WP chief Pritam Singh renews call for interest-free SkillsFuture loan, not just S$4,000 top-up
Tessa Oh
WORKERS’ Party (WP) chief Pritam Singh on Monday (Feb 26) revived the party’s call for an interest-free SkillsFuture education loan, as the new S$4,000 SkillsFuture Credit top-up may not cover workers’ retraining needs.
“The WP foresees a need for even greater investments in our human capital in the future, especially in view of how rapidly the workplace landscape is changing,” said the Leader of the Opposition, opening the first day of the debate on Budget 2024.
The SkillsFuture credit top-up for Singaporeans aged 40 and above is thus “an important policy initiative of this Budget”. But many eligible courses may cost more than that, he noted.
The S$4,000 top-up will only be available for training programmes with better employability outcomes. These include part-time and full-time diplomas, post-diplomas, undergraduate programmes and courses for the Progressive Wage Model sectors.
To “further facilitate skills training and help Singaporean workers”, Singh proposed an interest-free SkillsFuture education loan – part of WP’s manifesto for the 2020 General Election.
“To start with, these loans can be calibrated towards courses in either high-growth industries that lack Singaporean manpower, or in other economically important areas,” said Singh.
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Financial insecurity – and thus the need for upskilling – was one of five points Singh raised in response to the Budget.
Another call was for the government to be more transparent and forthcoming with information so that Singaporeans can participate meaningfully in policy discussions.
Citing the S$5 billion set aside in Budget 2024 for Forward Singapore policies, with around S$40 billion to be spent by the end of the decade, Singh said the government should explain how it will deploy the monies “so that Singaporeans can understand what the PAP (People’s Action Party) believes the social compact of tomorrow requires”.
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Third, on retirement adeqacy, Singh said the Budget 2024 announcements of Central Provident Fund (CPF) top-ups “makes it clear that sufficiency of CPF balances for retirement is a serious and ongoing concern”.
He called for an examination of how much CPF monies should be set aside for housing, as the prices of Housing and Development Board flats go up.
Fourth, employers must do more to support workers, and ensure that workers benefit when the economy grows or companies receive government support. But consumers must also be prepared to pay more, he added.
“It cannot solely be left to businesses to absorb the additional cost of wages,” he said.
“If we have a shared future where there is a lack of support for paying our lowest-paid workers in step with economic fundamentals, that would reflect very poorly on Singapore.”
He further suggested that Singapore should legislate retrenchment benefits or introduce redundancy insurance for blue-collar workers.
Lastly, Singh raised immigration and integration as a key challenge to ensuring unity among Singaporeans.
“Better integration between races and communities must be an important feature of the new social compact,” he said, noting that immigration is a permanent feature of Singapore society.
The WP supports Budget 2024, said Singh, but added that “the real challenge” is for the PAP to be open and accommodate diverse views “on how to journey towards the destination envisaged by Forward Singapore”.
He noted that the Budget includes some past WP proposals, such as a temporary financial support scheme for involuntarily displaced workers.
“While the details may differ, the philosophy of supporting our involuntarily unemployed is one which the WP championed,” said Singh.
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