Chee Hong Tat
Singapore
“The National Parks Board (NParks) resumed crow shooting operations in March 2026 across nine districts, including Yishun. These sites were prioritised based on several factors, including the volume and severity of public feedback on crow-related issues, as well as the technical feasibility of conducting shooting operations safely at each…”
“To drive sustainable construction and reduce reliance on conventional diesel generators, the Housing and Development Board (HDB) has required the use of battery energy storage systems (BESS) or synchronised generator set systems at Build-to-Order construction worksites for all building tenders called since February 2025.”
“The Housing and Development Board (HDB) tracks resident feedback on maintenance-related issues, including spalling concrete and structural cracks within HDB flats. Such issues are much less common in younger flats, compared to older flats above 30 years old.”
“The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) provides resources on its website to guide building owners and Management Corporations Strata Title (MCSTs) on lift modernisation.”
“Private retail developments sold through the Government Land Sales Programme are intended to complement the commercial offerings in public developments undertaken by agencies, such as the Housing and Development Board.”
“The National Parks Board (NParks) is reviewing both the Animals and Birds Act and the Code of Animal Welfare (COAW). The former will include pet sector businesses and the latter will include and start with pet groomers.”
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“We have received positive responses from industry experts from different parts of the world who commented that Singapore's response in this particular incident, and I am sure they are comparing based on their years of experience with other incidents around the world, our response, in their words, was "extremely fast".”
“Mr Speaker, I think we have covered these points earlier. The learning points from this incident, certainly I think as I mentioned earlier, we will take on board and see how we can further enhance our processes, our SOPs, and we will also factor this in in the regular exercises that we conduct. The next exercise for the oil spill will be in October this year. As for standards, it is difficult to have a precise single number. And I hope Mr Chua can appreciate why, because every oil spill is different, depending on the scale, depending on the nature, depending on the geography, the time to respond to the oil spill can vary from oil spill to oil spill. In some instances, the oil may not float very far away. In some instances, it may float further away. In some instances, like I mentioned, the oil density makes it easier to detect because it floats on the surface. In this case, it was an added challenge because this oil has similar density as the seawater, so it could go below the surface. So, because of all those factors, there is not a single number that you can say, "Oh, did you meet this X hours?" It is not quite like that. But if we look at the overall response, including the deployment of the MPA patrol vessel arriving 11 minutes, started to spray dispersants, which is very important, I think in the initial period before the oil starts to harden. And then subsequently, the deployment of the vessels to keep track of the oil and then to start cleaning it up.”
“This mechanism that we have, together with the cooperation that we have built up with the industry, remains a very important part of our overall preparedness. Because as I mentioned in my Statement earlier, it is not possible to completely eliminate the risk of oil spills and therefore we have to be ready that if it occurs, and it will occur from time to time, we are able to respond effectively.”
“Mr Speaker, I would take the second question first on penalties. We are still doing the investigation, so I think we let the investigations be completed before we look at what are the appropriate penalties. But what remains quite clear is that with or without the penalties under the law, which is subject to the findings of the investigations, the bunker vessel in this case has strict liability. So, the insurer, British Marine, which is the insurer of the damaged bunker vessel, will have to respond to claims from parties who are affected by this incident. If the findings of the investigation later turn out that it is not the fault of the bunker vessel, then the bunker vessel owners can have the right to then submit their own claims against the other party, which caused the allision. So, that is the second part of Mr Saktiandi's question. The first part, indeed, as I mentioned earlier in my response to Assoc Prof James Lim, we recognise that this is not something that Singapore can deal with or our neighbours can deal with alone, because the oil can float from one part of the sea to another part of the sea across the boundaries. That is why we have, when we were notified of this oil spill, alerted our Malaysian and Indonesian counterparts, and we also provided updates to them along the way and offered our assistance. I think this is a process that has worked well over the years. Likewise, when there is an oil spill in their waters, they will also do the same to help us to be able to respond effectively. And we are part of the Revolving Fund Committee where the three littoral states can request and provide support for oil spills and clean-up operations in the Straits of Malacca and Singapore.”
“So, I think it is important for us, as we discuss this matter and as we assess the response, of whether it is MPA or its contractor, in this case T&T Salvage Asia, to bear that in mind. I would say, given the weather conditions, nightfall and the amount of work that is required to lay out the booms, I think T&T Salvage Asia did their best and the response time was in line with industry practices internationally.”
“As Captain Anuj explained during his media interview, it was at night. The weather was bad. So, he and his crew did their best to deploy the heavy containment boom as quickly as they can. But it took them till the next morning before they could fully deploy them. Sir, there is also an important point of clarification that I need to raise in response to Mr Dennis Tan's question because there is this assumption that the arrival of T&T Salvage Asia and laying out the booms could contain and fence in the oil that has been spilled around the vessel. Sir, I think that is not the correct understanding. The oil that has been spilled, especially when it is in a large amount, estimated 400 tonnes, sudden discharge into the sea, it will not stay there. There will be tidal currents, there will be waves and these will carry the oil and it will float elsewhere. So, the purpose of deploying T&T Salvage Asia is not to try and "fence in" the oil. It is to try and have a preventive measure around the damaged vessel because, let us not forget, there is still a lot of oil inside the damaged vessel that has not been released and spilled into the sea. So, we wanted to make sure that in case there is further spillage, there is a preventive measure around the damaged vessel to deal with that scenario. The next thing that has to be done is MPA and the contractors, together with our agencies, would have to try and locate where the oil patches, the spilled oil, are floating to, because you need to be able to locate it, then you can deal with it through the skimmers and the laying of booms to try and deal with the oil at sea. That is the process.”
