PM Lee on social mobility

Social mobility is an important issue for Singapore and the Government will continue to pursue and ensure it happens in the society.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong made these remarks in a written response to Parliamentary question on Monday regarding income gaps in Singapore.

PM Lee explained that as society matures, it will be more difficult to narrow and bridge class divisions. There are three aspects to the issue of class division and according to PM Lee, they are – income inequality; social mobility and social integration.

“The issues of mitigating income inequality, ensuring social mobility and enhancing social integration are critical… This is why this Government will strive to keep all Singaporeans – regardless of race, language, religion or social background – together,” he added.

Giving the example of KidSTART, a programme for children from low-income families to have a good start in life, education is a major investment for Singapore, said PM Lee. Schemes like SkillsFuture gives Singaporeans the support to pick up new skills and continue to improve.

PM Lee reiterated, “Nobody should feel that his social position is fixed based on his parents' income level or position in life.”

https://www.pap.org.sg/sg-government-to-continue-to-improve-social-mobility

Silver Support Scheme.

 Another measure to help seniors in our rapidly ageing population. 

It is part of a wider suite of schemes (healthcare subsidies, GST Voucher and Workfare) that the Government has put in place to support elderly Singaporeans. 

Elderly Singaporeans who qualify for Silver Support will automatically receive their cash supplement. There is no need to apply.

Those who are eligible and live in 1- or 2-room rental flat get the maximum amount of $750 per quarter, the equivalent of $3000 a year.

Dr Goh Keng Swee on the traditional values of Singaporeans

Words of wisdom from another of our founding fathers, Dr Goh Keng Swee. 

The traditional virtues that define the Singaporean - hardworking, adaptable, self-reliant and never failing to seize the economic opportunities - these will stand us in good stead to face the future with confidence.

How $10.7 billion on healthcare was spent

$10.7 billion spent on healthcare for financial year 2017. What has the Government been spending it on?

INFRASTRUCTURE

At least one new hospital every two years.

In 2018, Sengkang General and Community Hospitals will open.

In 2020, Outram Community Hospital is scheduled to be completed.

In 2022, the 1,800-bed Woodlands Health Campus will open and have an acute hospital and a community hospital sharing the same building. 

So will the Integrated Care Hub, a 500-bed community hospital, situated next to Tan Tock Seng Hospital.

This comes on top of the five new hospitals – Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, Ng Teng Fong General Hospital, Yishun and Jurong Community Hospitals, and the CGH-SACH Integrated Building – that have been opened since 2010.

MANPOWER

In tandem with the infrastructure boost, an additional 30,000 healthcare workers will be needed between 2015 and 2020 to cope with the increased demand for healthcare services.

MOH will also invest $24m to get those making a mid-career switch on board.

TECHNOLOGY

The Government is also investing in the software to improve quality of care.

For instance, close to 600 bed transporters will be rolled out in four public hospitals from June 2018. The technology reduces the number of people needed to move a bed with a patient on it from two persons to one, improving overall productivity.

The Woodlands Health Campus, when completed, will provide every patient with an electronic device akin to a watch, which monitors vital signs, activity, and location. It will alert nurses when a patient’s blood pressure goes up by too much, or where to locate a dementia patient.

They can also keep tabs on a patient’s condition after he returns home with tele and video conferencing.

MEDICAL SAFETY NETS

Healthcare safety net expanded to better provide support lower- and middle-income Singaporeans, especially as many of them have to support both their children and elderly parents.

2/3 of households now receive up to 80% subsidy for home and community-based care, such as community hospitals and nursing homes.

More than 1.2 million Singaporeans are covered under the CHAS for outpatient visits.

MediShield Life, started in 2015, helps Singaporeans pay for their hospital bills and costlier outpatient treatments, such as kidney dialysis, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy. 

Close to $4 billion in subsidies will be provided by the Government in the first five years of the scheme to ensure premiums remain affordable for lower- and middle-income households.

The Government also provides periodic top-ups to Medisave, especially for the lower-income and elderly.

In 2017, the Finance Ministry disbursed over $310 million in Medisave top-ups as part of the Pioneer Generation Package and GSTV-Medisave payouts. The top-up amount ranges from $200 to $1,250 per person.

4 in 5 subsidised hospitalisation bills cost less than $100 after MediShield Life, Medisave, and other healthcare benefits.

Healthcare spending is expected to “rise quite sharply” in the next three to five years as our population ages.

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http://www.singaporebudget.gov.sg/budget_2018/DoYouKnow/BudgetFeatures/InjectingmoreintoSingaporeshealthcareasweage.aspx

Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) Act: K Shanmugam

The real world comprises gangsters, kingpins, Unlicensed Money-lending (UML) attacks, threatening of witnesses.

