Chin Harn Tong
Singapore
“Singaporeans expect the Ministry to ensure the machines such as cranes and gondolas are properly maintained and operated. Presumably, they are imported for use here only if they are suitable for the purpose.”
“If some employers are too shortsighted to see beyond their pockets, the Ministry should be more active and energetic in rectifying their vision. Practically, every PAP MP in this House, at one time or other, has spoken or written about Singapore's people as being its most important asset.”
“This reluctance is understandable when viewed in relation to the Government's refusal to subsidise commercial activities. However, while the bus companies are private sector companies, the Government has also indicated an intention of privatising the operator of the MRT.”
“I would suggest that the Government consider setting up an Employment Arbitration Court to deal with matters which are now left to the discretion of the Minister and the Commissioner for Labour, and allow individual workers to refer their complaints to the Employment Arbitration Court.”
“In order to be fair to Dr Soin and to be fair to the proposed Women's Charter (Amendment) Bill, I move that Parliament do postpone the debate on this Bill until the Government has introduced the Women's Charter (Amendment) Bill, and we could debate the two Bills together during the Second Reading of the Women's Charter (Amendment) Bill.”
“For that matter, our Government should channel the water conservation tax into water research and not the general revenue. Even if the levy imposed on consumers using more than 20 cubic metres of water a month does not yield much, the fact that our Government finances water research will serve to underline the seriousness of our water sit…”
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“Sir, when all these measures have been completed, can the Minister give an assurance that flooding will not recur in these areas?”
“The Minister has mentioned four sewage treatment works where existing treatment units will be covered and odour control facilities provided. What about the other two?”
“Was the subject of unleaded petrol raised at the recent Malaysia/Singapore Joint Meeting on Environment held in Singapore last week?”
“Sir, will the Ministry consider drawing up measures to require Singapore importers and wholesalers of poultry containing excessive antibiotics to compensate persons who have been medically certified to have been harmed through consuming such poultry?”
“Sir, can the Minister tell this House how many markets and food centres are affected by redevelopment projects?”
“I suggest that more drastic penalties be introduced for persons who import, make or supply unauthorised and unsafe foodstuff for sale to hawkers and restaurants since adverse publicity does not seem to deter these persons, who have no direct dealings with the consumers, the eventual victims, from continuing their undesirable activities. There should also be a law to require a person who has been convicted in a court of law for importing, making, supplying or selling unauthorised and unsafe foodstuff to pay a compensation to the consumers who have suffered from his unlawful action. Sir, I am sure you will agree with me that with more stringent rules and regulations, heavier penalties imposed and vigilant environment officers, we would all be able to eat in hawker centres and restaurants without distaste or fear of food poisoning.”
“Sir, what I am going to say now is not because these last few days Members of Parliament have been lunching on hawker food but because in Singapore eating out has become a way of life for most people. This could be because most of us are too busy to cook and have to rely on hawker or restaurant food for our meals. Therefore, it is important that the food sold at hawker centres and restaurants must be hygienically prepared or manufactured by licensed sources and safe for human consumption. The environment around the hawker centres and restaurant kitchens must also be clean and dry. Food handlers must handle food hygienically at all times and be neatly clad. Unfortunately, this is still not the case in some eating centres today. One can still find instances of unhygienic food preparation and food handling as well as dirty hawker stalls and restaurant kitchens. It may be possible that these offenders are not deterred by the small amount of fines imposed by the courts relative to the severity of their offences. Would the Minister kindly inform the House what is the quantum of the fines generally imposed by the courts for food offences, and whether such fines are adequate to have the desired deterrent effect? How many offenders have been sentenced to the maximum penalty by way of fine or imprisonment or both? Has the number of illegal food manufacturers, suppliers and vendors prosecuted increased or decreased? Further, could he provide a breakdown of the fines in 1990 so as to confirm or deny the point that the amount of fines for food offences was generally on the low side and have no deterrent value?”
“Sir, the Clean and Green Week (CGW) was held in November 1990, and it was successful to some extent in making the public aware of the need to keep the environment clean and of the issues concerning environmental protection. However, spontaneous recall by the public of CGW activities and events was low, according to the post-CGW survey conducted shortly after the CGW ended. Further, while many understood they should keep the environment clean, only a few of the respondents remembered the larger message of the CGW, ie, environmental protection. Many people in fact perceived the CGW to be the usual Keep Singapore Clean and Tree Planting campaigns. Sir, amongst other things, the low impact of the CGW message could be due to the many activities crammed into CGW. There were nine diverse activities during the Week such as the Waste Recycling project, the Adopt-a-beach-and-park programme, the launching of the book on Singapore River and Kallang Basin, the Care for the Environment Exhibition, the Care for Nature Programme, and so on. This would have resulted in dispersing the public's interest over a wide area so that they only had a general impression of another Government campaign soon to be forgotten after it was over. Sir, I suggest that in future there should be less cramming of activities in the CGW. Instead, there should be a theme for each year and the activities during the CGW should be concentrated on getting the public to understand and remember that theme. Further, to sustain public interest, there should be on-going activities on the same theme spread out throughout the year to reinforce that theme. In this way, it may be possible to bring about a change in people's attitude so as to result in their active participation in protecting the environment.”
