On the second day of the 2024 Budget debates, 28 Members of Parliament (MPs) rose to speak in support of the Budget in parliament.

The sitting lasted 8.5 hours.

The Budget speech was delivered by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Lawrence Wong on Feb. 16, 2024.

https://mothership.sg/2024/02/budget-2024-in-90-seconds

On the first day, 29 MPs rose in support and spoke, raising a variety of issues.

Here's what the MPs said on the second day.

Sharael Taha

Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC MP Sharael Taha voiced his support for the 2024 Budget.

He noted that the Budget addressed the key challenges and built on Singapore's capability to look ahead by building a balanced fiscal position where Singapore does not spend beyond its means.

Sylvia Lim

Aljunied GRC MP Sylvia Lim rose in support of the 2024 Budget, and her speech focused on older workers and how these workers should be tapped on as a resource for "the good of the nation".

The Worker's Party (WP) MP also brought up age discrimination in the workplace, citing a Ministry of Manpower Fair Employment Practices report where age is the most common form of discrimination.

She added that there is still work to do to tackle age discrimination if Singapore is to maximise the country's potential and wellbeing.

Don Wee

Chua Chu Kang GRC MP Don Wee described the budget as one that will "retain Singapore's competitiveness".

He followed up with some "suggestions and clarifications" concerning its tech schemes.

The introduction of the refundable investment credit (RIC) scheme is an attractive and flexible scheme supporting a range of high-value economic activities, he noted.

However, he said, the proposal "seems to be based on qualifying expenditure".

He requested that the scheme be made available to businesses which are not as expenditure-heavy, such as tech solutions-related ones.

Syed Harun Alhabsyi

NMP Syed Harun Alhabsyi asked for the government to increase its efforts to help "those left behind’ as Singapore continues to "surge ahead".

"Trying to achieve social mobility remains a constant moving target, and it has not been easy to keep pace and ensure full equitability and opportunities for all."

He added that social mobility remains the "cornerstone of a fair and just society".

Without it, he explained, the "entrenchment of privilege", "distrust", and "discrimination" will threaten social cohesion.

Chris de Souza

Holland-Bukit Timah GRC MP Chris de Souza spoke about how artificial intelligence (AI) transformation can affect Singapore's social compact.

"I believe we must be careful in how we tread this line in encouraging AI innovation and adoption while continuing to support our people and their livelihoods," de Souza said.

However, he cautioned that the government needs to ensure "no one slips through the cracks" as Singapore become an AI-enabled society.

"We must help every Singaporean realise their core and unique human skills and show them how these skill sets remain relevant," he said.

Heng Swee Keat

Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat spoke about Singapore's economic growth, saying it is almost a "mature economy".

"The days of 'catch-up growth' are over," he said.

Heng, also MP for East Coast GRC, said that there needs to be structural changes and structural policies that can transform Singapore's economy to grow "for the long-term".

He laid out a three-pronged approach to "undertake and intensify restructuring" in Singapore.

Faisal Manap

Aljunied GRC MP Faisal Manap pointed out that low-income households are most affected by the rising costs of living, and their issues are multifaceted.

Thus, he was "heartened" that the 2024 Budget gave significant attention to that segment of the population.

The WP MP added that he welcomed the lowering of fees at childcare centres under the partner and anchor operator schemes and the expansion of subsidies.

He said that this would go a long way to help low-income families send their children to preschool.

Edward Chia

Holland-Bukit Timah GRC MP Edward Chia voiced his support for the budget, noting that it "emphasises" the cost of living pressures experienced by all segments of Singapore.

He said the budget would bring immediate relief, and he believes that it shows the government's commitment to Singaporeans that they "got their backs".

However, he notes that more needs to be done beyond short-term measures to improve Singapore's standard of living, such as boosting real income of Singaporeans in the face of rising inflation.

Eric Chua

Tanjong Pagar GRC MP Eric Chua supported the budget but called for more systematic support of persons with disabilities and their caregivers.

He said policies and programs "are not enough" to create a "more inclusive workplace" and urged Singaporeans to participate and make "disability inclusion a hallmark of Singapore society".

Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim

Chua Chu Kang GRC MP Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim's speech focused on housing options and enhancing liveability in the environment for families and seniors.

In particular, he welcomed the new Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme open market vouchers, announced in the budget, which provide young couples who are waiting for their BTO flats with temporary housing.

He said that all of these policy changes show that the government "listens intently" to the various feedback,

He Ting Ru

In her speech, Sengkang GRC MP He Ting Ru WP chief Pritam Singh calls for "greater transparency" from the government to enable "more meaningful in-depth" discussions on policy.

The WP MP also raised concerns about "inclusivity" of SkillsFuture courses for persons with disabilities, believing that more could be done to get training providers to provide "reasonable accommodations".

She said people also hold reservations for courses catered especially for persons with disabilities, even though well-meaning, might be "exclusionary".

She also said she hopes that priority will be given to sectors and areas where Singapore's "social needs" are the "strongest", when deciding where the S$4,000 SkillsFuture top-ups could be spent.

Chong Kee Hiong

Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC MP Chong Kee Hiong described the 2024 budget as "forward-looking" with a "balance of measures" to help households and companies deal with rising costs and make long-term preparations for the future.

Chong highlighted the "strong support" for the upskilling and reskilling of the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) graduates and middle-aged and older Singaporeans, reinforcing a continuous learning mindset and identifying improvement opportunities among Singaporeans.

This will enable the population and Singapore to remain relevant in the evolving global economic landscape, he added.

Jamus Lim

Sengkang GRC MP Jamus Lim said that the goals outlined in the national AI strategy 2.0 are  "laudable, but incomplete".

The WP MP pointed out that non-tech sectors must be presented with "strong and urgent incentives" to adopt AI.

"This is a non-trivial task. Small firms are almost by definition that way because they have been relatively slower in seizing business opportunities and rationalising costs."

Singapore's participation in the OECD-led BEPS 2.0 framework affords us a "tailor-made channel" for creating incentives for AI adoption across a whole range of firm types, he said.

Neil Parekh

NMP Neil Parekh added that the business community welcomes many of the initiatives outlined in DPM Wong's speech.

He encouraged the government to re-energise its financial literacy campaign.

"While some of our fellow citizens are sophisticated, intelligent investors, many still do not understand basic concepts such as the long term benefits of compound interest."

He proposed a "detailed but simple delivery platform" to explain the CPF changes to our senior citizens.

Xie Yao Quan

Jurong GRC MP Xie Yao Quan described the Budget 2024 as a "breathtaking set of plans".

"The plans are bold, they're ambitious and they brim with gumption."

Xie spoke on education, bringing up the SkillsFuture Level Up program.

He suggested that the training allowance would cover Singaporeans for up to 30 months instead of 24 months so that the entire duration of a full-time diploma program could be covered.

Desmond Tan

Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC MP Desmond Tan stated that the labour movement welcomed the government’s support for workers in the 2024 Budget.

Tan called for workers and companies to join the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC).

In addition, Tan spoke on how NTUC plans to continue to support workers' upskilling and announced that from Apr. 1, 2024, NTUC's Employment and Employability Institute will "assume an expanded role in the personalised placement landscape through the transfer of designated career centres and jobs and skill centres from Workplace Singapore".

Patrick Tay

Pioneer SMC MP Patrick Tay dubbed the budget a "well-considered" one that "aims to strengthen our nation's resilience to withstand the challenges of an uncertain global economy".

He stated that job security is "no longer guaranteed".

"It is, therefore, imperative for the government to re-evaluate our approach to unemployment and job loss," he said.

He called on two areas of focus — support for the unemployed, as well as strengthening SkillsFuture, continuous education, and training.

Melvin Yong

Radin Mas SMC MP Melvin Yong said the budget "seeks to tackle the immediate cost of living expense, cost of living pressures, create more paths for social mobility and forge a stronger shared future".

He highlighted the anxieties that many Singaporeans face in our current employment climate

He also talked about how to better support low-wage workers by expanding the progressive wage model to other sectors and exploring the career progression model for skilled professions.

Desmond Choo

Tampines GRC MP Desmond Choo said the 2024 Budget had workers' interest "at the very core".

