National Day Rally 2013: As it happened

SINGAPORE - Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong delivered his National Day Rally 2013 speech today (Aug 18) at ITE Headquarters and College Central, outlining key policy changes. From 6.45pm to 7.30pm, Mr Lee delivered the Malay and Mandarin portions of his speech. Following an intermission, he delivered his English speech from 8pm to 10pm. 6.47pm: “At the An Nur Mosque during Ramadan, I saw the “gotong royong” spirit. I would like to see this grow over time.” Full story at: http://tdy.sg/19r3TlE 6.49pm: Mr Lee said in the Malay portion of the National Day Rally: “In next few years, 3 new mosques will be built in Woodlands, Jurong West and Punggol. By 2013, 18,000 more prayer spaces will be added. This is good news for Muslims.” 6.50pm: “All should have opportunities to do well. You should not worry about healthcare, old age and housing. The state has to strengthen our social safety nets, foster fairer opportunities and rewards for all Singaporeans.” 6.52pm: On helping low income households, Mr Lee said: “Every child should have a good start in life, regardless of background. We will extend Edusave accounts, contributions to all students, whether in madrasahs, abroad or homeschooled.” 7.07pm: In the Mandarin portion of his National Day Rally, Mr Lee said: “For this generation’s children, education levels, economic well-being, life expectancy have all gone up. 7.08pm: “I believe European economies will recover, and prospects for China are good.” 7.09pm: “Singapore has a stable economy, high employment. But there will be downsides as we transform our economy. We need to control foreign worker numbers, or it will lead to serious consequences.” 7.10pm: On the foreign worker issue, Mr Lee said: “The Government understands difficulties that businesses have, and we will try our best to help.” 7.16pm: “Schemes to help the needy represent a fundamental shift in strategy. It is a new approach and a different mindset for the Government. We hope to better understand peoples’ concerns, move with changing social needs, and support all Singaporeans.” 7.17pm: “We need to strike a new balance between the roles of the Government, community and the individual. The Government and community will share a larger part of individuals’ burdens. We need to help those with less to strengthen social cohesion and ensure there is no division between the rich and poor. 7.22pm: On major investments in pre-school education, Mr Lee said: “Over the next five years, we will add 20,000 childcare spaces.” 7.24pm: “To show the pioneer generation our appreciation, the Government will strengthen social safety nets and reduce their worries. We must take special care of those in difficult circumstances, especially the low income and elderly” 7.25pm: “There will be more support to help SMEs meet the challenges of economic restructuring.” More details at: http://tdy.sg/16yJNY1 8.00pm: Beginning the English portion of the National Day Rally, Mr Lee said: “The National Day Rally is held at ITE to underscore my commitment to nurture all to full potential and signal a turning point for Singapore." 8.06pm: “47,000 Our Singapore Conversation participants wanted to see opportunities, purpose, assurance, community spirit and trust in Singapore. Their biggest takeaway from OSC is the spirit of openness and the realization that others had different, convlicting views.” 8.08pm: “We are facing competition from technology, artificial intelligence and emerging economies. 8.10pm: “Society is becoming more stratified and less mobile as children of successful Singaporeans are more likely to do well. Singaporeans sense, correctly, that the country is at a turning point. I understand your concerns.” 8.14pm: We must make a strategic shift in our approach to nation-building. The community and Government will have to do more to support individuals, The Government will continue to provide core public services – housing, education, healthcare – but make 3 shifts. We have to give all a fair share in Singapore’s success, strengthen social safety nets and keep paths upwards open to all. Read the full story at: http://tdy.sg/13JutSx 8.18pm: Singapore has succeeded because everyone shared in fruits of our progress. We have achieved growth with equity. On average, even the poorest one-fifth of households have S$200,000 of net wealth in their HDB flat. HOUSING 8.20pm: “We built record number of new flats, delinked new flat prices from resale market and allowed singles to buy BTO. We want to help Singaporeans own their own homes, raise loving families and build strong communities. I will make sure every Singaporean family who is working can afford a HDB flat. We can do that.” 8.24pm: “A family earning $1,000 can afford a 2-room flat. Those who earn $2,000 can buy 3-room flat. And those who earn S$4,000 can afford a 4-roomm flat if they use their CPF to pay off 25-year loan. We will give families who can afford 2-room flats Step-Up Housing Grants to help them upgrade to 3-room flats. We will also extend grants so that a middle-income household will get up to S$20,000 more if they buy a 4-room flat.” Full story at: http://tdy.sg/14r1W4i 8.26pm: “We will monitor housing affordability closely and make sure that an HDB flat is always within reach.” HEALTHCARE 8.35pm: “We will improve healthcare financing to give all Singaporeans more peace of mind. We will remove the age floor to include younger Singaporeans in Community Health Assist Scheme. We will also increase subsidies (now 50 per cent) for lower and middle-income patients visiting Specialist Outpatient