Speech by Minister Indranee Rajah for Parliamentary Motion on Supporting Singaporeans in Starting and Raising Families

Introduction

Mr Speaker, I thank Ms Hany Soh and Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim for moving the motion on this important topic. 

The motion has two parts. The first calls for the Government to continue reviewing policies that will support families, marriage and parenthood. This has been echoed by many of the suggestions and proposals made by Members in the House today. The second calls for a whole-of-society approach, which is a call to everyone else, in addition to the Government, to do our part to support families and Singaporeans’ marriage and parenthood aspirations. 

Mr Speaker, I support both parts of the motion. And I will go on to explain why.

Mr Leong Mun Wai has proposed an amendment to the motion. I will deal with that later. 

Supporting Families as a National Priority

Supporting Singaporeans in starting and raising families has and continues to be a top national priority. Families are the building blocks of our society. They are our first line of support and a key pillar of our social compact. At an individual level, our families are the ones who give our lives meaning and purpose.

Global Trends on Families

Globally, family formation and fertility rates have run into headwinds. All around the world, not just in Singapore, more are delaying marriage or not marrying at all, and even if they are married, more are having children later, having fewer children or not having children at all. Reasons include changing societal norms around marriage and parenthood, prioritisation of careers and other life goals, and concerns about the demands of child-raising. These reasons resonate with many Singaporeans too. After all, the decision to marry and have children is a deeply personal one. But we know from our surveys that the majority of Singaporeans aspire to get married and have children. This is encouraging and gives hope for the future.

We have engaged Singaporeans to understand their thoughts about marriage and parenthood. Many of their concerns and challenges have been debated and discussed in the Chamber today, namely: Housing, costs, competitive stress, time.

Housing – because couples want a home of their own. Costs – as in the costs of raising children. Competitive stress – particularly in education. And time – which is perhaps the most precious commodity of all, covering a multitude of issues, including caregiving, and managing work alongside family commitments.

On these, in the last five years, we have made major shifts and bold moves to help families secure affordable homes, manage the costs and stresses of raising children, and balance work and family responsibilities.

Homes – The First Step to Starting Families

The first step for many couples is to secure their own home, where they can build a new life together and start a family.

Supporting first-time married applicants is a key priority of our public housing policies. We set aside up to 95% of our public flat supply for first-timers.

Supply of flats

We started this term of Government in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, which severely disrupted our building programme and caused a public housing crunch. However, through the efforts of HDB and MND working with the built environment sector, we are now back on track. All COVID-delayed BTO projects have been completed.

In parallel, we significantly ramped up flat supply. We have not only met our commitment to launch 100,000 BTO flats from 2021 to 2025 but are set to exceed it. We launched 19,600 new flats last year and will launch another 19,600 BTO flats this year. We will continue to put out a steady pipeline of flats to meet housing demand in the next few years, and are launching more than 50,000 flats between 2025 (inclusive) and 2027. We are also launching over 5,500 Sale of Balance or SBF flats later this month. SBF flats tend to have shorter waiting times, which will help families who are looking to move into a new home more quickly.

To help reduce the waiting time for flats, we committed to launching 2,000 to 3,000 Shorter Waiting Time or SWT flats every year. We met the target last year with the launch of 2,800 SWT flats. Ms Hazel Poa has asked if we can further increase the supply of SWT flats. This year we aim to exceed our target, with 3,800 such flats, and we will continue to explore launching more SWT flats in coming years.

Collectively, these moves have helped to bring down median waiting times to pre-COVID levels of three to four years, compared to four to five years during the peak of the pandemic. Several Members have asked if this could be further reduced, down to even 18 months. There are practical and operational challenges to further shortening waiting times. These include difficult site conditions, extensive land preparation required, need for consultation with stakeholder groups, and construction industry capacity. But we will do our best.

Mr Leong Mun Wai suggested providing a “quality rental option” for couples waiting for the new flats in the form of the Millennial Apartment Scheme or the MAS. We do have quality rental options for this group – it’s called the Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme, or the PPHS.

Mr Yip Hon Weng asked about relaxing the criteria and increasing the supply of flats under the PPHS to help those who need a place while waiting for their BTO flat. As flat supply is limited, the reality is that we will still have to prioritise PPHS flats for those with greater needs. That said, we will double the number of PPHS flats to 4,000 units by this year. In the meantime, we have introduced the PPHS (Open Market) Voucher as a temporary bridging measure to support households renting an HDB flat or bedroom on the open market. The voucher defrays around 10% of the median three-room flat rent, or 40% of the cost of renting a HDB bedroom. Around 160 couples have applied for the voucher to date.