“Sir, in August last year, the Government announced a scheme to upgrade the old HDB flats. Six demonstration precincts were selected to start off the scheme in 1991. Dialogue sessions were held in December 1990 with the residents to explain the scheme and to obtain feedback. Models of the six precincts were supposed to be exhibited from February this year onwards. However, since the dialogue sessions in December 1990, nothing more has been heard, and the exhibition has not yet been held. Could the Minister inform the House what is the reason for the delay in the demonstration exercise? Sir, in my house-to-house visits, some residents in the older HDB flats have asked me when the Government would be upgrading their flats so that they can decide whether or not to renovate their flats. Could the Ministry indicate the approximate starting dates for the respective estates to be upgraded? Sir, the intervening space between some older blocks of flats is the minimum distance to enable each block to receive adequate sunlight. The proposed construction of service balconies jutting out from the rear side of each block of flats will result in the blocks of flats being even closer to each other than ever before as well as resulting in the greater loss of privacy. Could the Minister indicate how the floor space of each flat in these blocks can be extended in a more desirable manner? Sir, the estimated cost of upgrading a 3-room flat is $26,000; a 4-room flat $28,500, and a 5-room flat $34,000. The flat owners in the demonstration phase have been told they need pay only 10% of the cost, ie, between $2,600 and $3,400. Could the Minister confirm that this estimated range of costs continues to apply, or do the flat owners have to pay larger sums than previously announced?”
“Of course, we do not want to have a radical welfare state, but we must have a society where one could feel that it is caring and loving. On our home-ownership scheme, our result has been remarkable. It is something that we are proud of. However, there are still some young couples in Singapore who are having problems with housing. Why? This is because their combined income has exceeded the ceiling for the purchase of a HDB flat and, at the same time, they find that they could not afford to buy private property. Somebody has suggested to me that the Government should give tax deduction on the interest they have to pay for their housing loans. By so doing, we would encourage more people to buy their own property and, at the same time, it would also help to prevent young people from thinking of migrating to other countries. I would also urge the Government to consider raising the ceiling for self-employed people who wish to make voluntary contribution to CPF, up to the contribution rate for employees, because the self-employed people also wish to have some savings that they could use in old age. Finally, I hope that the Minister for Finance would, while encouraging our businessmen to venture overseas, also consider giving tax incentive to employees who are posted overseas on long-term basis. Singapore is their home. They have to look after their children and maintain their families. However, because of their work, they have to be away from home. I hope that the Hon. Minister for Finance would consider giving them some tax concessions. Mr Speaker, Sir, I support the Budget.”
“However, for our young couples to have more children, particularly the professionals to have three, four or five children, then the wife may have to give up her job in order to look after the children. In this way, the income of the family would be reduced and the husband will have to bear the burden to pay for all the expenses in the family. This is indeed a very heavy burden. I suggest that the Government consider extending the tax deduction for the third and fourth children to the husband, because this tax relief is an encouragement for the couples to have more children. I think it should be extended to the husband as well. In order to have better effect, we should provide better child care services, such as creches, nursery classes, and a better education system. The Minister for Education has announced a new education system to delay streaming until Primary Four and also for vocational classes to be improved. This policy has been well received by the parents. I hope that with better facilities, Singapore will be a better place to live in. Under the circumstances, our young women will consider having more children and then later on to go back to work when there are sufficient facilities for their children to be looked after. Another point I would like to raise is the tax relief for handicapped dependants. I feel that this is still not enough. We all know that looking after children is a labour-intensive job. We have to spend a lot of time and energy. More so, if we have to look after our handicapped dependants. A deduction of $3,500 is definitely not enough. The Government should provide better tax incentives and also more facilities to look after these handicapped people.”
“As for the businessmen's view of the budget, I am only partially in agreement with them because I do agree that we have to maintain our competitiveness. But we must also look after the people in our country. Of course, we want to look after the welfare of our employees, but the company must be profitable before the employees could enjoy the fruits of their success. Many are feeling the effect of a tight labour market. We are looking for labourers, just as many other countries are doing so. Some feel that the labour shortage could be temporarily relieved by importing some foreign workers. In the interim period, I feel that the Government should give more consideration to various aspects so as to reduce the burden on our people. I sympathise with our local businessmen. I am a businessman. So I hope the Government would pay more attention to the feelings of our businessmen so that Singapore would retain its competitiveness. The progress of the NIEs and the developing industrial countries in this region should be closely monitored as their progress has got a very significant effect on our economy. From another perspective, we can see that the 1990 budget had its effect. We had surplus and our economy had good growth. So there is no need for us to change our financial policy. However, I hope that the Government would pay more attention to our increasing inflation rate. Korea and Taiwan are two very good examples. In this year's budget there are no further incentives for our young couples to have more children. Of course, having children is a family affair. It is a decision between the husband and the wife.”
“These people, unlike the workers, can pass on the full burden of the consumption tax to other consumers, most of whom will ultimately be the workers and their families. Sir, I hope our economic performance will greatly improve by next year's budget so as to enable the Minister for Finance to make full use of the potential of the budget for helping the workers of Singapore. In the meantime, I support the Budget for fiscal year 1991. Mr Choo Wee Khiang (Marine Parade GRC)( In Mandarin): Sir, this budget has been praised by many as one which is hard to come by. It reflects the consistent style of our Government and is, at the same time, a caring one. Basically, there are not many changes from the previous year's budget. I could see that the response from the public is also not very enthusiastic. Of course, the working class will be happy because they will enjoy a 5% rebate. But the businessmen would feel that this budget is too conservative and too prudent. Basically, businessmen hope that the corporate tax could be reduced and that the employers' CPF contribution should not be changed. Because the United States is in the midst of an economic recession, the Gulf War has just concluded and its actual impact on the world economy is still uncertain. At the same time, as the Minister for Finance has said, last year we had more than 3% inflation and also our business community feels that the total cost of doing business here is going up because of higher wages, utilities, communication and freight charges. They fear that this may result in a loss in our international competitiveness, thus resulting in poorer economy and business performance.”
