Archives of Parliamentary Excerpts, Press Releases, and Speeches
4 October 2008
JBJ in Memorial
21 January 2008
Speech in Parliament by Chiam See Tong on HDB upgrading
22 October 2007
Amendment of the Panel Code
5 October 2007
Press release on Myanmar's Military Junta
22 May 2007
Parliamentary Debates
9 April 2007
Speech in Parliament by Chiam See Tong on Ministers' salary hikes
4 February 2007
Speech during MP's dialogue session by Lim Bak Chuan on GST increase
09 February 09
I like to talk about a proposal to help ease the financial burden of parents of full time matriculated Polytechnic/ Tertiary students.
All full-time students in Singapore are eligible to purchase monthly concession passes. However, full time matriculated Polytechnic/ Tertiary students are treated differently vis-à-vis Junior College (JC) students and students from the Institute of Technical Education (ITE).
For example, - A JC/ITE student now pays $27.50/month for a Bus Concession Pass, whereas a Polytechnic/Tertiary student is charged $52/month for the same Pass.
- A JC/ITE student pays $25 for a Train Concession Pass while a Polytechnic/Tertiary student is charged $45 for the exact same card. - A JC/ITE student pays $52.50 for a Hybrid Concession Pass (combination of Bus and Train Concession Pass); a Polytechnic/Tertiary student is charged $97 for the exact same card.
The percentage difference in prices ranges from 80 per cent to 89 per cent. There is a sharp contrast to the amount junior college (JC) students and students from the Institutes of Technical Education (ITE) are paying to purchase the same concession passes under the same terms of use. Why should JC students get more advantage over their polytechnic/ITE peers? After all, they were from the same GCE ‘O’ or ‘N’ level cohort a year ago. Students should not be penalized for studying in a Polytechnic or Institute of Technical Education (ITE).
In London, those students aged 16 to 18-year-old who live in a London borough and are still in qualifying full-time education can also apply to get free travel on buses and trams. 18 above Full time Student tickets costs 30 per cent lesser than adults for season tickets. Comparatively, the public transport operators in Singapore hardly qualify as generous.
I urge the Government to establish a fairer system of charging of Concession Pass for all students, whether be it from Junior Colleges, ITE or Polytechnic.
By adjusting the prices for Concession Pass for Polytechnic/ITE students, we will be able to relieve the heavy financial burden for families; especially those lower, middle income ones with at least a child in a polytechnic/ tertiary institution. At a time of belt-tightening in expenditure, every little concession will go a long way to cut expenses for households already strapped with high living costs.