Raise water prices by as much as 100% to reflect production cost: Economist

[winphenom]

Originally Posted by sadfa

This asshole aiming to be asshole of the month.

Even more obnoxious than Vivian khaw n shanmmugam.

What the fuck. He even dare say forefathers. Who the fuck is forefather????
Did he weep when he say that
_____
Exchange points obnoxious ma

He seems to be getting a little hard headed and authoritarian these days. His manner and actions are slowly becoming high handed to almost proud. Maybe because he seems destined to be the next prime minister.

[sadfa]

Originally Posted by winphenom

He seems to be getting a little hard headed and authoritarian these days. His manner and actions are slowly becoming high handed to almost proud. Maybe because he seems destined to be the next prime minister.

These ccb are all small children wearing adult pants. They don't know how to Govern.

So what so they do?
They mindlessly copy old man I mean forefathers.
As if 70s tactics can work in 2017. Knn. Use ford model t race masarati La.
Fucking disaster

These ccb should know what ppl want n work for them. Not rule for themselves. I mean for spore!!! Spore!! If they cannot rule properly, they should resign. ASAP.

All those idiots who miss the good ole days, stay tune to the new Marxist conspiracy, long term detention by isa, toadying media n bootlickers, Bullying of unions, calling opposition mangy dogs n shutting them down. Public scolding n bragging what tough fighters they are.

Stupid sporeans really really deserve to rot with these assholes. And continue dreaming when get gst credits
_____
Exchange points good ole days ma

[fr90r]

This is a "Adult Discussions about SEX" forum, please bring your political agenda elsewhere.

[Masonic]

Originally Posted by fr90r

This is a "Adult Discussions about SEX" forum, please bring your political agenda elsewhere.

Who say we are not discussing about SEX?

We are FUCKING those damn greedy white BASTARDS!!!!

[itsabt6x]

Originally Posted by masonic

who say we are not discussing about sex?

We are fucking those damn greedy white bastards!!!! :d :d

rofl......

[sadfa]

Originally Posted by fr90r

This is a "Adult Discussions about SEX" forum, please bring your political agenda elsewhere.

Soooooooooo wats your problem.

You love porn So much it must be pure n unadulterated??? Like that cannot have advertising hor???

0r you're such a bootlicker, u can't stand garbagement being criticized at all
______
Exchange points pure n unadulterated ma

[skyleon]

Budget is about securing S’pore’s collective future, says Chun Sing



By Tan Weizhen

Published: 4:00 AM, March 2, 2017

Updated: 12:10 PM, March 2, 2017




SINGAPORE — For many individuals and businesses, the Budget was about “how much do I get?”, but there is much more at stake than just increasing government spending to take care of individual short-term pain, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Chan Chun Sing yesterday.

Rather, the Budget must be about Singapore’s “collective future”, said Mr Chan, as he dismissed talk that the Budget this year is a “political” one that has ignored the short-term needs of businesses and individuals.

Mr Chan was one of 34 members of the House who spoke on the second day of the Budget debate, during which Members of Parliament also spoke of the need for better protection for workers amid shifting job trends, and more help for society’s vulnerable groups. The water tariffs hike was also again discussed, with two ministers — Mr Chan and Environment and Water Resources Minister Masagos Zulkifli — defending the move.

Delivering his speech, Mr Chan said: “Many have asked if the Budget can be a bit more generous, if the Government can spend a bit more. But let us take a look at our Budget position carefully.”

The Republic, he said, is “living on the income of our savings”. This year’s budget of about S$70 billion is in part propped up by about S$14 billion in Net Investment Returns derived from the reserves — the biggest of the Government’s top four revenue streams.

Noting this was not the case a few years ago, Mr Chan said the Government’s revenue streams depend on the status of the world economy, and the question is whether this is sustainable.

Politicians will speak up for those to need more, but political leaders, he said, must face the issue squarely — how to distribute finite resources. Questioning if Government should be apologetic for helping those who need more help, Mr Chan said: “It means that some of us who are more privileged will have to foot the bigger bill. Is that the right thing to do? I think so.”

He also refuted the suggestion that this year’s Budget was a “wait and see” one — a term used by Workers’ Party Non-Constituency Member of Parliament Daniel Goh on Tuesday during the debate.

Said Mr Chan: “If this is a wait-and-see budget, we won’t have to put in place the mechanisms for carbon pricing, we won’t have to talk about diesel tax, we won’t have to talk abt water tax. If this is a political budget, we won’t have to talk about any of this.”

It takes courage and “political leadership” to tell people to aspire to a higher goal, “beyond what’s in it for me”, he said.

To prepare for the long-term changes, Mr Chan, who also secretary-general of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), said that the priority now is on jobs — an issue raised by several MPs yesterday.