“I do not think there is a need for the Ministry of Finance to molly-coddle employers to this extent. They can look after their own interest very well. It is the workers who need a helping hand from the Finance Ministry. In that sense, the 5% personal income tax rebate as a reward to individuals for contributing to Singapore's success last year is much to be welcomed. However, it is the highly-paid professionals, managers and executives who will enjoy the rebate the most. To benefit the ordinary workers who form the bulk of our labour force and population, the Government should consider a tax revision of a more permanent nature, such as raising the personal income tax allowances to be more in line with the present day cost of living. Further, the increase in personal tax allowances resulting in lower tax payments can be seen by the people as a form of wealth distribution and appreciated accordingly. On the same basis, I hope the Government will give very careful consideration to the effect of an imposition of the proposed consumption tax on the vast majority of Singaporeans in the lower income group. Unlike the direct personal income tax, consumption tax and other forms of indirect taxes hit the poor harder than the rich because they are levied in proportion to the amount of goods and services used and not in proportion to the level of income of the users. Of course, the plausible argument is that it is only fair people are taxed according to their level of consumption. But we must remember that, while many workers have their earnings regulated by the National Wages Council, the entrepreneurs, the professionals, the managers and the executives have their profits, dividends and earnings regulated only by the free-play of market forces.”
“We can only hope that there is no recurrence of another economic downturn of the same degree of seriousness, otherwise the workers will likely find their employers' CPF contribution reduced overnight from 17.5% to 10% and will have to wait for another five years to have it restored. Sir, I do not think I am being too far-fetched in what I have said about the relative speeds of cutting and restoring CPF rates. Some businessmen have commented in the press about this one percentage point increase as being another increase in business cost. It is an attitude that is apparently shared by the Finance Ministry. In the words of the Finance Minister, "CPF increases are part of wages" and businessmen are expected to "conduct their collective bargaining accordingly". In other words, the increase of one percentage point is a wagecost and, therefore, an item of business cost. However, CPF increases and CPF reductions seem to obey different rules in collective bargaining. When employers' CPF contribution was cut in 1986 from 25% to 10% in order to help employers tide over a difficult period, employers strongly argued that the CPF was a statutory business saving and not a saving in wage-cost. Of course, it is understandable for employers not to want the CPF cut to be shown in their accounts as an increase in operational profits. In other words, employers did not want to pay out as bigger bonuses from increased profits that they had saved from the CPF cut in 1986. This has now given rise to a peculiar situation. Employers are being urged to use any CPF increase against unions in wage negotiations. But employers were never likewise advised to concede a CPF cut to unions in wage negotiations. Sir, for unions, it seems to be a situation of "Heads you win, tails I lose".”
“It is an apt description of the budget as the banks and other business corporations that line both sides of Shenton Way stand to benefit from the budget. At the same time, we all know without fully appreciating that the Trade Union House is part of the Shenton Way set-up. Perhaps the Trade Union House is dwarfed by the towering blocks of offices around it. In the same way, I am afraid, the budget may be perceived to have overlooked the contributions of workers to the economic success of Singapore. Perhaps, the modest wage packets of workers are dwarfed into insignificance by the profits and reserves of the banks and other corporations along Shenton Way. Whether or not this year's budget is business-oriented, it is perceived by workers as such, and there seems to be a basis for it. For example, the budget provides for an increase in the employers' CPF contribution by 1% to 17.5% and the CPF contribution by employees to be reduced by 1/2% to 22.5% from 1st July 1991. This is to be welcomed as the workers' take-home pay will be increased accordingly so that they can have the means to enjoy a high quality of life. On the other hand, the CPF contribution by employers will be increased by only 1% to 17.5%, which is still 2.5% points short of the targeted 20% CPF contribution by employers. This is an increase of only 7.5% percentage points over five years from the 10% contribution rate in 1986. This means that the restoration of employer's rate of CPF contribution has been relatively slow when compared to the sudden huge slash from 25% to 10% in 1986 to help in the economy's recovery from the 1985 recession.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, this year's budget is a painless budget, which is not a surprise. For several years past, we had painless budgets, some more, some less. This year's budget is also a hard-nosed businessman's budget, which is also not a surprise. Our Government has never made a secret of its commitment to making Singapore an economic success. Sir, the budgetary proposals for a more resilient economy include further tax incentives to boost the financial sector and also to encourage our local companies to go abroad and to do business. Other proposals will result in more funds being channelled towards education and investments in infrastructure, which means better schools and the upgrading of old HDB flats. To top it all, the Minister for Finance has not forgotten to tie up his budgetary package with a principle our Government holds sacred, that is, a balanced budget with more reserves for a rainy day. Despite the widespread expectation of an economic slow-down which can only have been worsened by the destructive and violent Gulf War that ended recently, the fiscal year 1991 obviously does not qualify as a rainy year. Although this year's surplus is the lowest since 1987, our Government evidently believes there may be a much more rainy year ahead, so that we should save while we can. This year's budget would, therefore, seem to have been designed to take care of Singapore's best interests. That was my first impression when the Minister for Finance presented his budget in Parliament. At the same time, there was a little thought nagging at the back of my head, whether something has been overlooked in the budget. The next day I read in the newspaper, ie, the Straits Times dated 2nd March 1991, the headline, "Shenton Way Budget" and the thought clicked in my head.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I have four clarifications to ask the Minister: (i) Will leaded petrol be continued to be available for use by the older cars? (ii) Since any increase in petrol price will obviously affect the motorcyclists as well, can the unleaded petrol be also used in motorcycles? (iii) Whilst the Ministry of the Environment introduces stringent control in Singapore to improve our air quality, what measures will be taken on Malaysian vehicles, particularly the heavy diesel vehicles entering into Singapore if they do not meet our smoke emission standards? (iv) Is unleaded petrol used in other countries and do they have price differentials between leaded and unleaded petrol? How successful are they?”
