Support Measures for Middle-income Households and Retirees Exempt from Other Help Schemes for Impending Rise in Electricity and Gas Tariffs

10 Ms Jessica Tan Soon Neo asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry with electricity and gas tariffs set to rise for October to December period, what measures are being considered to support middle-income households and retirees who do not qualify for existing schemes such as the GST Voucher or Assurance Package, but who nonetheless experience financial strain from rising utility cost.

The Minister for Manpower (Dr Tan See Leng) (for the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry): Mr Speaker, Sir, for the period from October to December 2025, these coming three months, electricity and town gas tariffs have increased slightly by 0.3% from the preceding quarter. This is due to higher imported fuel costs.

The majority of Singaporean households living in Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats, including middle-income households and retirees, receive the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Voucher, U-Save to offset their utilities bills. In addition, there are other schemes available to help with the cost of living, such as, the Community Development Council (CDC) vouchers and the Assurance Package. Residents who do not qualify for such schemes, who might nonetheless experience financial difficulties, may seek assistance from their local Social Service Office if they require assistance to meet basic needs.

Mr Speaker: Ms Jessica Tan.

Ms Jessica Tan Soon Neo (East Coast): Thank you, Mr Speaker. I do know that U-Save and GST vouchers are for those middle-income and those in public housing. My question was really for more the retirees who live in private properties, who do not have access or eligibility to these U-Save vouchers. While the increase is small in the light of high cost of living, it does impact our retirees. So, I would ask if there would be consideration of support schemes that could help our retirees who live in modest private property.

Dr Tan See Leng: I thank Ms Tan for her supplementary question. For this year, for Budget 2025, all Singaporeans will also benefit from the SG60 package, which includes $600 to $800 in vouchers. Of course, there is also the personal income tax rebate. But for retirees, really, that may not apply that much to them.

The SG60 vouchers would also be given out to middle-income households and retirees. So, for retirees, those who are aged 60 and above, they are eligible for $800 in vouchers, and for those who are between 21 and 59, in the event that they are also retired after 55, they would be eligible for $600 in SG60 vouchers.

All Singaporean households are eligible for $800 in CDC vouchers, so these vouchers for this year itself will benefit around three million Singaporean adults, of which, around 1.1 million, about a third, are aged 60 and above. The CDC vouchers will benefit around 1.3 million Singaporean households. It will go some way in alleviating some of these concerns.

Looking forward, we are watching and monitoring the pricing of our imported natural gas very closely. With regard to the U-Save vouchers, while we put it out to help HDB households, we would also strongly ask for support from all of our Singaporeans to conserve energy because the more we provide in terms of grants or support, and if energy consumption continues to increase, for us over the long haul, it would be very difficult to sustain. I hope that gives the Member the reassurance.