Were parenthood measures good enough?

Why tackle cost concerns first?

Should mothers get medals for more kids?

Why is not taking leave a “badge of honour”?

Hanyan on juggling politics and motherhood

Colleagues covering parents on leave

Singles getting the short end of the stick?

Politically risky to invest so much?

How fast should the measures be rolled out?

If you’ve been thinking about having kids, last night’s National Day Rally might have given you something to rally about.

Parents - and those who are considering having children - were the focus of PM Wong’s address on August 23.

In a nutshell, parents will get more help: more childcare leave and financial support, along with lower pre-school fees and more ballot chances when buying their first BTO flat.

But will this move the needle on our Total Fertility Rate, which now stands at 0.87?

Natasha asks Senior Parliamentary Secretary Goh Hanyan from the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth why the Government shifted its stance to consider every child equally.

Dr Reuben Ng, associate professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy and a father of four, shared his thoughts on when the Government needs to roll out more measures for this reset to count.

Highlights (click/tap above):

2:17 Were the parenthood measures good enough?

6:56 Why tackle the cost concerns first?

12:15 Should mothers get medals for having more kids?

17:24 Why not taking leave is sometimes seen as a “badge of honour”

20:41 Hanyan’s experience juggling political office and being a mother-of-three

25:14 What about colleagues who cover parents on leave?

28:20 Are singles getting the short end of the stick?

33:41 Politically risky to invest so much public funds into parenting?

38:21 How fast does the Government need to roll out the measures?

Host: Natasha Ann Zachariah (natashaz@sph.com.sg)

Read Natasha’s articles: https://str.sg/iSXm

Follow The Usual Place podcast on IG: https://str.sg/8KNT

Follow Natasha on LinkedIn: https://str.sg/v6DN

Filmed by: Studio+65

Edited by: Eden Soh & Natasha Liew

Executive producer: Danson Cheong

Producers: Natasha Ann Zachariah, Elizabeth Law & Zachary Lim

Follow The Usual Place Podcast and get notified for new episode drops every Thursday:

Channel: https://str.sg/5nfm

Apple Podcasts: https://str.sg/9ijX

Spotify: https://str.sg/cd2P

YouTube: https://str.sg/theusualplacepodcast

Feedback to: podcast@sph.com.sg

---

Follow more ST podcast channels:

All-in-one ST Podcasts channel: https://str.sg/wvz7

Get more updates: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

---

Get The Straits Times app, which has a dedicated podcast player section:

The App Store: https://str.sg/icyB

Google Play: https://str.sg/icyX

--

#tup #tuptrf

If you&rsquo;ve been thinking about having kids, last night&rsquo;s National Day Rally might have given you something to rally about.
Parents - and those who are considering having children - were the focus of PM Wong&rsquo;s address on August 23.
In a nutshell, parents will get more help: more childcare leave and financial support, along with lower pre-school fees and more ballot chances when buying their first BTO flat.
But will this move the needle on our Total Fertility Rate, which now stands at 0.87?
Natasha asks Senior Parliamentary Secretary Goh Hanyan from the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth why the Government shifted its stance to consider every child equally.
Dr Reuben Ng, associate professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy and a father of four, shared his thoughts on when the Government needs to roll out more measures for this reset to count.
Highlights (click/tap above):
2:17 Were the parenthood measures good enough?
6:56 Why tackle the cost concerns first?
12:15 Should mothers get medals for having more kids?
17:24 Why not taking leave is sometimes seen as a &ldquo;badge of honour&rdquo;
20:41 Hanyan&rsquo;s experience juggling political office and being a mother-of-three
25:14 What about colleagues who cover parents on leave?
28:20 Are singles getting the short end of the stick?
33:41 Politically risky to invest so much public funds into parenting?
38:21 How fast does the Government need to roll out the measures?
Host: Natasha Ann Zachariah (<a href="mailto:natashaz@sph.com.sg">natashaz@sph.com.sg</a>)
Read Natasha&rsquo;s articles:<a href="https://str.sg/iSXm"> https://str.sg/iSXm</a>
Follow The Usual Place podcast on IG: <a href="https://str.sg/8KNT">https://str.sg/8KNT</a>
Follow Natasha on LinkedIn: <a href="https://str.sg/v6DN">https://str.sg/v6DN</a>
Filmed by: Studio+65
Edited by: Eden Soh &amp; Natasha Liew
Executive producer: Danson Cheong
Producers: Natasha Ann Zachariah, Elizabeth Law &amp; Zachary Lim
Follow The Usual Place Podcast and get notified for new episode drops every Thursday:
Channel: <a href="https://str.sg/5nfm?ref=inline-article" aria-label="link" data-testid="custom-link"></a><a href="https://str.sg/5nfm?ref=inline-article" aria-label="link" data-testid="custom-link">https://str.sg/5nfm</a>
Apple Podcasts: <a href="https://str.sg/9ijX?ref=inline-article" aria-label="link" data-testid="custom-link"></a><a href="https://str.sg/9ijX?ref=inline-article" aria-label="link" data-testid="custom-link">https://str.sg/9ijX</a>
Spotify: <a href="https://str.sg/cd2P?ref=inline-article" aria-label="link" data-testid="custom-link"></a><a href="https://str.sg/cd2P?ref=inline-article" aria-label="link" data-testid="custom-link">https://str.sg/cd2P</a>
YouTube: <a href="https://str.sg/theusualplacepodcast?ref=inline-article" aria-label="link" data-testid="custom-link"></a><a href="https://str.sg/theusualplacepodcast?ref=inline-article" aria-label="link" data-testid="custom-link">https://str.sg/theusualplacepodcast</a>
Feedback to: <a href="mailto:podcast@sph.com.sg?ref=inline-article" aria-label="link" data-testid="custom-link"></a><a href="mailto:podcast@sph.com.sg?ref=inline-article" aria-label="link" data-testid="custom-link">podcast@sph.com.sg</a>
---
Follow more ST podcast channels:
All-in-one ST Podcasts channel: <a href="https://str.sg/wvz7?ref=inline-article" aria-label="link" data-testid="custom-link"></a><a href="https://str.sg/wvz7?ref=inline-article" aria-label="link" data-testid="custom-link">https://str.sg/wvz7</a>
Get more updates: <a href="http://str.sg/stpodcasts?ref=inline-article" aria-label="link" data-testid="custom-link"></a><a href="http://str.sg/stpodcasts?ref=inline-article" aria-label="link" data-testid="custom-link">http://str.sg/stpodcasts</a>
---
Get The Straits Times app, which has a dedicated podcast player section:
The App Store: <a href="https://str.sg/icyB?ref=inline-article" aria-label="link" data-testid="custom-link"></a><a href="https://str.sg/icyB?ref=inline-article" aria-label="link" data-testid="custom-link">https://str.sg/icyB</a>
Google Play: <a href="https://str.sg/icyX">https://str.sg/icyX</a>
--
#tup #tuptrf

Natasha and her guests unpack the latest current affairs, every Thursday.

Synopsis: Join host and correspondent Natasha Ann Zachariah every Thursday, as she unpacks the latest current affairs with guests. 

Podcaster: Natasha Ann Zachariah

Executive producer: Danson Cheong

A podcast by The Straits Times, SPH Media

Synopsis: Join host and correspondent Natasha Ann Zachariah every Thursday, as she unpacks the latest current affairs with guests.&nbsp;
Podcaster: Natasha Ann Zachariah
Executive producer: Danson Cheong
A podcast by The Straits Times, SPH Media

The Usual Place

Synopsis: Join host and correspondent Natasha Ann Zachariah every Thursday, as she unpacks the latest current affairs with guests.

Podcaster: Natasha Ann Zachariah

Executive producer: Danson Cheong

A podcast by The Straits Times, SPH Media

Synopsis: Join host and correspondent Natasha Ann Zachariah every Thursday, as she unpacks the latest current affairs with guests.
Podcaster: Natasha Ann Zachariah
Executive producer: Danson Cheong
A podcast by The Straits Times, SPH Media