“I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head M be reduced by $10 in respect of Code ME 1500 of the Main Estimates. Sir, in moving this amendment, I would like to know the progress in the pilot project for the installation of a computerized telemetric system in six sites in the Bukit Timah and Kallang catchment areas. Can the Minister also inform the House whether a cost-effectiveness study has been carried out? If so, what is the outcome of such an evaluation? Will the scheme be expanded to other areas in order to facilitate the speedy monitoring and announcement of flood situations? I would also like to know the progress made in the Bukit Timah Flood Alleviation Scheme Phase IIA which was scheduled to have been completed in February 1990, that is last month. Since Kranji and Tanjong Katong are also major flood-prone areas, are the proposed flood alleviation schemes in these areas carried out according to schedule? When will the flood alleviation schemes in these two areas be completed? I suppose there is no way to test the effectiveness of the computerized telemetric system as well as the flood alleviation scheme because of the on-going dry spell which has lasted for more than a month.”
“Sir, residents in my constituency who are living next to the Mount Vernon Crematoria have complained to me of the obvious pollution in the form of smoke and smell from the chimneys of the Mount Vernon Crematoria. Because of the number of persons who complained, the Ministry cannot dismiss the complaint as a psychological condition of a few individuals. It is true that the smoke from the chimneys from the Mount Vernon Crematoria is not always visible but no visible emission does not mean that there is no pollution and health hazard. I believe there are several causes for the pollution problem. When the controls to regulate the combustion of fuel in the crematoria are out of order, there is incomplete combustion with the result that carbon monoxide can be formed. As we all know, the crematoria were built some years ago, and it is possible for the controlling mechanism to be worn out. I wonder whether the anti-pollution standard set at that time is still acceptable today. For example, the facilities were designed and built for semi-urban conditions with less dense housing estates around. That is why the crematoria have very low chimneys. I am sure the Ministry is aware of a notable incident that occurred at the end of last year. The roof of one of the buildings housing the crematoria caught fire. What was the cause of the fire? Is it because of the poor maintenance, improper operation or the relatively old equipment? I hope the Ministry will do a study with a view to improving the whole operation.”
“Besides the upgrading of public toilets, new buildings and those undergoing major renovations be required to install automatic flushing devices for their public toilets whilst owners of the existing public toilets be required to upgrade. Sir, can I continue with my next cut?”
“Sir, since the publicity campaign and the subsequent introduction of a penalty to punish users for not flushing public toilets, there is some improvement in the cleanliness of public toilets. Having clean and decent public toilets is important for health and hygiene reasons as well as for Singapore's public image. Toilets in hotels are generally better maintained but this cannot be said of some toilets in shopping complexes, hawker centres and other places of public interest. I would, therefore, like to suggest that the employment of a toilet caretaker be made compulsory for those public toilets consistently found filthy despite repeated warnings. If need be, a fee can be imposed on users. I am sure the general public would not mind paying for a cleaner toilet; for it is generally true to say that public toilets with caretakers charging on users are cleaner than those without. I would also like to suggest that Government offices take the lead in converting the manually flushing system in their toilets to an automatic flushing system with sensor devices. This will obviate the need to flush manually. This is because, especially in a male toilet, where urinals are usually set in a row with a common cistern. The problem of who is to flush the system after urinating cannot be easily laughed away, especially during peak hours. Should the person first to finish his business pull the chain or the late-comers? It can lead to misunderstanding among the users. Since the male toilets in Parliament House also face a similar problem during peak hours, perhaps, Parliament House should set a good example by modernising the antique flushing system in its male toilets.”
“Mr Teo Chong Tee (Changi)( In Mandarin): Sir, the Minister for the Environment announced in last year's budget session the planned policy of privatisation of hawker centres. I hope the Minister can tell the House whether the Ministry has come up with a comprehensive plan and guideline for implementation, and if so, how the scheme is progressing. Could the Minister also tell us whether they will be selecting certain hawker centres for the scheme or whether all the present hawker centres will be affected. Sir, I suggest the Ministry of the Environment make use of the opportunity afforded by this plan to build some second generation hawker centres to experiment with the scheme, because all the present hawker centres were built to accommodate the mobile and street hawkers of earlier years. They have now all settled down. As Singaporeans' standard of living has been greatly raised, we certainly need to build more new and modernised hawker centres which adopt modern hygienic management methods. For example, in some Southeast Asian countries, hawker centres have adopted the use of a coupon system in exchange for food. The advantage is that hawkers can then concentrate only on preparing the food and this conforms to a higher hygiene standard. Sir, I am not saying that we adopt these methods wholesale. Perhaps the Ministry can think out better and more advanced methods to manage these modern hawker centres that will be built.”