Accessibility of flats

We have also been working hard to improve accessibility of BTO flats.

We introduced the First-Timer (Parents and Married Couples) or FT(PMC) priority category to help young married couples and families with young children secure their first homes more quickly. Since introduction, about 9 in 10 FT(PMC) applicants have been invited to book a flat at each sales launch.

Affordability of flats

We have also made significant moves to keep HDB housing affordable.

To help younger couples who are entering the job market but have not yet started to earn and build up their savings to get flats early, we introduced the Deferred Income Assessment scheme and the Staggered Downpayment Scheme for full-time students and National Servicemen.

We also made a major move last year to introduce the new HDB flat classification framework. The increased subsidies for Plus and Prime flats make flats in these locations more affordable for Singaporean couples.

We also enhanced housing subsidies and grants for first-time buyers. These include the Enhanced CPF Housing Grant (EHG), the CPF Housing Grant for Resale Flats, and the Proximity Housing Grant. With the increased EHG in August 2024, a first-time married couple can benefit from grants of up to $120,000 for BTO flats and up to $230,000 for resale flats.

We know there are still concerns about the resale market. Ms Hany Soh raised concerns about the Cash Over Valuation or COV component. Resale housing prices have risen over the last few years, driven by strong demand, as well as some temporary tightness in the supply of newly MOP-ed flats. These flats also tended to be in more attractive or central locations last year. Nevertheless, the vast majority of resale flats remain affordable. Most resale flat buyers do not have to pay any COV. We have also implemented several rounds of cooling measures to moderate demand, while increasing support for lower-to-middle income households. These measures will take time to work their way through the market. Mr Yip Hon Weng suggested indexing our grants to the resale market. We do not do so, as this could inadvertently further fuel resale price increases. For example, some sellers may attempt to factor in grant increases in their asking price. This is why we are careful in reviewing grant amounts in tandem with income growth and affordability outcomes, and means-test our grants to target support towards buyers who need it the most.

Mr Speaker, Mr Faisal Manap raised two points: on divorced parents and transnational families. As he spoke in Malay, please permit me to reply in Malay.

Encik Faisal meminta kami membenarkan ibu bapa yang sedang melalui proses perceraian dan memerlukan rumah dengan segera untuk memohon bagi mendapatkan rumah sewa awam sebelum perceraian itu dimuktamadkan.

Pemerintah memahami dan bersimpati sepenuhnya dengan kebimbangan pasangan yang bercerai.

Mungkin Encik Faisal tidak sedar tetapi sebenarnya pada masa ini, HDB sudah pun membenarkan individu yang telah memulakan proses perceraian untuk memohon bagi mendapatkan rumah sewa, bahkan sebelum Keputusan Sementara atau Muktamad diperolehi. Kami telah memaklumkan tentang perkara ini dalam jawapan kepada Soalan Parlimen 345 sebelum ini pada November 2020.

Tambahan pula, mereka juga boleh memohon untuk membeli flat setelah mendapat Keputusan Sementara, dan menyelesaikan isu-isu berkaitan hartanah perkahwinan dan hak penjagaan anak-anak mereka.

Individu yang membeli flat baharu dengan anak-anak mereka juga boleh layak untuk beberapa skim seperti Skim Bantuan untuk Pemohon Kali Kedua (ASSIST) dan Skim Perumahan Sementara Keibubapaan (PPHS).

Selain isu perumahan, kami akan terus menyokong ibu bapa yang bercerai dan anak-anak mereka melalui langkah-langkah sokongan yang meluas di bawah Pakej Perkahwinan dan Keibubapaan, supaya mereka dapat terus berkembang maju seperti keluarga-keluarga lain.

Oleh itu, pasangan yang bercerai tidak perlu risau. Pemerintah akan melakukan yang terbaik untuk membantu anda.

Encik Faisal juga merujuk kepada Pas Lawatan Jangka Panjang untuk pasangan warga asing dan berkongsi beberapa kebimbangan, seperti, sama ada pendekatan yang ada sekarang, iaitu permohonan dan penilaian secara dalam talian, adalah mencukupi. Kami akan merujuk maklum balas beliau kepada ICA.

Mr Speaker Sir, in English.

