Desmond Lee
Singapore
“The Leadership, Enrichment, Achievement, Participation and Service (LEAPS) 2.0 is a framework for recognising student participation and achievement in secondary school co-curricular programmes.”
“The Ministry of Education (MOE) is mindful of the impact that rising temperatures may have on our students, teachers and officials taking part in the National School Games. Matches are scheduled only after students have had the time to train and become progressively more heat acclimatised.”
“As shared in Parliament in March 2026, the proportion of students with special educational needs (SEN) in mainstream schools has remained stable, at around 7% of the overall student population. This stability is observed across both primary and secondary schools.”
“The Ministry recruits and assesses applicants based on merit and suitability for the teaching profession, regardless of gender. We look for individuals with a passion for teaching, a belief in the potential of every child, and who possess the values and character to make a positive difference in students' lives.”
“Over the past five years, an average of 750 teachers resigned from the Education Service annually, representing a resignation rate of around 2%.”
“MOE has also progressively strengthened open access within the Primary 1 Registration Framework through Phase 2C, which is open to students regardless of whether they have prior connections to the school. MOE had increased the number of reserved Phase 2C places from zero to 20 in 2014; and from 20 to 40 in 2022.”
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“The Government’s intent is to ensure a stable and sustainable property market, where prices move broadly in line with economic fundamentals. Where necessary, we have implemented measures to achieve this and to ensure that households do not overextend themselves when making property purchases. These measures have been effective. For instance, the property cooling measures in July 2018 significantly slowed the increase in property prices to 1.2% between 3Q2018 and 2Q2019, from 9.1% between 3Q2017 and 2Q2018. The Government remains highly vigilant and will continue to monitor developments in the property market closely. We will maintain our current approach of adjusting policies as necessary, including calibrating the supply of Government Land Sales (GLS) sites, to ensure a stable and sustainable property market.”
“Following the façade inspections, Town Councils can work with home owners to carry out any works or measures necessary to prevent air-conditioning unit brackets from dislodging.”
“All home owners are required to ensure that their external air-conditioning units and brackets are installed and maintained properly. BCA requires any person who intends to install an air-conditioning unit on the exterior of a building to engage trained personnel to carry out the installation works and stipulates the specifications of the air conditioning unit bracket. Home owners are advised to engage air-conditioner servicing companies to check their air-conditioning units and brackets during regular servicing every three to six months. They should also look out for possible signs of corrosion or rust on the brackets and engage trained personnel to replace corroded or rusty air-conditioning unit brackets. BCA can direct home owners to carry out rectification works if the air-conditioning unit brackets are not well-maintained and are at risk of being dislodged. If HDB receives feedback on corroded air-conditioner brackets that may pose a danger to the general public, HDB will notify the flat owners to rectify the situation immediately and also alert BCA. Information on home maintenance, including air-conditioner maintenance is also published on HDB’s website and in the print media to educate home owners on the importance of keeping their air-conditioners and brackets well-maintained. BCA will be introducing a Periodic Façade Inspection (PFI) regime in early 2022. The regime will apply to buildings that are above 20 years old and 13 metres in height (or roughly four storeys). Under this regime, façade inspections, which include inspections on air-conditioning brackets, must be conducted by trained personnel every seven years.”
“When the booked flat is ready for key collection, HDB will remind second-timers of the amount of resale levy they will need to pay before key collection (if they have sold their first subsidised flat) or upon the sale of the first subsidised flat (if they have yet to sell their first subsidised flat).”
“Singaporeans enjoy a significant housing subsidy when they buy a new flat from HDB or a resale flat with a CPF Housing Grant. To ensure a fair allocation of the limited housing subsidies and prioritise the allocation of subsidies to those who have not yet received a housing subsidy, second-timers who buy a flat from HDB receive a smaller subsidy than first-timers by paying a resale levy. Information on the resale levy policy is available on the HDB website, including the situations in which a resale levy needs to be paid, the amount of resale levy to be paid as well as when and how payment is made. HDB also periodically includes information on the resale levy in its press releases. HDB also informs HDB owners selling their flats as well as those applying to purchase a subsidised HDB flat of the resale levy at various junctures in the process of selling and buying a subsidised HDB flat. When HDB owners sell their first subsidised flat, they will be informed that they need to pay a resale levy if they buy another subsidised HDB flat and of the amount of resale levy they will need to pay. The seller will be required to sign an acknowledgement of these requirements. Second-timers applying for a subsidised flat from HDB are reminded that they will need to pay a resale levy via the terms and conditions of their flat application. In addition, when they turn up in person to book a flat, HDB highlights the amount of resale levy payable before they proceed to book a flat and they will have to acknowledge an undertaking to pay the resale levy.”
