting all the local grassroots organisations, for example, RCs, CCCs and VWOs of your area, together with the Advisors, to coordinate and deliver the social services more effectively on the ground. At the same time, we have announced that MCYS has come out with $1 million to train the grassroots leaders and also enable PA to hire a few more staff to help to coordinate this. So I think we need "many helping hands", like we said, and also we hope that all of us could maybe read more and simplify in our own way the key messages we want to know. GOODS AND SERVICES TAX (Change of schedule on payment and refund) 12. Ms Jessica Tan Soon Neo asked the Prime Minister and Minister for Finance whether he will consider changing the schedule on the payment, including the issue of late payment penalty, and refund of GST for businesses, to help small and medium enterprises manage the impact on their cashflow.”
“Yes, I am sure the suggestion is very useful. I just want to inform the House that we are now trying to develop a package for all the advisors as well as the CCC ComCare helpers, and also to give them some training as well as to share good practices. The package will give them an idea about the three key pillars which we mentioned a few times in this House. You can divide the ComCare help into three big areas. One is self-reliance. Self-reliance includes Workfare. Workfare means anything about job or self-sufficiency which is under this pillar. The second pillar is ComCare Grow. Anything about children, KiFAS and CFAC is under ComCare Grow. And anything about the disabled and elderly is ComCare EnAble. So if you can remember these three big areas, when people come to you, you can just refer to them. We are also trying to develop a database to see how we can help the CDCs. At the same time, we are also thinking of setting up a hotline. Of course, the number should be repetitive which is easier for the old people to remember. So I think we will look into the mechanism and how to set up this hotline. But we will announce it in a few months' time so that when an old person calls, you will not have an automatic voice answering service. We want to have a personal touch in this area.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Public Assistance Scheme is targeted at helping needy Singaporeans who are unable to work and have no family support. The number of families on the scheme has been stable for the past five years at about 3,000 families at any one time. MCYS reviews the Public Assistance Scheme regularly and takes into consideration changes in the cost of living for families on public assistance. The scheme was last reviewed in 2002 and the revised rates were implemented on 1st January 2003. And I would like to inform hon. Members that there is good news - a review is currently ongoing and likely to be completed within the next few months.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I would like to conclude by saying that it looks like the birth rate has presently stopped declining, and I hope that, maybe this year, we can see an upward trend. I thank the MPs for their suggestions and hope to further consider some of the points, especially getting fathers to share more parenting responsibilities. Question put, and agreed to. Bill accordingly read a Second time and committed to a Committee of the whole House. The House immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill. - [Mrs Yu-Foo Yee Shoon]. Bill considered in Committee. [Mr Deputy Speaker in the Chair]”
“On extending the Baby Bonus to beyond the fourth child, I would like to say that when we introduced the Act in 2001, we only extended the benefit to the second and third child. In 2004, we amended it to include the first and fourth child. The Government's stand is that, by doing so, we cover 98% of Singaporean families with children. Those families with a fifth child are in the minority. I should also say that most of them are from lower-income families. We do not encourage lower-income families to have more than four children because we hope that they can spend their limited resources on the three or four children and make sure that these children can really develop their potential. And if they cannot manage, they should not have more. Having said this, ComCare, Family Service Centres, CDCs and other schemes do help these families if they have more than four children. Those are assistance schemes. This is an incentive scheme and we do not encourage the lower-income families to have more than four children. Mdm Halimah is also concerned about the effectiveness of this incentive scheme and whether it has been working well. The Ministry carried out a survey last year. I think DPM Wong also announced the results in 2006. We have seen some encouraging signs. In the recent survey of 3,000 married respondents by MCYS, 83% of them indicated that the parenthood package has created a friendlier environment for having and raising children in Singapore. In particular, the younger and higher income respondents were more likely to respond positively. 56% of the respondents also said that the parenthood package has influenced them to have or consider having more children, or have children earlier.”
“On Ms Ellen Lee's suggestion to make Adoption Leave mandatory, I would like to say that the paid maternity leave by the Government is primarily to allow the mother to recover from child birth. So the objective is actually recovery from delivery. But the Government is very kind and has extended this benefit to mothers who adopt as well. This only started in 2004. Let us try to implement this Bill first because, so far, according to my Ministry, there has been no complaint or appeal to make Adoption Leave mandatory. We will also work through our partners - NTUC, the Singapore National Employers Federation, MOM, the National Family Council, Centre for Fathering and so on - to encourage employers to grant the leave. I think the employers are quite receptive. MOM has also assured me that if there is any complaint, they will try their best to help convince the employer to give this leave to the adoptive mother. I am sure Singaporean employers or even MNCs are good community citizens. We call upon them to support the adoptive mother. Let us try this voluntary way to encourage employers. On the extension of Government-paid leave to fathers, I am very pleased that both of my male colleagues have called for fathers to play a more important role in bringing up their children. This is a good sign. In 2004, the Government allowed working fathers to have two days of Childcare Leave per year if the child is below seven years of age. And together with the mother, they enjoy four days of Childcare Leave per year. This is only the beginning. I am sure that the National Population Committee, headed by DPM Wong, can look into the ways in which fathers can play a greater role in child raising.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I would like to thank all my colleagues for all the very well-said arguments and I also sympathise with some of the arguments. I agree with some, but for the others, we cannot implement them for the time being. Sir, I want to put the whole Bill in correct perspective. The objective of the Children Development Co-Savings Act is to encourage procreation and parenthood in the context of marriage, as the Government's view is that a two-parent family provides the best environment for our children to grow up in and to fulfil their potential. I would like to assure Mr Zaqy Mohamad that the Government still believes in promoting marriages and promoting procreation within intact families. Therefore, for single mothers, we have not extended some of the benefits to them. However, single mothers still enjoy the 12-week maternity leave under the Employment Act and their children also enjoy equal treatment under KiFAS, CFAC, Edusave and also enrolment in schools. The mother can benefit from the Foreign Domestic Worker levy concession as well as child care leave and so on. Even for housing, the mother can also apply to buy or rent a flat from HDB jointly with her parents. Therefore, we have other assistance schemes to help them. Government-Paid Maternity Leave is not an assistance scheme. It is an incentive scheme to encourage intact families to have children, and to have more children. Sir, let me address Members' comments and some of the questions that they have raised. I would like to thank Mdm Halimah for supporting the Bill. Mdm Halimah has also encouraged employers to follow the public sector’s lead to provide paid Adoption Leave. I am sure the public sector will take the lead.”