To summarise, since the start of this term of Government, despite the major disruptions brought by COVID, we have kept up a strong supply and delivered new flats to homebuyers – about 80,000 households would have collected keys to their new flats between 2020 to 2024. We have continued to provide affordable housing – about 8 in 10 first-timer families can service their monthly HDB loan instalments with CPF, with little or no cash outlay. This remained true in 2024, despite rising housing prices. And amidst the challenges, our longstanding commitment to supporting the housing needs and aspirations of Singaporean families remains firm.

I thank Members again for their suggestions on housing. We will continue to study their ideas and improve our system to support young couples as they embark on their marriage and parenthood journey.

Financial Support for Child-Raising

For couples deciding whether to have children, the next big consideration is costs. This is fully understandable as the costs of child-raising can add up with each subsequent child. Several Members have called for more financial support for couples. Today, the Government provides a wide range of financial support for families, through cash payouts, grants, subsidies and other forms of support.

Before birth

Ms Hany Soh asked if the Government could support expenses incurred before the child is born, such as pre-natal checkups. Mr Leong Mun Wai asked if we can allow maternity and child-bearing medical fees to be fully claimable from MediSave without limits.

It was announced in October last year, under the MediSave Maternity Package, expectant mothers will benefit from an increase in MediSave inpatient and day surgery withdrawal limits from 1 April this year. For a typical delivery episode comprising a two-day B2/C class ward stay and related pre-delivery medical expenses, the amount of MediSave one can withdraw will be up to $4,280, a more than 50% increase from today. We set a limit because MediSave is intended to help Singaporeans offset healthcare expenses over their lifetime, especially during significant health episodes which tend to happen during old age. MediSave withdrawal limits are therefore set to strike a careful balance between improving the affordability of current treatment and ensuring Singaporeans have sufficient savings for their future healthcare needs.

At birth and in the early years

Upon birth, each Singaporean baby receives a MediSave Grant for Newborns (MGN), which can be used cover their Medishield Life premiums, hospitalisation and outpatient treatments. The MGN will be increased from $4,000 to $5,000 for babies born on or after 1 April this year.

Nationally-recommended childhood vaccinations and developmental screenings at polyclinics, and GP clinics under the Community Health Assist Scheme are also fully subsidised.

In the child’s early years, Government support continues in the form of the Baby Bonus Scheme, comprising the Baby Bonus Cash Gift and the Child Development Account. These help parents to defray various child-related costs, from daily expenses, to preschool and healthcare. Taking the Baby Bonus Scheme and the increased MGN together, parents can receive up to $25,000 for their first child, and up to $38,000 for subsequent children. The Baby Bonus Cash Gift is paid out every year until the child turns six-and-a-half, providing sustained support over the child’s early years.

The Government also provides strong support for infant care and childcare as outlined by MOS Sun earlier. Mr Gan Thiam Poh and Mr Leong Mun Wai suggested providing subsidies for grandparents who care for young children. We are mindful that doing so might make such family support overly transactional and monetise familial relationships. It would be more meaningful for appreciation for grandparents to come from their children instead. But meanwhile, we signal our support for the care provided by grandparents through the Grandparent Caregiver Relief, for working mothers whose parents or grandparents care for their children aged 12 or below.

Government support continues as our children progress through school. Education in our national school system and Institutes of Higher Learning is highly subsidised. In total, every Singaporean child can receive over $200,000 in education subsidies from preschool through to secondary school. When you add in the subsidies for higher education – ITE, Polytechnics and the publicly funded universities – the amount is even higher. Students from lower to middle-income families may access various financial assistance schemes offered by the Government, schools and institutions.

For those with more children, we know that expenses for larger families can add up. As mentioned by the Prime Minister at the National Day Rally last year, we will be introducing a new scheme for large families. Details will be announced at Budget.

Development and Wellbeing of Our Children

We are also doing more to foster our children’s health, wellbeing and development.

Ms Hany Soh suggested providing expecting mothers with support for each stage of their pregnancy. Last year, we launched the Child and Maternal Health and Well-being Action Plan for mothers and children, including initiatives such as mental health screening and antenatal and postnatal support.

Over the last two years, we launched Family Nexus centres in four neighbourhoods to bring health and social services closer to families in a single location within their communities. Services include child developmental assessments, postnatal support and marriage and parenting workshops. We have served over 12,000 children and their parents at these sites.

Balancing Work and Family Commitments

The next thing parents that really need is time. Many parents tell us they value both family and careers. At work, they want to do their best to fulfill their responsibilities. Yet, they also need to care for their children, and increasingly their parents and grandparents too.

