The bloody cheek to make such a statement!!!
IF it is our RESPONSIBILITY, then why fark don't they let people
KEEP or SAVE their own money???
Why must government hold on to it? OUR responsibility what!
What the FARK!
===========================================
Your piggy bank, you chip
in
Government's role is to ensure S'poreans save up enough funds for
retirement: Minister
Lee U-Wen
IT WILL help Singaporeans make sure they have enough in their
retirement piggy bank, but filling it up must be the
responsibility of every citizen
not the Government..
This was the underlying message from Second Finance Minister
Tharman Shanmugaratnam yesterday, as he spoke for the first time in
the ongoing parliamentary debate on changes to the Central
Provident Fund (CPF) scheme.
.
Nearly 30 Members of Parliament (MPs) have spoken after hearing
Manpower Minister Ng Eng Hen's ministerial statement on the issue
on Monday. Some have asked the Government to top up the proposed
compulsory annuity scheme in times of budget surpluses, for
instance, while another called instead for a national pension plan
that draws on the national reserves.
.
Such sentiments were met with a clear signal from Mr
Shanmugaratnam: Should the Government take over the role of
providing for everyone's retirement, "this would mean that
regardless of how much you save, it would be there as a doorstop to
ensure you have enough for old age".
.
He added: "If we do that, there will be less and less reason to
save. Over time, people will save less, knowing that Government
will pay."
.
This is how many countries have ended up with high taxes and
unsustainable pension schemes, he pointed out.
.
"What is absolutely critical is that we preserve the ethic of
self-reliance, where every Singaporean knows and understands he has
to work and save for future needs," the Minister stressed.
.
For the CPF scheme to be "fiscally sustainable" in the long run, it
was important that it did not end up subsidising existing interest
rates, or paying above market rates.
.
"Our fundamental principle must be to peg CPF interest rates to
those in the financial markets, to instruments of comparable risk
and duration. The ability to pay interest on CPF balances will also
depend on financial market conditions," he said.
.
Several MPs queried the Government's ability to sustain the CPF
changes, which would cost $700 million a year. Ms Josephine Teo
(Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC) noted that this amount was equal to a
1-percentage-point increase in the Goods and Services Tax, and
asked if this would open the door for future tax hikes.
.
Mr Shanmugaratnam assured the House that the CPF Board would foot
the bill through the interest received on bonds purchased from the
Government. This purchase would incur a cost, which will have to
paid for using the investment returns on CPF monies.
.
To avoid adding to this cost burden on the scheme, the Government
has to avoid paying above market rate for CPF interest.
.
"Paying market rates ... keeps the CPF a self-sustaining savings
scheme that does not result in the Government running deficits," he
said. "It should never become a draw on past reserves."
.
President S R Nathan has been briefed on the CPF changes and "is
satisfied" that reserves will remain untouched, he added.
.
What the state will subsidise, however, is Workfare which will
add $80 million a year to take total spending on this scheme to
more than $400 million.
.
Another $1.2 billion over ten years will also be spent on the
one-off Deferment and Voluntary Deferment Bonuses, with the minimum
sum draw-down age being pushed back from 62 in 2012 to 65 in
2018.
.
"Our approach (is) to put any subsidies on the Government budget
and make sure that we can afford them," said Mr
Shanmugaratnam.
.
Mr Inderjit Singh (Ang Mo Kio GRC) had suggested using the national
reserves to underwrite a national pension plan, arguing that this
was affordable because Temasek Holdings had earned 18 per cent a
year on its investments since its inception.
.
And on the controversial topic of annuities, Opposition MP Low Thia
Khiang (Hougang) yesterday suggested creating a state-funded
longevity fund, instead of making it compulsory for Singaporeans to
pay premiums themselves.
.
Said Mr Shanmugaratnam: "It will not be wise for the Government to
do this, or for Singaporeans to want the Government to do this. We
know that these pressures will build up over time for us to spend
more, grant more, subsidise more. It's in the nature of every
society, especially when it gets older."
.
The Minister gave the assurance that any surpluses earned from
investments would be channelled back to society for example
through CPF top-ups, housing, education and Workfare.
Government's role is to ensure S'poreans save up enough funds for
retirement: Minister
