Children and Young Persons (Amendment) Bill

Thank you, Mr Speaker. We should reframe foster care to also include kinship care. Hong Kong had piloted a two-year project on Child Care Training for Grandparents with the aim to strengthen inter-generational family ties as well as scaling up childcaring skills. Perhaps we can learn from such initiatives as we align family policies with Active Ageing in strengthening family bonds.

Second, I urge the Ministry to consider a tiered foster care system with tiered allowances based on the complexities. The amount a foster carer would receive then takes into account both the "placement type", for example, care for children with special needs and disabilities alongside their "competence" to provide care for the children. This has been implemented in many independent, for-profit agencies, charities and area councils in the UK.

Next, I would like to propose tax relief for foster carers as means of recognition and retention as well as an incentive for more potential families to apply to the fostering scheme, as how the Australian government has incorporated tax exemptions into their fostering provisions.

And, finally, Mr Speaker, let us go upstream to look at preventive measures. Preventing delinquency and on-going offending behaviours is as important as downstream interventions, if not more, so that our children and youths can avoid the harmful effects of detention and incarceration, and the potential involvement with the adult criminal justice system.

One of the risk factors for delinquency is mental health disorders, which is increasing amongst children and young persons in Singapore. A record number of teenage boys committed suicide in 2018 according to SOS, and calls to SOS by children between five and nine have jumped by an alarming 500% within three years. A global study showed that young persons diagnosed with major depressive disorder were found to be more vulnerable to involvement in violence. It also found that depression in children and young persons may be harder to recognise and could manifest itself as irritability and aggressiveness. There is accumulating evidence that depression can be predictors of youth delinquency.

Currently, the programmes and interactions for children and young persons by SSAs, schools and grassroots are designed based on offending behaviours and not on the risk factors such as mental health conditions. Can we create an inclusive environment by training community workers to identify and respond to these mental health risk factors as well?

Mr Speaker, another risk factor is the community that a child grows up in. How can we do more to provide our children and the young persons with a nurturing and stimulating environment, especially so in at-risk neighbourhoods?

Community workers at Beyond Social Services facilitate competent communities in rental housing neighbourhoods across Singapore. They believe in engaging children and young persons in the longer term, and nurture family and community support around them. An example of a participatory design project is at the Kebun Baru neighbourhood where community needs assessment conducted earlier in the year highlighted the needs of the children and young persons such as the lack of playground, halal food facilities and the feeling of a safe, inclusive environment. Currently, community-based conversations are being held with grassroots support to visualise what different segments of the community would envision for their neighbourhood.

Another example of re-purposing the immediate environment is Project Hearts in Nee Soon East which also highlights active citizenry among its residents. The group saw a need to kick off with academic and play support programmes for the children in Yishun Blocks 269A and 269B. Bernard, born with a congenital development condition that affects the spine, leads the academic outreach of Project Hearts in collaboration with the Singapore Red Cross. During the sessions, the void deck is converted into a study area with portable chairs and tables and the session caters to the needs of children in the area. The children feel they are part of a community whilst their academic and play needs are being met in a holistic way.

It takes a community to raise a child, indeed. How can we enable more of such efforts that empower the community and therefore, our children and youths? Children and youths are key drivers for inclusive growth and sustainable development of a society.

Mr Speaker, I would like to end by sharing these powerful words from Nelson Mandela – he said, "history will judge us by the difference we make in the everyday lives of our children.'' And also how we protect them, I believe. Because it is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men and women.

We – the Government, the community and the family – must share this paramount responsibility of protecting each and every one of our children and young persons and do everything possible to create enabling and nurturing environments for them to learn, to live, to love and be loved so that they can thrive and contribute meaningfully to society.

Before I completely end, I would like to also take this opportunity, Mr Speaker, to thank the everyday and invisible heroes in child protection work from the Ministry and the community for their dedication and compassion. I support the Bill.