OUR PAP MPs shared first-hand accounts of the struggles Singaporeans face, and suggestions for Budget 2025 in Parliament, this Thursday (27 Feb). They also shared about how more Singaporeans can benefit from our PAP government’s spending plans.
From supporting larger families to keeping Singaporeans united and on the mark, these three stories stood out:
Alex Yam: The PAP Government steps up for families
Source: Alex Yam / Facebook
MP Alex Yam (Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC) shared how our Government is stepping up support for families, which supplements ground-up efforts in his community.
| “As a father of four lively youngsters, I know firsthand how swiftly grocery bills mount and how quickly shoes wear out. This Budget’s continued support for marriage and parenthood reaffirms our belief that families remain the anchor of Singaporean life. At the local level, we have seen similar measures take root. In the North West CDC, for instance, the Little Steps programme has been a lifeline for KidSTART families since 2023, providing an annual grant of $500 for each child aged 0 to 6. We have disbursed close to $1.3m to help 2,069 children in the district.” |
The Budget’s support for Singapore’s families against cost pressures includes the Large Family Scheme. It gives $5,000 in MediSave for each third and subsequent child born. The enhanced Workfare Skills Support Scheme will support lower-wage workers enrolling in longer, more beneficial skills upgrading programmes – helping breadwinners with better wages.
These Budget policies are a long-term, multi-pronged commitment to strengthen families, bringing them closer together. As MP Yam said elsewhere in his speech, “True leadership shines through in the quiet, consistent, and determined pursuit of policies that genuinely serve Singaporeans, even when those policies are complex and unwieldy.”
Desmond Choo: Let’s keep letting young workers upskill!
Source: Desmond Choo / Facebook
MP Desmond Choo (Tampines GRC) spoke up for young workers. At the Debate, he told the inspiring story of Luke – and hopes for many more upskilling success stories in future:
| “Luke [is] a 37 year old career mentor who embodies what’s possible when they embrace change rather than fear it. After university, Luke didn’t stop learning. He used his SkillsFuture credits to earn a graduate diploma in anti money-laundering to help him secure promotion. Then seeing the changing landscape, he took courses in data analytics to transition to a new role. And now he’s planning to master AI and machine learning. Now, Luke didn’t just adapt to change. He got ahead of it, and in doing so, he wrote his own future. But here’s the thing: Luke shouldn’t be the exception. He should be the rule.” |
MP Choo’s support for young workers comes in several proposals. He wants the Government to relax its 30 per cent local shareholding requirement; this so that more multinationals can host skills-building internships for younger workers.
He also wants the widely-hailed SkillsFuture LevelUp Programme to be available to workers before they are 40 years old.
Heng Swee Keat: Reflections from SG50 to SG60
Source: Heng Swee Keat / Facebook
One of the Debate’s most poignant moments came from Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat. He shared his pride about how we have grown as a nation, in the ten years from SG50 to SG60.
| “A decade ago, I was chairing the SG 50 steering committee, where we engaged with Singaporeans to express our love and hopes for Singapore. I was inspired and humbled by the hardy spirit of our pioneers and the dynamism of our views. I was then working on my first Budget and thinking hard about how to support Singaporeans to ride the waves of change to come. Even 10 years ago, at SG 50, we knew big changes would come. We invested our resources, our hopes and energies in building a resilient nation. We never imagined we could be hit by a global pandemic that defined a generation. Yet we pulled together and pulled through. Our Singapore that celebrates SG 60 this year is a tougher, stronger and also kinder and more compassionate Singapore.” |
Singapore needs this unity. We are going forward into an uncertain global era. It is one where great powers are becoming ever more fractious and pressuring other countries to take sides, and where global tensions have an impact on our multicultural social fabric.
If Singaporeans stay united, however, with more strong Budgets to fund social and national development, we can keep building ever better homes for future generations.