When it comes to child-raising, fathers need to be involved as well. As Ms Joan Pereira and Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim highlighted, research shows that children benefit from fathers’ involvement in their early years and have positive developmental outcomes well beyond the early years.

Over the last few years, we have strengthened our support in three areas to give parents more of that precious commodity – time. These include: Parental leave; Infant care, childcare and student-care facilities which free up parents’ time and allow them to focus on work; and Flexible Work Arrangements, or FWAs.

In this term, we have significantly ramped up leave for parents. We doubled Government-Paid Paternity Leave from two to four weeks; We doubled Unpaid Infant Care Leave to 12 days per parent per year, in the child’s first two years. We introduced 10 additional weeks of new Shared Parental Leave or SPL, with the leave equally allocated between both parents as a default to encourage shared parental responsibility. These, together with maternity leave, gives parents of newborns a total of 30 weeks of paid leave. We are also introducing employment protection for fathers starting from 1 April this year, such that it will be unlawful for employers to dismiss male employees on paternity leave. At the same time, we understand Mr Mark Lee’s and Ms Yeo Wan Ling’s concern that employers, especially SMEs, may incur additional costs when making covering arrangements for employees on parental leave. To support employers, most of our parental leave provisions are Government-paid. Employers can use the wage savings as they deem fit, including to offset any costs during the transition period between returning employees and covering staff. We encourage parents to discuss their leave plans with their employers as early as possible and work with them on suitable covering arrangements.

We have complemented annual leave provisions with Childcare Leave to cater for ad hoc situations where time off is needed. We provide more childcare leave to those with younger children, as older children are generally more independent.

Some Members have called for more Childcare Leave, especially for those with more children, primary school-aged children, or children with disabilities. We can understand why families would like additional childcare leave. At the same time, enhancements to our leave schemes require us to strike a fine balance between the caregiving needs of these parents and other caregivers, as well as the needs of employers. Employers also need time to adjust to the new Shared Parental Leave scheme starting soon, which is more complex to administer. However, Members can be assured that we will continue to regularly review our leave policies in consultation with parents and the Tripartite Partners.

The Tripartite Guidelines on Flexible Work Arrangement Requests, which MOS Gan has spoken about, will benefit all parents with caregiving responsibilities in a sustainable way.

At the same time, I urge employers to ensure their workplaces are FWA friendly. Employers should not think of Flexible Work Arrangements as an inconvenient imposition but rather embrace it as an integral part of the HR toolkit to attract and retain talent and redesign the way your company works for greater success.

Mr Louis Chua suggested that we over-emphasise work over family, but on the other hand, Mr Leong Mun Wai and Ms Hazel Poa have reiterated the importance of job security to Singaporeans. This is why we need to strike a balance and ensure that our policies are considered and meet the needs of all stakeholders, so the Government actually adopts the position in between - a balance on both sides. What’s happening in the US now – the call to everybody to come back to the office and not to be able to work from home - is really a response and a reaction to the last few years, where there has been much more working from home. And we don’t want that kind of backlash here. So that’s why we calibrate things carefully, recognising that employers’ needs are important, jobs are important, incomes are important, but also recognising that parents need time to be with their children. So that is why we take a calibrated approach.

Fertility Health

Ms Nadia and Ms Hazel Poa spoke about fertility. The topic of parenthood cannot be divorced from the subject of fertility. A key factor affecting fertility is age. With people marrying later or delaying having children, we need to focus much more on fertility health.

I agree with Ms Nadia that the first step is to raise awareness of factors affecting fertility health.

Second, we need to normalise discussions about fertility health. For those who want to have children but have not been successful, the topic of infertility is often shrouded in stigma and shame and for some, a sense of personal failure. We need to have a broader understanding that infertility can affect anyone, male or female, and should be approached in a similar manner to other health issues.

The Government has stepped up fertility support in this term. Eligible couples can receive subsidies of up to 70% for fertility tests. Those undergoing Assisted Conception Procedures in public healthcare institutions can receive up to 75% co-funding. We also introduced Elective Egg Freezing in 2023, to give women who wish to start a family the option to do so if they marry later.

I thank Mr Desmond Choo, Ms Nadia Samdin and Ms Hazel Poa for their suggestions on this front. Today, women can tap on MediSave for egg freezing done on medical grounds. We are studying if other financing support should also be extended to egg freezing done on medical grounds. For those who wish to use their frozen eggs for Assisted Conception Procedures in future, they can receive Government co-funding support and use MediSave for their treatments. I wish to clarify with Mr Desmond Choo that since January 2020, women aged 40 and above can receive co-funding for up to two of the six co-funded ART cycles, as long as they have attempted an ART or intrauterine insemination, the IUI, procedure before age 40.

