MCYS SPEECH NO: 10/2009

DATE OF ISSUE: 11/02/2009

Speech by Mrs Yu-Foo Yee Shoon, Minister-of-State, Ministry of

Community Development, Youth and Sports at the FY 2009 Committee
for Supply Debate, 11 February 2009

ComCare and Social Assistance

尊敬的主席先生,请允许我继续以中文发言.
1 诚如我的部长所说的,我们并不缺乏资源来帮陷入困境的国人.我的部门
所提供的各种社会援助计划,加上卫生部,教育部,人力部,国家发展部等多个部
门所展开的各项计划,以及社会上多个自愿福利团体,宗教与慈善组织及我们的
基层组织所提供的援助,为我们的社会建构了一张牢固的,多方面提供援助的社
会安全网.

2 当然,那些是需要我们帮助的对象?首先是那些永久性丧失工作能力而又
没有家人可依靠的人;还有那些子女收入低而无法受到照顾的老年人,第二,是那
些平时就处在低收入边缘的人,一旦经济走下坡,他们也马上受到冲击;第三,是
那些家庭面对复杂问题的人.

3 面对这一艰难的时刻,我们会更加灵活地为贫困的国人提供援助,没有人
会被遗忘.我们会继续以家庭作为焦点,除了通过强化社区关怀基金与公共援助
津贴,我们也会强化就业扶助计划,通过培训加强国人的技能训练,协助他们拥有
谋生的一技之长,让他们得以找到工作,自力更生.而更重要的是.我们必须继续
关注这些家庭的孩子的未来,我们会通过各管道,协助这些孩子完成学业来改善
他们家庭的生活,以便跳出贫困的循环圈.

4 我的部门在开展这些援助计划时,我们的立场是,我们尊重每一个人,让他
们有尊严的生活下去,让他们拥有谋生的能力,能够自己控制与选择自己的生活,
援助只是短期的过渡方法,自力更生才是最终的目的.

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5 Mr Chairman Sir, the concerns that Members have raised on social
assistance can be framed under two key questions:
a. First, is our help comprehensive and adequate? and
b. Is help being delivered effectively?
I will address the first question now, and cover the issue of delivery of help in
a subsequent speech.

ComCare
6 Is our help comprehensive and adequate? Members can be
assured that ComCare remains well placed to help the needy during this
difficult period. The ComCare nationwide schemes were helping about
24,000 cases last year.

7 Some Members have said that our assistance schemes tend to be

short term and ad-hoc in nature. This is not the case. Our ComCare
schemes cater to a range of different target groups. Please take a look at
Annex G, which was distributed earlier, for an overview of the ComCare
framework.

Long-Term Assistance: Public Assistance

8 First, the Public Assistance (PA) scheme provides long-term
assistance to the destitute. There are close to 2,900 households on PA.

9 Last year, we raised PA rates from $290 to $330 for a single person.
We have also relaxed the criteria to allow elderly persons whose family are
unable to support them to go onto the PA scheme. This is a big shift. Even
old people who have children, but their children earn less than $1,000, can
also apply for the PA scheme.

2009 Enhancements to PA
10 I thank the honourable member, Mr Baey Yam Keng for his concern
that we have increased public assistance in the past few years. But I want to
assure him that there has not been a fundamental change in our policy, so
we are not following Hong Kong. I thank Mr Baey Yam Keng for his

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concerns. However, to be more flexible in these extraordinary times, during
these difficult times, so Mr Baey Yam Keng and Mr Sam Tan will be glad to
know that we are increasing PA rates from April 2009. The increase will be
between $30 to $120 a month, depending on the household size. A PA
recipient living alone will get $30 more, from $330 a month to $360 a month.
A family with 4 adults will get $120 more, from $830 to $950 a month.

11 We will also do more for children of PA families by providing them

with additional assistance, this is a new scheme, up to a maximum of $130
per child per month. This can be used for the children’s incidental school
expenses, hygiene and nutritional needs.