“Sir, the adverse publicity and the existing quantum of fine have not, despite the Ministry's previous assurance to this House, seemed to be very effective deterrents against illegal food manufacturers and food vendors. Besides, I think the publicity would not have the desired effect if many members of the public skip the news item when reading the newspapers or viewing the television. The Ministry should therefore amend the Environmental Public Health Regulations as soon as possible to increase the fines for such offenders. Incidentally, may the Minister inform this House as to what sort of fines have been imposed by the court on the offenders and how many have been jailed so far? Sir, the unlicensed food factories are normally found in the rural areas. The Ministry should therefore step up its enforcement actions to search kampongs and squatter areas to weed out the illegal food manufacturers and bring the offenders to task. Members of the public can also help the Ministry by giving information on possible offenders. Sir, I am glad that the course on food hygiene is now being conducted for all food handlers in eating establishments and food centres. The Ministry should not speed up the course just because of the large number of existing food handlers, ie, about 72,000 persons. Sir, the media of instruction are Chinese, English and Malay. I hope that for those Chinese participants who do not speak Mandarin, English or Malay, dialects should be used. "Promote the Use of Mandarin" campaign should not apply to this course because of the overriding requirement of public health. Sir, I hope that, in future, Singaporeans can eat out with a peace of mind.”
“Since the Ministry and, presumably, the PWD are aware of the financial and social costs of traffic jams, it is shocking that the PWD has not come up with a long-term practical solution. For example, the PWD could have considered siting drainage channels, cables and pipes in small underground tunnels parallel to or under the streets. The capital cost for constructing such tunnels would be undoubtedly heavy; but against it must be balanced the savings by way of roadways being repeatedly dug up and refilled and resurfaced and the consequent traffic jams caused by these road works.”
“Sir, being caught in a traffic jam can be frustrating, but when caught in a traffic jam due to sudden constriction of road space through road works or repairs can be even more frustrating. Many a time you can see contractors parking their limousines in the enclosure where road works or repairs are being carried out. Or you may find yourself in a lane which is abruptly blocked just before the road works, thus making it difficult for you to edge into the other lanes when, in fact, warning road signs could have been placed some distance away from the actual road works or repairs so as to funnel the traffic into other lanes. Sir, unfortunately, road works are also carried out by Telecoms, PUB and the Drainage Department. Although the main blame for traffic congestion caused by road works or repairs should be on the PWD, since roads are under its realm, I do not think it is fair to blame the PWD solely for these repairs. Sir, I accept there are practical limits to what the PWD can do by way of coordinating and setting guidelines for road works or repairs with a view to minimising inconvenience to the motorists. Guidelines for repairing road works to be done at night or over the weekend or during off-peak hours have to be balanced against higher operating costs. At the same time, it must not be forgotten that motorists who are caught in a traffic jam would also have to pay for it in terms of the precious time lost and the inconvenience suffered. Recently, the Minister for Communications and Information pointed out that a surcharge will be imposed on cars over 10 years old because these older cars are more likely to break down on the roads, thereby causing traffic jams.”
“Two supplementary questions, Sir. What is the penalty for property owners who knowingly allow their premises to be used for food manufacturing without a licence? And second question, how many licensed food vendors who are found selling food obtained from illegal food manufacturers have their licence revoked?”
“Sir, apart from Singapore becoming a signatory to the Montreal Protocol, what are the companies in the affected industries doing to reduce their consumption of CFCs?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I support the Bill. But I have three clarifications that I need from the Minister. First, as the Town Councils do not have a big staff, enforcement is likely to be delegated to the management agents. The management agents are neither statutory boards nor Government agencies. This means that the power of enforcing a legislation is now delegated to a non-public agency. Is this practice unusual and whether there is any precedent? Second, how would the Ministry ensure uniform enforcement of the Act? How strictly would the Town Councils enforce the rule would depend on the policy of each Town Council. Sir, on a matter which concerns public health, which is the specific responsibility of the Ministry of the Environment, would the Ministry consider it desirable to have a wide variation in the enforcement standards? Third, can the Town Councils opt to leave the enforcement to the Ministry of the Environment?”
“Vasoo asked the Acting Minister for Health if he will report on the status of the catastrophic insurance scheme and whether this scheme will be combined with other insurance schemes administered by the CPF. The Acting Minister for Health (Mr Yeo Cheow Tong): Mr Speaker, Sir, the Government has approved the concept and framework of the Catastrophic Illness Insurance Scheme. The implementation details are now being worked out by my Ministry and the Central Provident Fund Board and these will be announced at the end of the year. The Scheme is expected to be implemented by April next year. This will provide adequate time for my Ministry and the CPF Board to explain the Scheme to the general public through the mass media and public seminars. It will also provide time for Medisave Account holders to either opt out or to register their dependants into the Scheme. The insurance premium will be low, ranging from $1 to $8 per month depending on the age group. Medisave can be used to pay for the premium. The Scheme will be underwritten and administered by the CPF Board and will be run at cost. It will be independent of other CPF insurance schemes. AVERAGE HOSPITAL BILL SIZE PER PATIENT DAY 9. Dr Aline K. Wong asked the Acting Minister for Health what is the average bill size per patient day for representative categories of treatment at restructured, Government and private hospitals.”
“Sir, I have two supplementary questions for the Minister. First, how dependent is Singapore on Malaysia for its water supply? Secondly, what other alternative and feasible sources of water supply are available to Singapore? BG Lee Hsien Loong: Mr Speaker, Sir, I shall answer in general terms. We have over a period of decades increased our domestic ability to store, purify and supply potable water to Singaporeans. We are pushing it as far as we can. Water is a strategic resource to Singapore, and it is vital to preserve this aspect of our security. Of course, because of the heavy investments which we have put in, and because of our urban environment, the water which we collect in Singapore needs more processing than what we can draw, from the Johor River and it costs more to produce per cubic meter. We can produce more if we need to, but in normal circumstances we see no need to push it to the limits, so we purchase more from Johor. But when it rains in Singapore but not in Johor, then of course we produce more in Singapore. So the proportion varies from time to time. We have adequate supplies here. As for alternate sources of supply, as you know, in the Middle East, people do desalination. We have looked at it. It is feasible, although there are very few precedents for desalination on the scale which we would need. We have 2(r) million people, not a few tens of thousands. The cost of purifying rain water. It really depends on energy costs. If energy is cheap, then of course we will have distilled water in abundance. It is an option which we do not rule out, but we do not need to embark upon immediately. CATASTROPHIC ILLNESS INSURANCE SCHEME (Report) 8. Dr S.”