“In December 1990, 33 neighbourhoods were affected by the EIP limits. Since then, the total number of neighbourhoods affected by the EIP limits has come down. As of December 2020, 24 neighbourhoods, with an average of around 6,000 Dwelling Units each, were affected by the EIP limits. Please see Table 1 for details. Of the 24 neighbourhoods that were affected by the EIP limits in December 2020, seven were also affected in December 1990. In 2020, three of these neighbourhoods were affected by the Chinese limits only (corresponding to areas around Alexandra North, Margaret Drive and Tiong Bahru), two were affected by the Malay limits only (corresponding to areas around Bedok North and Tampines East), one was affected by the Indian/Others limits only (corresponding to the area around Little India) and one was affected by both the Malay and Indian/Others limits (corresponding to the area around North Coast).”
“NParks adopts a science-based approach to strengthen the conservation of our native biodiversity. This is guided by the Nature Conservation Masterplan (NCMP), which sets out strategies to safeguard key terrestrial and marine habitats, as well as plant and animal species in Singapore. Under the NCMP, NParks works with the community to continually review and enhance its conservation approach. In February 2021, NParks launched the Ecological Profiling Exercise to study the ecological profile of green spaces in Singapore and to better understand their role in strengthening ecological connectivity. This exercise is being carried out in consultation with the nature community and academics, as part of our science-based approach towards the conservation of green spaces. NParks will also continue to involve the public in our biodiversity conservation efforts, as Singapore transforms into a City in Nature. For example, under its Species Recovery Programme, NParks works closely with the community, to carry out habitat restoration and implement species recovery plans for our native plant and animal species. In addition, young Singaporeans can participate in conservation-related projects and outreach activities under the Youth Stewards for Nature programme. Members of the public may also participate in citizen science programmes such as biodiversity surveys, under the Community in Nature initiative.”
“This will contribute to NParks’ longer-term goal for the CWF to become an international centre of excellence in wildlife forensic research and collaboration. As for its new K9 Unit, NParks will deploy the sniffer dogs at the border checkpoints to detect illegal wildlife and wildlife products. The sniffer dogs will also undergo continuous training over time, to enable them to work in different situations, including the inspection of vehicles at our land checkpoints. This will increase Singapore’s overall deterrence against illegal wildlife trade through our borders.”
“NParks opened the Centre for Wildlife Forensics (CWF) and introduced its new K9 Unit on 27 August 2021, to strengthen Singapore’s capabilities and contributions to the global fight against illegal wildlife trade. In the near term, NParks will continue to enhance the CWF’s capabilities in wildlife forensic science, by leveraging various technologies and building on its current library of reference samples. For example, NParks is working with Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) and other research partners to explore the use of prototyping vision-based technologies to enable quicker identification of wildlife species such as sharks and rays and timber species. It is also developing advanced identification techniques using mass spectrometry and electronic smell sensors. This will increase the CWF’s proficiency in identifying various fauna and flora species over time. NParks also plans to deepen its collaborations with other wildlife forensic laboratories and experts in the regional and international community, through research partnerships and studies. The CWF is currently collaborating with international experts on two genetic studies related to ivory and pangolin scale seizures, which will help determine the likely origins of the animals and how they are connected across seizures. The findings from these studies will be shared with the international community to strengthen cross-border enforcement efforts against criminal organisations and networks that trade in illegal wildlife. In the medium term, NParks aims to register the CWF as a CITES Reference Laboratory, to offer its expertise in wildlife forensic science to aid other CITES member states in their investigation and prosecution of illegal wildlife trade cases.”
“The Married Child Priority Scheme (MCPS) gives priority to families buying new HDB flats to live with or near their parents or married children for mutual care and support. Under the MCPS, 30% of the 3-room and bigger BTO flats are set aside for first-timer families. From 2016 to 2020, the average application rate for all first-timer families for 3-room and bigger BTO flats was 4.2 times in the mature estates, and 2.8 times in the non-mature estates and about 30% of these applicants were eligible for the MCPS. Amongst these MCPS applicants, about 20% and 30% were balloted within the MCPS quota in the mature estates and non-mature estates respectively. MCPS applicants who were not balloted within the MCPS quota were balloted again with other public applicants. Overall, about 50% and 60% of all first-timer MCPS applicants applying for 3-room or bigger flats were successful in their flat application in the mature estates and non-mature estates respectively. These success rates are higher than first-timer applicants without any priority schemes.”