Some noted the rise of the gig economy and the need for more support for them, such as mandatory medical benefits. Others wanted more to be done for disadvantaged workers and schemes that better match workers to available jobs, with Mr Patrick Tay (West Coast GRC) pointing out that the number of job vacancies mean nothing to workers who still cannot find work.

Mr Chan said the labour movement will work with businesses and Institutes of Higher Learning to strengthen the overall job placement system, by integrating back-end systems so that workers receive help no matter which career centre they go to. It is even prepared to work with agencies such as LinkedIn, he added.

NTUC, together with other agencies, will also look into the new forms of employment such as freelancers and contract workers, as well as protections for this group.

Weighing in on the water price hikes, Mr Chan said that the “intense discussion” so far indicates that it has been left out of “our national psyche for too long”, and the authorities need to do more to “socialise our people to the challenges we are facing on the water front”.

While he understood the angst felt by some, water is “existential”. Singapore now has 17 reservoirs and two-thirds of Singapore’s entire land is made up of water catchment areas.

Technology has helped Singapore meet some of its water demand, but its people still need to be prudent in using the resource. “How many more desalination plants and NEWater plants must we build in order for water to never be a weapon pointing at our head?” he said.

He also warned that water needs of people in the southern Malaysian state are increasing, and Malaysia is also extracting water upstream of Linggiu Reservoir — which Singapore depends on to draw water reliably from the Johor River.


continue reading here : http://www.todayonline.com/singapore...says-chun-sing

[skyleon]

Masagos: Consumers must realise how valuable water is


Environment Minister says water is a "national security issue"



Ronald Loh
Reporter

Mar 02, 2017 06:00 am


Water prices were increased substantially to reflect its true scarcity value, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Masagos Zulkifli told Parliament yesterday.

As MPs debated the Budget for the second day, he addressed the hot topic of the tariff hike announced by Finance Minister Heng Swee Keaton Feb 20.

Mr Heng had said the price of water will go up - the first increase in 17 years - by 30 per cent in two phases, starting from July 1, to pay for more costly methods of obtaining fresh water from seawater and get people to conserve water.

On Tuesday, several MPs raised concerns that the price hike could hit smaller businesses with higher costs.

Yesterday, Mr Masagos said water is unlike any other ordinary commodity in Singapore.

"Water is a strategic issue. It is a national security issue. We must price water fully," he said.

"The consumer must feel the price of water and realise how valuable water is in Singapore, every time he or she turns on the tap, right from the first drop."

He explained that water costs have also gone up.

For example, the first-year price of desalination for Singapore's first plant - the SingSpring Desalination Plant - in 2005 was 78 cents per cubic metre (m3), but the first-year price for the latest plant at Marina East was $1.08 per m3, about 40 per cent more.

Mr Masagos said there is a limit to recycling water, hence the need to rely on desalination plants, of which three more will be built in the next three years.

He also said PUB is more than doubling the rate of renewal for old pipelines from the current 20km per year, to 50km per year, to minimise disruptions.

This - coupled with the depletion of Johor's Linggiu Reservoir, which Singapore draws water from - means it was urgent that policies and the right pricing are in place to moderate demand to ensure a secure water supply.

Mr Masagos said awarding rebates to those who save water would be counter-intuitive to ensuring they pay for the cost of producing water.


continue reading here : http://www.tnp.sg/news/singapore/mas...valuable-water


The increase in water consumption is due to your increase in population . Not only Singaporeans must be educated to save water but the many foreign workers need to be educated as well.

[skyleon]

Minister Chan Chun Sing rejects WP's take on Budget 2017



TOH YONG CHUAN, THE STRAITS TIMES


Mar 02, 2017 06:00 am



Budget 2017 was neither politically motivated nor one that took a "wait-and-see attitude", Minister in the Prime Minister's Office Chan Chun Sing said yesterday, refuting the arguments of the Workers' Party (WP).

Instead, the key thrust of the Budget is to distribute finite resources and ensure the weakest members of society receive the most help, he pointed out.

Non-Constituency MP Leon Perera, from the WP, had said two days ago that it made "political sense" for the Government to introduce price hikes now "because people have three years to forget them before the next General Election".

His fellow NCMP Daniel Goh described the budget as a "wait-and-see" move by the Government as it prepares for the changes that will affect the economy and workers.

Mr Chan, in rejecting their observations, said the Budget is about building "the kind of society we aspire to be".

He cited the values of inclusiveness and social mobility. "We want to give everybody a fair chance. We want social mobility. And that is what defines Singapore."

As resources are finite, more help given to one person means less for another, he noted.

Hence, when there is a need to raise taxes or prices, it takes courage on the part of political leaders to say that those who are richer have to foot a bigger bill so that the poorer people can get more help.

The approach helps bring about a fairer society, added Mr Chan, who is also the secretary-general of the National Trades Union Congress.

It avoids what a fellow union leader called the "sedimentation model", in which resources are distributed such that those who get to dip into the pot first will get to pick the best.