Clinics.” Read the full story at: http://tdy.sg/13JxL8r 8.37pm: PM Lee on requests for Medisave to be used for more outpatient treatments: “We will study carefully how to do this.” 8.39pm: We will revamp MediShield, to become MediShield Life because it will cover for life, not stop at 90. MediShield Life will give better protection for very large bills so patients will pay less out-of-pocket. Premiums will be higher but the Government will subsidise those who can’t afford the premiums. Full story at: http://tdy.sg/14TzhuM 8.42pm: We must take care of our pioneer generation. They are special and have worked hard to build today's Singapore. The Government has launched the Pioneer Generation Package to help them pay for their MediShield-Life premiums. More details at: http://tdy.sg/14TzyOj 8.45pm: The Government will provide more healthcare subsidies, and therefore Medisave contribution rates must go up. EDUCATION 8.49pm: “Through keeping paths upwards wide open to all, we have enhanced our human potential and created hope for all. The Government will contribute to the Edusave accounts of every child aged 7-16, including home-schoolers, madrasah and those studying overseas.” 8.52pm: Parents and students have preferences for certain schools. I believe we can make every school a good school. 8.57pm: I think it is good that we have some schools which are known as outstanding, so long as we keep system open. Outstanding students should always be able to make it to top. We cannot have a closed, self-perpetuating elite. We must create an education landscape with a high base and many peaks of excellence. 8.59pm: The focus of education is now more on examination performance than on actual learning. We must recalibrate to keep system open, focus our efforts on things which matter more than grades in the long run. 9.00pm: From next year, every primary school will set aside at least 40 places for children with no prior connection. We will give every child a chance to enter the primary school of his choice and we will continue to upgrade the quality of schools. Full story at: http://tdy.sg/14TzXQW 9.05pm: Parents think PSLE determines a student’s future, hence there is tremendous stress as the whole family takes the PSLE. Today, parents ask one another – what is your child’s T-score? I don't think this is healthy at age of 12. 9.08pm: PM Lee on T-Scores: We shouldn't decide on secondary school postings based on such fine distinctions. We will use wider bands for PSLE grades like the O and A levels to give space to educate students more holistically. More details at: http://tdy.sg/14TzIFA 9.10pm: We want to create flexibility in secondary schools so students can tailor education to their abilities and interests. 9.16pm: Top schools should take not just those with top grades, but also those with other special qualities. We will broaden the Direct School Admissions categories to admit those with qualities like character, drive and leadership. 9.21pm: “We must recognise people for effort, not backgrounds. Society cannot be based on guanxi (connections). If you succeed under our meritocratic system, you should feel the duty to contribute back to society.” Mr Lee cites Dr Yeo Sze Ling of A*Star: “She proves you can do well if you work hard.” FUTURE PLANS 9.29pm: New policies are significant shifts, but our ultimate destination and core purpose have not changed. We are not taking these steps because our system is bad. On the contrary, we are starting from a good position. The new strategic direction will take us down a different road from the one that has brought us this far. But this new direction is not without risk. We have to tread carefully and beware pitfalls. 9.33pm: PM: We have to be prepared to pay for measures, whether by raising taxes or cutting back on other spending. 9.35pm: We have to be prepared to pay for measures, whether by raising taxes or cutting back on other spending. It is my responsibility to help young Singaporeans build the Singapore of their dreams. To realise these dreams, we need to do the tangible things: Build our city, improve our living environment. 9.44pm: We will build the new Terminal 4 at Changi Airport, plus replace the open-air carpark at Terminal 1 with something codenamed “Project Jewel”. We are also already planning Terminal 5 to double Changi Airport's capacity, which will be completed by the mid-2020s. Full story at: http://tdy.sg/14XXa1z 9.45pm: Paya Lebar Airbase will be moved to Changi and we will build a new RSAF airbase and a fourth runway at Changi East. Relocating Paya Lebar Airbase removes height restrictions, frees up 800 hectares to develop new and exciting plans. More details at: http://tdy.sg/14r2yXI 9.47pm: We are building a new port in Tuas. All container ports will be moved there from 2027 onwards. The Tuas port plans will free up prime land in Tanjong Pagar, where we will build the brand new Southern Waterfront City. 9.49pm: Very few countries or cities can think or plan over such a long term. But Singapore has been able to do it. In a deeper sense, these are not merely plans; these are acts of faith – in Singapore and in ourselves. 9.50pm: “We may have made major shifts in our policies, but our core purpose has not changed. To create opportunities for Singaporeans to do their best; to invest in every Singaporean, and develop their innate talent; to keep Singapore a place where the human spirit thrives. “We are not done building Singapore; we never will be done. Work with me, and with one another . Together, let us forge our new way forward. Together, let us create a better future for all Singaporeans.”