Singapore to review public housing income ceiling, study options for singles, seniors, large families
The government will also enhance air, sea and land connectivity and develop a national plan to address climate change
[SINGAPORE] The government will review the income ceiling for public housing and look into more housing options for singles, seniors and large families, Minister for National Development Chee Hong Tat announced on Thursday (Sep 18).
Public housing will be kept affordable and accessible through a robust supply of Build-To-Order (BTO) flats in different regions, including more with shorter waiting times, and a strong supply of land maintained for private housing, the minister said in an addendum to the President’s Address.
The government will also continue to improve public rental housing, including upgrading older rental blocks, and give support to more rental households so they can own their homes.
Calls for a review to raise the income ceiling for couples applying for BTO flats have emerged as salaries have risen over the years, exceeding the current cap of S$14,000. Singles have to be aged 35 and up, and draw an income of S$7,000 or under to be eligible to buy a BTO flat.
This week, Singapore’s ministries revealed plans for the current term of government, providing more details on some of the key points shared by President Tharman Shanmugaratnam at the opening of Parliament on Sep 5. The President’s Address sets out the proposed direction, policies and programme the government intends to take for the new term.
A framework for the Voluntary Early Redevelopment Scheme (VERS) will be developed and fleshed out, and older neighbourhoods and estates will be rejuvenated to make them more liveable, vibrant and senior-friendly, Chee said.
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The government is also reviewing legislation to ensure that management corporations of private housing projects maintain and upgrade their ageing developments to meet the needs of their residents, the minister added.
“Business nodes and workplaces will be revitalised, bringing jobs closer to homes. The northern, eastern and western gateways will grow as important economic nodes, while the city centre will remain a vital destination for business, tourism and culture, anchoring Singapore’s status as a global hub.”
Major business hubs in the northern gateway include Woodlands Regional Centre and the new Agri-Food Innovation Park in Sungei Kadut. The eastern gateway includes Changi Business Park and the upcoming Changi East Urban District, and the western gateway is anchored by Jurong Lake District, which is set to become Singapore’s largest business district outside the central area.
Promoting a pro-enterprise operating environment will be a key focus; the Ministry of National Development will work with industry partners to catalyse new growth opportunities, Chee said.
“This includes empowering commercial property owners to undertake place management through the Business Improvement District initiative, and partnering local companies to develop innovative products and solutions, which can benefit the built-environment sector in Singapore and abroad.”
Expanded land, sea and air connectivity
On Thursday, Acting Minister for Transport Jeffrey Siow announced plans by his ministry to grow Singapore’s air, maritime and cross-border land connectivity.
“The Ministry of Transport (MOT) will continue to expand international linkages in air, sea and land transport through stronger international cooperation and strategic agreements with key partners,” he said.
“This will enhance Singapore’s role as a trusted node in the global supply chain and a vital connector between Asia and the world, while expanding opportunities for businesses, and creating good jobs for Singaporeans.”
By December 2026, the Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link is expected to begin service, connecting Woodlands North to Bukit Chagar in just five minutes.
The RTS, which is expected to carry up to 10,000 passengers an hour in each direction, will serve the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone and strengthen economic and people ties between Singapore and Malaysia, Siow said.
Changi Terminal 5, which will be operational in the mid-2030s, will raise Changi’s annual passenger capacity by more than 50 per cent, to serve about 50 million more passengers.
The Changi East Industrial Zone and the revamped Changi Airfreight Centre will boost Singapore’s air cargo handling capacity by 80 per cent to 5.4 million tonnes each year, Siow said.
The 40 hectare Changi East Urban District, sited at the doorstep of Terminal 5 (T5), will be developed into a new lifestyle and business hub.
Siow said: “Ahead of T5’s opening, MOT will work with tripartite partners to uplift aviation careers through jobs transformation, skills upgrading and adoption of technology such as autonomous airside vehicles and artificial intelligence to optimise operations. Our air hub will also become more sustainable with the use of sustainable aviation fuel.”
Tuas Port, when completed in the 2040s, will have a handling capacity of 65 million twenty-foot equivalent units annually, almost 60 per cent more than today.
On the domestic front, MOT will work with rail operators and workers to invest in systems and training to improve monitoring, maintenance and renewal of Singapore’s railway assets, Siow said.
“Maintaining high rail reliability standards will remain a key challenge as our network grows and ages.”
The government is continuing to expand the rail network. By the early 2030s, eight in 10 households will be within a 10-minute walk of a train station, making Singapore one of the most connected cities in the world, he said.
Autonomous vehicles will be deployed to complement the public transport network, enhancing first- and last-mile connectivity to and from transport nodes and key amenities, starting with Punggol by end-2025.
“In the coming years, we will close the loop for the Circle Line, extend the Downtown Line and Thomson-East Coast Line, and progressively open the new Jurong Region Line (JRL).”
“The next bound of rail expansion in the late 2030s and early 2040s will include JRL’s West Coast Extension, and the Seletar and Tengah lines.”
Tackling climate change
As Singapore works towards achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, the Ministry for Sustainability and the Environment (MSE) will work with partners to develop mitigation measures such as a carbon credits market and carbon capture, utilisation and storage solutions.
The carbon tax, introduced in 2019, is a key enabler that will send an economy-wide price signal to help businesses plan and internalise the cost of carbon emissions.
Singapore is also developing a national adaption plan that will articulate targeted strategies to address physical risks and the impact of climate change, Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu said.
To improve the country’s heat resilience, the ministry will bump up investments in science and technology to identify innovative and effective solutions to manage the effects of heat on Singapore’s population.
To prepare for rising sea levels, MSE is undertaking site-specific studies along Singapore’s coastline to implement coastal protection measures.
MSE will also enhance the nation’s food supply resilience by continuing to diversify its food import sources; it will also build up its stockpile of essential food items, and help Singapore’s local agri-food industry scale up and become more productive and climate-resilient.
“To support the provision of affordable food options, the government will invest up to S$1 billion to upgrade existing hawker centres and build five new ones over the next 20 to 30 years,” Fu said.
Another area the ministry will focus on is building capabilities in nuclear safety and governance.
As regional countries explore the use of nuclear energy, Singapore will strengthen its regional and international civil nuclear cooperation and enhance its incident-response capabilities, Fu said.
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