Overheard in Parliament: The best quotes and the more forgettable ones from Day 2 of Budget debate

SINGAPORE — On the second day of the Budget debate, 25 Members of Parliament (MPs) shared their views on topics ranging from Singapore’s low birth rate to inequality in schools. Here is a selection of quotes that got our attention.

HITS

• “If low fertility rate is an existential threat to the nation, then it should be given the highest priority. Singapore has thrown everything but the kitchen sink at this problem. Perhaps it is time to throw the kitchen sink!” — Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC MP Ong Teng Koon

• “There will be inequality in our education system. The fact is that not everybody is the same. But our students are not stupid and should not feel that they are, or face that kind of stigma. We need to make sure their future is not decided by one major exam. We need to make sure that like where we live, we don’t have social stratification in where we study.” — Nee Soon GRC MP Louis Ng

• “If we are to commemorate the bicentennial, we must also recognise the less savoury aspects of it — practices and ideas designed to meet the needs and maximise the profits of the empire at the expense of the indigenous population.” – Jalan Besar GRC MP Yaacob Ibrahim

• “We cannot continue this path of racing to the last dollar for value of contracts, asking for more productivity from (low-income) workers without paying for tools or environment that aid their productivity improvement, assigning more tasks to them when we can do some on our own, even something as simple as clearing our own plates or trays after a meal.” — Fengshan MP Cheryl Chan

• “Singaporeans must be in charge of asking the critical questions about who we are, what the problems in society are, and how to solve them. We have always said that no one owes us a living. But no one owes us an answer either, about the key questions of our society and economy." — Nominated MP Walter Theseira 

MISSES

• “A national budget is a strategic plan to allocate resources across competing needs — be it defence, economic, human, social or environmental. Some of these needs are current. Others involve investing for and securing the future.” — Nominated MP Abbas Ali Mohamed Irshad

• “We want to give our workers the opportunity to access quality jobs, as long as they are prepared to work hard, be productive and gain the necessary skills required to become competitive.” — Mr Zaqy Mohamad, Minister of State for National Development and Manpower, Chua Chu Kang GRC MP