Melvin Yong on Family Justice Reform Bill

In family justice cases where the wishes of the child are to be considered by the court, a new Bill proposes that judges be allowed to interview the child. MP Melvin Yong asked if a minimum age will be set to allow only children who are mature enough to convey their views independently. On a proposed new Maintenance Enforcement Process (MEP), he asked what will be the asset or salary threshold for those deemed unable to pay and what measures will be implemented to ensure no one can game the system. As for Maintenance Enforcement Officers (MEOs), he wanted to know what kind of training they will be given and whether they will be able to obtain information about respondents’ assets kept outside of Singapore. Speaking in Parliament on Monday (May 8), Mr Yong said that ultimately, “prevention is better than cure”. He called for efforts to be redoubled to strengthen the institution of marriage so that reforms to facilitate more sustainable maintenance outcomes do not have the unintended consequence of making divorce too easy and a first resort for couples in distress.