FOREIGNERS were the hot topic at a community dialogue session chaired by Law Minister K. Shanmugam at the Queenstown Community Centre on Sunday together with five other Members of Parliament.

At the dialogue, which drew a crowd of about 250, comprising grassroots leaders, residents and students, Mr Shanmugam said Singaporeans must have 'a certain broad-mindedness and spirit of humanity' to welcome foreigners here.

This came as a response to a member of the audience who asked if the Government was too focussed on economic growth which may compromise opportunities for locals here.

Such policies could only work to benefit Singaporeans, the minister said, citing major banks and multi-national corporations as examples. 'As a major bank or corporation, you would want to put the best man possible. If Singapore says that man must be a Singaporean, what's going to happen? Either they won't come, or they will limit their operations.'

Emphasising the importance of 'symbiosis', Mr Shanmugam, who was on his first community walk-about since becoming Law Minister in May, said that Singaporeans stood to gain in terms of employment opportunities if these companies succeeded in their operations here.

He also tackled the prickly issue of the foreign worker dormitories in Serangoon Gardens, saying that Singaporeans needed to 'get real, and get practical', for the sake of national interest.

'Who builds our HDB flats? Who builds our roads? Can we even have our basic infrastructure without foreign workers? Which Singaporean wants to do it? Some jobs Singaporeans won't and can't do,' he quipped.

Read the full story in Monday's edition of The Straits Times.