Amy Khor Lean Suan
Singapore
“Sir, NEA does conduct inspections of these premises from time to time. For this particular premises, they actually did six inspections since 2021.”
“The Land Transport Authority (LTA) conducts enforcement actions against drivers who are found to have provided illegal car-pooling services. An individual who provides an illegal car-pooling service may face a fine of up to $3,000, up to six months' imprisonment, or both.”
“We will also provide the first 500 private heavy vehicle chargers co-funding of up to 50% of the charger installation cost, capped at $30,000 per charger. These measures will narrow the lifecycle cost gap between an electric and internal combustion engine heavy vehicle and spur adoption of electric heavy vehicles.”
“With regard to the extension of the lower speed limit to school zones for full day, we will work with the relevant agencies on the enhanced enforcements.”
“They will provide a certain amount of protection to the pedestrians because, as I have said, the bollards will absorb the impact of the collision from the vehicles. So, there is a protection. But ultimately, of course, road safety really depends on a multitude of factors, including road user behaviour.”
“The bollards installed at pedestrian crossings by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) are not of the K4, K8 or K12 standards stated by the Member. Bollards of these standards are typically security bollards. They are installed to protect critical infrastructure or at high security areas, such as Changi Airport, to be unyielding.”
The complete record
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“Sir, even though Singapore's economy is expected to recover in the coming months, there is still no cheer in sight for the jobless. The Government and many companies continue to warn of more job losses, corporate restructuring and cost-cutting measures. More worryingly, this phenomenon of a jobless recovery is not peculiar to Singapore. USA, the world's largest and strongest economy, has not been spared either, as even executive jobs are at risk of being moved outwards to lower-cost countries like China and India. For all its promises, there is a dark side to globalisation and the new knowledge economy and, that is, higher and speedier job obsolescence and, thus, chronic structural unemployment. [Mdm Deputy Speaker (Mrs Lim Hwee Hua) in the Chair] 5.05 pm The Economist notes in a recent issue: "America's economy is now supposedly on the road to recovery, but somebody forgot to tell the labour market." Merrill Lynch notes in the same article: "If the early 1990s upturn was the jobless recovery, this is the job-loss recovery." As structural unemployment is set to become a staple of the new economy, the establishment of a single agency to focus on continuing education and training of adults and employment assistance comes none too soon. This will ensure that all the well-intentioned but perhaps sometimes disparate efforts by different agencies will be better organised for greater effect. Sir, I urge the Agency to take cognisance of the following four main concerns as it pushes ahead with the two key objectives of employment assistance and continuing education and training for adults. Under employment assistance, I would like to highlight two key issues.”
“Sir, I would like to ask the Minister: would he not agree that the levels of promotion of inter-racial mixing in school can vary very significantly, depending on how much effort the school puts in for such programmes? This being the case, and judging from the NIE study, although I may agree that inter-racial mixing takes a long time, would it not be more effective if MOE plans a more coordinated approach and concerted effort in asking the schools to implement programmes to allow for more inter-racial mixing, for instance, through activities, say, in a particular period devoted for such projects? Would the Minister also not agree that students tend to mix amongst their classmates within a class and generally not with schoolmates from other classes? And this being the case, for instance in the case of streaming, would it not be better if you can actually promote activities which allow mixing across the races through school-wide activities?”
“Sir, I would like to ask the Minister that in the light of the review of the Faith Assembly of God Church's case, how would this affect the compensation for the Chuan Park's case, which is also a $1 compensation? Assoc. Prof. Ho Peng Kee: Sir, we must not mix the two cases. Like I have said, the legal basis is important for computing the compensation award. What is the legal position which justifies the valuation of $1? For the Chuan Park situation, it is entirely different, based on the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act. There is a provision in the Land Acquisition Act which takes into account any increase in value going to the owner whose land has been acquired and who has got remaining land. In other words, for Chuan Park, in fact, only 0.6% of the land was acquired out of the entire piece of land and the benefit to the owner arising from the proximity of the MRT station has been estimated at about $18 million. So there is this set-off provision in the Land Acquisition Act. Hence, based on this set-off position, a $1 nominal compensation will be given to Chuan Park owners. Chuan Park owners have appealed. I think we should leave it to the Land Appeals Board to decide on this case.”
“The rezoning led to a valuation of a nominal $1 as there is no market value for a strip of land zoned road. But it was not Government's intention to change the compensation approach when it designated road lines as road zones under the Master Plan. In short, there was an unintended effect when it came to valuing the affected strip of land for compensation purposes upon acquisition. Hence, the $1 nominal compensation was an unintended consequence. The Minister for Law and I asked our officials to see how we can help the owners in this case. On review, we determined that this case is a special one relating to a specific situation. Given what I have said earlier, Government has now decided to make an ex gratia payment to put the owners in the position they would have been, with regard to compensation, as if the land affected was acquired before 1998, ie, based on a road line instead of a road zone. On this basis, a payment higher than $1 in statutory compensation will be given. We have informed the Church of this and we are working on the final amount with the Chief Valuer.”