We have also bolstered mental and emotional support for those undergoing fertility treatment. Assisted Reproduction centres are required to inform patients of available counselling services prior to any assisted conception procedure, and refer them for psychosocial counselling if needed.

Non-government groups also have an important role to play. Fertility Support SG is a non-profit organisation started in 2020 by a group of ladies facing infertility. They decided to create a community of support for others with fertility issues. They provide information, create a safe space for discussions and share experiences.

Supporting Marriage

Mr Speaker, much of today’s debate has centred on married couples and parents. But singles are also an important group to look out for.

Mr Gan Thiam Poh and Ms Hany Soh asked if the Government could run a networking agency or app for singles to meet potential partners. I should say that decisions around dating and romantic relationships are deeply personal. These are certainly not things that the Government can mandate. What we can do perhaps, is try our best to facilitate. Introducing a platform or app with an explicit Government signature may not be the most effective approach. Many youths tell us they prefer to meet and interact with people in natural settings. Today, we have a vibrant social interaction space with a wide variety of options for singles to meet new people, be it through well-established online apps, or more informal interest groups. We welcome ground-up initiatives by partners who are keen to encourage and strengthen friendships among young people. And, we will provide our support where appropriate.

Whole-of-Society Support for Families

Mr Speaker, support for families goes beyond what Government can do. If we are to succeed in having more marriages and babies, we will need a whole of society approach – employers, businesses, community partners and individuals, all have their part to play too, to create a society where family is valued and parenthood is supported.

It’s not always the big things. Sometimes it is the small things. Mr Louis Ng has made repeated calls in the House for more lactation rooms for nursing mothers.

At his invitation I met with the Breastfeeding Mothers Support Group to understand the challenges faced by breastfeeding mothers. They shared stories of how some nursing mothers had to express in a dusty storeroom or spaces with little privacy. And recently, a former colleague sent me a picture of what passes for a lactation room in a dispute resolution facility – basically a room with a table and chairs suitable for meetings but not really configured for a nursing mother’s needs. We must consider the message that is inadvertently being sent, which is that breastfeeding (which is an integral part of motherhood) is an inconvenience and the provision of facilities for it is more of an afterthought. That’s the message that’s being sent. So, I’m sure there is no ill-intent on the part of building owners and employers. But the message to nursing mothers is discouraging nonetheless and at odds with a society that wants to be supportive of families.

On this, I am pleased to inform Mr Louis Ng and Members that BCA has recently released the Draft Code on Accessibility 2025 for public consultation which, among other things, proposes enhanced requirements for lactation rooms in office buildings and business parks. Public feedback has been positive thus far. BCA is refining the proposed revisions, and I will share more at MND’s COS.

This is just a small example. But the broader point is that as a society, we must think more deeply and carefully about how we can be supportive of families in ways big and small. Be it from reimagining how to structure work and adopt good HR policies to help employees manage career and parenthood, to having child-friendly infrastructure and activities for families.

In this, Families For Life and the Made For Families which MOS Sun spoke about play important roles. Families For Life provides information, programmes and community support on marriage, parenting and grandparenting, which can also be accessed online. I encourage families to avail themselves of these resources. Made For Families rallies organisations to adopt family-friendly practices. To date, more than 280 businesses had pledged their commitment under the Made For Families movement. However, that is still a very small number compared to the number of businesses in operation. I therefore encourage more businesses to join us as partners.

Sir, to summarise, this Government is committed to supporting Singaporeans along their marriage and parenthood journey. This includes:

For buying their first flat: Grants – up to $120,000 for BTO flats and up to $230,000 for resale flats; not forgetting the market subsidies that we provide to keep BTO flats affordable.

It also includes support for raising children: Up to $38,000 in Baby Bonus and MGN for each child, and over $200,000 in education subsidies per child from preschool to secondary school, and even more for higher education.

And also work-life support: 30 weeks of paid parental leave during the child’s first year after birth; and various caregiving options and Flexible Work Arrangements for ongoing caregiving needs.

For preschools, we have ramped up infant care capacity; and for education, we have undertaken major reforms.

All in all, factoring in our investments in the early childhood sector and upcoming parental leave enhancements, we expect marriage and parenthood initiatives to cost the Government close to $7 billion in FY2026, up from over $4 billion in 2020. Most of that increase is for the early childhood sector and the upcoming parental leave enhancements. This is over and above our subsidies for general and higher education, as well as our housing subsidies.