“Perhaps, it is time that the Ministry conducted a survey to assess the impact of this legislation, which is an important piece of social legislation and make refinements, where necessary. On this note, I support the Bill. 6.27 pm”
“I feel that these provisions are harsh as they do not differentiate between situations where a woman loses her job because of her own fault, such as misconduct or when she voluntarily decides to leave the company during the benefit period, as against situations where she has no control, such as retrenchment, unfair dismissal or even upon expiry of her contract of employment in the event that she is on a short-term contract. I agree that when there is misconduct involved, then she should forfeit her entitlement. But in a situation such as retrenchment or unfair dismissal, for example, the job loss is not due to the woman's fault, so she should not be penalised. This is one area which the law should provide greater flexibility and I hope that the Ministry could look into this, instead of a blanket prohibition, and assess it on its own merits. Otherwise, what happens is a perpetuation of two wrongs. First, a female employee is denied of the benefit under the Employment Act, which is then followed by a denial of the additional benefit under this Act. This is painful for a female employee as the income loss is significant at the time when she needs it most and she has an additional mouth to feed and is no longer employed. It also runs counter to the very purpose of this Act which is to encourage women to have more babies. Finally, Sir, this law has already been in place for a couple of years but we do not have a sense as to its effectiveness and whether or not it has reached its objective of promoting procreation among women and families. Are the measures adequate or do we need to do more to help women to have more children and, if so, in what areas?”
“This is an important benefit as it provides support to childless couples or those who want more children but cannot have more of their own. However, there are practical difficulties that affect the effectiveness of this benefit. Paid adoption leave is not a common benefit in Singapore, as many employers do not provide such a benefit. For this benefit to be truly effective, more should be done to encourage employers to provide paid adoption leave. One enlightened employer that provides such a leave is the public sector. Under the public sector paid adoption leave scheme, a female employee who adopts a child is given four weeks of paid leave, subject to mutual agreement between the Ministry and the officer concerned. In the private sector, two good employers come to mind - UBSAG and Microsoft. These are two examples of companies in the private sector that I know of that provide paid adoption leave to their employees. UBSAG provides up to 15 weeks of paid adoption leave, while Microsoft offers one month of this benefit to their employees. I wish to urge more employers to follow the public sector and the example of UBSAG and Microsoft, so that more women can benefit from the scheme provided in our law. There is little cost to employers as the Government reimburses up to a certain number of days. But this could be an additional incentive for employers to recruit and retain talents. Sir, my next comment relates to section 9(3)(A) of the amendment as well as the existing section 3 of the Act. Both these sections provide that a pregnant female employee will not be entitled to the benefit if her employment is terminated due to whatever reasons.”
“More than just policies, programmes and infrastructure, moulding a family-friendly society requires values and mindset change. Let us all work together to realise our vision of making Singapore a great place for families. Sir, I beg to move. Question proposed. Mdm Halimah Yacob: Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I rise in support of the Bill. The amendments provide greater clarity and remove some of the restrictions found in the existing law and are beneficial to women. Under the current law, entitlement to the paid maternity benefit will depend on the status of the mother or child at the time a woman gives birth. The amendment has modified this for the better. For example, with the amendment, a Singaporean woman whose baby is a non-citizen at birth can now enjoy the paid maternity benefit so long as the child becomes a citizen within the stipulated period. This is less onerous compared to the existing law, which denies the mother of the benefit if the child is not a citizen at birth. Sir, I also support the amendment to section 2 which allows for the transfer of moneys standing in a member's bank account under the scheme to the Edusave Account or any other account as may be prescribed by the Minister. This provides for greater flexibility in the event that other uses are allowed for the moneys in view of recent suggestions on how continuing education can be supported by the Government. Sir, there are a couple of points which I wish to raise on the proposed amendments. Under the existing law, which is further refined by the amendment, the Government will reimburse an employer who has granted paid adoption leave to a female employee who has applied to adopt a child.”
