S'pore will continue its program of state handouts, Lee says

S'pore will continue its program of state handouts, Lee says

SINGAPORE (Reuter): Despite its criticism of Western welfare
policies, Singapore plans to continue its program of state
handouts, Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said in a
newspaper interview published yesterday.

Publication of The Straits Times interview coincided with that
of a survey that found six out of 10 Singaporeans think the
government has given out enough subsidies.

The survey found nine out of 10 people backed government
subsidies of education, health and public housing, but seven out
of 10 rejected the idea of unemployment benefits.

Lee, the son of Singapore's founder and Senior Minister Lee
Kuan Yew, distinguished the government's welfare policies from
those of the West by describing them as directed at helping
Singaporeans develop a portfolio of assets.

"Not just a home but a total package. So that there is a sense
that these are the rewards for being a citizen," Lee said.

The Straits Times said government spending on housing, health
and education in 1993 had amounted to S$3.4 billion ($2.3
billion) or a third of total government expenditure.

It said a spate of schemes announced by the government in
recent months meant that over the next 15 to 20 years a further
S$12-S$15 billion (US$8-$10 billion) would be spent on housing,
S$3 billion distributed to Singaporeans through the sale of
Singapore Telecom shares, and S$60 million a year spent helping
renters buy state-owned flats.

Earlier this year in his national day speech Prime Minister
Goh Chok Tong singled out welfare policies as an area causing
massive social problems in the West.

"Welfare is ... where misguided government compassion has led
to disastrous results," Goh said. He singled out state aid to
unmarried mothers as symptomatic of misguided welfare.

Lee Hsien Loong told The Straits Times Singapore's welfare
policy would encourage people to participate in the success of
the country and would not be changed.

"It is a successful policy. It has discouraged dependency,
minimized poverty and generated affluence for everybody. It
works." he said.

While accepting there may be debate about welfare issues from
time to time, Lee said it was an area too important for
alternatives to be tried.

"It cannot be," he said, "that you have one view and I have
another and we agree to disagree, and I happily let you have your
go one day as the government of Singapore... We think that is
disastrous."