“Sir, I would like to ask the Minister to explain the rationale for the $1 compensation for the land acquired from Faith Assembly of God Church at Kim Keat Road. Assoc. Prof. Ho Peng Kee: Sir, Dr Amy Khor refers to the recent case, publicised in the media, about the acquisition of part of the land of the Church at Kim Keat Road. Let me explain this case in greater detail. Sir, the Chief Valuer's Office accepted the recommendation of a private valuer on its panel and valued the strip of land acquired, which is about 200 square metres, at a nominal $1. In making this award, the Chief Valuer's Office applied existing law, including relevant provisions of the Land Acquisition Act and the Planning Act, which takes into account the zoning of the acquired land. On that basis, the Collector's award of $1 was determined. On a legal basis, Government stands by this award. Nevertheless, after further reviewing the case, Government has decided to give an ex gratia payment to the owners. Let me explain why. Before 1998, the portion of land, which has now been acquired, which formed a small part of a larger piece of Church land was affected by a road widening line. The affected portion was at that time not zoned as road. If the affected portion had been acquired before 1998, the statutory compensation would have been computed taking into account the existing use prior to acquisition, ie, carpark use. In that event, more than nominal compensation would have been given. In 1998, after amendments were made to the Land Acquisition Act and the Planning Act, the portion which was previously affected by a road line was zoned road in the Master Plan. This was a change in planning practice so that the Master Plan would better reflect planning intention.”
“Sir, I would like to ask the Minister two questions. Firstly, he made mention of what I proposed, that is, try and hire local workers before going on to foreigners. He says that that is more stringent than the dependency ratio. I would like to ask how is that so, because for the dependency ratio, the employer just needs to employ according to the quota. He can go ahead and just employ up to the quota available. The other point is, looking at Table 2, the common perception is that locals shun jobs in the manufacturing and construction sectors. Obviously, there is truth to this. But if you look at the numbers, could it not also be that, because there is a quota available to employers to hire foreigners, when jobs are reduced in the manufacturing sector, he just goes ahead to employ up to the maximum number of foreigners and actually some of these jobs could be released to the locals if job redesign or some flexible system is actually implemented?”
“I would like to ask the Minister to clarify that when the NTU's study was reported, the Ministry did say that the data on the ratio of new jobs going to foreigners and Singaporeans were classified data. But the Minister said earlier that the data on employment change, which he just presented, are publicly available and these should be the information used. May I clarify if these two sets of data are identical? If the numbers in Tables 1 and 2, which were given, were obtained from Table 1 of the additional supplement that was given earlier, they also help its new jobs defined, because from the data that were supplied earlier, it seems that that is aggregate data. So it would also include job losses. Is it not more accurate to reflect the actual number of new jobs created and not the net new jobs added for our purposes, as to which are the areas where locals could actually look at in terms of employment?”
“Sir, first, with regard to the study on travel patterns, I would like to ask the Minister to submit the study to the PTC. Second, who commissioned the study and how does the PTC verify the report? Third, after integration of services, presumably based on the report, will there be any monitoring of the effectiveness of the integration, and for how long will such monitoring take place? The reason I ask these questions is because I have a staff who says that residents in the Jalan Besar area are very badly affected due to the integration of services. As a result of the integration, only two services are available from Jalan Besar to Shenton Way, and they are very packed in the morning.”
“Sir, with regard to the registration of contractors by BCA, will the Ministry consider further tightening the measures, together with inputs from the industry, as regards, say, financial standing and solvency of the firm where specific projects are analysed, like profitability ratios or breakeven analyses? Because if the contractors appear to have suicidal tendencies, as every project is a loss, then some alarm bells must ring with regard to their financial standing.”
“Sir, I would like to ask the Minister how successful has this People-for-Jobs Traineeship Programme been.”
“Sir, while we are asking the workers to change their mindset to accept other jobs, has the Ministry any plan to also work at changing the mindset of some employers who are against employing older workers who would otherwise be more than qualified for the job?”
“Sir, I would like to ask the Minister specifically about the white collar workers. It has been reported that about half of the currently unemployed are white collar workers. Are there any specific measures in place or being planned to help this specific group of workers, especially they are reporting that they are encountering resistance from prospective employers due to cynicism about their over-qualification and possible change of job when the economy turns around?”
“As our understanding of this pathogen grows, that knowledge will give us greater confidence and assurance. Amidst the gloom of possibly higher fatalities, increasing unemployment, rising temperatures, both on our foreheads and under our collars, falling tourist arrivals, empty taxis and airplanes, we should not lose heart. I therefore urge all Singaporeans to close ranks, bear up with the tough measures we need to take and fight this SARS war, including the amendment that has been proposed in this Bill, and to overcome our fear together.”
“Some HQO breakers may perhaps not even be aware of what the fuss is all about due to a lack of education or personal or family circumstances, such as age. Public health and CISCO officers who first impose HQOs should be reminded to take a more counselling approach and carefully explain the whole process to affected families and make whatever reasonable arrangements are necessary to reduce the tendency to break quarantine. I would also like to ask the Minister for a clarification of the new section 21A of the Bill, as my parliamentary colleague, Dr Lily Neo, has alluded to. How would the person as specified in section 21A(2) be defined? Would this person include a doctor with a suspected SARS patient at his clinic, and either the patient wanders off whilst waiting for an ambulance, like in the case of the family of eight, or the patient refuses to wear a mask? Also, what happens if a suspected SARS case refuses to heed the advice of a person who is a care-giver? This SARS war is clearly one battle that the Government, even when it mobilises every ounce of its vast and powerful machinery, cannot tackle by itself, but needs the cooperation of every Singaporean. We must, therefore, continue to impress on Singaporeans that everyone must play his part and take responsibility in this battle in order to ensure that our nation is not crippled. Yes, glimpses of what some people call the "Ugly Singaporean" have appeared. Brave and selfless nurses working in the frontline have been shunned, and there was even a vegetable panic-buying spree. However, these are initial reactions or what some people may call over-reactions to the fear of the unknown. I believe those who continue in this mode of thinking and behaviour remain the minority.”