“During my Ministry's Committee of Supply Debate in 2005, my Minister announced that we will allow mothers to go on Adoption Leave at a much earlier point in the adoption process. A mother who has applied to adopt a Singaporean child may now take Adoption Leave from the time when the court appoints the Director of Social Welfare in MCYS as Guardian-in-Adoption of the child. In the case of a child who is not a Singapore citizen at the time the adoption application is made, the Adoption Leave may be taken from the time when a Dependant's Pass has been issued for the child. This is almost the starting point where the child is physically with the adoptive family. The change took immediate effect administratively from the date of announcement on 10th March 2005. We are now making the legislative amendments to formalise the change. Children Development Account and Post-Secondary Education Account Other than the changes to Government-Paid Maternity Leave and Adoption Leave, this Bill also contains a general amendment to the Baby Bonus scheme. The amendment would allow unused Children Development Account funds to flow through to another account in the child's name, and not just strictly to his Edusave account. This is in preparation for the introduction of the Post-Secondary Education Account, which the Prime Minister announced during National Day Rally 2005. Sir, let me take this opportunity to reiterate the point that making Singapore a great place for families cannot rely solely on the Government's efforts. While my Ministry will periodically review and refine our policies to ensure that they remain relevant and useful, employers and individuals have to play their part.”
“Consequently, the proposed amendment allows for mothers who give birth out of wedlock, but regularise their situation by marrying their child's father shortly after birth to also be eligible for Government-Paid Maternity Leave. As maternity leave is meant for the mother's physical recuperation and for her to care for and bond with her baby, the leave must be consumed within six months from the child's birth. Where the mother is married to the child's father before the child's birth, and the child is a Singapore citizen at birth, the first eight weeks must begin no later than the day of confinement, but the last four weeks may be taken flexibly, subject to an agreement between the mother and her employer. This is in line with the Employment Act. A mother whose child is not a Singapore citizen at birth or who marries her child's father after the child's birth will also follow this leave structure, except that she will be eligible for Government-Paid Maternity Leave only from the day the child becomes a Singapore citizen or the day she marries the child's father, as the case may be. This change will apply not just to employees, but to self-employed mothers as well. Adoption Leave Sir, now let me move on to Government-Paid Adoption Leave. An adoptive mother can consume four weeks of Adoption Leave in a continuous block or flexibly before the child turns six months, similar to the practice for maternity leave. However, when we first introduced Adoption Leave in August 2004, adoptive mothers could only take the leave after the adoption order was granted. The whole adoption process can take four to eight months to complete. In the case of a foreign child, the child must also have obtained citizenship. Therefore, few mothers qualified for the leave.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time." Sir, this Bill provides greater flexibility for the Government-Paid Maternity Leave and Adoption Leave schemes. Government-Paid Maternity Leave Let me begin with Government-Paid Maternity Leave. In 2004, we extended maternity leave from eight weeks to 12 weeks. For the first and second confinement, employers continue to pay for the first eight weeks, while the Government reimburses the last four weeks. For the third and fourth confinement, the Government pays for the full 12 weeks. However, based on current legislation, the mother must be married to the child's father before the child's birth, and the child must be a Singapore citizen at birth. Otherwise, the mother does not qualify for Government-Paid Maternity Leave. A few mothers who obtained citizenship for their child or who married their child's father, shortly after the child's birth have appealed to my Ministry asking that they too be eligible for Government-Paid Maternity Leave. Government-Paid Maternity Leave is an incentive scheme for intact families to have children who are Singaporean citizens. Whether the child is a citizen immediately at birth or shortly thereafter is inconsequential. Therefore, we are proposing to be more flexible by opening up Government-Paid Maternity Leave to mothers whose child obtains citizenship shortly after birth. The Government-Paid Maternity Leave scheme should reflect our current social mores and norms. That is why mothers who give birth out of wedlock are not entitled to Government-Paid Maternity Leave. Having said that, our desired outcome is that children are brought up in intact families.”
“I wanted to tell the Member, honestly, that, in the past, we did not have a proper record of how many disabled persons in Singapore. It is only in the last few years that we work very closely with Kandang Kerbau Hospital, through intervention, that we see that every year, we probably have about 1,400 babies diagnosed with some disabilities. Even with disabilities, there are different ranges of disabilities. My Ministry is working very hard to keep some meaningful records, at least among the newly-born babies. So, if the Member asked me about the old people or the existing workforce, we really need to develop a meaningful target and KPI. But, of course, we should make sure that we push this through the many-helping-hands approach and the numbers should be increasing. SINGAPORE AS A MEDICAL HUB 14. Dr Lily Neo asked the Minister for Health (a) what is the progress on efforts to promote Singapore as a medical hub; (b) what are the Ministry’s successes in targeting more foreign patients from non-traditional sources, such as the Middle East; and (c) how is Singapore faring in comparison to Thailand’s Bumrungrad International Hospital.”
“As I have mentioned, based on the last two or three years' records, the main player - Bizlink - had successfully matched about 260 disabled persons, and they also placed about 1,300 of them in our sheltered workshop. But, last year, they broke the record to over 300 persons. So we hope to achieve that through campaigns and also through our sub-committee discussions and some of the lunches we had with all the employers. Under the Enabling Masterplan Steering Committee, one of the members of the sub-committees who heads this employment is the CEO of a bank, Mr David Wong. He gets a group of people from all walks of life, and these employers represent different groups of people like FairPrice, and so on. We hope that, with the many-helping-hands approach, we can really help the disabled persons to get meaningful jobs.”