“I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Sir, while the scheme patently seeks only to alleviate flooding, I trust the overall intention of the Ministry is to prevent floods on a more permanent basis. If this is so, the question is: when will this be achieved? Can the Minister give some indication as to when the Bukit Timah catchment area will be free of floods?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head M be reduced by $10 in respect of Code ME 1500 of the Main Estimates. Sir, the flood problem in Singapore has to a large extent been resolved for which due credit must be given to the Drainage Department. However, Sir, there are still a few areas which continue to be liable to flood, particularly when a heavy downpour coincides with a high tide. Perhaps the Minister can inform the House which are the areas with serious flood problems. Sir, floods inconvenience not only the people residing in the affected areas but also the motorists. Inconvenience to the latter can be minimized by informing them of the occurrence of floods well in time. But timely information seems to be out of the question at present because I believe, the depth of the flood water has to be manually assessed each time before the information is laboriously relayed to the SBC for broadcast to the motorists. The result is that more often than not motorists first receive flood warning over the radio when they are already in the midst of a flood or continue to receive flood warning long after the flood has subsided. Sir, it is high time that the Police, the SBC and the Environment Ministry got their teamwork properly together and introduced a more efficient, more reliable, and quicker method of monitoring and reporting on the flood situation. The motorists want current flood warnings and not historical flood reports. Sir, also let us not forget the plight of the people residing in the flood-affected areas. They should not have to continue to worry endlessly about floods every time it rains in Singapore. Can the Minister tell the House when the Bukit Timah Flood Alleviation Scheme Phase IIA will be completed, and how much will it cost?”
“But if unlicensed caterers can operate with apparent impunity, it may be reasonably concluded that the demerit points scheme does not sufficiently deter licensed food vendors from committing unhygienic food violations. Will the Minister therefore consider imposing heavier fines or even imprisonment for habitual or gross offenders, whether licensed or unlicensed? Sir, to be positive, there should also be a merit points scheme to complement the demerit points scheme. While it is necessary to punish offenders, it is also desirable to reward those who are exemplary food vendors. Will the Minister consider introducing a scheme to highlight particular food centres or caterers on the same lines as the model community centre, the cleanest HDB block of flats, and the most courteous bus or taxi drivers? At least, the public would know which of the food centres or caterers are safer to patronize.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, Singaporeans are now more in the habit of eating vendor cooked food rather than home cooked meals. For many Singaporeans, eating out means hawkers' fare at food centres and other places. For this reason, it is important Singaporeans should be able to patronize food hawkers without unnecessarily having to run the risk of becoming sick or ill from doing so. Sir, I am in favour of making it a requirement for all caterers, stallholders and their helpers, whether in cooked food centres or elsewhere, to attend courses on personal hygiene and food handling before the caterers and stallholders are issued with licences. There should also be more frequent and stringent inspections of all places where food is prepared and sold for public consumption. In this respect, the Ministry's demerit points scheme for offenders is a step in the right direction, except that it does not go far enough. The fines and the other penalties imposed for unhygienic food violations do not seem to have been sufficient deterrent up to now. The Straits Times of 5th March 1989 carried a story of one cooked food vendor who caters for private parties in homes and elsewhere having been fined several hundred dollars after 400 of his customers suffered from food poisoning. What is most astonishing is that he was an unlicensed caterer who had been previously fined several times. The right to sell cooked food to the public carries with it the corresponding obligation to observe food hygiene. That is why caterers and other cooked food vendors are licensed and regularly inspected to ensure that the food they sell is hygienically prepared and safe to eat.”
“It will also enable the National Registration Office to update the personal particulars of the identity card holder, such as his marital status, address and occupation.”
“Sir, the Member for Toa Payoh raised two questions. Firstly, he wants to know what is the registration process for the issue of new identity cards and, secondly, he wants to know the need to introduce an additional re-registration at the age of 30 years. The reply to his first question is that the present practice of sending mobile teams from the National Registration Office to schools to register students for identity cards will continue when the new NRIC conversion exercise takes place. To make it more convenient for the public, the conversion to the new NRICs will also take place at the community centres. This will be done constituency by constituency. There are plans to register people for the new NRICs daily, including Saturdays and Sundays. Those affected will be informed in advance of the dates, venues and procedures for the conversion exercise. The details are being worked out and will be made known nearer the dates of implementation. Sir, regarding his second question, I wish to explain that under the existing system, we first get our identity cards at the age of 12 years and re-register for a new identity card at the age of 17 years. I am sure the Members will agree with me that a photograph taken at the age of 17 will show no close resemblance to the identity card holder because his facial features continue to change significantly after 17 years and only stabilize at about 30 years old. I am sure Members will also agree with me that it is an embarrassment for an identity card holder to claim that he is indeed the youthful person depicted in the photograph. Therefore, this additional re-registration at the age of 30 is meant to assist the adult population by providing them an identity card with a photograph that bears close resemblance to its holder.”
