Definition of Poverty Line

Dr Lily Neo asked the Acting Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports (a) whether there is a national definition of poverty line and, if so, what is the current definition; (b) how many households fall below this line; and (c) whether more assistance can be rendered to such households.

MG [NS] Chan Chun Sing: Singapore does not have a national poverty line. Different countries adopt different approaches to help those in need, depending on their own unique situations. Some establish a poverty line to identify those who need help. For example, in the United States, the 2010 threshold for a family of four works out to be about US$1,860 (S$2,390) per month. Based on this threshold, the US' poverty rate is about 15.1%. On the other hand, other countries like Canada and New Zealand do not have an official poverty line. Canada, for instance, adopts an income threshold, determined using family expenditure data, in guiding its assessment of the populace's needs.

There is no hard and fast rule on how to determine needs. In Singapore, we take an approach of tailoring our social safety net to different groups, depending on their needs and circumstances. This approach is more flexible and no less effective than countries that choose to adopt a poverty line. Our help schemes typically cover the bottom 20th percentile of households, with the flexibility to go beyond if the family's circumstances merit special consideration. This approach allows us to provide more targeted and customised forms of assistance with real outcomes for families and individuals.

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Let me elaborate on an example. For a family of four where the male breadwinner has lost his job, assistance from ComCare will help the family manage financially and put food on the table. The vouchers for utilities, service and conservancy charges given to the family ensure that they continue to have electricity, water and gas for their daily needs. The two young children can go to childcare with the help of subsidies from ComCare. This not only allows for the children to continue to attend preschool and socialise with other children, but also enables both parents to look for work. The working parents, if eligible, may receive a Workfare Income Supplement as an addition to their wages and CPF savings, as well as an encouragement for them to stay employed. Different help schemes, in this case ComCare and Workfare, complement each other to help our clients in their journey. This is what I mean by our approach to provide targeted assistance with real outcomes for families and individuals.

Dr Lily Neo has also asked whether more assistance could be rendered to needy households. The Government has regularly reviewed its assistance programmes and subsidies in anticipation of evolving needs. Over the years, we have raised the level of help given to needy households. For instance, our population is rapidly ageing and more elderly would need eldercare services. To increase the accessibility of community-based eldercare services, MCYS has extended subsidies to such services up to the 50th income percentile in October this year. We have also increased funding to senior activities centres that serve low income elderly.

We also recognise the importance of developing children. For this reason, ComCare assistance schemes for young children were enhanced in April this year to go beyond the 20th percentile of households. Therefore, a family with two young children for instance, and earning a gross household income up to $3,500 – which previously exceeded the old $1,800 household income threshold – can now benefit from such pre-school subsidies. Families can consequently focus their resources on other needs within the family.

I would like to assure Dr Neo that we will continue to review our social assistance schemes to ensure that they remain relevant to the evolving needs of the low income and vulnerable. If Dr Neo or any member of the public comes across Singaporeans who may need help, please direct them to our Community Development Council, a Family Service Centre, or call the ComCare Hotline at 1800-222-0000.