“So we need the people sector, the VWOs, the employers, MOM, WDA and so on, to work together to achieve this objective. We look forward to receiving this report by the Enabling Masterplan Steering Committee maybe at the end of this month.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I have said just now that this scheme was launched in July last year. It is too early to say whether it is effective or not. Besides this Fund, we have worked very closely with NCSS and also the employers' group, including NTUC. Actually, I have just got a report that for the last part of last year, Bizlink has broken the record of successfully matching 300-over disabled people. Previously, it was 260 annually. But last year, they broke the record to over 300. Besides this ENABLE Fund, as I mentioned just now, my Ministry also announced an Enabling Masterplan Steering Committee last September. I think some of the Members of Parliament are also involved in this Committee. This Committee will wrap up its report in January, and we are looking into some of the new recommendations. I would also like to inform the House that the ENABLE Fund is about $0.52 million over two years, and the Government also has tax deduction on expenditure on building modifications for those employers employing disabled persons. We also set up an IDA-SPD Infocomm Accessibility Centre that costs about $1.7 million, committed over two years, to help the disabled to also learn IT technology. We hope that they will not be left out because of this digital age. Besides that, we also have vocational assessment and employment placement services that cost about half a million dollars a year. We also have a disability awareness public education campaign fund which my Ministry has set aside about $200,000 a year. So, if we add all these together, it is about $4.7 million. I am not saying that we are very happy with the result. As I mentioned, to help the disabled to get a job is not an easy task.”
“Sir, I thank Ms Olsen for her feedback. She also volunteers in our home. We can discuss this more with our staff. As I said, compared to other countries, actually the repeat offender rate is about 20%, or even 40%. In Singapore, nine out of 10 completed the rehabilitation programme, which is quite high. But the repeat offender rate is about 30%. So we will work with the Police and also the voluntary welfare organisations to support the families. The key point is that after they come out from the home, the parents should play a role to support them, and hold their hands, because if some of them go back to a broken home, I think it would be quite difficult. So we will look into the various suggestions and try our best to improve on whatever things we can do.”
“The rehabilitation programmes are three-pronged. Firstly, we work with community agencies to provide counselling for the offender's parents, to improve their family relationship. After the boys or girls have spent two years in a home, when they come out, their family support is very important. The parents should support them. Secondly, we provide specialised treatment programmes that target specific offending behaviour, such as theft and violent offences. Thirdly, offenders attend educational, vocational and life-skills training to prepare them for the future. This approach has been effective. On average, in the past five years, nine out of 10 young offenders successfully completed their rehabilitation programme in the juvenile homes. Ms Olsen is concerned about incidents of bullying in the homes. We are equally concerned. There is an average of two bullying incidents per month among 380 residents. However, every case of bullying is one too many. We take a serious view of such incidents and adopt a systematic approach to prevent them from happening. When the juvenile offenders first entered the homes, we informed them and their parents about rules in the homes, including the punishment for bullying. We have a behaviour management system to reward good behaviour and discourage misbehaviour. The majority of the juvenile offenders follow the rules and respond well to their rehabilitation programmes. For the small minority who break the rules, we investigate each incident and enforce discipline in a firm and fair way. Those who are found to be bullying other residents will be duly punished.”
“For men in crisis, the Society Against Family Violence, Daybreak Family Service Centre and the Centre for PAVe (Promoting Alternatives to Violence) provide counselling and groupwork for men. We support such people sector developments. We agree that awareness on counselling and crisis assistance programmes should start from the young. The hon. NMP will be pleased to know that in the last three years, skits on dating violence and family violence have toured secondary schools to also share with the secondary school children the importance on how to learn to control themselves and try to avoid violence. We understand that these education and preventive programmes are quite useful. My Ministry recognises that some men prefer male social workers to help them with their problems. Given that social work is a female dominated profession, MCYS will encourage more men to take up the profession through generating awareness among youths, and scholarships. Sir, let me say that any person in a crisis situation can call the Samaritan of Singapore (SOS) hotline, which is available 24 hours, for assistance. Counselling support and practical assistance are also offered at the 36 Family Service Centres. For men who need temporary accommodation, there are crisis shelters that they can turn to. If there is immediate danger, Police assistance can be sought. Sir, let me come to the question asked by the NMP, Ms Olsen, about the juvenile homes. Ms Olsen asked about the success of rehabilitating youth offenders in the juvenile homes and how we manage bullying behaviour. I would like to thank her, as she herself also volunteers her service to our girls' home. Our juvenile homes provide rehabilitation for young offenders with the ultimate aim of helping them to re-integrate into society.”
“Yes, Sir. The hon. NMP has raised the same question twice, which my Ministry had responded on 16th May 2005 and 17th January this year. We had informed the House that the crisis and counselling programmes and services for men and women are provided by Family Service Centres (FSCs) and voluntary welfare organisations (VWOs). They address the needs of families and individuals regardless of gender. So both men and women receive the same treatment. Similar to some female victims, husbands who are abused by their wives have equal access to legal, medical and social services. The law protects family members from abuse, both male and female. This includes spouse, children (including adopted and step-children), parents and parents-in-law, siblings and any relative or disabled person whom the court regards as a family member. My Ministry has put in place a National Family Violence Networking System to integrate the management of family violence, regardless of whether the victim is male or female. This island-wide system links Police, hospitals, social service agencies, like Family Service Centres, the courts, prison and MCYS in the web. This means that there are many contact points for the victim, whether male or female, to seek help. If the man has experienced any form of violence, he will be advised to apply for a Personal Protection Order (PPO) from the Family Court to restrain an abuser from committing any more acts of violence against him. We recognise that more men are coming forward to look for help. The voluntary welfare sector too has developed specific programmes for men, such as the Association of Muslim Professionals (AMP) and the As-Salaam Family Support Centre.”
