WP NCMP Leon Perera blames cost of living, saying that, by the mid 2030s, Singapore’s citizen population will start to decline

Workers’ Party Non-Constituency Member of Parliament (NCMP) Leon Perera raised the issue of population in Parliament, asking about when citizen deaths were projected to outnumber citizen births.

According to a Facebook post he wrote on Wednesday, December 12, Mr Perera wrote, “Our Total Fertility Rate or TFR remains one of the lowest in the world, even though the problem of low TFR had been identified decades ago as a national challenge”.

He added, “As a country we need to look at the root causes of this, one of which could be the cost of living”.

https://www.facebook.com/leonperera70/posts/1142709789220529?__xts__[0]=68.ARD7Zv6A-udKjdeG57CJaoCIrz4nw6fQ-8iIgRX6Wtg2OVTU3-9Jj0yFtHCWHe0gm0DylfDutML_04Wge4UK1HuM6vHPSyX0ItZrI_kF0hXNtKH1-Vlv2SqdEW4khtCvO0hLOYPSK0vyFzR0L1AvS1cV9Cw28sEAf6-tDc6iPmnT3m0sYVi6fP3VRXOr7Fn75_vtbWHoaaj84PPm_LsBuT4FCEJHacuMTiMQKyuDsTzpXOTkuoDDwdM-kliRRvEx5tWHdq1ktHKlmRuwqZgrgUR1KZJ4eXB_CIEXqjLTUju-LGMXDTw2Qls_cXELkiRrnspJFdhvyDshIW8Zyw2wEw&__tn__=-R

He also shared the questions that he asked Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in parliament.

He wrote, “Mr Leon Perera asked the Prime Minister (a) whether the Ministry can release data for Singapore citizens deaths over the last 10 years (as distinct from resident deaths); and (b) at what year in the future will citizen deaths exceed citizen births according to existing demographic forecasts”.

Deputy Prime Minister Mr Teo Chee Hean replied for the Prime Minister saying, “The total number of resident deaths has increased from around 16,200 in 2008 to 19,800 in 2017. The total number of citizen deaths has increased from around 15,600 in 2008 to 19,100 in 2017”.

“Based on current trends, the number of citizen deaths could exceed the projected number of citizen births around the mid-2030s”, he added.

________________________________________________________________________

[email protected]