PAR proposes free education, school meals, healthcare for children

Programmes can be funded using interest earned from investing CPF money: Lim Tean

- Vanessa Paige Chelvan

Opposition coalition People's Alliance for Reform (PAR) will push for free education, school meals and healthcare for Singaporean children if elected, secretary-general Lim Tean said on April 26.

Speaking at PAR's first rally of this general election at Northlight School in Towner Road, Mr Lim said this could improve Singapore's "disastrous" total fertility rate of 0.97.

These free programmes can be funded without taxing citizens further or dipping into the reserves, Mr Lim claimed, by using the interest the Government earns from investing Singaporeans' CPF money.

Mr Lim added that he will cut down on "wasteful expenses" such as the Founders Memorial and what he described as "a bloated civil service".

He suggested that providing free education, school meals and healthcare could lower the cost of living and encourage Singaporeans to have more children, which would make Singapore less reliant on foreigners.