“MOS Mr Chan Soo Sen will be explaining to him in more detail about the activities of the People's Association. On racial harmony, like I mentioned to him, we have this new platform, CEP, which is under the Chairmanship of our DPM, Mr Wong Kan Seng. I am sure there will be more resources together with the community, the grassroots, the clan associations and the religious groups. If we put all the people sector resources together and with our Government support, I am sure we can do more. I think funding is not a key problem. The key problem is we need to identify more grassroots leaders, community leaders and also organisations to come forward to help us to promote this area. I am sure he also knows that the IRCCs have done a good job. I understand that various community clubs and religious groups like, for instance, the Buddhist Lodge, the Hindu Endowment Board and the Malay groups organise various festivals together. Even this year, I understand that they are going to do a bigger one. They are also helping each other to raise funds for the different religious groups. This year, the Buddhist Lodge raised about $1.5 million for the Hindu temple at Sengkang. In the people sector, there are a lot of resources, and it is for us to find the leadership and network to work together and find some more meaningful and different programmes at different levels. Youths”
“However, as Dr Tan Boon Wan had rightly mentioned during the Budget debate, we must continue to build on the strong foundation that we have already laid for good communal relations. Sir, Mr Zainudin Nordin asked what we are doing to further enhance racial harmony. Last month, the Prime Minister launched the Community Engagement Programme (CEP). For the religious and VWO cluster that my Ministry facilitates, many leaders at the CEP workshop felt it was timely that a platform has been created for community leaders to come together to discuss issues related to social cohesion at this point of relative calm, and not when we have a problem to deal with. To support the Community Engagement Programme, the Inter-Racial Confidence Circles (IRCCs) will continue to widen and deepen the linkages between the different communities in each constituency, intensify their efforts to include more leaders and groups and ensure better representation of the races and religious institutions in the IRCC network. So, all of us, as advisers, also need to do more in this area. Sir, let me conclude by reiterating that the CEP provides a new platform for engagement across various segments of our society. But at the same time, we need to continue building on the efforts at various levels, ie, community, grassroots, and schools, among others, for Singaporeans from all backgrounds to interact and engage one another, and to build on our understanding and trust in each other. And in this endeavour, every Singaporean has an important part to play.”
“Social studies, civics and moral education, National Education, and co-curricular activities provide opportunities to learn and appreciate one another s culture and heritage, and for bonding among students of different races. For example, for a term, all Primary 3 students in Admiralty Primary School and Nanyang Girls' High School learn Malay as well as Malay food cooking, costume, etc. We introduced the Speak Mandarin Campaign when dialects were more commonly spoken in Chinese homes. Today, we also have committees and programmes promoting Malay, Tamil and even good spoken English. We believe that a good command of mother tongue languages will help in preserving our cultural diversity and heritage. However, they should not be a barrier to enlarging the common space among us. Singaporeans are encouraged to appreciate the diversity of our different communities, while also being sensitive and mindful of our multiracial environment. I agree with Mr Inderjit Singh that all races have an equal role to play in bringing about greater integration, as the consequences of a divisive society will be borne equally by all as well. We believe that the challenges we went through together, eg, SARS, have brought us closer together as a nation. But racial integration is something that we need to keep working on, and work hard at it. The Government will partner the people sector to provide opportunities for cross-cultural exposure and exchanges that allow different groups to foster ties and establish trust. I would like to inform hon. Members that surveys on the Social Attitudes of Singaporeans have consistently shown that nine out of 10 Singaporeans are optimistic of our current and future race and religious group relations.”
“In fact, having a good and sound understanding of one s own cultural identity places one in a better position to appreciate the diverse culture and heritage that we are blessed with in Singapore. Quite a number of foreigners, when they come to Singapore, really admire us that we are different but yet we have a common space and respect each other. Self-help groups are but one example where we have harnessed the benefit of this "diversity". We have programmes and schemes at the national level that seek to uplift Singaporeans, regardless of their race. However, self-help groups complement these programmes in helping their respective communities to deal with specific challenges, given their better understanding of their respective communities background and needs. This has proven to be a very effective strategy in reaching out to the target groups. In addition, self-help groups do not just raise funds from within their communities. On the contrary, they work closely with donors and volunteers across all segments of the community. A case in point is the Education Trust Fund that was initiated by the Malay MPs and administered by Yayasan Mendaki. It enjoys strong support from many non-Malay organisations, such as the Lee Foundation, Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Metta Welfare Services. Members may also be aware that there is a Self-Help Group Coordinating Council which helps to facilitate cooperation and collaboration in areas where we can find synergy. So there are many examples. The Government creates various platforms in our schools - hon. Member Mr Inderjit Singh is concerned about schools - to inculcate from young an appreciation of cultural diversity and to value commonalities that we share as Singaporeans.”