“Mr Speaker, if I understood Mr Dennis Tan's questions correctly, there is a certain underlying assumption, which is that T&T Salvage Asia had been slow and had not been doing its work properly, if I understood the Member correctly. I think that is not the case. Let me explain. T&T Salvage Asia was not the only contractor engaged by MPA. MPA has, as I mentioned earlier, in response to Assoc Prof Jamus Lim, in-house capabilities as well as a group of contractors that they work with in the industry and these are experts with many years of experience dealing with oil spills. For T&T Salvage Asia, Captain Anuj, who is the boss of the company, was informed by his staff who were notified by MPA on the afternoon of 14 June. He was informed at 2.55 pm. I think he explained this in a media interview that upon being informed about this oil spill, he then had to mobilise to load up the heavy equipment. Sir, Mr Dennis Tan is a maritime lawyer. I am sure he understands these are not lightweight, simple equipment. These are heavy equipment that will require time to load up onto the vessel. That is what T&T Salvage Asia did in the first instance. So, that process to load up the equipment took some time. Then, they had to sail from Marina South Wharves because that is the wharf that is designed to load vessels like the T&T Salvage Asia vessel to be able to deal with incidents like oil spills. There is a reason why we chose Marina South Wharves, because if you think about the entire anchorage in the southern part of Singapore, you have from Tuas to Pasir Panjang and all the way to the eastern anchorages. So, if you were to put your loading point in the western part or in the eastern part, it may not be as centralised as Marina South Wharves. They arrived at the incident site at 9.41 pm.”
“Mr Speaker, the clean-up operations have just progressed to the start of phase 2. So, it is too early for us to confirm what the cost will be. But what we can say in response to Mr Yam's question, in terms of who will bear the cost, is that after the operations are over, we will tally up the total cost for the clean-up and we will submit these claims to the insurer of the bunker vessel.”
“All three Ministers have spoken about this point in our Ministerial Statements, about the learning points from this incident and how we can then incorporate the learning points into our SOPs, our processes, just as we have done with previous incidents. Every two years, we will do an oil spill exercise, together with the industry. It is alternate years – every two years, we will also do one for chemicals. These exercises help us to be ready in case there is a chemical spill or there is an oil spill.”
“Mr Speaker, first of all, I would like to point out that it is not the case that the capabilities and the assets have all been outsourced. MPA does have quite a bit of in-house capabilities, too. The patrol vessel, the first to arrive on the scene, was an MPA patrol vessel. MPA also has its own vessels that it has deployed. But given the nature of oil spills and that it could happen not just in Singapore waters but also in the waters in our region, we do want to do two things. The first is to have good collaborations with our neighbours so that in case there is an incident, there is a coordinated response, there is collaboration. We deal with it in a coordinated manner because the oil could flow from our waters to their shores or from their waters to our shores. So, this is part one of how we deal with the oil spills. Part two is that we also want to work with the industry because some of these contractors are specialised experts. Some of them specialise in laying booms, some of them specialise in skimming the oil, and some of them specialise in other areas. So, it is important for us to not see this as a binary kind of situation, that everything has to be in-house or everything has to be outsourced. We need both. We do need to have some in-house capabilities and we do have them. The second thing is about the scale of the oil spill. It is not a small oil spill because we have an estimated 400 tonnes of oil spilled into the sea in a sudden discharge. This is considered, I would say, on the scale, it is not the largest oil spill, but it is considered quite a serious oil spill.”
“It is not possible to completely eliminate this risk. Therefore, we have prepared for and maintained our readiness to respond in a prompt, coordinated and effective manner when such incidents occur. We have worked with industry partners to develop a contingency plan, which we rehearse and refine every two years during our inter-agency exercises for oil spills. Our standard operating procedures (SOPs) were enhanced along the way and they helped us to respond to this incident effectively. We will continue to update and improve our SOPs and contingency plans with learning points from this incident and prepare our teams to deal with oil spills effectively through training and regular inter-agency exercises. Sir, before I conclude, I would like to, once again, express my appreciation to our agencies, our industry partners and our volunteers for their hard work and the good progress made so far. There is more work ahead to complete the next phase of the clean-up operations and to mitigate the impact of the oil spill. Let us continue to work closely together, so that we can return to normalcy as soon as possible. Mr Speaker, with your permission, I will respond to any clarifications which Members may have, after my colleagues have made their Statements.”