12 The PA allowance is only one component of help that PA

beneficiaries receive. Other components are the GST Offset package,
Senior Citizens’ Bonus, rebates on rental, utilities and service & conservancy
charges which PA recipients get a bigger proportion of. We always forget
about this, including the press, but they also enjoy subsidised rental housing,
free medical treatment and free education for children. I’m sure a lot of us
are very concerned about out-patient and hospitalisation expenditure.

13 Consider what Mr Lim, aged 67, who lives alone in a 1 room flat, gets.
Please see Annex D/Slide D. In 2009, he will receive almost $120 a month
in cash and rebates1 from the Government. Together with his PA allowance
of $360, this comes up to almost $480 a month. That is why we say his total
benefits are $480++. He also receives government subsidies for his rental
flat and gets free medical care.

14 On top of all these, he enjoys a range of community support like meal

vouchers, cash grants, hong baos, weekly visits from befrienders, etc.

15 Let me also illustrate what a PA family gets. Please see Annex

E/Slide E. Mr Ali, 53, is bedridden and stays with his wife and four children.

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These come in the form of GST Credits, Senior Citizens’ Bonus, rental, utilities and S&CC rebates.

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Their PA allowance, including the additional assistance for their children,
plus government cash handouts and rebates amount to about $1,800 a
month. On top of this, they enjoy subsidised rental housing, everyone in the
family gets free medical treatment and the children also receive free
education. The family also gets community support - hong baos, cash
grants, bursaries, and so on. $1,800.

16 So all in, while PA rates are not generous, I should say that PA
recipients receive enough help to cover their basic needs. So the PA
allowance is not for a comfortable life, but to help you get over your difficulty
and live a manageable life.

Medium-Term Assistance: ComCare Transitions

17 I think honourable members, like Ms Sylvia Lim, was concerned about
the group which temporarily cannot work. So we don’t just give long term
help, but medium-term help. So we launched ComCare Transitions (CCT)
last July to give them medium-term help. There are close to 1,700
households under CCT. Their assistance is close to that given to PA
recipients. So quite close to the benefits given to PA recipients. They have
cash and other subsidies. And this, which we implemented in July last year,
already helps almost 1,700 cases.

Work Support
18 We also have the Work Support programme to help the work-capable
but unemployed, and to help low-skilled workers upgrade. There are
currently about 2,400 households on the programme.

19 Dr Lily Neo has rightly pointed out that mere hand-outs will not bring
about self-reliance. This is why Work Support seeks, first and foremost, to
help workers upgrade their skills and find a job. In the interim, clients may
receive financial assistance, vouchers for rental, utilities and S&CC help, as
well as medical and educational assistance.

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20 Please refer to Annex F/Slide F, support to the unemployed. For an
example of what a rank and file worker like Mr Tay would get. Minister
Tharman had talked about this case during the Budget debate. He was the
sole breadwinner for his family of 5 till he lost his job last year. He sought
help from the CDC, and was assisted under the Work Support scheme from
September last year, for 3 months. He received $510 a month in cash and
utilities vouchers, altogether $1,530. After 3 months, he found work again as
a cleaner. This entitles him to a Workfare Income Supplement (WIS) payout
of $2,200. If he had not been able to get a job, he would have received
assistance for training. His youngest child is now getting child-care
subsidies of $200 a month, on top of the universal childcare subsidy of $300.
So that is means it is $500. This year, his family will receive household
benefits worth $2,100. The total benefits from the Government amount to
$8,230.

Enhancing flexibility of Work Support

21 So during these extraordinary times, we will enhance the flexibility of
Work Support, to specially help families on the margin whose breadwinners
have been retrenched. Families who currently fall just outside the eligibility
criteria will be helped if they have genuine problems coping with basic living
expenses. We will also extend the length of assistance, from the present 6
months to up to 12 months. The quantum of assistance will be calibrated
according to the needs of the family.