“The Government recognises that it, too, has a role to play to support the good work and growth of our community heritage organisations. In this regard, I am pleased to announce that a sum of $3 million will be set aside over two years to promote such initiatives. This will be given as a matching grant for community heritage organisations to tap on to fund new programmes or activities that would promote their community s traditions, heritage and language, as well as leadership development or organisational renewal. These organisations can look forward to receiving up to $100,000 or 50% of the total cost, whichever is lower, per approved programme or activity. My Minister has appointed me to chair, and my colleague, MOS Mr Chan Soo Sen, to co-chair the panel to oversee the grant. Sir, Mr Inderjit Singh has raised concerns on whether our policies, such as the support we intend to give to community heritage organisations I just mentioned, could reinforce racial identities and become barriers to integration. Mr Zainudin Nordin has also raised important questions on racial and religious harmony. Our philosophy of "unity in diversity" has worked well for us. As Mr Zainudin has pointed out, it is not fair or realistic to expect everyone to be the same. I agree totally with him. I also agree with him that moving away from a "colourful" society will be equivalent to losing our uniqueness. We are not a melting pot; we are more like a salad with distinct, tasty ingredients. So, we recognise that there are differences, but we work at understanding and appreciating the differences and create opportunities to collaborate with one another. We must grow the common space for all Singaporeans, but yet ensure that each community can retain its own cultural identity and heritage.”
“Mr Steve Chia asked if the Government would consider extending childcare subsidy to home-based infant and childcare. I can understand his concern, to extend this to the grandparents. But the childcare subsidy was introduced in 1983 to encourage mothers to remain in or join the workforce. So it was not meant to be a child allowance, nor is it a scheme to subsidise domestic caregivers. It is about giving women the choice to work, even if there was no one else at home able to look after the child. Mr Steve Chia mentioned that the Ministry said that it was reviewing. We are still reviewing this policy. Sir, let me now turn to our communities. Besides our families, our communities play an important role in nurturing our young and cultivating in them the right values and perspectives. I agree with hon. Members Dr Warren Lee and Miss Penny Low on the important role which community heritage organisations, such as clan associations and ethnic-based organisations, play in preserving our ethnic cultures and traditions. The Government recognises the importance of preserving one s culture and heritage. While we want to grow the common space shared by all Singaporeans, the Government also recognises the significant value in preserving and promoting our respective ethnic heritage and cultures. At the core, it is our culture, traditions and heritage that help define what we are, and provide the moral and cultural compass, as we aim to keep pace with the rapid changes in a globalised world. I am sure Members are aware that a lot of clan associations, even the Malay Heritage Centre and schools, etc, try to promote inter-religious harmony and exchange of various cultures.”
“A study conducted by my Ministry found that, in the retail sector, businesses that are family-friendly enjoy 5%-10% more sales among parents with young children. Family-friendly F&B outlets enjoy about 15% more sales. However, it is currently an untapped niche for the survey. We are also relieved that only 25% of businesses in the retail sector and about 30% in the F&B sector are deemed family-friendly. To kick-start these programmes, a people sector task force called the Strategic Business Alliance will work with businesses in the retail sector, F&B, entertainment and shopping malls, to promote the implementation of pro-family business initiatives. I am happy to announce that there are today 1,500 companies participating. I think more companies will sign up. So, I would like to assure Dr Tan that, besides the Marriage and Procreation Package, we also need to draw in MOM to create a more work-life balanced environment, as well as to encourage the living environment, eg, the shopping malls, etc, to be more pro-family, and we hope to see better results. Sir, in recognition of the importance of the family and also to encourage and empower the people and family, a National Family Council will be formed to promote the building of resilient families. Some Members may recall that the idea of a council was first mooted by hon. Member Mdm Halimah Yacob and recommended by the Remaking Singapore Committee. The council will consist of individuals from the private and people sectors. It will consult the public and provide feedback to the Government on family policy, family education programmes, research and services. This council will be chaired by the people sector. Further details of the council will be announced later. Sir, let me now touch on childcare subsidy.”
“Sir, I would like to thank the hon. Members for their concerns and comments on family, the community and racial harmony. Sir, we want Singapore to be a great place for families. This requires that we put in place proper policies, programmes and infrastructure to encourage family formation, resilient families and cultivate a pro-family environment. But, first, let me say, in response to Dr Tan Sze Wee, that it is premature to conclude whether our marriage and procreation incentives have been successful, as it has been less than two years since it was introduced. Encouraging families to have babies requires time, even with an attractive policy and incentive package. Raising TFR cannot depend on this package alone. It requires a total environment conducive to families. This includes values and mindset changes. Businesses, employers, schools, families and individuals have a role to play in this area. Gestation, values and mindset change take time. But the Government is working to facilitate such a change through multi-agency initiatives, such as we work with MOM's work-life programmes, the introduction of family life ambassadors and family life champions in corporations, institutes of higher learning and the community, etc. It is not and cannot be the sole responsibility of the Government. We have to adopt a three-piece approach, eg, by involving the public, private and people sectors, in recognising the importance of family. 1.45 pm The next step in our vision to make Singapore a great place for families is to improve the social infrastructure, to promote an even more pro-family environment. This will include a pro-family or family-friendly business environment.”
“Even my Parliamentary Secretary has one grassroots organisation entering the social enterprise project to help the women to do sewing and so on. I urge Members to make more enquiries and discuss with my officers on this. MCYS will also work with the relevant agencies to review and expand schemes such as South East CDC's car-washing scheme. Finally, we understand that a seamless approach in negotiating and complying with regulations is important to a keen social entrepreneur or micro-entrepreneur. To achieve this, MCYS will develop a mechanism to facilitate the establishment of social enterprises, and work closely with Government agencies through the Pro-Enterprise Panel to review the rules and regulations that may be obstacles to the development of social enterprises. Sir, the ComCare Fund, together with CDCs, PA, the Mayors, VWOs and the grassroots organisations, has so far helped about 51,000 families and children. We are very happy that the PM, during his Budget speech, announced the topping-up of the ComCare Fund by $100 million in the coming year and it is most welcome. Our theme for the coming year will be collaboration and community. We will draw organisations from different sectors together into the cause of ComCare: CDCs, voluntary welfare organisations, foundations, grassroots organisations, companies, cooperatives and so on. Together, we will be able to make Singapore a place where the community, not just the Government, helps its own people. We will then truly become a caring society with fair opportunities for all.”
