The National Solidarity Party (NSP) has announced its party manifesto for the general election on July 10, which calls for the upcoming goods and services tax (GST) hike to be scrapped, and for retrenched workers or those in need to be allowed to make temporary withdrawals from their Central Provident Fund (CPF) Ordinary Account.
The manifesto, which was uploaded on the party's Facebook page on Nomination Day, said the Government should look beyond the GST for alternative sources of revenue, instead of raising the GST, which is slated to rise from 7 per cent to 9 per cent between 2022 and 2025.
It was originally set to go up from 7 per cent to 9 per cent between next year and 2025, but Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat has made it clear that the rise will not take place next year.
The GST hike will still be needed by 2025, he added, as Singapore requires recurrent sources of revenue to fund its recurrent spending needs in the medium term.
Scrapping or putting the GST hike on hold has featured in nearly every manifesto released by opposition parties to date. The Workers' Party, Singapore Democratic Party, Progress Singapore Party and Singapore People's Party have all made similar proposals.
NSP also proposed that households be allowed to withdraw a maximum of $3,000 a month, up to a six-month period, from their CPF Ordinary Account if household members are retrenched or if the household is experiencing financial hardship.
This withdrawal amount should be capped at 20 per cent of the Ordinary Account and should be fully repaid when the account holder has found employment.
Other policy proposals include reducing the cost of public transport, reducing expenditure on defence, smaller classroom sizes and providing comprehensive medical insurance for citizens. NSP added that citizens should be given priority when it comes to employment.
Elaborating on its proposal for healthcare, NSP said there should be affordable medical insurance coverage for hospitalisation and outpatient treatments, including treatment for Covid-19 at private or restructured hospitals, polyclinics and affiliated private clinics.
This insurance coverage should be mandatory for all citizens, with the Government contributing at least 50 per cent of the premiums.
As for reducing class sizes, this would allow for better interaction between teachers and students, the party added. "Now, with the new experience of home-based learning digitally and virtually, we can explore boundless opportunities to provide our students with holistic learning."
NSP added that the Republic's expenditure on defence should be reduced progressively over several years so that it is capped at 4.5 per cent of the gross domestic product.
"The nation should adopt a moderate and restrained posture and support regional cooperation and joint defence in order to contribute to a stable and peaceful environment in the region," said NSP.
NSP is fielding 10 candidates in Sembawang and Tampines GRCs in the upcoming polls.
NSP secretary-general Spencer Ng, 40, will lead the charge in Sembawang GRC. In his team are business consultant Ivan Yeo, 72, consultant Sebastian Teo, 73, business development director Yadzeth Hairis, 57, and business owner Sathin Ravindran, 27.
They are facing a rematch against the PAP team, after losing to them with 27.72 per cent of the vote in the 2015 General Election.
The NSP team in Tampines GRC comprises party president Reno Fong, 51, as well as business development director Choong Hon Heng, 44, business owner Eugene Yeo, 43, construction sector manager Mohd Ridzwan Mohammad, 58, and recruiter Vincent Ng, 40.
In 2015, the NSP team lost to the PAP with a vote share of 27.93 per cent.