“44 pm, MPA notified the public via a media statement that patches of oil and light sheens were observed off Pasir Panjang terminal and along Sentosa beaches. The National Environment Agency (NEA) started clean-up operations at about 10.00 am at Labrador Nature Reserve and around 4.00 pm at East Coast Park, after oil was observed along the shorelines. Later that day, at 7.33 pm, a joint media statement was issued by the agencies to inform the public that oil had also landed along shorelines in other areas and that affected beaches would be closed to facilitate clean-up operations. The statement highlighted that the agencies were taking action to mitigate the effects of the oil spill. MPA and our agencies had issued five media statements in the first four days of the incident to keep the public informed of the management of the incident and to address key concerns they might have. These media statements and other updates were also posted on the social media platforms of the agencies. Mr Speaker, investigations into the incident are ongoing and preliminary findings showed that the allision was caused by the dredger experiencing sudden loss of engine and steering controls. Some Members have asked about possible measures to prevent oil spills in future. Over the years, we have taken steps to enhance the safety of vessels and bunkering operations to minimise the risks of accidents and oil spills in our waters. We have also put in place practices such as mandatory safety training and shipboard drills for vessel crew on incident response as well as inspections for vessels in our port to ensure compliance with international safety conventions. While we do our best to reduce the risks, oil spills may still happen in our waters or in the region.”
“We work with them on the deployment of assets to ensure optimal outcomes, taking into account factors such as the geography of the area, weather conditions, prevailing winds and tidal conditions. Sir, some Members have asked about the timeliness of our communications to the public. Our agencies had provided regular updates from the day of the incident on 14 June. Our approach is to push out relevant information to the public as soon as possible, such as information on air and water quality, while we continue with the operations at sea and on land to deal with an evolving situation. Minister Grace Fu, Minister Desmond Lee and I also provided updates on the management and impact of the oil spill in the days following the incident. Please allow me to elaborate on the communications timeline. On the afternoon of 14 June, MPA informed the other agencies of the oil spillage. After being alerted, the agencies mobilised their staff to actively monitor the situation and stood ready to respond. At 6.03 pm that day, MPA notified the public of the allision and oil spill through a media release while it continued to assess and respond to the developing situation. At around 9.20 pm, the Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) began to cordon off affected parts of Palawan beach, when they first sighted oil on the beach. Early next morning on 15 June at about 7.00 am, SDC observed the further spread of oil in waters at Palawan, Siloso and Tanjong beaches, cordoned off affected areas and deployed workers to commence clean-up. At 10.59 am, SDC published a post on their Facebook page and website to inform the public that the waters of Tanjong, Palawan and Siloso Beach on Sentosa were closed for clean-up operations, but the three beaches remained open. At 1.”
“First, due to thundery showers on 14 June afternoon, visibility was poor and the vessels from MPA and their contractors were not able to spot large patches of oil in the sea in the first few hours after the incident. Second, as the density of the spilled oil in this case is very close to that of seawater, the oil slicks might have gone below the water surface, making detection harder. When night fell, the reduced visibility made it even more difficult for MPA and its contractors to locate the spilled oil. Throughout its response, MPA used a multi-pronged approach involving drones, satellite imagery and sightings from ships at sea and personnel on the ground to confirm the location of large oil patches. In the morning of 15 June, when large oil patches were located, MPA deployed oil skimmers to skim the oil from the sea. MPA and its contractors also carried out the targeted deployment of booms along our coastlines and waterfronts to facilitate clean-up operations. This approach ensures the booms are placed where they can be most effective. In response to Mr Louis Chua’s question, MPA did not prioritise oil collection in certain areas before deploying booms to contain the spill. Preventive measures were also implemented at biodiversity sensitive areas such as the Chek Jawa Wetlands at Pulau Ubin, given the potential environmental impact. We have deployed a total of around 4,000 metres of oil containment booms. To Mr Christopher de Souza’s question, our contractors also used absorbent booms with hydrophobic content. Our clean-up methods and operations are guided by international experts from ITOPF, and our agencies work closely with specialised companies and contractors who have strong track records in responding to oil spills.”
“For such spills, the patrol vessel will focus on spraying dispersants and deploy contractors to lay heavy-duty oil containment booms around the damaged vessel as a preventive measure in case there is further spillage of oil from the vessel. Sir, this is the established procedure, which is in line with international practices for dealing with oil spills, and the MPA response team on the patrol vessel followed the procedure correctly. I had explained during last week’s joint press conference that the main purpose of the containment booms around the damaged vessel was not to “fence in” all the spilled oil. When there is a sudden discharge of a large amount of oil, like what happened on 14 June, the spilled oil will not remain stationary at the incident site. It will be carried by tidal currents and waves to other locations. The containment booms were therefore intended as a preventive measure in case there was further oil spillage from the damaged vessel. The containment boomd can also help to catch some of the oil spill which remained in the vicinity of the incident location and did not float elsewhere. But this is not 100% foolproof, because the tidal currents and waves can carry the oil to go below or above the booms. In addition to laying containment booms around the damaged vessel, we also deployed oil skimmers. Based on guidance from industry experts such as the ITOPF, oil skimmers are most effective against large and thick patches of oil. Hence, before deploying the skimmers, MPA and its contractors had to first confirm the location of the large oil patches. This task was challenging for a number of reasons.”