“Any social enterprise will qualify for the CEF so long as it has a clear social mission and a viable business model. MCYS evaluates CEF applications based on whether the proposed social enterprise has a clear social mission and a viable business model. We have helped both for-profit and not-for-profit businesses, such as Bridge Learning, a for-profit business that helps provide early intervention for children with learning disability, and Simei Frame and Rejoice Printing, a not-for-profit company that employs psychiatric patients. We recognise that it is necessary to go beyond funding. That is why we are looking into creating a total supporting framework for social enterprises. The Social Innovation Park (SIP) founded by Miss Penny Low is part of our strategy. It will incubate social entrepreneurs and help them build solid foundations and sustainable business models. SIP will help social enterprises with developing and implementing business plans, marketing, training, mentoring and networking. SIP will also help the local social entrepreneurs to develop links with the international network of social entrepreneurs. 12.45 pm Mr Sin Boon Ann also suggested that grassroots organisations be empowered to start business initiatives to benefit residents, by employing the residents or helping them to start their own business. In fact, the CEF can help to start-up or scale-up social enterprises that aim to nurture micro-entrepreneurs. I am pleased to note that a number of grassroots organisations have tapped on the CEF for their projects, the latest being a Community Kitchen Project by Al-Iman Mosque, in partnership with Bukit Panjang CCC.”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, going forward, as suggested by Mr Sin Boon Ann, we intend to reach out to more organisations, including those which have not yet been involved in ComCare, such as more companies, cooperatives, foundations, grassroots organisations and various social associations. In time, we hope to see a new social assistance landscape, one with a ComCare community of organisations that harnesses their resources and expertise to help the needy. Let me now turn to social enterprises. One excellent way that social organisations and companies can help the needy is through social enterprises. Social enterprises are businesses with a social mission. They can give jobs to people who find it difficult to find employment on their own, they can help change a donation-dependent charity into one which does not have to rely solely on handouts from the public in order to survive, ie, the VWO can also set up a social enterprise to have some constant income. Miss Penny Low has asked for an update on the status of social enterprises in Singapore. I am pleased to note that social enterprises are increasingly gaining prominence in Singapore. This year, the inaugural Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award saw 17 nominations. Major VWOs, such as YMCA, Teen Challenge, MINDS and the Singapore Buddhist Lodge, have either set up or are in the process of setting up social enterprises. NUS and SMU are both running modules on social entrepreneurship to help equip and spur the emergence of social entrepreneurs. The CEF, which I have mentioned earlier, is the cornerstone of our efforts to help social enterprises. Since 2003, the Ministry has supported 51 social enterprises, with a total commitment of about $5.1 million in start-up funding support.”
“We will also include families where at least one parent has post-secondary education qualifications, maybe a diploma or even a degree holder, but neither spouse earns more than $1,000 a month, and the wife is between 30 and 35 years old. My Ministry will also step up its outreach to the HOPE target group. As my Minister mentioned, I will also be chairing an appeals board to consider families that marginally fail the eligibility criteria, so that no deserving family will miss out on being on HOPE. I am sure Members know that ComCare also works together with MOM and WDA to support the Work Support Programme. All Work Support participants will get help in finding a job, as well as assistance with their living and other expenses. Work Support families with children will get an added subsidy of about $50 a month for childcare and about $40 a month for student care. This is over and above the subsidies for non-Work Support families. Thus, a Work Support family with one child in student-care and one in childcare can benefit from almost $1,100 worth of additional subsidies over the course of a year. This will make it easier for low-income or unemployed parents to go out to work to support their families. All Work Support families with children will also receive case management services. We have also put in place a training grant of $2,000 a year to help the more needy Work Support families to upgrade their skills and increase their earning potential. This will provide the family with another opportunity to pull itself out of the poverty trap.”
“MCYS recognises that support for youth-at-risk requires multiple agencies to work together, and STEP-UP complements other initiatives, such as MOE s Full-Time School Counsellor scheme. MCYS also works closely with the Inter-Ministry Committee on Youth Crime on youth-at-risk matters. But youths who have dropped out of school will also be provided with help and support. We want to chart out various alternative pathways for them to find a niche where they can excel. The Out-of-School Youth (OSY) Development Scheme has provided close to $1 million worth of funding support for 2005 and 2006 to help set up and administer 10 programmes which have reached out to more than 450 OSYs. The programmes develop youth in various areas personal development, life-skills, career planning and work-skills training. Finally, Dr Lily Neo has asked that integrated assistance be provided for young poor families to enable upward mobility amongst those from the lower economic and social strata. This is the objective of the HOPE scheme. HOPE is short for Home Ownership Plus Education. It is a targeted, voluntary incentive scheme to encourage low-income families to upgrade their skills and keep their families small. This enables them to focus their limited resources on providing for and educating their children. Every eligible HOPE family can receive up to $100,000 worth of benefits over their lifetime. With effect from 1st April this year, we are introducing enhancements to the HOPE scheme to extend its reach. Previously, only low-income households, where both parents have two GCE O-levels and below could come onto the scheme. We will now include households where both parents do not have post-secondary education.”