“Some people may have broken quarantine orders due to sheer ignorance or a lack of understanding of the risks of infecting others. They could also have done so, as making a living may be their primary concern. I am therefore very pleased that the DPM has announced that financial assistance will be offered to affected families. But these people also need to be assured that the Government has put in place measures to help minimise their inconvenience during their quarantine period. Thus, help must not only be rendered to bring them some financial relief, but also to meet their physiological needs, such as their daily meals, groceries, etc, for example, if the entire family is quarantined, and they are unable to marshal help from their relatives and friends. We must therefore try to find out why these people have broken quarantine orders or acted irresponsibly. We can then devise better education and communication methods to help them understand the gravity of the situation and the precautionary measures and responsible behaviour they ought to take so as to minimise their urge to break quarantine orders. Furthermore, Sir, as the Bill is draconian, imposing stiff fines and penalties, including jail terms for home quarantine offenders as well as other offenders, I would like to urge the Minister to ensure that a system of check and balance is in place. There should be a protocol for officers enforcing this Act to follow so that the Act can be administered appropriately and justly. Enforcers of the HQOs must clearly explain the requirements of the HQOs and the consequences of breaking the order to the affected individuals in the language they understand.”
“Sir, allow me again to salute our healthcare workers and the medical fraternity for their selfless deeds of sacrifice and courage. I think my heart, as well as the hearts of many Singaporeans, surely go out to them each time we see a death reported in the newspapers, particularly if it is that of a healthcare worker. I would also like to acknowledge the cooperation of all those who have not broken their quarantine orders. And indeed, as we have read from the press, these are actually the majority. This whole SARS episode, Sir, is perhaps our equivalent of September 11th that galvanised the American nation and called for an unprecedented outpouring of civic responsibility and inspiration. Sir, I support the amendment to the Act, though the measures would appear harsh and even draconian. But we cannot allow the reckless acts of a minority to put the lives of the majority at risk. We cannot afford to wait for this minority who appears to need time to understand the severity of the situation and to be convinced that they are endangering the lives of many others when they break the quarantine orders. Liberals could argue that the amendment would severely curtail civil liberties, privacy of information and invest the public health authorities with immense powers that seem to have no check in place for potential abuse. However, we are facing a grave threat, perhaps in some ways, more deadly than explosive acts of terrorism because the enemy is invisible to the naked eye. Tough challenges call for tough measures, but I would further call upon all Singaporeans, while rightfully indignant at those who break quarantine rules, to spare a thought for the circumstances under which this could happen. I suspect that not all HQO breakers are wilful.”
“I would like to join Dr Wang in asking about the treatment of patients at Tan Tock Seng Hospital. I think there are some people in Singapore who fear being sent to Tan Tock Seng Hospital now because they think it is like a death sentence. So it will be good if we can inform the public about how patients are treated there. If they are not infected, they will remain uninfected if they go to Tan Tock Seng Hospital and get out well. Another question I would like to ask the Minister for Health is if he could also enlighten us on the measures that have been put in place to help minimise the inconvenience of those who have been served with Home Quarantine Orders. I think so far the plight and also the sacrifice of many healthcare workers have been highlighted but not much has been reported or conveyed on the measures that have been put in place to help those who are served with Home Quarantine Orders. Finally, I would also like to take this opportunity to not only thank the healthcare workers but also all those who have been put in the frontline to help fight this battle against SARS, including the Minister, as well as all the Government officials and those who have actually contributed to the Courage Fund.”
“This will facilitate the transfer and exchange of skills and knowledge, which will also benefit mainstream schools as the teachers become more conversant and compassionate to children with learning disabilities in their midst. Sir, I am also pleased to note that, in recent years, the inclusion of high functioning children with special needs into mainstream schools has received much higher understanding from MOE. Since 1999, there has been one mainstream secondary school per cluster fitted with facilities to accommodate children with special needs. However, a recent study of inclusion of high functioning hearing-impaired students in mainstream schools shows that more has to be done at the operational level to alleviate some of the problems faced by the physically challenged students. For instance, in one case, a hearing-impaired student was punished at the school assembly for not doing what she was told. In fact, the real reason was that the teacher did not know that she could not hear the instructions clearly and thought she was acting up. A standard operating procedure could have been easily put in place to help ensure students with hearing impairment to hear the instructions, say, through a buddy system. More attention and thus resources are needed to improve the current structure and systems of integration for the special needs children.”
“Sir, I am glad that since I last spoke on this topic in last year's Committee of Supply, the salary scales for teachers of special education (SPED) schools have been raised, although a gap still exists between mainstream and special education teachers. In fact, some special education teachers who teach children who are more difficult to handle are given monthly premium allowances. However, I understand that the whole issue of lack of career development and training opportunities of special education teachers still persists. In fact, there is a lack of trained special education teachers today. I do understand that SPED teachers are under the purview of NCSS, and not MOE. However, I would like to urge MOE, as the Ministry in charge of education, to spearhead and coordinate the training of these teachers who perhaps need even much more help, as they are handling children with special needs. In the case of secondment of mainstream teachers to SPED schools, I understand that MOE's policy is to limit the secondment to one or two terms of two years, so that these seconded teachers do not lose out in their career development as against their counterparts in the mainstream schools. This is indeed well intentioned but it, inadvertently, deprives SPED schools of a source of trained, dedicated teachers with a compassion for SPED students. Will it not be possible to accord such teachers equal opportunities to training and career development and advance, even as they are on secondment to the SPED schools? Another avenue by which SPED schools can have more access to the services of well-trained teachers from mainstream schools is to have a roster of postings of available and willing mainstream teachers to special schools and give them hardship allowances during this posting.”