“This needs to be done quickly, so that the dispersantd can start to break down the oil, which will facilitate subsequent cleaning operations at sea and on land. Otherwise, the oil will harden over time and become more difficult to remove. Besides the initial patrol vessel, 11 more vessels from MPA and their contractors were deployed to perform different roles during the initial phase of the response on 14 June. MPA also checked the damaged vessel to ensure that it would not sink, the crew were safe and there was no further spillage of oil. MPA then activated T&T Salvage Asia to lay heavy-duty containment booms around the damaged vessel. T&T’s vessel arrived at the incident location at 9.41 pm on 14 June, as it took a few hours to load the vessel with the heavy equipment and another few hours to sail to the incident site. Despite the challenges of working at night and under bad weather conditions, T&T did well to deploy 200 metres of oil booms around the damaged vessel by working through the night. The deployment of the oil booms was completed at 5.15 am on 15 June. Some have asked why MPA did not immediately deploy the containment booms onboard its patrol vessel while waiting for T&T’s vessel to arrive. Sir, the booms onboard the MPA patrol vessel are lightweight oil containment booms which are suitable for dealing quickly with small-scale and localised oil spills, such as oil leakages during bunkering operations. These lightweight booms were assessed to be unsuitable for dealing with the oil spill incident on 14 June, which was a more serious spill involving the sudden discharge of an estimated 400 tonnes of oil into the sea.”
“Mr Speaker, Members have filed a total of 40 Parliamentary Questions (PQs) on the oil spill incident that occurred on 14 June. Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Ms Grace Fu, Minister for National Development Mr Desmond Lee and I will be making Ministerial Statements to address the issues raised. Our Statements will address Question Nos 1 to 27 for oral answer and Question Nos 65 to 67 for written answer, in today’s Order Paper, as well as related questions that have been filed for subsequent Sittings. Sir, the quick response to the oil spill which occurred in our waters on 14 June demonstrated the close coordination and collaboration among our agencies, industry partners and volunteers. They worked well together and responded effectively to mitigate the impact of the oil spill. We have completed the first phase of the clean-up operations, including the operations at sea. Since 18 June, no oil slicks have been observed along East Coast and Changi, including the waters off Changi Naval Base. We have now moved to the next phase, which involves more focused cleaning of difficult-to-reach areas. The removal of the remaining fuel oil from the damaged vessel is ongoing. Let me provide Members with a chronology of the incident and the steps taken. The allision between the vessels Vox Maxima and Marine Honour happened on 14 June at 2.18 pm. The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) was notified at 2.22 pm and its first patrol craft arrived at the incident site 11 minutes later at 2.33 pm. Upon confirming that a significant amount of oil had spilled into the water, the patrol craft sprayed dispersantd in the surrounding areas.”
“Mr Speaker, I am not sure which part of my replies earlier gave Mr Leong the impression that we are not taking this seriously or with urgency. I mentioned several times that we are taking a look, working with industry players to see how we can do better. I mentioned a couple of times that growing the local equity market is an important priority for us. So, I hope that there is no misunderstanding on that front. I do not disagree with Mr Leong that this is something we want to do better. But as I mentioned, there are different ways to achieve the goal. Some ways are more appropriate, some ways are more sustainable. I think we need to look for what are those levers that will allow us to achieve that outcome.”
“Mr Speaker, I thank Mr Leong for raising his question. Indeed, as I mentioned earlier, we do want to look for ways to grow our local equity market. This is an important part of our overall economy. It would not only help to support our local companies who want to list and expand. It will also be an important contribution to our status as a financial centre. Indeed, we have plans to work with industry partners to see how we can do this. As I mentioned earlier in my response to Mr Liang, there are different ways to achieve this goal and some, I think, are more viable, more sustainable than others.”
“Existing companies that are already listed on the SGX but helping them to grow their presence, to grow their operations because when you expand overseas, global investors, including institutional investors then become more interested in doing research and investing in this company, and I think that will help to increase the amount of activity and liquidity here in Singapore. For the Government's investment entities, like Temasek, GIC, they do invest locally, but I think there is a difference between asking them to make those investment decisions based on returns and what is in the best interests for shareholders, for Singaporeans ultimately, versus we give them a directive to invest locally.”
“Mr Speaker, I thank Mr Liang for his supplementary questions. I think I would like to respond in two parts. First is to say that Singapore's financial sector, as a whole, is doing well. The local equity market is, of course, one part of it. But Singapore continues to be an important pan-Asian gateway for capital formation and intermediation. And this includes foreign exchange – we are the largest foreign exchange centre in Asia Pacific. We have almost US$1 trillion in foreign exchange traded daily in Singapore. Wealth and asset management. Singapore is a developed pan-Asian asset management centre, with over 1,100 asset managers and over S$4.9 trillion of assets under management. Fixed income. Our bond market has grown significantly in recent years, reaching $512 billion in 2022, with foreign issuers making up half the issuance volumes. SGX is also one of the largest bond listing venues in Asia. And, of course, a new area that we are going into, is sustainability. We are a leader in sustainable finance in the region, accounting for over 60% of cumulative sustainable bonds and loans issuance in ASEAN in 2022. Having said that, we do recognise that for the local equity market, more can be done to grow this segment. We are working closely with the industry to look at what is the best way to do this. There are different ways to achieve this goal, including what I mentioned in my main reply: working with companies, grooming local companies that are able to go IPO and list here in Singapore.”
“Mr Speaker, with your permission, may the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment, the Minister for National Development and I answer Question Nos 1 to 27 in the Order Paper in our Ministerial Statements on the Pasir Panjang Terminal Oil Spill Incident on 14 June 2024, which we will deliver later at today's Sitting?”
“A similar question was filed by Ms Nadia Samdin in September 2022 and the Ministry of Transport had provided a reply to Ms Nadia's question. The Member may want to refer to the Hansard for the reply. [Please refer to "Measures to Reduce COE Price Volatility and Encourage Switch to Electric Vehicles", Official Report, 12 September 2022, Vol 95, Issue 67, Written Answers to Questions section.]”