“Sir, similarly, it should also be shown that our Government would not allow our workers to be exploited in Singapore. The imposition of a levy on foreign workers, while for other purposes, also helps to deter employers from importing excessive cheap labour into Singapore. In the long run, Singapore workers stand to benefit from privatization as taxpayers and consumers and also as workers.”
“Sir, there have been some discussions in this House on privatization, for instance, of the garbage collection by the newly introduced town councils. This seems to be the trend in Singapore as in other parts of the world. Sir, my concern with privatization is the likely effects of privatization on the workers concerned. The people who clamour loudly for more privatization are the entrepreneurs and investors who see profits to be made in taking over the work of some Government or public agencies. The impression may be created that privatization is wholly in aid of businessmen. Sir, on the other hand, the natural anxiety of workers in industries under threats of privatization, and possibly, their trade unions, is that, ultimately, they, the workers, would have to find employment with the contractors engaged in the privatized industries. These contractors might offer terms of employment less favourable than what the workers are enjoying at present. Sir, in commenting on this issue, I am not saying that our Government should stop this privatization trend. I am sure all the implications of privatization have been thoroughly considered before any activity is privatized. What the Ministry of Labour can and should do is to help workers to face up to the facts of privatization even before they are adversely affected by privatization. In this respect, the Government's promotion of wage reform serves to show the need for a flexible and realistic wage structure, which is tied to the produc- tivity of workers and not to the seniority of service. The terms and conditions of workers in a particular occupation should not be all that different, depending on whether they are employed by a Government agency or a private firm, as at present.”
“Since the launching of the Construction Brigade scheme in 1981, there has been publicity on the various aspects of the scheme through the various media such as SBC, the press and newsletters, including that of the Singapore Contractors Association. My Ministry will continue to give publicity on the CB scheme to give contractors and parents of these men a better understanding of the scheme and to encourage them to help motivate these men which will ultimately benefit all parties.”
“Under the revised CB scheme implemented since December 1985 all the CB men undergo a three-month residential basic para- military training which is designed to build up the physical fitness and improve the discipine and attitude of the CB men. This has helped to better prepare the CB men for their subsequent training and deployment at the construction sites. The revised scheme also provides opportunities for these men to be trained up to the skill level as those recruited in the open market by CITC. Sir, the revised CB scheme has resulted in lower absenteeism amongst CB men and also enabled some of these men to acquire higher level of trade skill. A recent survey on absenteeism among these men has shown that the percentage of man-days lost due to absenteeism has improved from 9.8% for CB men under the old scheme to 1.1% under the revised scheme. Also, of the 952 CB men who have completed their skills training under the revised scheme, 227 or 24% have attained the same skill level as those CITC trainees from the open market. It is also important for contractors to make an effort to motivate these men at the work sites. HDB and the Singapore Civil Defence Force are constantly seeking ways to help contractors motivate these men. A course was introduced recently for work site supervisors of CB men to help them understand the CB men better and how they can motivate these men at the work sites to give of their best. Contractors have also been encouraged to reward the better performers among these men by paying them beyond the stipulated allowances. Indeed, 23% of these men under the revised scheme are already being paid higher than their stipulated allowances by the contractors.”
“Sir, the Member for Pasir Panjang has raised three points relating to the Construction Brigade. I shall now respond to him. The Construction Brigade national servicemen are deployed at the various construction work sites after they have completed their construction trade training at the Construction Industry Training Centre (CITC). The purpose of deployment is to enable these national servicemen to gain practical experience and to further develop their trade skills. The Construction Brigade national servicemen work under the same general working conditions as other construction workers. Sir, Construction Brigade men, like all other young national servicemen, need to be motivated and be convinced that they are contributing positively to national service. For this reason, the CB men are given attitudinal development training during the initial phase of their training in the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) camp. The attitudinal training seeks to make them realize the importance of national service, civil defence and total defence and the role and responsibilities as citizens. Besides, SCDF also involves CB men in various community projects to help senior citizens and other needy people in the welfare homes. Such community projects are aimed at making these CB men feel that they are contributing positively to the society as national servicemen. Sir, the performance of CB men at the work site is principally influenced by two factors. The first is the attitude and skill level of the CB men and, the second, the effort of contractors in motivating these young CB men.”
“Let me give him a simple example. You have a cash box and every month you put in some money. At the same time you also take out some money from the box. But each month you put in more money than you take out. What happens? The money in the box will build up. Subsequently, you decide to take out more money every month than you put in. Would you have enough money to take out from the box when the time comes? The money has been kept there, carefully kept. I have already explained to the House and given the figures which he quoted. We have more than enough. The whole CPF money has been, as it were, put into a box.”
“He himself has quoted the figures; saying that we have reserves of over $33 billion. This clearly is more than the total CPF of about $24 billion. It is true we have invested the money carefully in overseas assets. A lot of these are Government bonds. There is no problem selling off those bonds to pay the CPF members. Our reserves position is such that even if today we have to pay off all the CPF members at once, there will be enough money to pay. Of course, such a situation will never happen because people reach 55 years at different times and so, when they do, there will be money for them to withdraw. I think it is important, if the Member wants to be a responsible Opposition Member, for him to understand the position. Philips and Drew has made a mistake. They have been to our MAS and they have got an explanation. If you ask them now, they can tell you what are the areas they have gone wrong. The fact is this. There is no need to go into a lot of accounting here. What CPF does is to collect the deposits from CPF members and lend them to the Government. Government then invests it overseas. And all these years we have been able to generate surpluses, so much so that now, effectively, all the CPF savings have been saved up and invested overseas. One of the problems of the Member for Potong Pasir is that he has a tendency to go into numbers. Unfortunately, as we have seen in this House, he is not very good at numbers. I am sorry to say so. An understanding of this position requires some skill with numbers, like reading accounts and so on. He is under the impression that because, in some distant future, the withdrawals will exceed the amounts put into the CPF, therefore CPF will be unable to pay, as compared to the present, when we put in more than we draw out.”
