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Source:
www.gov.sg |
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LECTURE BY MR MAH BOW TAN,
MINISTER FOR NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AT THE LEE KUAN YEW SCHOOL OF
PUBLIC POLICY¡¯S SECOND ANNIVERSARY PUBLIC LECTURE ON THURSDAY, 17
AUGUST 2006 AT 12.00 PM |
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¡°Public Housing: Homes,
Communities, Nation¡± |
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An Excerpt |
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Challenge 1: Ageing Population |
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The first challenge is the demographic shift
brought about by our ageing population. |
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Between now and 2030, the number of elderly
aged 65 years or older will increase dramatically, from 300,000 to
900,000. 1 in 5 Singaporeans will be aged 65 and above by 2030. |
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We will need to provide a wide range of
housing options to meet the different financial needs and lifestyle
preferences of the elderly, from smaller HDB flats like studio
apartments, to private retirement housing with dedicated care
facilities. |
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One key concern of the elderly will be
retirement adequacy. We have put in place various options to help
retirees who are asset-rich but cash-poor monetise their assets for
retirement. |
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These include allowing them to sublet their
flats to earn extra income or to cash out of their existing flats and
move to smaller ones. Banks and financial institutions can also offer
reverse mortgage schemes for HDB flats. |
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HDB must continue to look into other
options to provide our elderly residents with sufficient financial
means to lead fulfilling lives in their retirement years. |
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We will also have to make adjustments to our
physical environment, so that it is elder-friendly. |
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Massive investments will be made to provide
lift access on every floor of HDB blocks and to make the environment
barrier-free to facilitate mobility. |
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We have also redesigned all new HDB flats to
make it easier for the elderly and wheelchair-bound residents to move
about. |
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Challenge 2: Income Divide |
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With globalisation and competition from
lower cost countries, the wages of lower-skilled Singaporeans is under
pressure. |
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Our second major challenge is keeping public
housing affordable to the vast majority of Singaporeans, so that we can
continue to bring people of different socio-economic groups closer
together. |
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The Government has committed that up to 90%
of Singaporeans can afford to buy a basic HDB flat. |
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To fulfil this promise, HDB has
resumed the building of smaller flats to provide more affordable
housing options for the lower-income group. It has also introduced
additional housing subsidies to help them to buy a flat. |
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However, there will always be some
lower-income households who cannot afford to buy a flat. For this
group, HDB will provide rental flats at a subsidised rate to
provide them with a roof over their heads. |
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Challenge 3: More Diverse
Population |
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The last challenge is how to
strengthen our social and community ties. |
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As our population becomes more diverse
and cosmopolitan, as more Singaporeans live, work or travel
overseas, it will become even more important to leverage on public
housing to broaden the common space between Singaporeans and
promote rootedness to Singapore. |
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We need to engender a greater sense of
ownership among the residents. Over the years, we have relaxed our
policies to make public housing more akin to private housing,
through the relaxation of some of the rules on sub-letting of
flats, loans etc. We need to find ways to deepen this sense of
ownership. |
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Singaporeans are also becoming more
affluent and better educated. To meet rising aspirations, we have
involved private sector architects to design and build HDB
projects. This has given rise to several innovations in public
housing design. |
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A premium design project, the
Pinnacle@ Duxton, with sky bridges on the 26th and 50th stories
connecting the 7 blocks of the development, is currently under
construction. This project will bring many new and younger
residents into Chinatown, and rejuvenate an old part of Singapore. |
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We are also piloting another scheme to
allow private developers not only to design and build, but also
price and sell the flats to HDB buyers. |
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With additional flexibility to design
and price the flats, I hope developers will introduce further
innovations in public housing design and development. |
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Conclusion |
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Over the last 46 years, Singapore has
successfully created a home-owning society under our public
housing programme. This basis of home ownership, buttressed by
strong political commitment, careful planning and
community-focused policies, has played an important part in
Singapore¡¯s nation building. |
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Looking ahead, I expect public housing
will continue to play an important role in shaping Singapore¡¯s
social fabric. Our public housing policies will have to evolve,
not only to respond to the changing needs of the people, but also
in support of national strategies. |
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Full Text of Speech |
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Source:
www.mnd.gov.sg News 17 Aug 2006 |
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FrontPage Edition: Mon 28 August 2006
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