“For zebra crossings along public roads, a key consideration is whether the crossing can be implemented safely. For example, pedestrians and motorists should have good visibility of one another by having sufficient distance away from a traffic junction. The Housing and Development Board also adopts the same safety considerations as the Land Transport Authority (LTA) when assessing the feasibility or need to implement zebra crossings within public housing estates. For commercial projects, LTA will advise and work with developers, based on the same set of safety considerations.”
“There are a total of 15 roundabouts located within the 40 existing Silver Zones today. There was a total of four accidents reported at roundabouts within Silver Zones from 2021 to 2023.”
“Singapore’s roads are designed with safety in mind. The alignment and profile of our roads are designed in accordance with recommended international guidelines. The Land Transport Authority (LTA) also conducts annual road safety audits. Where necessary, traffic calming measures, such as road humps and speed regulating strips and pedestrian channelisation measures, are also put in place to further mitigate accident risks. Besides infrastructure enhancements, driving behaviour is also critical to road safety. LTA works closely with the Traffic Police (TP) and the Singapore Road Safety Council to organise various educational campaigns to raise awareness and promote good road user behaviour. In addition, TP actively enforces against errant road users through speed cameras and its enforcement officers. With Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) 2.0, we will also push forth notifications on school zones, safety zones, speed camera zones, bus lanes and traffic incidents, to motorists through the On-Board Unit, to help increase their awareness of their surroundings and enhance safety.”
“Discretionary right turns refer to right-turn movements at signalised junctions onto oncoming traffic without Red-Amber-Green (RAG) arrows. Since 2018, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) has progressively implemented RAG arrows at more than 1,200 traffic junctions. LTA is currently planning for RAG at about 200 more traffic junctions, subject to further site studies. This will further reduce the proportion of traffic junctions in Singapore that allow motorists to make discretionary right turns to less than 15% of all signalised junctions. Most of the remaining junctions are single-right turn lanes with only one lane of oncoming traffic, so the risks are lower. Between 2019 and 2023, there were about 2,700 reported accidents at junctions with discretionary right turns. Of these, 56 accidents resulted in fatalities.”
“Before any Build-To-Order (BTO) launch, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) works with the Housing and Development Board (HDB) to assess the impact of the additional traffic generated. For Woodgrove Edge, LTA has conducted a traffic impact assessment (TIA) and identified various measures to address the anticipated increase in traffic. For example, motorists will only be able to exit the Woodgrove Edge development via Woodgrove Avenue. This means that residents of the new development will be channelled to exit via roads with lower traffic volumes, such as Woodhaven Drive and Woodgrove Drive. To ensure the additional traffic can be supported, HDB will also widen Woodgrove Avenue. LTA will work with HDB to monitor the traffic situation and address feedback from residents.”
“We share the Member’s concern with motorcycle-related fatalities. Over the years, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) has implemented engineering measures to improve the safety of motorcyclists and pillion riders. For example, we started using more skid-resistant road surfaces, implemented wider and more prominent lane markings to encourage motorists to keep in lane, and built motorcycle rain shelters below flyovers. It is not feasible to construct motorcycle lanes on expressways given our land constraints, and also because many expressway sections are viaducts, flyovers and tunnels which are not wide enough to construct additional motorcycle lanes. The Government remains committed to improving the safety of motorcyclists, as well as other road users, and will continue to work on various initiatives and measures to enhance road safety. LTA, the Traffic Police and the Singapore Road Safety Council have various outreach activities to engage key stakeholder groups annually. These include the Singapore Road Safety Month and the Singapore Ride Safe Campaign, which encourage all road users to do their part in making our roads safe and motorcyclists to practise safe riding habits.”
“The top priority for the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) and Singapore-registered air carriers is to ensure the safety of flights and passengers. Singapore-registered air carriers are required by law to conduct a risk assessment and take appropriate risk mitigation measures before every flight, to ensure the safety of the flight. They closely monitor developments around the world where their flights operate, including the current situation in the Middle East, assess the safety risks and take appropriate measures, such as adjusting the flight route, to avoid any potential or actual conflict zone. They keep CAAS informed of their assessments and measures taken. As part of CAAS' regular safety audits of the Singapore-registered air carriers, CAAS verifies that the carriers have the processes in place to properly assess and mitigate any flight safety risks, including those arising from conflict zones.”
“The Land Transport Authority (LTA) partners our schools on traffic management plans. These include deploying school traffic marshals, designating locations to drop-off students safely during school commencement hours, issuing joint advisories to educate parents not to wait along public roads ahead of dismissal time and providing parking alternatives for vehicles. Parking wardens will also be deployed at schools during dismissal time to deter driving behaviour that obstructs traffic or pose safety risks to road users.”
“Full-day and Sunday-only on-road cycling lanes are located along Tanah Merah Coast Road and West Camp Road respectively. On-road cycling lanes are feasible only at locations where vehicular traffic is low. Our focus is to expand off-road cycling infrastructure, which is safer for cyclists as well as motorists.”
