ANNUAL BUDGET STATEMENT

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

Debate resumed.

Mr Yeo Guat Kwang (Cheng San): (In Mandarin): I would like to thank Mr Speaker for making me the last speaker on the list but the first to speak after the break.

Mr Speaker, Sir, I feel that this year's Budget is a "doughnut" Budget. It is a delicious snack which is favoured by the young and old. But then a friend of mine told me that some Singaporeans would prefer to buy ham jin ben, the Cantonese pancake rather than the doughnut. The reason is that even before you start biting on it, there is already one mouthful missing as there is a hole in the middle of the doughnut. That is why there are some people, like Mr Low Thia Khiang, who would only focus on the little hole but negate the pleasure that comes from the dough ring, and forgetting that the structure of doughnut itself is a ring, and the space in the centre is not a hole. He said that the $230 saving for the lower-income taxpayer is not a saving. He is looking not at a doughnut but a cake. No matter how big the cake is, he would say that it is not big enough. Is he saying that the income tax saving totalling $700 million is not a saving? What kind of logic is this? I do not understand.

Mr Speaker, Sir, we are not immortal. We have still to take earthly food and water to survive, and to face the cruel reality. The Government is mortal. It is not a god. It cannot turn stone into gold and cannot answer your every prayer. So what we need is a balanced budget that benefits everybody. Singapore is like a child born to a poor family. It has to rely on itself and work hard to make its mark. We do not have oil. We do not have natural gas. Even water has to be imported.

Our society may not be so perfect. But we have very sound systems. Apart from the Government agencies, we have very extensive grassroots network. Whenever the people encounter difficulties, there is always a way out. The only problem is some people are not aware of the relevant measures and where to seek help. With some guidance from other people, they are enlightened, and very often, they will see the light at the end of the channel. However, it is regrettable there are some people, like the NCMP, who are always putting forward some fallacious arguments rather than lending a helping hand to those who need help. They could only exaggerate the problem and inflate the hardship. Their mentality and behaviour are like a song that is made known by the popular Hong Kong star, Roman Tam, "Loving You Is Hurting You". Why should the love become a harm to you?

What we need are realistic policies and solutions to the problems, so that our people can survive in the global economy and continue to enjoy better quality of life. Even when there is an income gap, everyone's living conditions can be improved continuously.

I am very glad to learn from the Minister that our utilities industry will be further deregulated and the power and gas supply market will be fully opened up. I hope that through competition, cost-effectiveness will be enhanced, thereby relieving our people from the pressure of escalating electricity charges. I hope that the Minister would take some steps to restrain the rise in electricity tariffs.

I am also very glad to learn that the Government will increase the Medical Endowment Fund to $800 million as this will imply that more than $30 million will be allocated to the Medifund every year to help the poor in settling their medical bills. The $1 billion Lifelong Learning Endowment Fund would also mean that, every year, $40 million could be spent to finance our workers in training and skill upgrading. I hope that the Government would consider increasing these funds when there are surpluses and also to raise the ceiling for matching grant to the Community Development Councils (CDCs). This will enable the CDCs to provide better services to the less privileged in our society.

I have collated some feedback from the television forum corner, the coffee-shops and meetings of the grassroots organisations, and I would like to present them to the Minister for his consideration:

(1) Why is the Government deciding on the amount of rebates on utilities and service and conservancy charges based on the sizes of the HDB flats rather than the combined incomes of the families? Quite a large number of Singaporeans' incomes are not really commensurate with the size of the flat they live in.

(2) Can the said rebates be extended to all households?

(3) The personal income tax relief has stagnated at $3,000 for many years. Can the Government consider some upward adjustment?

(4) The relief for parental care is fixed at $5,000 and $3,500, depending on whether the taxpayer is staying with the parents. Can the Government consider granting the taxpayers who are not living with their parents but are deliberately staying close to their parents so that they could look after them, the higher relief as well?

Finally, as we move towards a knowledge-based economy, the economic structure will be facing all sorts of restructuring and changes, and the welfare of our workers will inevitably be affected. The labour movement in Singapore is promoting more flexible labour welfare measures to more effectively protect the interests of our workers, particularly medical benefits. Can the Government consider raising the 2% cap on tax exemption for medical expenses? Perhaps, the Government could consider granting further tax concessions for employers who support the portable medical benefits system or who voluntarily make additional contributions to the employees' medical accounts.

Mr Speaker, Sir, I support the motion.