btw, last pregnancy already cannot resist writing this
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to share
http://imcms2.mediacorp.sg/CMSFileserver/documents/006/PDF/20100224/2402VOC036.pdf
alto i must say quite sad that some portions were cut off ..original version
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I am rather disappointed that Budget 2010 mentioned nothing about incentives for women who are giving birth in the Year of the Tiger . It was stated in the Weekend Today (13-14 Feb 2010) that PM worries about babies as Tiger roars in
Chinese Singaporeans, in particular, saw their total fertility rate go down from 1.14 to 1.09, equalling the community's previous low in 2003 and 2004. Given how in each of the last three Tiger years (1974, 1986 and 1998), the number of births dipped 7 per cent, Mr Lee admitted he was worried about this year too.
Given the past trends, it would definitely encouraged more Chinese Singaporeans to have babies in the Year of The Tiger if we can allocate part of the Budget to encourage Singaporeans who are giving birth this year, i.e a sum of money in the Tiger Baby's Education Fund .
As a working mother of two children who are both in childcare, I faced the difficulty of looking for alternative childcare when they are down with infectious diseases like HFMD or Chickenpox. As a mother of two, I am allocated 10 days of Childcare Leave. However, this is defnitely not sufficient to cover the period when they are sick and have to stay at home.
Just this month alone, I have utilised all my medical claims for the whole Year as well as my Childcare Leave when the kids came down with HFMD one after another.
It would boost fertility rates if we can increase the medical claims for working parents especially for those who have two children or more. The amount of medical claims should increase with the number of children. Childcare Sick Leave needs to be increased as the child is genuinely sick and needs the care and concern of his/her parents.
Giving birth is the first step, but we parents also want to give our children a good education as a stepping stone in life. It would help financially if that Childcare Subsidy can be increased together with the Baby Bonus. We should also reward those who are having their third child with extra Baby Bonus. The fact of life is having a child do need money and many couples stop at one because they want to provide the best for their child.
The 1st 6 months is important for new mothers to bond with their new born and to breastfeed so that their babies have a higher immunity from an early stage in life. I would like to propose 6 months of Maternity Leave to boost the current fertility rate as babies depend solely on milk for their nutrients for the first 6 months in their lives.
For working parents, we want to spend our non working hours on interacting with our children and many of us engage foreign workers to help us with the household chores. The increase in Foreign Workers' Levy is going to be an additional burden on us financially. The Foreign Workers' Levy should be reduced for working couples who have two or more children below 12.
I do hope that the Government can look into the suggestions above as these are the concerns of most working mothers who would want to boost fertility rates in Singapore but we really have our limitations and need all the support from the Government