“One concern of electric vehicles (EVs) owners is the availability of publicly accessible charging points. The Government has prioritised the provision of charging points in public carparks and we are making progress on this. There are more than 6,200 EV chargers around the island and we are on track to deploy EV chargers at all Housing and Development Board (HDB) carparks by end-2025. High-mileage drivers, such as taxi and private hire car drivers, may require a mid-day top-up due to the distances they travel. We have started to deploy some fast chargers in HDB town centres and Jurong Town Corporation industrial premises. The Land Transport Authority will continue to provide relevant information about EVs and encourage responsible EV charging practices.”
“Mr Speaker, I beg to move that in page 135, to leave out lines 3 to 13*. The reason for the amendment has been explained in my Second Reading speech. [(proc text) *The amendment read as follows: (proc text)] [(proc text) In page 135: to leave out lines 3 to 13. (proc text)] [(proc text) Amendment agreed to. (proc text)] [(proc text) Clause 39, as amended, ordered to stand part of the Bill. (proc text)]”
“Mr Speaker, I beg to move the amendment* to Clause 19 standing in my name, as indicated in the Order Paper Supplement. The reason for the amendment has been explained in my Second Reading speech. [(proc text) *The amendment read as follows: (proc text)] [(proc text) In page 64, line 27: to leave out "(i)" and insert "(i)". (proc text)] [(proc text) Amendment agreed to. (proc text)] [(proc text) Clause 19, as amended, ordered to stand part of the Bill. (proc text)] [(proc text) Clauses 20 to 38 ordered to stand part of the Bill. (proc text)]”
“Mr Speaker, the office is set up for SIRA because SIRA is a broad-based legislation covering across the economy, different sectors. In our case, because we have the sectoral authorities – CAAS, LTA, MPA – they will be the ones who will play the role of this office to deal with the respective firms within their sector. 4.17 pm”
“Mr Speaker, this is where perhaps I could borrow a phrase from the healthcare sector. Prevention is better than cure. So, a lot of the things that we do before that extreme scenario happens is to really help us to mitigate the risks to prevent those risks from turning into an extreme scenario so that we can avoid going to this last resort, if possible. But we still need to be ready in case those risks were to emerge, those extreme scenarios were to happen in future. We do not want to be caught unprepared. So, that is why we wanted to have this Bill, to be future-ready. But as I clarified earlier, the approach that we want to take is actually to work in close collaboration with our tripartite partners. So, using SMRT as a good example, SMRT's reliability challenges were fixed and maintenance was improved, reliability improved, performance improved, not through the issuance of a Special Administration Order, but through the close collaborations among LTA, SMRT and NTWU, our union, working together, fixing the problems and it remains a continuous work in progress. So, that is still the preferred approach. We will use the Special Administration Order as a last resort. If we really need to do that, yes, it is there, but we would prefer not to go down that path. We would prefer to use prevention rather than cure.”
“Mr Speaker, I think I have answered both questions actually in my response speech. I mentioned that the coverage includes companies that may be owned by Government, Temasek Holdings, but also other entities that may have other shareholders. As to whether this then leads to the point that Mr Tan is making, I think probably a little bit of extrapolation on Mr Tan's part. This Bill, by itself, does not go anywhere near those further points that Mr Tan is making. It is just to provide the safeguards for our critical transport firms and our essential transport services. For the first question that Mr Tan asked, certainly, we would, as part of the preparations for an extreme scenario like this, have to look at where are the capabilities that we need to build up, not just within LTA, but also within the industry ecosystem as a whole. Because as I mentioned in my response speech earlier, this cannot be done just by LTA alone. We will also have to work closely with, first and foremost, the employees and the staff who are working in the entity who know the operations best. Many of them will still be there, even if the entity were to run into trouble and we need to issue, in an extreme scenario, a Special Administration Order. We will have to work closely with them. So, we will need support from the staff, the unions, and also for some of the sectors where there is more than one operator, the expertise from the other operators could also come in to help us. So, this is not just an LTA alone effort. This is a whole ecosystem effort. But certainly, we will need to make preparations and we will need to get ready to deal with all these different scenarios so that we are well prepared.”
“Mr Speaker, if the designated equity holder is designated, then yes, under our laws, the Chairman and the CEO appointments would require approval from the relevant authorities, not MOT. The relevant authorities.”
“The Bill does not interfere with the day-to-day operations of the entities or their commercial decisions, and bona fide approvals will be processed expeditiously. All powers under the Bill will be exercised judiciously and in accordance with clearly defined procedures. I thank Members for supporting this Bill to strengthen the resilience of our transport sectors and to protect the interests of Singapore and Singaporeans. Sir, I beg to move.”
“Sir, any aggrieved party may appeal to the Minister against certain decisions made by the authorities, including the designation of an entity, refusal to grant approvals required for controls over ownership or management appointments and the issuance of remedial directions. There is no appeal provision for the Special Administration Order under our existing Acts, as prompt action is required in such situations to respond quickly and safeguard the continuity of essential transport services. So, I hope Members understand why, for Special Administration Order, this is a separate process. This is also similar to the approach taken in other sectoral legislation. Step-in powers are a measure of last resort and, hence, before these powers are activated, it is likely that the authorities would already be in conversations with the entity to explore different ways to improve the situation. Mr Speaker, we must continue to safeguard Singapore’s transport connectivity to protect the interests of Singapore and Singaporeans. This Bill will strengthen the resilience of our transport sectors in an increasingly complex operating landscape. I agree with Members that it is important to assure investors and businesses, both local businesses and international businesses, that our doors remain open and that our system continues to be transparent and fair. The proposed Bill does not change our long-standing position on this. We have, therefore, calibrated our controls to only what is necessary to enhance the resilience of our essential transport services and ensure that the requirements are not overly onerous to the companies and investors.”