Enhancing ComCare Grow

22 Now let me touch on the children. I mentioned that we pay special
attention to the education of young children from low income families. We
are helping almost 16,500 children from low income families with their pre-
school, childcare and student-care fees. This is besides MOE’s budget
which was reported in the papers today.

23 We will further improve the ComCare financial assistance schemes

for kindergarten and childcare (KiFAS and CFAC). From July 2009, families
with monthly incomes of up to $1,500 will receive at least 95% in subsidies

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for childcare and kindergarten fees. For those in childcare, the subsidy is on
top of the $300 universal childcare subsidy. A family earning $1,500
monthly, with one child in childcare and another child in kindergarten, is
currently co-paying about $40 for childcare and $18 for kindergarten after all
eligible subsidies. With the enhancements, this family’s co-payment could
fall to just $10 for childcare and $5 for kindergarten per month. So like Dr
Lily Neo is concerned, the mother can place her child in childcare and go to
work. For those earning between $1,500 to $1,800, they will receive up to
90% subsidies and co-payment would be as little as $20 for childcare and
$10 for kindergarten per month.

24 Dr Lily Neo had called for a long-term and hands-on solution to help
some 100,000 low income households in Singapore. I agree with her, and
we have done so.

25 This would make up about the bottom 10% of the households in

Singapore. According to the Department of Statistics, retirees make up
almost half of this group. The low income and needy are covered under the
ComCare schemes as well as assistance schemes from other ministries.

26 For example, there is the Workfare Income Supplement scheme (or

WIS) for the low wage workers. There is also help through various other
channels including Medifund, subsidised rental housing, MOE’s Financial
Assistance Scheme, and training under SPUR from MOM.

27 We agree that at times, intensive case management will be necessary

to help families which are dysfunctional or have complex issues. My Minister
and I will elaborate on measures to help these families later.

Topping up of ComCare Fund

28 Dr Fatimah Lateef asked about the CCC ComCare Fund (CCF).
Please refer to the ComCare Report Card at Appendix of Annex A for the
detailed utilisation figures. The CCF is only one small part of the entire
ComCare assistance framework. If you look at Annex G, you will see that

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we have long term help, there is medium term help, and short term help.
Actually CCF is, if you ask me, is like fast cash under ComCare. So this
enables the grassroots to provide flexible, interim and immediate help to
needy residents. In many cases, this is done while the CDCs are processing
applications from needy families to get onto the longer-term national
ComCare schemes. I hope this clarifies the concerns that Members and
journalists have. CCF is just for interim, one-off and short term help. So
CCF is only given to the residents when the CDC is processing applications
which long-term scheme is suitable for them.

29 The CCF system has worked well because grassroots leaders have
exercised flexibility, prudence and accountability in disbursing public funds.
With the downturn, we expect utilization of the CCF to rise. We will therefore
be topping up the CCF by another $0.75 million, to $7 million per year for the
next two years. This will ensure that money will not be the limiting factor in
helping the needy.

Conclusion
30 Together with the many helping hands, the government will continue
to help the needy ride out these tough times. With the ComCare
enhancements I have announced, our FY09 ComCare budget will total $77
million.

31 Even as we talk about help from the government and community, let
us also remember the basics. We believe that the values of self-reliance,
responsibility, hard work, honesty and family support are important. Don’t
forget that today, 60% of the retirees, the older people, still depend on their
children to help them. I think this is a good value, and we should not give up
on them. We should not follow the West to completely depend on the
government and PA. I think for the children, even if it’s only $30 or $50 a
month, we should still give to our parents. We need each individual, his
family and the community to do their part to improve the quality of life. I think
honourable member, Mr Sam Tan, had mentioned quality of life. I think
qualify of life cannot just depend on handouts. Quality of life depends on

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love and care. Like my Member of Parliament Cynthia Phua has said, we
must deliver all this with love. So I think the first line of love should come
from family members, from friends, relatives, neighbours, RC and so on. So
if we stay together and work hard, we will be able to overcome these tough
times.

*****