housing subsidies for lower income family

http://business.asiaone.com/Business/My%2BMoney/Property/Story/A1Story20110303-266339.html

Up to $60,000 in housing subsidies for low-income families

The new Special CPF Housing Grant is meant to help low-income families buy smaller flats. -AsiaOne

Thu, Mar 03, 2011
AsiaOne

SINGAPORE - Low-income families can now look forward to more help from the Singapore government.

Minister for National Development Mah Bow Tan announced today a Special CPF Housing Grant (SHG) that will aid families that earn up to $2,250.

Meant to help low-income families buy smaller flats, this is given out to families on top of the regular housing subsidy and the Additional CPF Housing Grant (AHG).

Households whose income does not exceed $1,500 can only buy 2-room standard flats. Together with the AHG and the regular price subsidy, such families can save up to $60,000.

The Housing Development Board (HDB) said in a statement that the SHG was meant to help low-income families own a flat by reducing the housing loan they needed to take.

A family with a monthly income of $1,000 would only need to pay $160 a month to maintain a new 2-room flat after factoring in the SHG and AHG, it said.

An estimated 700 tenants currently renting flats under the Public Rental Scheme can benefit from the SHG. Priority will be given to rental tenants who are first-time buyers.

To qualify for the SHG, one of the flat-buyers must have worked continuously for at least a year before they apply to buy a flat.

The average monthly income of the household over the one-year period will be used to determine the amount of grant the household will receive.

The SHG will take effect from March 3 this year. It will be extended to those who apply to buy two and three-room flats in the current BTO exercise for Seng Kang and Bukit Panjang.

Applicants who have already applied for a flat under this BTO exercise can change their choice of flat type without paying a fresh administrative fee.

newspaper article

http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_640911.html

Mar 3, 2011

More help for elderly to live in their communities

By Teo Wan Gek

A BISHAN block with a gymnasium, physiotherapy and reading rooms for the elderly is poised to be a model nationwide for other senior citizens' studio apartments.

These facilities will be one of many new developments under the 'City for All Ages' project announced yesterday by Mr Lim Boon Heng, the minister in charge of ageing issues.

This particular project will take a leaf from the Golden Jasmine studio apartment launched in Bishan last July for the elderly.

Like the Golden Jasmine, reading rooms, physiotherapy and gyms will be built into the void decks of studio apartments in future. More details will be released later.

The 'City for All Ages' plan will develop urban solutions for ageing. Its aim: Empower older Singaporeans and their families to live independently, stay socially engaged and enjoy a high quality of life.

Calling it a major milestone in preparing Singapore society for ageing, Mr Lim, who is also Minister in the Prime Minister's Office, said yesterday: 'It builds upon and pulls together our efforts and achievements over the last few years, especially with regard to ageing in place.'

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Building more facilities to aid ageing population - slow adjustments

newspaper article

http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_640830.html

Mar 3, 2011

No govt intervention on parental care

By Cai Haoxiang

THE Government has no plans to intervene directly on the issue of parental leave and prefers that workers iron it out with their employers and unions, the Minister-in-charge of ageing issues said on Wednesday.

Mr Lim Boon Heng also turned down MPs' requests for more financial support for those who care for their elderly parents.

In Wednesday's debate on the policies of the Prime Minister's Office, MPs Baey Yam Keng (Tanjong Pagar GRC), Irene Ng (Tampines GRC), Cynthia Phua (Aljunied GRC) and Nominated MP Paulin Straughan called for the Government to take the lead in introducing parental care leave.

To minimise costs, the MPs suggested that the six days of unrecorded leave that employers currently grant for childcare be extended to eldercare as well.

Mr Lim, who is Minister in the PMO, said that employers would still worry about such an extension because unlike childcare leave, parental leave would be needed for an uncertain and longer period of time.

Mar 3, 2011

Helping seniors stay active and healthy

EXERCISES such as brisk-walking and martial art forms qigong and taiji are already popular among the elderly, but a government committee is giving them a further boost to ensure seniors stay active and healthy.

Mr Heng Chee How, Minister of State (Prime Minister's Office), yesterday updated the House on the efforts of the Committee for Seniors for Physical Activity, which he chairs.

Some 500 brisk-walking clubs have been formed with about 90,000 participants. There are also 86 qigong clubs with 7,000 members. And close to 2,000 participants joined in a mass display during a taiji launch.

Mr Heng said the committee, with its partner organisations, has built up a pool of trainers. The Qigong Shi Ba Shi Association trained 170 instructors while the Health Promotion Board (HPB) trained 851 brisk-walking instructors. HPB and the National Parks Board also introduced 10 brisk-walking trails across all community development councils.

Mr Heng said the committee would work closely with the Manpower and Health ministries as well as unions to promote the three exercises in the workplace.

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The article demonstrates the many helping hands approach that singapore takes towards caring for the ageing population.

http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_640910.html

Mar 3, 2011

What price marriage and having more babies?

By Rachel Chang

WHEN dangled a baby bonus in cash of $500,000 per child, with no strings attached, some childless women would change their minds.

This finding emerged from a straw poll done by Mr Zaqy Mohamad (Hong Kah GRC), who argued in Parliament yesterday that such 'in-your-face, upfront and simple' cash incentives would go further in convincing women to have more children.

'There is a tipping point, a price,' he said. 'Just that the Government hasn't found it, or is finding the price too tough to swallow.'

Mr Zaqy was one of three MPs to offer suggestions on how to boost the abysmal birth rate during the debate on the budget for the Prime Minister's Office (PMO). The other two were Nominated MPs Viswa Sadasivan and Paulin Tay Straughan.

All three argued that the array of subsidies and tax relief in the Government's $1.6 billion 'Marriage and Parenthood Package' are insufficient to convince Singaporeans to have more children.

But Deputy Prime Minister Wong Kan Seng, who heads the National Population and Talent Division in the PMO, said more time was needed to assess the impact of the package, last enhanced in 2008.

(not full story)