“Madam, I must also confess I have trouble deciphering what these terms "autonomous" and a "multi-campus university" really mean. Will the respective Presidents of the three campuses have the independence to make decisions on admissions, examination standards, expenditure, etc? Presumably, the NUS multi-campus system takes its inspiration from the California State University system. But the various University of California campuses are generally so geographically apart and distinct that they operate almost as totally separate entities, whereas the NUS system seems more like branch campuses of the mother campus. In this sense, the competitive landscape has not changed much from the present, because the new campuses at Buona Vista and Outram are offering somewhat differentiated courses from what the three existing universities are offering. Also, NUS (Buona Vista) seems to be positioned as the premier research university above its lesser brethren in the NUS system, as well as NTU and SMU. Is this streaming at work at the tertiary level? If so, then we should also accept that not all public universities are created equal, and we are merely reflecting the spectrum of human ability by having both top-tier and lower-tier universities. There seems to be an incongruence here. At the polytechnic level, there are no misgivings about the third, fourth or even a fifth polytechnic. But we reject the need for a fourth university. Is it because we are enforcing quality, by deliberately reducing the supply of university places? What about SIM? It was touted to be the seat of the fourth university at one time. Perhaps the Minister could review the idea of the fourth university as an institution for industry and practice.”
“Madam, the Report of the University Sector enunciates the principles of robustness, diversity and health competition. These are principles I fully endorse. The Report concludes from these three principles that there is no need for a fourth university, an idea first broached by another committee headed by the former Senior Minister of State Peter Chen in early 2002. So with due respect, one Minister of State says to start a fourth university, while another says, no, - all within a matter of nine months. The structure of the university sector in its latest incarnation is that of a multi-autonomous campus, NUS, and an enlarged NTU, rather than a fourth university. I understand that this is in order to derive economies of scale from operations, branding, other start-up costs and minimise staff poaching. Madam, we saw very high profile defections of former TCS stars, actors and actresses shortly before SPH MediaWorks was set up two to three years ago. The two stations - MediaCorp and MediaWorks - now compete head to head in the TV ratings, forcing huge improvements to the quality of programming and promoting the film industry. The chief beneficiary from this competition has, without a question, been the consumer. In economic terms, society's welfare has improved, even if producers find their monopoly cut down. 4.45 pm So, poaching, in itself, is not necessarily a bad thing. Existing senior NUS staff can quite easily be seconded permanently to start the fourth university, as was the case with the migration of some teaching staff from the NUS Business School and other faculties to SMU. I fear that the enhanced competition element is missing from this latest proposal.”
“No doubt this debate will spur all the three universities to closely examine their pedagogical methods to ensure that graduates of whichever university they come from have the requisite technical, professional as well as the life skills needed to thrive in the New Economy. I would like to ask the Minister how the universities will ensure that there is a balance between the quest to be a world-class research university and producing graduates that meet the needs of the industry.”
“Madam, the current content and pedagogy of university education at NUS show a bias towards research and development largely by design given the emphasis of the current administration on staff publications. This might be appropriate for the Science, Arts and Technology disciplines, but perhaps less so for other more professional disciplines. Consequently, it appears that applied research and practice orientated curriculum currently do not feature highly in the overall institutional ethos. Employers often tell me that, compared to graduates from the polytechnics, NUS and NTU graduates, although more mature when they leave the universities, have a poorer grasp of the practical aspects of their disciplines. It is of course possible to argue philosophically that the purpose of an university education is not to make artisans or technicians. That is the polytechnic's job. But I suspect that, if a poll of employers were taken, many would say that they wish the university graduates put combined thinking skills and a better mastery of the technical skills required of the job. Some graduates have little bent for R&D, preferring instead to, so to speak, soil their hands in our quest to move up the value chain. Have we neglected these other aspirations for industry oriented degree programmes, especially for the professional disciplines? Madam, the recent debate about the respective marriage of the three universities and whether or not Marina is really different, as the advertisement says, marks a growing awareness that university education is more than just the impartation of knowledge and skills.”
“While some of these foreign talents eventually make their home here and thereby contribute to Singapore's manpower development, many more choose to leave at the end of their contract. Are there mechanisms in place to ensure that the skills and expertise of these talents are somehow transferred to the local staff? What is the ratio of local to foreign staff at NUS and NTU currently? What is the turnover rate for local and foreign university lecturers in each of these two universities in the last two years?”
“Madam, let me say, at the outset, that I support the University Sector Review Committee's recommendation to increase the number of places at our local universities and to allow a small number of private universities to be set up in Singapore, thus providing more diversity and choice. Madam, I wish to raise two issues relating to the University Sector Review Committee's Report. The target cohort participation rate by 2010 is 25%, up from the current 21%. Each year, thousands of private candidates take the 'A' courses from a wide range of programmes offered by many different schools, some of doubtful quality. Some of our polytechnic graduates seek a second chance to pursue a degree. Others completed their 'A' levels but could not gain admission into either NUS or NTU. Those who can afford to go overseas do. There is clearly a demand for university education from a wide pool of potential candidates. In comparison, the CPR of some western countries is as much as 40% to 50%. I am not advocating that target. But I understand and accept the Ministry's concern about not diluting standards from too high a number of students. However, I differ from my parliamentary colleague, Dr Wang Kai Yuen's view. I feel that there is certainly room to raise the CPR to 30%, or so, in future without diluting standards because of the increasingly high quality of students. Another issue concerns the question of staffing at the universities. I understand that quality teaching and research staff in some disciplines are sorely lacking, and recruitment is often done overseas. Foreign talents often fill many of the posts.”
“Teachers could also be sent on overseas attachment to well-known schools in countries, such as the US and Sweden, to experience first hand how students are taught in these schools.”