If such an approach takes root, Mr Chan warns it will become harder to change.

RESPONSIBLE

The Government had announced increases in water prices and diesel and plans to introduce carbon taxes because it was the responsible thing to do, Mr Chan reiterated.

"A responsible government is one that prices the essentials properly, not distort the market, leading to more subsidies that will burden our future generations.

"A responsible government is someone who knows what is not sustainable and will put a stop to it now. This is not a wait-and-see budget," Mr Chan said.

If it were a wait-and-see budget or one motivated by political timing, the Government would not have introduced carbon pricing, diesel and water taxes, he added.

Mr Chan's speech yesterday came one day after Minister for Trade and Industry (Industry) S. Iswaran outlined the Government's broad and targeted measures to help Singapore companies overcome headwinds as well as grow and expand overseas.

Besides rebutting the arguments of the WP NCMPs, Mr Chan also spoke of the pressures of maintaining a budget surplus, NTUC's plan to help workers and the water price hike in his 45-minute speech.



continue reading here : http://www.tnp.sg/news/singapore/min...ke-budget-2017


A Good government strives to make its' citizens' lives better and not harder

[skyleon]

[skyleon]

Originally Posted by fr90r

This is a "Adult Discussions about SEX" forum, please bring your political agenda elsewhere.

Don't tell me that after you have sex you do not need to take a shower ?

[skyleon]

False justifications for water price increase

By onlinecitizen on March 1, 2017 Commentaries




By Colin

I refer to the 25 Feb 2017 Channel News Asia report “Raise water prices by as much as 100% to reflect production cost: Economist”.

Water price hasn’t increased for 19 years

Professor Ng Yew-Kwang said that water prices have not been raised since 2000 – nearly two decades ago. But the price of raw water bought from Malaysia has also remained at three cents per 1,000 gallons since 1961 and hasn’t been raised for 56 years already.

Why does Prof Ng begrudge 19 years without an increase in treated water price but forget that the government has been profiting for the past 56 years with no increase in raw water price from Malaysia?

Making 5 times over amount to cover shortfall

Prof Ng claimed that the cost of operating Singapore’s water system has more than doubled from S$0.5 billion in 2000 to S$1.3 billion in 2015. But according to PUB’s 2016 and 2011 annual reports, the revenue from operating Singapore’s water system has also more than doubled from S$0.55 billion in 2001 to S$1.2 billion in 2015.

The operating loss in 2015 is only about $69 million. If we divide $69 million by Singapore’s 2015 population of 5.535 million, we obtain $12.5 per person per year or roughly $1 per person per month.

So if the argument is simply to make up for increased costs, then approximately an extra $1 per person per month should suffice. However, the increase of 30% on an existing annual revenue of S$1.2 billion will amount to an extra $360 million per year or $360 / 5.535 = $65 per person per year or $5.4 per person per month.

The government will thus be collecting 5 times as much as is needed to cover the revenue shortfall. Hence, the argument that this is about cost recovery is not valid. It is not merely about cost recovery but making 5 times that amount of money instead.

Comparison with other cities

Prof Ng said that Singapore’s water price is not high compared to other Asian cities when income level is factored in whereas water prices in European cities are much higher than Singapore’s.

It is strange that Prof Ng factors in income when comparing with other Asian countries but does not factor in income when comparing with European cities. European cities having much higher wages than Singapore should also end up with water prices that aren’t as high with income factored in.

Should have increased 10 years ago?

Prof Ng said water prices should have been increased 10, 5 years ago. 10 years ago is 2007. But according to PUB’s 2016 annual report, PUB registered positive net income before grants in the years 2007, 2008 and 2009.


continue reading here : http://www.theonlinecitizen.com/2017...rice-increase/


Disclaimer : Please note that I am not related in any way to the links provided . I am only providing information for all so that you will be better in making your own decisions .

[SiaSuay]

Originally Posted by nitecrawllerr

Frankly no use kpkb anymore. We were given a golden opportunity last GE. But 70% blew it away. Now with so many new immigrants converting to SC, chances of MIW retaining power seems very likely.

My only hope that when Singaporeans are being pushed into a corner they will wake up their idea. Of course the PAP will still be able to form the government as there is no opposition party that can do that . Singapore need strong opposition parties to check on them . This is what happens when a single party have a majority in parliament . Even the future Singapore president have got no power .

[SiaSuay]

Originally Posted by LauYewTee

They are really too much. But what can we do? Next election, have any difference meh. All like to say, don't want to act. Scare this care that, talk only number 1.

We can only look after our ownself .

[SiaSuay]

Originally Posted by winphenom

He seems to be getting a little hard headed and authoritarian these days. His manner and actions are slowly becoming high handed to almost proud. Maybe because he seems destined to be the next prime minister.

Even if he becomes the next PM he may be only a seat warmer . But personally I don't think he will be but will be someone else .