Sim Ann on growing Singapore’s hawker culture

Like hawker centres, coffee shops in HDB heartlands are integral to Singaporeans’ daily lives, said Senior Minister of State for National Development Sim Ann. They are important social nodes in the community and provide a variety of cooked food options at similar price points to hawker centres, she said in Parliament on Wednesday (Nov 13). Ms Sim said the Government continuously pays attention to ground concerns about the cost of living and recognises the need for heartland coffee shops to maintain some lower-priced meals and drinks to cater to those who may not be able to spend as much on cooked food. It intervened in a measured way that takes business sustainability into account, with the budget meal initiative that has become relevant not just to lower-income groups, but to everyone who cares about the cost of living. Ms Sim said the Government is constantly engaging the industry and monitoring feedback from consumers, operators and stallholders. It is prepared to make adjustments to the scheme where necessary. In the past six months, 126 privately owned HDB coffee shops have also started offering budget meals. They will display the decals for “community budget meals”. More than 440 rental and privately owned coffee shops are providing more than 1,100 budget meals islandwide. This means that on average, budget meal options are available at one in two HDB coffee shops. “We are on track to have all 374 rental HDB coffee shops offer budget meals by 2026 and will continue to engage other operators of privately owned coffee shops to come on board,” said Ms Sim. She added that HDB did not increase the rent for 97 per cent of HDB-owned coffee shops at renewal and stepped up efforts to raise publicity for these coffee shop operators and stalls. Ms Sim stressed that HDB is committed to maintaining policies that deliver affordable food while being mindful of sustainable businesses and livelihoods.