“Sir, MPs were recently invited to visit the NIE. I was impressed by the teaching facilities and resources available. There was even a jukebox used as CD loan dispenser. I was told that that was the only one in Singapore. Together with this state of the art infrastucture and resource for training teachers, teacher salary scale has also been increased to attract new recruits. Nonetheless, anecdotal evidence still suggests that many teachers are leaving the profession, citing heavy workload and long hours as major push factors. Of course, in the last one or two years, there has been an increase in the number of applicants who join the teaching profession. This is likely to be due in part to the economic downturn. I would like to ask the Minister what percentage of teachers have left the profession in the last few years. What are the main reasons for their resignation? How does the workload of our teachers, including time spent after school on CCA, etc, compare to international standards? With the many changes made to the education system over the years and, in particular, the recent revamp of the upper secondary and JC education, how would present and future teachers be prepared to facilitate and promote independent and creative learning since many would have been schooled in the era where emphasis was on knowledge acquisition? Teachers themselves must be motivated and passionate learners in order to instill in our young a passion for learning, and not be mere recipients of knowledge. I would like to suggest that perhaps Singaporean teachers who have won awards for being progressive in their teaching and well-known foreign educators and our local entrepreneurs could be invited to share their expertise and help our teachers adopt new assessment and teaching methods.”
“I speak especially of the Learning Support Programme, which is an early intervention programme designed to identify and help the weaker students in Primary 1 and 2. Perhaps, the resource issue is the key reason why the LSC programme does not continue into the middle and upper primary schools. I urge the Minister to look into how special programmes can be designed to help them. In doing so, I am supporting the notion of streaming. However, I am arguing not that it has gone too far but that it has not gone far enough to make a difference to those who need the most help. The Sports School recently drew flak from parents because of the principal's insistence that applicants must be at least in EM2 to qualify. This is another instance of inadequate streaming. Streaming should not be confined to academic outcomes, but also recognise that talent has many, many forms. Few are the ones who are gifted in multiple areas. Since streaming is already so entrenched in Singapore, why not go the whole hog and permit the Sports School or similar specialised institutions to admit students talented in sports but less gifted academically, but be more flexible about such criteria?”
“Sir, I wish to say something about a subject which I am quite certain the Minister may bristle at. Streaming has been the bane of many parents and students. It keeps popping up at parliamentary sittings in one guise or another. Before I come to my main point, I wish to state categorically that I support the principle behind streaming. The principle is that different students are gifted in different ways. A programme that matches a student to his or her aptitude will extract the best from him, compared to one that treats all students alike. There is a risk that an egalitarian approach could dump down instead of level up, as some schools in Europe tinged with socialist ideals have found. I do not like the stigma that attaches to streaming. But I support the notion that, on the whole, students should gain from it, however Orwellian this may be. My problem is not that there should not be any streaming at all. Instead, I think we need to have more streaming. So far, the streaming we are familiar with has a bias towards the upper 10-20 percentile of the population. Indeed, the whole issue of upper secondary/JC education that this House debated last November seems to give heavy emphasis to those who actually need less help, ie, the gifted and those in the through-train system and the elite private schools. Our scarce manpower resources make it imperative that the precious little we have be optimised so that, from the mixture, the cream will rise to become the future leaders of the country. But what about the bottom 10-20 percentile? This group is a far more needy group that would, of course, demand proportionately more resources to help than the average student group.”
“Many parents continue to be anguished at the mere thought that their children will practically lose their childhood and the joy of childhood once they enter what is generally perceived as the pressure-cooker Singapore education system from Primary 1. Along the lines of the new pre-school programme, should not the primary school teaching methods be also changed to give more weight to learning through activity, discovery and experiment and less weight on rote learning? The MOE should also review the curriculum content and workload of primary school students to see if the content can be further trimmed without sacrificing quality and standard. Again, like my parliamentary colleagues before me, I would also like to ask the Ministry to look into the feasibility of introducing single session primary schools because I have noted how my children have benefited when their school turned from a two session school to a single session school. Sir, the changes made to the pre-school, JC and university curriculum to allow for more broad-based education and nurturing thinking skills are, indeed, first steps in the right direction. However, change should also be made equally upstream. Hence, I urge MOE not to delay in looking at the equally needed reforms, especially for those in primary schools.”
“Education in Singapore is undoubtedly one of the cornerstones from which we have built our economy and great strides have indeed been made in educating our young. The budget for Education has consistently remained the second highest Government spending. Last year, the system saw major proposed reforms for the upper secondary/JC education and the university sector. The proposed changes to be made to the upper secondary/JC education to inject greater breadth, flexibility and diversity into the curriculum has largely been welcomed by Singaporeans. The proposed expansion of the university sector to allow among others more Singaporeans to study at the local universities has also been viewed positively. A new pre-school programme, developed by MOE with expert help, which teaches students to play activities, discovery and experiment has also been launched. Amidst all these changes, there seems to be a missing link as the Ministry has been silent on any impending changes to be made to primary school education. Sir, like my parliamentary colleagues before me, I would also like to ask the Minister if the Ministry will be looking into revamping the primary school, as well as the lower secondary education, so as to make them fit into pre-school as well as the upper secondary and JC education. As I noted in the debate on the upper secondary/JC education review, the new education roadmap on greater breadth, flexibility and diversity should also be made available to those in the lower secondary and primary schools so that all will be charting a common course.”