“In the last Budget debate I did mention that the Ministry was looking at the various alternatives. One alternative that I have already explained in the last Budget is that we could hold back a minimum sum of, say, $30,000, including the value of a house. This $30,000 would be enough for a person to live at $150 per month for 20 years. So it is barely at subsistence level. It may seem a big sum now just in terms of numbers, but if you compare it to what a young worker is likely to save up, even a low-salaried worker at age 55, you will find that this is not a big portion of his savings. In any case, for the older workers we will phase the scheme in: beginning with smaller amounts initially, and increasing to $30,000 eventually. In designing this scheme, we will try to minimize the impact and not penalize the majority, just for the benefit of protecting a small group who may not be able to manage their savings. We realize that most members will be able to look after themselves when they retire. I also mentioned last year that we had to look at various possibilities, for example, whether we should distinguish between old money and new money. Money saved up to a certain date may be considered old money and beyond that it should be new money. But all these are still ideas at this point, although our thinking has because more concrete, and before the end of the year we hope to give you the full story. Before I go on to some other points on CPF, I would like to deal with the Member for Potong Pasir's point about whether the CPF is able to pay. This is a very important point. I have given my assurance repeatedly, and I think I have convinced the Member for Anson. Somehow the Member for Potong Pasir refuses to understand.”
“For example, in some countries where they have a pension scheme, the pension may be pegged to his last-drawn pay, at about 40%-50% or above. We will provide in the CPF scheme for amounts to be withdrawn for housing, for Medisave and so on. At the end, after he retires, how much does he need in real terms as a lump sum? And if he manages it properly, he will have enough to live on, say, at about 50% of his last-drawn pay. I have already mentioned that life expectancy has gone up. In 1955, when the scheme was designed, the life expectancy was only about 63 years. When a person retired at 55 years, on average he would live for another eight years, some longer and some not so long. As of now, the life expectancy for a person aged 55 is that he will live for another 18 to 20 years. This is going to go up with improvements in medical science. For example, we have just had our first case of a heart transplant patient, Seah Chiang Nee. We would not have thought of this in 1955 or even one or two years ago. But it is now a reality. And this sort of prolonging of life can only be done at a very high cost. So I think it is a very good idea that every Singaporean should save up enough for his old age. The fifth point is that the CPF scheme should support the move towards a flexible wage system. Personally I would have liked all these studies to have been completed by now so that I can give you the results. Unfortunately, it is a very complex issue. However, I am doing my best to get the committee to complete the studies and have it discussed before the end of the year. As far as the withdrawal arrangement is concerned, I realize that members of the public are very anxious about this point.”
“This reduction with age will also help to correct the problem of the seniority wage system where older workers under the wage scale system tend to be paid higher than young workers. So there will be some correction through the CPF mechanism. The other factor to bear in mind is that the CPF is basically a savings scheme. That is an important point to bear in mind. In examining the fundamentals, we want to make sure that we agree on the basic objectives, for old age, for housing, for Medisave and so on, and then confine the CPF scheme as much as possible to those basic objectives. Otherwise, we will be building in a lot of new features. I think there is no point collecting too much CPF by having a very high rate and then getting a lot of pressure to release CPF for many uses, for education, for example. A better approach might be to reduce the rate, say, for older workers from age 40 and above. So they will have more savings of their own in their own banks. And it is up to them whether they want to use the CPF savings for education of their children, for businesses or for other uses. The third factor we will be looking at is how to decide on the appropriate level of the CPF rate. In so doing, we will be looking at the objectives: housing, Medisave and so on. We will also have to decide how much the person needs after retirement in order to sustain him for the remainder of his life. As we know, the life expectancy has gone up over the years. So we have to decide whether we should peg the final savings such that it is enough perhaps to allow him to draw out on his own, manage on his own and use maybe up to 50% of his last-drawn pay. This is something we are looking at: what is the appropriate level.”
“Before I do so, I would like briefly to say a few words about what the Ministry is doing in reviewing the CPF: why there is a need for a fundamental review and what are some of the areas we are looking at. As Members are aware, the CPF scheme was established in 1955. That was more than 30 years ago, and since then, there have been many changes. Therefore, there is a need to do a thorough and fundamental review of the CPF, to redefine and reconfirm the basic objectives and to avoid straying into extraneous areas. In doing this review, Sir, we have to take a long-term view of the CPF scheme. About 66% of the active CPF members are below 35 years of age. Therefore, we are looking at their retirement 20-30 years from now. We are not so concerned about those aged 50-55 years and above because their number is small. We are looking ahead and so we have to take a long-term view. Over the last one year, my Ministry has already announced various improvements to the CPF scheme to liberalize on the investment outlets and so forth. Further improvements will be made after the study has been completed. In doing this CPF review, we have to look at various factors. One factor is that we think it is better for a younger worker to save up at a faster rate. He does not have dependants whom he must look after and he needs to save up quickly to buy his home and for various other uses. On the other hand, in the case of the older worker, his cash requirements are higher. He needs to send his children to university, for instance. So the thinking of the CPF review committee is that the CPF rate should be progressively reduced as the person gets older.”