“I would like to assure Members that we will be judicious in exercising these powers. The order will only be activated as a last resort and in the extreme scenario and unlikely event that a designated entity becomes unable to provide essential transport services safely and reliably. This is similar to the step-in arrangements for critical firms in other sectors, such as power and water. When an order is issued, the Minister will appoint a person, who may be the respective authorities, operators or other third parties with the requisite competencies, to manage the affairs, business and property of the designated entity. The main objective is to ensure that the entity can continue to provide the essential services and I think it is in such situations, a safe assumption to make, that many of the employees of the entity will still be there, working there, and so we will also be working together with the employees who are there, who are familiar with the operations. But the key, as I said, is to ensure that the entity can continue to provide the essential services. Mr Saktiandi asked why the penalties for non-compliance differ across the four Acts and whether the penalties are sufficient to incentivise compliance. In deciding the penalties under this Bill, we took reference from existing penalties under the framework of each of our sectoral Acts, and the different considerations and needs of entities across the transport sectors. The existing penalties have worked well so far in deterring errant behaviour, without imposing excessive burden on bona fide firms. Mr Yip Hong Weng asked about the safeguards in place to ensure transparency, as well as the appeal process under the Bill.”
“It is to protect Singapore and Singaporeans against potential threats to the safety and reliability of our essential transport services. In such scenarios, MOT could use the proposed safeguards in this Bill to prevent undesirable individuals from being appointed to key positions in these firms, or to disallow certain persons from acquiring significant shareholdings. In response to Mr Yip's question about the possible time delays associated with approvals, the relevant authorities will endeavour to minimise undue delays. For bona fide applications, the firms should have nothing to worry about, as the applications will be given expeditiously. For problematic cases, I think Mr Yip would agree that it is not in Singapore’s interests for the authorities to give quick approvals in such situations. In response to Mr Saktiandi's question, the relevant authorities will monitor ownership changes in designated entities, but it is ultimately the responsibility of those becoming or ceasing to become controllers of a designated entity to ensure that prior approval is obtained or prior notice is given, where applicable. There may be remedial directions and penalties if they fail to do so. Mr Dennis Tan, Mr Yip Hon Weng, Ms Poh Li San and Mr Ang Wei Neng asked about the triggers and implementation process for the Special Administration Order. There are questions on when such orders would be issued on the “public interest” grounds, and what this might entail. Sir, this is not a new concept and can be found in MOT’s existing laws, as well as legislation in other sectors. "Public interest" considerations will evolve over time. Keeping the scope broad will provide us with sufficient flexibility to respond quickly to new risks that may emerge over time, or unexpected scenarios in future.”
“As designated equity interest holders are not direct providers of essential transport services, they will be subject to less onerous requirements than designated operating entities. Designated equity interest holders will not be subject, for example, to a Special Administration Order, and will only need to seek approval for Chairperson and CEO but not the rest of their Board directors. Ms Poh asked about the criteria for assessing changes in ownership and the appointment of key personnel in designated entities. We will consider a range of factors before coming to a decision, but the main focus is to protect Singapore's national interests and to safeguard our critical transport firms against adverse influence. We will not assess applications based on nationality alone and we are not reserving appointments for any particular nationality or group of persons. Mr Tan also asked whether the Government will be publishing guidelines on what a "fit and proper" person is, as this is one of the approval criteria for ownership controls. Sir, this criterion is also found in SIRA and some sectoral legislation. Our approach will take reference from these legislation as far as possible, while taking into account the needs of the respective transport sectors. Ms Poh asked whether ownership controls would apply to the non-transport related business arms of designated entities. While our main focus is with parts of the business related to the provision of essential transport services, the controls will have to be applied at the entity level. So, it depends on how the entities structure their business operations. This Bill does not interfere with the day-to-day operations or private commercial decisions of the critical transport firms.”
“Many of the controls under the Bill are not new and already exist in our sectoral Acts or licence conditions today. What this Bill seeks to do is to consolidate some of these existing controls under a common legislative framework and extend it to other entities, including some non-licensees. The existing licensing regimes remain in effect and will continue to regulate standards and performance of the day-to-day operations of our licensed entities to ensure that they continue to operate their services in a safe, reliable and efficient manner. Mr Saktiandi asked how the requirements under our Bill would be deconflicted with overlapping requirements in shareholders’ agreements or the law in the home jurisdiction of foreign-owned entities. Sir, just like today, such an entity would have to comply with two sets of requirements, one in their home jurisdiction and another in Singapore. Shareholders can continue to appoint Board members as provided for in their agreements, but the relevant appointments will require approval from the Authorities. Each decision for approval will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. The Authorities will assess the circumstances of each case and try to process the applications as quickly as possible. We have also carefully calibrated the controls to impose only what is necessary to achieve our policy objective of safeguarding the provision of essential transport services in Singapore, while ensuring that our transport industry remains open, pro-business and investor-friendly. One example is how we differentiated the controls for designated operating entities and designated equity interest holders.”