“The knowledge gained from the empirical operational know-how, process design and proprietary knowledge will not only be an asset in Singapore to produce water to meet our demand, it is also an important industrial asset that is likely to receive significant world demand in easing water shortage in the long term. At this moment, the best technology for this unconventional way of water production is in the hands of the Americans and the Europeans. This is a very high value-added industry. While we are looking for ideas for the future growth of our manufacturing and services sectors, to further develop our water industry and position Singapore as a new player in the world water market could be viable. In order to achieve all these, there are a lot of things that we can do, from R&D, technological innovation, to getting local company participation, develop them, provide incentives and help them to compete in the international market. The question that I would like to ask the Minister is: would the Ministry support this idea? What action will the Government take to realise this vision?”
“They could also be given uniforms so that the residents can identify them as the appointed people to take away the recyclables. This may also help to deter the so-called "unauthorised" independent karang-guni men from coming to collect the recyclables. There have been reported instances of arguments and even fights over recyclables. The formation of Waste Management and Recycling Association of Singapore (WMRAS), through the support of the Environment Ministry to raise the standards and image of the industry and allow the players in the industry to work together is clearly an excellent and far-sighted initiative. I would like to ask the Minister what further initiatives would be taken by NEA to help the waste management and recycling industry become a regional leader. Assoc. Prof. Low Seow Chay: Sir, the world is facing the problem of water shortage due to population growth, environmental change, and the increase in pollution of the water sources. The UN estimates that by 2015, at least 40% of the world's population will live in countries where it is either difficult or impossible to access clean water. In one way, Singapore is unfortunate that the natural rainfall is just not enough to provide adequate water to meet the domestic and expanding industrial demands completely. The fortunate part is that our economic strength and technological know-how have enabled us to obtain water from unconventional sources in meeting our water demand. This has created the third and fourth water taps in our policy on water sources. While doing large scale production from unconventional ways, we have first-hand experience in dealing with and scientific innovation in resolving difficulties associated with the production process.”
“Sir, allow me again to share the recent recycling experience of my legislative assistant. I quote, "I collected newspapers and plastic containers, the latter being placed in bags provided. The first time, only the newspapers were collected. Those who came for the pick-up did not seem to know that they should also pick up glass, plastics and cardboard, each in separate bags. We were given a bag or two each time. The second time, they took only what were in the bags and ignored the newspapers, maybe because a Straits Times reader complained that her plastics were not picked up. There are no recycling bins in the area I lived. When I called to ask for it, I was told that they would look into it. That was December 2002. Still no bin in March 2003." Sir, I am not recounting this tale as an indictment of the service of the public waste collector or recycling company, but as an illustration to show that the standards of our waste management industry, in particular, the employees, leave much to be desired. Since the introduction of the service standards by the National Environment Agency last October, it is reported that complaints of recyclables being left uncollected or collection carried out on the wrong dates have fallen by two-thirds. Nonetheless, much more can and must be done to improve the service standards of our waste management industry if we are to transform this industry into a regional leader, as stated by the Minister. The skills and image of workers in the waste management and recycling industry need to be upgraded and improved. Like the cleaners, they could be trained to know what to collect, how to collect and when to collect the recyclables.”
“This is recommended to make things logical again, as current toilet standards were set a long time ago when most women stayed at home and, therefore, the provision in public places was insufficient. I have been told that in Hong Kong, they are already tabling this law in Parliament and Japan and UK have strong lobby groups to make such a change as well. I, therefore, in all seriousness now, strongly urge the Environment Ministry to work with the Ministry of National Development on stipulating the requirement to provide more cubicles in women's toilets as part of the holistic approach to improve the standards of cleanliness in our public toilets. This is the hardware aspect. The soft aspect will be to continue to educate Singaporeans on good toilet habits and responsibility for public properties. As the ENV's sticker slogan goes "We aim to please, could you aim too, please!"”
“Sir, Members of this House have, over the past few days, brought up instances where discrimination against women remains, such as medical benefits for civil servants and citizenship for children of Singaporean women married to foreigners. Sir, I would like to bring a more fundamental and pressing area where women are unwittingly discriminated against and, that is, by the current state of public toilets in Singapore. Let me explain why I have made this observation. Presently, most men and women's toilets in public places are a mirror image of one another in terms of size, except for the urinal. According to the President of WTO - no, not World Trade Organisation but World Toilet Organisation - Mr Jack Sim, studies have shown that men take 30 seconds to urinate but women take about three times as long, to be precise, 92 seconds. Furthermore, women being more sociable creatures, socialise in the toilets as they powder. Men do not. They neither powder nor socialise. Yet, most male and female toilets in public areas usually have the same number of cubicles and, on top of this, men have urinals. To me, this is clearly gender discrimination, hence, the frequent long queues witnessed in women's toilets. Insufficient toilet provision leads to high traffic and heavy usage for toilets. Therefore, women's toilets usually become dirtier than men's. Some women may even have to resort to doing kung-fu stance over the WC as the seat cover is dirty beyond mere wiping with tissue papers. To redress this problem, highly scientific and rigorous studies have actually been done and have shown that the right number of cubicles required in the ladies should be based on a formula: total number of cubicles + urinals in the gents x 2.”
“The Ministry could then consider enlarging the more popular hawker centres and relocating the affected stallholders to these enlarged centres. A comprehensive plan for upgrading hawker centres would be economically more efficient and useful than ad-hoc programmes.”