“There are currently about 380 social workers, 85% of whom are trained social workers with at least a Bachelor's Degree in Social Work. Although stretched at times, our pool of dedicated social workers has served our needy and troubled families well. Going forward, we intend to grow our core of social workers so that we can provide even better coverage. My Ministry has been working with the Social Service Training Institute (SSTI) and the National Council of Social Services to introduce new schemes to train more social workers and to promote social service sector careers. Our VWOs can also tap on the $30 million VWO Capability Fund to send social workers for professional development training. I am sure that Members note that we also give scholarships to undergraduates at the universities to study social work. Dr Lily Neo and Mr Sin Boon Ann have asked whether school social workers can be provided to help and follow-up on potential school dropouts to prevent them from dropping out of school. This is already being done. We currently have in place the School social work To Empower Pupils to Utilise their Potential (STEP-UP) programme, which was launched in 2004. It provides at-risk students in primary, secondary and post-secondary institutions and their families with assistance from school social workers. It aims to reduce anti-social behaviour and keep potential drop-outs in school. 113 schools are currently on STEP-UP, and we intend to increase this to 150 schools by 2008. We will be increasing funding for STEP-UP from the current maximum amount of $15,000 to $37,500 per school for each of the first two years, and from $10,000 to $25,000 per school for each of the remaining three years.”
“There is a multitude of help available, from Government, as well as community-based organisations. It is the case worker s job to identify the appropriate intervention and, if necessary, coordinate help, for a needy family. There is no "wrong door". All that a needy Singaporean has to do is to go to his CDC, CCC or Family Service Centre to get the right help. Can this system help those with multiple needs adequately? This is an important question that Dr Lily Neo has posed. Such families need specialised help, which is best provided by different agencies. The CDCs are already working with multiple Government agencies and social service providers, such as the Family Service Centres. However, we acknowledge that more can be done. For this coming year, we will build up CDC and FSC capabilities, and improve information and referral systems, so that those who are genuinely in need will be given the necessary assistance in a timely and coordinated way. No one should fall through the cracks. Dr Lily Neo is also concerned about the consolidation of the various schemes. I am pleased to inform Dr Lily Neo that my Ministry has done a review and we have rationalised the number of assistance schemes from 51, which was reported at last year's Committee of Supply, to 27. I have asked the Clerk of Parliament to hand out a list of these 27 schemes [Copies of list distributed to hon. Members]. For example, the CDCs have consolidated 20 of their local schemes and programmes into three. At this juncture, I would like to acknowledge the immense contribution of our core of social workers. Dr Lily Neo is also concerned about the number of social workers. Without the social workers' passion and compassion, we would not be able to deliver many of our social services.”
“I am pleased to update Mr Sin Boon Ann that the CDCs, which administer our nation-wide assistance schemes, have improved on their processing of social assistance applications. I would like to thank the People's Association, CDCs, the Mayors, VWOs, all the Advisors of the CCCs, and the grassroots leaders, for helping to shorten the process. 82% of applications are now being processed within six weeks, compared to the 73% announced at last year s Committee of Supply. The improvement in response time was possible because of improvements in work flow and processes. Mr Sin Boon Ann and Dr Lily Neo have suggested that there should be a central register for the needy, so that effective assistance can be given to them. In fact, the ComCare Database was launched last October for this purpose. The Database gives the case workers a better understanding of the client s needs, so that he is better able to assess what is the appropriate assistance for the client, and provide assistance more promptly. At present, the ComCare Database is used by all the CDCs, CCCs, and Family Service Centres, MUIS, Yayasan Mendaki and the Association of Muslim Professionals. For the next phase, MCYS plans to bring on board other Government agencies, such as MOE and MOH, the self-help groups, and relevant voluntary welfare organisations, to improve on the database. Dr Lily Neo has also asked if our social assistance schemes can be consolidated so that they are more comprehensible. Mr Wee Siew Kim has also expressed concern for those cases that may still fall through the cracks, and which would need multiple agencies to address their issues. Our ComCare system works on the basis that a person in need does not have to know about all the schemes available to help him.”
“Sir, I would like to thank Members for their suggestions and concern about the performance of ComCare. Mr Sin Boon Ann has asked for an update of what ComCare has achieved to date. As my Minister mentioned earlier, ComCare has helped about 51,000 families and children since its launch in July last year, and we have spent about $23.4 million through ComCare's three pillars, namely, ComCare Self-Reliance, ComCare Grow and ComCare EnAble. The details of ComCare's achievement this year and the amount which has been spent on each of the three pillars can be found in the table which my Minister has circulated to the House earlier. Members can refer to the details and the key initiatives introduced in 2005. I thank Members for their concern for greater community involvement and improvement of processes, especially quite a number of Members also referred to greater decentralisation and flexibility. As Mr Wee Siew Kim has rightly pointed out, decentralisation has been a key feature of the ComCare Fund. It has brought about greater flexibility in administering help to the needy and to ensure that our rules do not shut out those who are truly needy. We have also focused on decentralisation and increasing flexibility as a means of promoting greater community involvement. A key part of this strategy is the $4 million Citizens Consultative Committee ComCare Fund, which has empowered grassroots organisations to better carry out the task of ensuring that those who are in urgent financial distress get the help they need. As at end December 2005, the CCCs have spent $1.2 million of the CCC ComCare Fund to help about 8,000 applicants. We also wanted to improve processes so that people in need get assistance more quickly.”