If there are gangs, and there are, we intervene very early and we break them up.

Some of you might recall, I think it was 2010, about 7 years now, over a period of 3 weeks, a series of young boys went on a rampage, different groups, I think one was in Downtown East, a young man was knifed to death, gang attack.

And then in Bukit Panjang, the following week, there was another attack.

Three weeks in a row and people got upset and they said "What is happening? Do something about it."

The police took a number of steps, did something about it, but the CLTPA is an essential tool in the arsenal of doing something about these things.

Otherwise, every Member of Parliament (MP) will answer to your residents, because our people value law and order and security very highly.

Our people get upset with UML cases when paint gets splashed. MPs would have faced them. When their doors get padlocked, when their doors get set on fire, they will come to the MPs and demand that action be taken. The Government has got to be able to respond.

Let me again make a larger point. It is possible to make grand statements about liberty and security if you do not have to deal with real world problems.

Let me go to the US as an example.

President Obama, when he was candidate Obama, he thundered, "The choice between liberty and security is a false choice", he said.

Meaning you can both have security and a full set of rights including due process for all in the Courts, in all cases.

Sounds very good. It is very noble and he promised to close Guantanamo. Signed an executive order in 2009 to close Gitmo in fact.

But then the US was having trouble finding anyone else who was willing to take all these people in Gitmo.

Prisoners there were indefinitely detained without charge. Citizens from 49 nations, youngest detainee was 14, oldest was 89.

The President then tried to move them into centres in the US, but there was a big outcry.

Senators did not want Gitmo closed and they certainly did not want these prisoners in US soil for all the rhetoric from the US.

Majority of Americans also opposed bringing the detainees into American soil. So the President recognised the difficulty almost immediately after he took office.

And he was a constitutional law professor.

So he said in a 2009 speech, after he became President, "There remains the question of the Gitmo detainees who cannot be prosecuted, and yet who posed a clear danger to the American people. And I have to be honest here – this is the toughest single issue that we will face."

And he said, even after the process is complete, there will be some who cannot be prosecuted because there will be lack of evidence, but who nevertheless will pose a threat to the security of the United States.

And he said he was not going to release those individuals. So that is where reality meets rhetoric.

The principle behind the CLTPA is that there will be some criminals where due processes will not get them to justice. Considering the nature of their activities. Is it better for society to leave them out or have the CLTPA and use it? Our current approach has led to the current levels of safety and security.

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*Excerpt of Wrap-Up Speech by Mr K Shanmugam, Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law (edited) on the Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) (Amendment) Bill

https://www.mha.gov.sg/newsroom/speeches/Pages/The-Criminal-Law-(Temporary-Provisions)-(Amendment)-Bill.aspx

Why we need the Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) Act

LET'S UNDERSTAND

How does the Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) Act - which provides for suspected criminals to be detained without trial - help to keep you and I safe?

The CLTPA remains a key legislative tool which is highly effective in suppressing secret society activity.

Inspector Eric Toh, an investigation officer from the Secret Societies Branch said:

“Secret society members are aware of the CLTPA, and it helps us keep them at bay. If not, they will cause much more problems; and influence much more people to join their gangs."

Keeping CLDs locked up means witnesses can come forward knowing they are safe, said Mr Toh.

“During investigations, we need to call up witnesses to tell us what actually happened. With the Act, witnesses don’t have to be in fear and can come give us the evidence we need,” he outlined.

“We are then able to incarcerate the suspect, and this helps keep the secret society situation under control. This is why we have the CLTPA.”

How about 'returning trays' is our social responsibility?

A simple act of returning our trays after eating has generated much debate.

A tray deposit? Some are irked. Coercion will not work, they said.

What will work then? Persuasion? But persuasion has not worked in the past despite campaigns.

And then there are some who say the tray deposit will not work because people who find it a hassle to return their tray will just treat the deposit as a 'service fee'.

Really? We'll only know for sure with time. 

A ST forum writer, Thomas Lee Hock Seng suggests using money as a reward or incentive for returning trays. Give a voucher for a free meal or item, such as a dessert of one's choice, for tray return, he said.

Just imagine, have a meal, return a tray, gets a voucher for a free meal. Good deal for the patron. It's like a one-for-one meal. 😂😂

But that will surely drive up costs for the hawkers who will then pass on that cost to patrons.

Well, of course the reward system could be in the form of points accumulation. A certain number of points will earn you a free drink or something like that.

If it takes too long to accumulate enough points, it might not be much of an incentive unless you make sure you eat at the same hawker centre every day.

The question remains. Why is returning our tray such a difficult thing to do? It wouldn't take more than a minute, would it, even if the tray station is at the far end?

How about 'returning our tray after eating' is our social responsibility and the mark of a first world citizen?

Deposit or not, let's return our trays.