Number of Eligible Recipients of Government Assistance and Review of Income Eligibility Criteria

Ms See Jinli Jean asked the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) for the past five years, what is the annual number of recipients of Government assistance who are on debt repayment arrangements; (b) whether the Ministry can consider reviewing the income eligibility criteria for its assistance schemes and grants to accommodate applications from families in financial hardship that are contributed in part by formal debt repayment arrangements or who are financing the long-term care of dependants including aged relatives; and (c) if not, why not.

In assessing ComCare applications, the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) does not consider debt repayments by the household and the information is not collected in the application. Hence, MSF does not have the data requested.

The Member appears to be suggesting that higher income households who have debts should be eligible for ComCare, because their expenses include debt repayment. This would be difficult to justify on principled grounds. While the desire to relieve the burden of debt is understandable, we cannot ignore the real and high likelihood that this creates the wrong incentives. We should not inadvertently induce households to make rash decisions to take on higher debt, while expecting that tax-funded social safety nets will bail them out. This would undermine the social compact and public support for a social safety net for Singaporeans.

The Member raised a second scenario, involving households that face financial hardship supporting their elderly dependants. For such cases, they may approach the Social Service Offices for assistance. Where necessary, clients with long-term care needs will be referred to Government agencies and community partners for the relevant support. The household can then direct their income towards the needs of other members of the household.