By MP for Aljunied GRC, Pritam Singh
[Delivered in Committee of Supply on 13 March 2015]
Mdm Chair, in September last year, three out of the five major pre-school chains announced they would be increasing their prices from 2015, ranging from $4 to $62, citing soaring operating costs. This was after the median monthly fee for full-day childcare rose by $80 in 2013, reported to be the biggest increment in the last eight years. These childcare operators receive government grants in exchange for keeping their fees affordable. Would the Ministry consider requiring such operators to provide an itemised breakdown of their fee increases? This would be akin to the requirement that the Consumer Association of Singapore (CASE) made to Shell late last month when it did not accept the oil company’s vague reasons for raising petrol prices because of the petrol tax rise announced at this year’s budget. CASE noted that the explanation was not acceptable as Shell did not say how its costs went up and that it also did not provide CASE with a breakdown. Would the Minister consider requiring childcare operators to provide a breakdown of their rise in operating costs to provide an additional check to ensure that higher costs are not unreasonably passed on to parents. Thank you.