“Sir, the Hawker Centres Upgrading Programme is yet another pro-active initiative of the Ministry of the Environment that has been well received by the public. I would like to ask the Minister how many hawker centres have been upgraded since the announcement of the programme in 2001. What are the average take-up rates of stalls at these upgraded centres? How well received are these upgraded centres by the hawkers? How many more hawker centres will be upgraded under the programme? Sir, I note that whilst the upgraded hawker centres I have visited are clearly much better than the old centres in terms of design, ventilation, seating arrangement, etc, to ensure that the designs are not only architecturally pleasing but also user and maintenance-friendly, I suggest that a panel of advisers be formed. The proposed panel could comprise the adviser for the area, stakeholders, eg, the grassroots leaders and stallholders, as well as property management and maintenance professionals, to provide inputs on the design features of the proposed new hawker centres before plans are finalised. Moreover, whilst hawker centres are welcome by many for their cheaper food and convenience, as my parliamentary colleague has earlier suggested, it may not be particularly popular with the young, who generally prefer air-conditioned food courts. Some existing hawker centres may also not be doing well due to poor accessibility as well as a small catchment population. Hence, I propose that a comprehensive study of all existing hawker centres, which have not been upgraded, be undertaken to, among others, evaluate the viability of retaining and rebuilding these hawker centres. Hawker centres which are not viable should not be rebuilt and should perhaps even be demolished in the medium to long term.”
“Every night, the areas around the letter boxes in most HDB void decks are strewn with mail junked by residents, even if there are bins nearby. Grounds used for functions, such as the year-end countdown, are also usually covered with litter at the end of the function. In fact, even in private condominiums, I have witnessed durian husks being dumped in the lift after the fruit has been eaten! However, being an optimist, a positive aspect of this negative behaviour is that at least it creates jobs for cleaners and helps towards reducing unemployment. But on a more serious note, we must step up our efforts to inculcate in Singaporeans a sense of ownership and responsibility for public places and the habit of throwing rubbish in the right place. May I suggest to the Minister that he should work with all grassroots organisations and other event organisers, as well as Government authorities, to make every event a litter-free day. Singaporeans should learn, like the Koreans, to take ownership of their rubbish and discard them properly.”
“Sir, it was reported in Green Plan 2012 that Singapore, together with other small countries, was left out of the second Environmental Sustainability Index (ESI) report commissioned by the World Economic Forum because of its small size and unique features. Sir, I would like to ask the Minister whether we have our own ESI to track our performance in environmental sustainability to compare against those of other countries, or do we have plans to develop some similar form of performance measures. If we have one, or are planning to have one, what are the factors taken into account for the purpose of tracking and comparing performance, and what are the targets set? If not, how then do we assess our performance in environmental sustainability? I would like to note at this juncture that the Minister had answered part of these questions in reference to the various colours of our earth and the sky. But I feel that we may want to have more tangible indicators. Next, I would like to ask the Minister how we have fared in terms of noise pollution, especially in residential areas. Does the Ministry work with other Government authorities, such as the MND, regarding the siting of residential developments in areas which may be subject to noise pollution, eg, military airbases? Is any environmental impact study done for such proposals before they are approved? The last area I would like to touch on with regard to our Green Plan is how we have fared in keeping our city clean, green and litter-free. The litter-free campaign has been around for a long time. However, despite fines, work orders and constant admonishments, littering still remains a problem.”
“Collection points for recyclable materials could be made even more accessible. In fact, for every two public trash bins, perhaps there should be one for recycling. Over time, residents could be weaned from using plastic bags which are environmentally unfriendly for storing recyclable items, with the provision of reusable crates such as those SembWaste is using for landed housing estates. In HDB estates, I support the idea that the Government could also look into providing two chutes, one for recyclables and another for non-recyclables. Sir, NEA has clearly made a very good headstart in promoting recycling. But more needs to be done. Singaporeans must learn to treasure trash!”
“Sir, household recycling participation increased from about one in seven in 2001 when the Recycling Campaign was launched to about one in three currently. The target rate for this year is one in two households. Sir, I would like to ask the Minister if he thinks the target set for this year is achievable. What are the initiatives the Ministry would be adopting to achieve this target? The Environment Ministry should be commended for its unstinting efforts to promote recycling. Clearly, there is heightened awareness among Singaporeans about recycling. Nonetheless, unlike the urge to go to the stall with the longest queue, recycling is not second nature to most Singaporeans. Much more needs to be, and can be, done. Education efforts should be stepped up. Young and old must be educated not only on the virtues of recycling, but also on the ABCs and best practices of recycling. They need to be taught what can be recycled and what cannot be, so that trash does not end up in the recycling bins. They should be encouraged to separate their recyclables into different bags so that papers, for instance, do not get damaged by wet cans. My legislative assistant, who lived in Germany for 16 years, shared with me that she feels very uneasy each time she mixes her trash, as in Germany, households sort trash for recycling. In Singapore, we often find non-recyclable trash in recycling bins. Students should not only be taught the virtues of recycling and brought to visit landfills and incinerators. They should be given ample opportunities to put into practice what they learn. I would like to suggest to the Ministry that NEA organise a national recycling competition for schools to promote recycling among our young.”
“It is suggested that the jurisdiction of the Strata Titles Board could be widened to deal with conflicts relating to management and operation, so that the parties need not resort to court proceedings.”
“Firstly, share value. The existing COB's guidelines for share values have been in use for more than 20 years. To overcome the common complaint of home owners that they have to bear the same amount of maintenance charge, even though their unit is much smaller, it would be better to refine the floor area groupings by incorporating more bands than to leave the share value allotment entirely to the developer. Having a set of guidelines would provide some level of certainty and transparency to both buyers and sellers. Secondly, the role of managing agents. Unlike the more popular and perceived "sexy" professions, say, in the financial or legal sector, there is no legislation governing the minimum standards of professional property managers. While SPRING Singapore has published a set of guidelines on the appointment of managing agents, the performance standards required of them still need articulation. Sir, in order to ensure that management personnel employed by the managing agents possess the proper skill sets and qualifications, I would like the Minister to consider a system of accreditation for managing agents. This is to be developed with inputs from the professional organisations and practising property managers. I do not think that accreditation, in this instance, could be viewed as interventionist, because it is in the interest of the home owners. Lastly, the role of the Strata Titles Board. Sir, I would like to ask the Minister to consider enlarging the role of the Strata Titles Board. Presently, the Strata Titles Board is empowered to consider only 14 matters under its jurisdiction.”
