Today, Minister Desmond Lee filed a Motion in response to the PSP’s motion to debate our public housing policies, much like what DPM Lawrence Wong had done during the #PSPJobsDebate in September 2021.
The PSP’s Motion:
PUBLIC HOUSING POLICIES: That this House calls upon the Government to review its public housing policies in order to deliver affordable and accessible HDB flats to all Singaporeans, strengthen the owner-occupation intent of public housing, protect retirement adequacy and keep public housing inclusive for every Singaporean of each generation.
The PAP’s Motion:
AFFORDABLE AND ACCESSIBLE PUBLIC HOUSING: That this House affirms the importance of keeping public housing affordable and accessible while protecting the interests of current and future generations of Singaporeans, and endorses the commitment of the Government to these twin goals.
It is well within the Government’s rights to do this, but Singaporeans should be aware that this strategy allows the Minister to open the debate with an extensive statement advancing the Government’s position that will undoubtedly be covered extensively in the mainstream media.
I urge Singaporeans to also pay close attention to the arguments and alternative policies that Hazel Poa Koon Koon 潘群勤 and I will present on behalf of the PSP in Parliament and come to their own conclusions. I will post transcripts and videos of my speeches shortly after the debate on my Facebook page and my website, leongmunwai.sg.
The Government disagrees that it has not done enough to deliver affordable and accessible HDB flats. But if this was true, housing affordability would not be top of mind for many Singaporeans and there would be no need to spend so much Parliamentary time debating this issue, which has generated keen public interest. Singaporeans will be the judge of whether enough has been done to ensure that public housing remains affordable.
Justice is in the Hearts of the People.
Singaporeans Deserve Better.
For Country For People.
