SINGAPORE, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) -- Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Sunday that his government would provide further support for the people in public housing and health care.
Lee delivered his National Day Rally speech respectively in Mandarin, Malaysian and English after Singapore's National Day which falls on Aug. 9.
When the country celebrated its 53th birthday this year, it has witnessed that around 80 percent of the Singaporeans live in the government's Housing and Development Board (HDB)-developed flats.
Besides providing residence for its citizens, the Singaporean government also finance its maintenance.
According to the prime minister, the Housing Board's Home Improvement Program, which heavily subsidizes the maintenance of aging HDB flats, will be expanded to cover flats built up to 1997 from those built up to 1986, benefiting 230,000 more flats.
It means that every HDB flat can expect to be upgraded twice during their 99-year lease: once when they are about 30 years old, and a second time when they are about 60 to 70 years old.
Moreover, the Community Health Assist Scheme, which provides health care subsidies for middle and lower-income Singaporeans and the Pioneer Generation, will be extended to all Singaporeans with chronic conditions, regardless of income, Lee said.
The government will make sure that people can afford housing, health care and education, but Singaporeans also need to strive for saving water and electricity, and making smart consumer choices, he added.