“From 2018 to 2020, there were about 17,800 HDB resale flats bought by singles under the Single Singapore Citizen Scheme and Joint Singles Scheme. Please see Table 1 for details on the breakdown of the number of HDB resale flats bought by Singles by region.”
“Parking of motor vehicles on the footway of a road, such as a public pavement, is prohibited under the Road Traffic Rules. LTA will take the necessary enforcement action to deal with offenders. Residents or management corporations (MCSTs) should not request for delivery personnel to park their motor vehicles illegally. MCSTs have a responsibility to manage their common property, including parking spaces, in a way that meets the requirements and addresses the concerns of residents. URA and BCA are working with industry stakeholders and the relevant agencies to develop a set of best practices to guide MCSTs in facilitating deliveries to condominiums in a safe and practical manner. We will study how best to ensure that MCSTs provide appropriate spaces in condominiums to facilitate deliveries, taking into consideration their varying needs and circumstances, such as the available parking space and residents’ parking demand.”
“Buying a HDB flat is a long-term financial commitment. The maximum loan tenure for HDB housing loans is set at 25 years to encourage financial prudence among flat buyers. This is especially important in the current climate of rising housing prices. While a longer loan tenure may increase the loan amount or lower the monthly instalment payable, flat buyers will pay more in interest over the duration of the loan. Such a move will also inject liquidity into the resale market, which may fuel property prices. To ensure that resale flats remain affordable, HDB provides up to $160,000 in housing grants for eligible first-timer families. With regard to the supply of new flats, HDB is on track to launch about 17,000 Build-to-Order (BTO) flats this year. This is higher than the 14,600 and 16,800 flats launched in 2019 and 2020 respectively. Balance flats, which are offered via Sale of Balance Flats exercises and open booking of flats, will further supplement our housing supply. We will continue to monitor the market situation closely and remain committed to ensuring that public housing remains affordable and accessible for Singaporeans.”
“We remain committed to achieving our targets to add over 130 hectares of new parks and enhance about 170 hectares of existing parks, by the end of 2026. While some projects may face delays in the immediate term due to manpower constraints and material shortages in the construction industry brought about by COVID-19, NParks will work with its contractors to minimise these delays. In addition, NParks has continued to work with stakeholders to conceptualise and design our new parks during the pandemic, such as by conducting engagement sessions virtually. We will press on with our plans to transform Singapore into a City in Nature.”
“By 2030, we will plant one million more trees across Singapore under the OneMillionTrees movement, replacing trees lost to development and more. We are committed to stewarding and protecting our green spaces. However, given our scarce land, there will be greenfield sites that we have to develop. Where development cannot be avoided, we proceed with care. Supply of Government land for new developments is carefully calibrated and regularly reviewed, taking into account considerations such as land use needs, macroeconomic conditions, and ecological factors. We also take steps to minimise the environmental footprint of new developments. We impose higher sustainability requirements for Government Land Sale (GLS) sites in selected strategic areas, beyond the minimum legislative requirements. For example, projects developed in Marina Bay are currently required to attain BCA’s Green Mark Platinum certification. To encourage building owners to switch to more energy-efficient cooling systems, BCA administers the Grant for Low-Global Warming Potential (GWP) Refrigerant Chillers, which supports part of the cost of switching to chillers that use climate-friendly refrigerants. Such chillers help building owners to not only reduce their buildings’ emissions, but to also reap energy cost savings over time. Building owners who need financial assistance to undertake retrofitting works may also tap on the Building Retrofit Energy Efficiency Financing (BREEF) scheme, which helps to finance the upfront cost of energy efficiency retrofits through an energy performance contract arrangement with a participating financial institution.”
“The Government is committed to taking decisive action to mitigate climate change. The Singapore Green Plan 2030, which we launched earlier this year, charts ambitious and concrete targets for sustainable development over the next decade. One of our key priorities under the Green Plan is to accelerate our transition to a more sustainable, low-carbon built environment. The Government adopts a long-term approach towards land use planning, with stewardship and sustainability as core principles. We have to balance demands and trade-offs across a wide variety of needs, including housing, green spaces, workplaces, amongst others. We adopt various strategies to make the most of our land, while incorporating flexibility in our plans, to meet the changing needs and aspirations of each new generation. These include redeveloping brownfield sites, increasing the density of developments and co-locating suitable uses to optimise our land. For our green spaces, we adopt a science-based approach to nature conservation. Today, as a result of this approach, we have safeguarded approximately 7,800 hectares of our land for Nature Reserves, Nature Areas, Nature Parks and other green spaces, such as parks and park connectors. We have retained a number of ecologically important sites as green spaces, although they had initially been designated for other uses. For example, while Dairy Farm Nature Park and Rifle Range Nature Park could have been developed for housing, we decided to keep them as green buffers to our Nature Reserves given their ecological value. As part of our efforts to transform Singapore into a City in Nature, we will add another 1,000 hectares of green spaces over the next 10 to 15 years and weave greenery more intensively into our urban areas.”