“Sir, I have three questions to ask the Minister to consider when reviewing the Act.”
“Singaporeans gripe that foreign talents are taking their jobs away, but Singaporean businesses are actually griping that there are no Singaporeans to work for them. In sum, I would therefore like to urge the relevant authorities to re-evaluate the various policies that have been imposed on local contractors to see if their plight can be alleviated. Otherwise, our local contractors will become extinct.”
“The recent introduction of e-bidding which allows the number of lowest bidders to bid again every five minutes until all except one are eliminated is also squeezing their already low margins. Undoubtedly, it is a very efficient system but brutal. The new multi-skilling requirement of foreign workers would also, in the short term, further squeeze their already razor-thin margins to begin with. Furthermore, contractors note that it is difficult to improve productivity in the sector as they face an uphill task trying to attract local workers to work in the industry, whilst foreign workers can only work in Singapore for a fixed number of years. To corroborate what the Minister for Manpower said yesterday, a contractor told me that, recently, he advertised for two lorry drivers. There were many applicants but no takers, because all the applicants were Singaporeans and did not want to work 28 days a month. Moreover, he added that margins are so thin, and he would not be able to continue business without hiring some foreign workers. He further noted that conditions are so tough, many contractors now feel that with all these regulations imposed by the Government, well-intentioned no doubt, it is as if they are being pushed to what they say pai tui tiou lou, ie, queue up to commit suicide. In fact, most recently, the contractor for our own CC also went bust, and we had to get another contractor to finish the work. I fully understand the undesirable consequences of over reliance on foreign workers.”
“Sir, I have one question, but it has got a preamble Sir, I acknowledge that bringing up the plight of our local contractors may sound like a broken record. Nonetheless, however low the productivity of this sector, it is still a contributor to our GDP, with probably a large number of SMEs struggling to cope with the shrunken demand for construction services. On the positive side, the value of construction exports by our local contractors has also shown some increase in the last two years, contributing to our efforts to expand our second wing. Sir, many contractors have gone bankrupt due to the economic slowdown. Feedback from these contractors is that whilst many of the policies implemented by the BCA and other relevant authorities are well intentioned, some can be more flexible to alleviate the problems they face. For instance, whilst the BCA Contractors' Registration System is to ensure minimum standards, there needs to be some leeway given to contractors, most of whom have had to downsize in such difficult times. These contractors find that it is not practical to keep a large pool of professional staff resulting in high overheads when jobs are scarce. But their grading will be jeopardised if they were to reduce their professional staff strength. Moreover, due to the scarcity of jobs and the desire by some to maintain their grading, they engage in price wars with bids often below cost. This had led to the failure of many firms. Those who have been inactive in the last few years have likewise had their registration downgraded, with the result that they will then be barred from tendering for the larger public sector projects. Getting downgraded also does not help them in their attempts to venture overseas.”
“Land cost is only one of these factors. For this reason, while I appreciate the difficulty of obtaining data, every effort should be made to derive, as the ERC Workgroup has proposed, authenticated value added per land area by sector, taking into account the entire package of interests and liabilities that go with the land for more accurate cost comparisons. While high land costs will make us uncompetitive, there is also an opposite danger that an oversupply of land, and thus built-up space, is a waste of valuable economic resources. For instance, island-wide, there are currently more than 43 million square feet of vacant industrial space and about 11 million square feet of vacant office space. This amount of vacant office space is nearly three times the amount of space proposed for the Business Financial Centre and enough to fill 12 Republic Plazas. In a knowledge-based economy and with recent changes to the land use groups in the Master Plan 2003, the distinction between office and industrial space and even residential space will become increasingly blurred with the proliferation of business parks, home offices, live-work, high-tech industrial space, etc, including One-North. My question to the Minister is how would his Ministry track the supply and demand for office and industrial space which impinges on the Government's land sales programme, so as to avoid large volatilities in the market as the traditional definitions of such spaces have become increasingly obsolete, and there is considerable overlap between the two.”
“Sir, being the largest landlord in Singapore owning some 90% of the land in this country, the Government has repeatedly assured that it will ensure an adequate supply of land to achieve a stable property market and rein in price increases. Its vast land holdings give it leverage to steer the market in its long-term strategic direction. Most recently, DPM Lee has assured this House that the Government will ensure an adequate supply of industrial land to achieve stable and internationally competitive prices. Over the past few days, and just a few minutes ago, it seems to me that many in this House have tried to make land cost the chief villian for our business woes, the destroyer of entrepreneurial drive and the cause of national embarrassment (as in the case of the loss of Maersk and Evergreen to Tanjong Pelapas). The truth of the matter is that our present business woes are due to a combination of factors which include land, but also labour costs, other than the cost of materials. In fact, for most large companies, land costs make up only a small fraction of their entire cost structure, the bulk being labour costs other than material costs. In reality, to remain competitive, all costs must be reined in. The danger, of course, is when land costs rise out of sync with the rest of the economy. As a property consultant, I would also like to note that since 1996, land prices for almost all sectors of the property market, including industrial and commercial land, have fallen by about half or more. So, too, have rentals, and our office space occupancy cost is now lower than even those of Mumbai and Beijing. The locational preferences of multinationals and blue chip names reflect multi-dimensional decision processes, including quality of life and quality of infrastructure.”