“Mr Ang asked if we will mandate larger entities to restructure and register specific departments that manage essential transport services as separate entities. Sir, this is a commercial decision for the companies to make. The Bill does not impose such requirements. Mr Saktiandi, Mr Wee and Mr Ng asked for more details on our consultation with entities on the Bill. We have engaged key transport firms on the Bill and the relevant authorities will finalise the list of designated entities after the Act comes into force. The initial list of entities will be designated by the end of this year. If the relevant Authorities have not engaged your company on this Bill so far, it means there are currently no plans to include it as a designated entity. We have taken onboard the feedback from the engagements. For example, some firms asked for more clarification on the "materiality" threshold for notification. We will prepare guidelines, as I mentioned earlier, to provide greater clarity on the types of events that would require notification. Mr Yip Hon Weng, Mr Wee, Mr Ng, Mr Tan and Ms Poh Li San asked if the Bill's controls could affect the economic competitiveness, innovation or growth of the transport industry, as they felt they might disadvantage foreign companies, discourage new investments, or increase barriers for new enterprises. Sir, let me assure Members that the Bill will not have these downsides. The proposed Bill is about enhancing the resilience of essential transport services in Singapore, by safeguarding strategically important transport firms against adverse influence. It will not adversely impact the transport industry or create significant compliance costs and regulatory burden for entities. Neither will it affect the day-to-day operations of the transport firms.”
“Designated entities are thus unlikely to be smaller companies with lower market share in the industry. Designated entities may include firms owned by the Government or Temasek Holdings, they could also include firms owned by other shareholders. Mr Saktiandi and Mr Ang Wei Neng asked whether we will consider designating P2P operators under the Bill. Sir, we have no plans to do so at this juncture, as the P2P sector is still evolving. It serves a complementary role to public transport to meet the commuting needs of Singaporeans. We have an on-going review of the P2P industry structure and regulatory framework, and a decision can be taken after the review is completed. Mr Dennis Tan asked whether Seletar Airport will be covered under the Bill. We have not included Seletar Airport in the definition of essential transport services in the Bill, as it currently functions as a secondary airport to Changi Airport. The respective authorities will review the list of designated entities from time to time. They will engage and consult the entities prior to designation, and the notifications of designation will be published in the Gazette at least 14 days before the date that the designation takes effect. Mr Ang asked whether equity interest holders that are predominant owners of a designated operating entity will be required to seek approval for Chairpersons and CEOs. As mentioned in my opening speech, we may designate equity interest holders that have a strong nexus of control over the designated operating entity. If designated, these equity interest holders will also need to seek approval for appointment of their Chairpersons and CEOs, to protect the interests of Singapore and Singaporeans.”
“Mr Speaker, I thank hon Members for their support of the Bill, as well as their comments and suggestions. Sir, to Mr Don Wee and Mr Dennis Tan's questions on whether there are risks in the prospective designated entities or recent incidents that have prompted the introduction of this Bill, I would like to clarify that the introduction of this Bill is not to address existing risks or current problems. It is to put in place safeguards to protect critical transport firms from extreme scenarios in future and ensure the continued resilience of essential transport services in Singapore. Mr Saktiandi, Mr Wee and Mr Louis Ng asked about the potential overlap between this Bill and SIRA. SIRA is designed to complement sectoral legislation and safeguards. Where possible, the preference is for sector leads to enforce controls over the entities under their purview, as they are most familiar with their sectors. To avoid duplication, we do not intend for entities adequately regulated under sectoral legislation, including critical transport firms covered under MOT’s sectoral Acts, to be designated under SIRA. Mr Wee and Mr Saktiandi asked about the criteria for designation and Mr Ng asked about the number of designated entities under the Bill. Sir, as we plan to cover only essential transport services under the Bill, we expect to designate a small number of firms for each sector. There are various criteria that will be taken into consideration for designation, including whether the entity is involved in the provision of essential transport services, and whether it is strategically important in the sector. An entity may be considered strategically important if it has significant market share or specialised expertise in the industry.”
“We will continue to work closely with the industry and stakeholders on the implementation of this Bill. Sir, I beg to move. [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)]”
“We have specified penalties for the breach of any control, including conditions of approval, relating to ownership, management appointments and notification requirements for certain events, the breach of any remedial direction as well as non-compliance with duties under a Special Administration Order. The penalties will take reference from penalties under existing Acts, which take into account the operating environments within each sector. The amended section 41 of the BSI Act, the new section 67K of the CAAS Act, the new section 86HD of the MPA Act and the new section 28 of the RTS Act provide for avenues of appeal to the Minister against certain decisions made by the relevant authorities, including the designation of an entity, refusal to grant approvals required for controls over ownership or management appointments and the issuance of remedial directions. Sir, I would like to highlight that MOT will be moving a Notice of Amendment during the Committee stage to address two drafting changes. First, we seek to amend clause 39 to remove subsection (3) of the new section 86HB of the MPA Act as it is not necessary in view of subsection (2) of the same. Next, we propose to make a technical amendment to clause 19 for consistency with the prevailing legislative drafting style for the numbering of sub-paragraphs. Mr Deputy Speaker, Singapore’s connectivity is one of our greatest assets and something we must continue to safeguard carefully to protect the interests of Singapore and Singaporeans. We shall do so in a calibrated and targeted manner, by striking a balance between what is useful and practical for our transport sector and minimising the commercial and cost impact on companies and investors.”