Choo stated that he hoped the government would consider lowering the SkillsFuture credit eligibility age from the current 25 years old to "empower more young people to upskill and rescale".

He also suggested the government provide subsidised diplomas for those affected by Artificial Intelligence (AI).

"We need to help our young workers to put on the full armour of adaptability and resilience in a world whereby the may be saved on all fronts. We need to help our workers understand the new economy’s impact on their livelihoods and strengthen their career paths."

Yeo Wan Ling

Pasir Ris- Punggol GRC MP Yeo Wan Ling called for making Flexible Work Arrangements (FWA) a workplace norm.

"I call on the government to consider FWA as a critical workplace priority and to invest more resources to guide and equip our companies on its roll out."

Yeo also called for more accessibility to upskilling courses for platform workers and livelihood support while they undergo training.

See Jinli Jean

NMP See Jinli Jean asked for an increase in efforts to empower and support our freelance workers.

She proposed measures to reinforce "fair norms" for freelancers in a post-pandemic economy, to address their power imbalance with service bias stagnated rates and their unstable income stream.

She said, "Budget 2024 is about uplifting workers and supporting workers with upskilling. These concepts apply to freelancers too."

Mohd Fahmi Aliman

Marine Parade GRC MP Mohd Fahmi Aliman reckoned that there are "sufficient opportunities and scope" to assist vulnerable workers better amidst evolving global developments.

Elaborating on this, he called on the government to consider "ring-fencing" low-wage workers to protect them from associated problems stemming from the practice of resetting benefits during contractual changes.

"Enforcing these measures will foster a positive work culture and reinforce the government's commitment to the welfare of its workforce," he said.

Heng Chee How

Jalan Besar GRC MP Heng Chee How noted that the assurance package and other cost-deferring measures in the 2024 Budget were "timely and very well received".

Heng thanked DPM Wong for announcing the increase in CPF contribution rates for older workers aged 55 to 65 as it will "certainly help grow the CPF funds faster".

He also added that NTUC stands with their older workers as they confront job insecurity and the risk of skills obsolescence.

Mariam Jafaar

Sembawang GRC MP Mariam Jaafar rose in support of the budget.

She stated that it plays a significant emphasis on sustaining Singapore's economic growth by "keeping Singapore attractive as an investment destination, rising economic and technology trends to capture new opportunities and enhancing human capital".

Mariam also brought up the potential of AI to be "a key engine of value creation and economic growth".

She suggested that Singapore should be "very focused" on how AI development could enable new business models and productivity gains, thus creating value in Singapore and beyond.

Derrick Goh

Nee Soon GRC MP Derrick Goh supported the budget but cautioned Singaporeans against "taking for granted" our fiscal and economic strength.

He also asked for DPM Wong could "share his thoughts" on the "sources and drivers" of the factors supporting a “more optimistic long-term growth forecast”.

Vikram Nair

Sembawang GRC MP Vikram Nair wished to "consider in more detail" the matter of retrenchment.

"It appears that what is being envisioned is a payout to those who may be unemployed," he said.

He brought up suggestions that the government should have limits on the amounts that may be claimed and the duration "so that people are properly incentivised to return to work as soon as possible".

He advocated for the SkillsFuture Level Up Program, deeming it a good complement to unemployment support schemes.

Rachel Ong

West Coast GRC MP Rachel Ong talked about establishing a "comprehensive SkillsFuture ecosystem" that is inclusive and ensures "equitable insurance protection" for persons with disabilities and individuals on the autism spectrum.

She gave an example of visually impaired individuals who have requested screen reader-friendly document formats or image descriptions for diagrams.

"Inclusivity is more than a mere goal, it is a collective journey that we must undertake as a united Singapore," she said.

Usha Chandradas

NMP Usha Chandradas rose in support of the budget.

She particularly expressed her appreciation for the government’s commitment to investing S$100 million over the next four years to roll out the latest SG arts plan.

"Better exposure to and awareness of the arts will help our communities to understand and hopefully better appreciate the important role that our arts workers play in our society," she said.

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Top images via MCI