PSP disappointed as PM Wong overlooks root issues in Singapore's public housing policies

SINGAPORE: In response to Prime Minister Lawrence Wong's announcement during his first National Day Rally speech addressing housing concerns among Singaporeans, the Progress Singapore Party (PSP) expressed disappointment that the Government has yet again failed to tackle the root issues of public housing policies, which the PSP believes require a fundamental rethink.

During the NDR speech on Sunday (18 August), PM Wong announced additional support for lower-income couples seeking to purchase their first homes.

Currently, under the Central Provident Fund (CPF) Housing Grant, first-time families can receive up to S$80,000 (US$60,700) to assist with the purchase of new or resale flats.

He mentioned that the grant will be increased, “especially for the lower-income groups,” with further details to be provided soon by National Development Minister Desmond Lee.

“This is my assurance to all young Singaporeans: Once you start work and wish to settle down, we will make sure that there is an HDB flat that is within your budget in every region,”  PM Wong stated.

“We will always keep public housing in Singapore affordable for you.”

In response, the PSP noted in a Monday statement that increasing CPF housing grants is merely a continuation of existing policies without addressing the fundamental issues within public housing.

The PSP once again urged the Government to consider implementing the Affordable Homes Scheme and Millennial Apartments Scheme as alternatives to ensure that public housing remains accessible to Singaporeans without jeopardizing their retirement.

These two schemes were proposed by PSP Non-Constituency Members of Parliament Leong Mun Wai and Hazel Poa in a motion tabled in February last year.

The PSP believed that Singapore’s public housing policy needs a reset, while the Government’s counter-motion, filed by MND Minister Lee, suggested that there is no need to review the current housing policies.

Separately, the PSP welcomed the benefits for the involuntarily unemployed that PM Wong announced.

"As I said during my Budget speech in February 2024, retrenchments are becoming increasingly common and temporary financial support would be greatly beneficial to retrenched workers seeking a new job, " said PSP Secretary-General Hazel Poa.

While the PSP was glad that the Government was now ready to implement a scheme to aid the involuntarily unemployed, Ms Poa pointed out that, based on the current details available for the SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support Scheme, more could be done for lower- and middle-income workers.

She added that the PSP looked forward to debating this in Parliament.

The PSP was heartened that the new PM places great emphasis on addressing the nation’s low Total Fertility Rate, particularly through the new 10-week Shared Parental Leave scheme for infant care, with government payments of up to S$2,500 per week, effective from 1 April 2026.

The PSP noted that this was a much-needed change to promote the sharing of parental duties.

Ms Poa recalled that during the debate on Singapore Women’s Development in Parliament in 2022, she had called for parental leave to be shared equally by default, with flexibility to reallocate leave between both parents based on mutual agreement.

She noted that this announcement was a welcome step in that direction, but emphasized that more still needed to be done to encourage couples to have children.

Nevertheless, Ms Poa affirmed that the PSP would continue to engage the Government in Parliament to ensure that it acted in the best interests of Singaporeans.

PAP Minister Rejected PSP’s Public Housing Proposal in 2023

PSP's Affordable Homes Scheme, based on a deferred land cost idea first proposed by PSP member Dr Tan Meng Wah, allows Singaporeans to buy a new flat at construction cost plus a notional location premium.

The land cost would only be paid when the flat is sold in the resale market after the Minimum Occupation Period.

Should a Singaporean stay in the same flat his entire life, he will only pay the user price. This user-price concept was first suggested by Mr Yeoh Lam Keong, the former Chief Economist of GIC.

The PSP’s proposed Millennial Apartments Scheme involves the government maintaining a large stock of quality rental flats in prime locations near the Central Business District. These flats are intended for young families or groups of singles and would be leased out for 2 to 5 years.

The scheme aims to bring young Singaporeans together, providing single individuals with more opportunities to socialize and perhaps marry. Meanwhile, those who are already married will have more time for their families due to the proximity to their workplaces.

Rejecting the proposals presented by PSP’s Non-Consituency Member of Parliament Leong Mun Wai, MND Minister Desmond Lee during 9 February 2023 Parliamentary sitting stated that the proposals “do not address today’s problems and certainly do not address tomorrow’s problems”.

The Minister then urged the Parliament to reject PSP’s motion and its proposals, to dismiss the Workers’ Party’s attempts at politicking, and to support the current policy with public housing, thus maintaining every Singaporean’s stake in housing.