See why roughly 7 of 10 Singaporeans support Budget 2014 initiatives

Disability subsidies, healthcare measures prove popular.

More than seven out of 10 Singaporeans surveyed in REACH's Budget Poll have shown support for the initiatives announced at Budget 2014, and agreed that the new Pioneer Generation Package (PGP) will help ensure affordable healthcare for Singaporeans aged 65 and above.

In a telephone poll which surveyed 946 residents, respondents expressed support for the additional health, social and transport subsidies announced. 68% also agreed with increase in CPF employer contribution rates for older workers.

REACH’s Budget Poll showed that, besides the PGP, other Budget measures towards building A Fair and Equitable Society, such as Greater Support for Persons with Disabilities and Support for Older Singaporeans also received broad support

Breaking down the key findings from the Budget 2014 poll, more than 7 in 10, or 73% of respondents agreed that the subsidies for persons with disabilities and their care-givers, such as enhanced subsidies for the Early Intervention Programme for Infants and Children (EIPIC), additional transport subsidies, and Enhanced Handicapped Dependent reliefs, will provide significant support for lower- and middle-income households.

Close to 7 in 10 (68%) of respondents agreed that the increase in CPF employer contribution rates for older workers is a step in the right direction. In addition to the 1 percentage point increase in Medisave contribution rate for all workers, older workers aged 50 to 55 will see their CPF contribution rates raised by 1.5 percentage points, while those aged 55 to 65 will see an increase of 0.5 percentage points.

65% agreed that the enhanced subsidies for pre-school and bursaries for tertiary education will provide significant financial support for lower- and middle-income households.

64% of respondents agreed that the increase in healthcare subsidies and employer CPF contributions by 1 percentage point to Medisave will significantly improve healthcare affordability for lower- and middle-income Singaporeans.

64% also agreed that the additional GST Vouchers and rebates on HDB conservancy charges will provide significant help for older lower-income Singaporeans and HDB dwellers.

The telephone poll findings are largely aligned with the feedback received on REACH platforms and engagement sessions. Similar to the high level of support for the PGP in the telephone poll, REACH contributors lauded the PGP as a “strong commitment” by the Government to look after the pioneer generation in their golden years.

There was also appreciation towards the additional support for persons with disabilities. However, some called for more help to be extended to the mentally disabled as well as additional healthcare subsidies for children with special needs. There were also some concerns that increase in the CPF contribution rates for older workers might lead to a rise in elderly unemployment as it could make hiring older workers more costly.

On measures to enhance healthcare affordability, many welcomed the enhanced healthcare subsidies, though some REACH contributors called for more sustainable ways to manage rising healthcare costs. Contributors had some reservations on the 1 percentage point increase in employers’ contributions to Medisave as they noted that employers will have to deal with higher overheads. There were also calls for more flexible use of Medisave for outpatient treatments, scans and non-standard medication, with some of these requests subsequently addressed in the Ministry of Health’s Committee of Supply debate on the expansion of Medisave usage