To: Ministry of National Development

Allow Singaporean singles and unwed mothers to buy new flats under the Prime Location Public Housing (PLH) scheme!

Under the new PLH scheme announced on 27 October 2021 by Desmond Lee, Minister for National Development, singles and unwed mothers will not be able to purchase BTO or resale HDB flats in specific projects that are to be built in prime locations, such as the Greater Southern Waterfront and the city centre and towns surrounding it. This is in contrast to prevailing rules that do not place any limitations on singles above the age of 35 buying resale flats.

This policy unfairly discriminates against singles and unwed mothers and should be reconsidered for the following reasons:

(1) At its heart, it goes against the spirit of the PLH scheme, which seeks to ensure that Singaporeans from all walks of life are able to afford housing in attractive locations, and prevent such locations from becoming a distinct enclave for wealthier households. This exclusionary policy shuts out lower-income singles and unwed mothers from living in these attractive locations. A subsidised BTO flat may be their only chance at living in these areas. They will not even be able to rent one of these flats, because owners of flats under the PLH scheme are forbidden from renting them out in entirety.

(2) This discriminatory rule is an example of the "very powerful social and economic forces that drive stratification and segregation in every society" that Minister Desmond Lee acknowledged that the Government was acting against with the PLH scheme. Unwed mothers are already one of the most marginalised communities in Singapore. It is unnecessary to add a restriction that makes them even less likely to inhabit prime housing districts.

(3) Singles and unwed mothers already have much less access to public housing compared to married couples and their dependents. 

(4) Singles and unwed mothers are taxpayers as well. The male and able-bodied Singapore citizens amongst them would also have served National Service. It is unfair and unjust to prevent them from being beneficiaries of an important public policy that is meant to ensure that our living spaces remain inclusive. Moreover, buyers of these BTO flats will enjoy even more substantial government grants than usual to ensure that they remain affordable, compounding the unjustness of this policy.

Singapore does not merely consist of married couples and their aged or child dependents. The composition of residents in the most desirable HDB projects should reflect this. Please reconsider the eligibility criteria for the PLH scheme!