Trade and Industry Minister Mr. Chan Chun Sing has an interesting dialogue at a public policy conference on Friday.

The Today newspaper posted some parts of what he raised during the dialogue. Mr. Chan raises some of the people that looked to him for help to make their lives better in his ward:

Providing examples from his personal experience, Mr. Chan said he met a single mother of six children who came to his Meet-the-People session to seek help for employment, and financial assistance of S$300 through the Community Care Endowment Fund (ComCare) for lower-income households.

In contrast, there was a young couple in their 20s — who earned a combined five-figure monthly income — who expressed frustration that they had received only half of an S$20,000 grant from the Housing and Development Board.

The difference in their needs, and the way they had asked for help was a