So Sir, I support the original Motion. The original motion is “That this House calls for the continued review and updating of policies to better support families, as well as the marriage and parenthood aspirations of Singaporeans, and endorses a whole of society approach to build a Singapore Made For Families.”

Mr Leong’s proposed amendment is to delete the words “continued review and updating”, and substitute instead with the word “reimagination”. So, if you do that, if you insert his amendment, it will read as follows “That this House calls for the reimagining of policies to better support families, as well as the marriage and parenthood aspirations of Singaporeans, and endorses a whole of society approach to build a Singapore Made For Families”.

Ordinarily, Mr Speaker, I would have no issue with such a proposed amendment, because after all why would one object to the idea of reimagining something and making sure that you can come up with something new? Except that in this context, there are two reasons why I would not support the amendment.

The first is that, in this context, it is actually not a step forward. It is a step back. And second, it is tied to a policy which is problematic.

The first reason why I say that the amendment is actually a step back is because, in this debate, I think Mr Leong Mun Wai, Ms Hazel Poa, and Mr Louis Chua, have sought to portray the marriage and parenthood measures that we have at the moment as incremental. So, in other words, not bold enough, not doing enough, therefore you need to reimagine something. But the point is this, in the last few years, we have already started the reimagination process – it’s called Forward SG.

Then-DPM Lawrence Wong said at the launch of the Forward Singapore exercise in June 2022, that the 4G team was going to “embark on an exercise to review and refresh our social compact, and chart a roadmap for the next decade and beyond."

And just before he became PM, he said in an interview with local media, “We are prepared to relook everything. It is not so much that we are going to slay a sacred cow for the sake of doing so. But we are prepared to re-examine all our assumptions and consider, under different circumstances, different societal expectations and needs - how might we do things differently? And we have already started this process because the Forward SG work has already started."

So, what are the some of the major moves that we have done? We have done quite a few things. If you think about it, the HDB new classification framework, that is a major move. For decades, we have had the Mature and Non-Mature classification. But this came out of Forward SG. We launched it last year and this is just starting to take place, and we are rolling it out. So, it is actually being implemented.

The other major move would be for preschool. We have enhanced access to affordable quality preschool, we have ramped up the infant care capacity three-fold over the last ten years, and by the end of this year, we will achieve our commitment to provide Government-supported places to cater for 80% of preschoolers. We also lowered the out-of-pocket expenses, and we have had subsidy enhancements and fee cap reductions.

For education, we have made big bold changes in education under the ‘Equip’ pillar of Forward SG. We have removed the PSLE T-score, we have removed mid-year exams, we now have full implementation of Full Subject-Based Banding, and we have broadened the post-secondary pathways.

In addition, we have got the Shared Parental Leave. That is another major move – ten weeks of Government paid leave, which is going to cost us something to the tune of $400 million per year. This was under the ‘Care’ pillar of Forward SG. And also for the Flexible Work Arrangements, we introduced the Tripartite Guidelines. All these are major moves with the vision of a Singapore Made For Families.

So, we have already started the reimagination process. The boat called “Reimagination” has already left the port and is sailing. It is heading out towards open waters, it is chugging along, it is picking up speed and we are implementing, adding on and enhancing as we go.

Thus, to ask us in this amendment to start reimagination is kind of like a step back. It is kind of like going to the port, whereas the ship has already sailed. That is the reason why I cannot agree to the amendment and that is the first reason.

But there is a second reason which I consider problematic. That is because, in his speech on calling for reimagination, Mr Leong Mun Wai has also said that we need to adopt certain policies. And one of the central ones is the Affordable Homes Scheme.

I mean the other ideas and suggestions, certainly we can think about and explore. But the Affordable Homes Scheme is the one that removes the price of land when pricing flats upfront, and that is problematic. Because PSP’s Affordable Homes Scheme is akin to a prepaid rental scheme, that turns Singaporeans from homeowners to tenants, and users only have the option to buy the flat at the point when they are actually going to sell it. And that is a raid on the reserves. And so, for that reason, in the context of this amendment, reimagination entails certain policies put forth by PSP of which a key one is the Affordable Homes Scheme, which constitutes, amongst other things, a raid on the reserves, and I cannot support it.

But Sir, other than that, I really do thank Members for their support for families, their ideas, suggestions which we will continue to take onboard. And I support the original motion. Thank you.