“Since 1 January 2021, all incoming travellers are required to pay for their stay at Stay-Home Notice (SHN) dedicated facilities (SDFs) and testing fees, as part of the cost of travel in a COVID-19 world. While the Government had borne these costs during the earlier phase of the crisis last year, we have gradually moved to a position where travellers bear the costs of their travel as a private expense, rather than relying on public funds. This is consistent with the practice in many other countries. Only Singaporeans and Permanent Residents (SC/PRs) who face financial difficulties and had to travel for extenuating reasons may apply to ICA for a full cost waiver. Non-residents who wish to enter Singapore are generally required to pay for their SDF stays and testing fees before they can be granted entry into Singapore. Non-residents who have financial difficulties may be assessed for a cost waiver or refund by their respective sectoral leads on a case by case basis. Between January and July 2021, the Government has received around 10,000 appeals for cost waiver from SC/PRs and non-residents. This constitutes about 6% of the total number of travellers who have stayed at SDFs over the same period. In assessing these appeals, we considered the financial situation of the travellers and their ability to pay for the SDF stay and testing fees, as well as the circumstances surrounding the decision to travel. Waivers are reserved for those who have extenuating reasons to travel and genuine difficulties in meeting the cost of the SDF stay and testing, which should otherwise be considered as a private expense. About half of the appeals have been acceded to.”
“We are continuing to study other possible short-term options to augment PPHS supply, but note that at present the private housing stock is equally tight. To optimise our limited PPHS supply, we have therefore also recently finetuned the PPHS eligibility conditions and allocation process to give priority to families in greater need of temporary housing.”
“The Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme (PPHS) provides an additional temporary housing option for eligible first-timer households awaiting the completion of their new flats. The supply of PPHS is limited as it depends on the availability of vacant flats, typically vacated flats under the Selective En-bloc Redevelopment Scheme (SERS). Most flat buyers continue to stay with family members or relatives, or rent on the open market, while awaiting the delivery of their BTO flats. However, the demand for PPHS flats has increased in the last year due to delays in the completion of BTO flats, more people working from home and more competition for open market rental. At the same time, the supply of PPHS flats has tightened as delays in BTO completion have stalled the return of PPHS flats to HDB and the shortage of workers has slowed down sprucing-up works for the PPHS flats before they can be rented out to new tenants. HDB currently has a stock of 840 PPHS flats and will be adding another 800 flats, starting from this year, and over the next two years. Of these, about 200 will be ready and progressively released for application by end-2021. Another 500 will be ready in 2022 and the remaining 100 by mid-2023. While HDB strives to maintain a steady supply of PPHS flats, the supply of PPHS flats is limited and opportunistic, as it is mainly drawn from interim sources of supply and the flats may be withdrawn if they are needed for redevelopment. To boost PPHS supply in the nearterm, we have explored other supply sources, such as vacant staff apartments at various Polytechnics. The Member asked about tapping into private housing stock.”
“The recent increase in prices can be partly attributed to a broad-based increase in demand for housing, supported by the current low interest rate environment. Nonetheless, HDB resale flats continue to remain affordable. On average, the mortgage servicing ratio (MSR), which is the proportion of monthly income used to service mortgage instalment payments, has remained at 23% among resale flat buyers taking an HDB housing loan, over the past three years. This means that first-timer buyers generally have little or no cash outlay in servicing the payments for their resale flats as their mortgage loans can be paid using their CPF contributions. This is made possible as the Government provides housing grants of up to $160,000 to ensure resale flats remain affordable for eligible first-timer families. The Government will continue to monitor the housing market conditions closely and ensure that Singaporeans have access to affordable public housing.”
“The Government remains committed to providing affordable public housing options to help citizen households own their first homes. To achieve this, new Build-To-Order (BTO) flats are priced at a significant discount to the market. First-timer flat buyers can also enjoy the Enhanced CPF Housing Grant (EHG) of up to $80,000, which provides further support to lower- and middle-income families buying their first home. With these generous subsidies and grants, new HDB flats have remained affordable. In 2020, BTO flat prices in the non-mature estates remained at around five times or less of the median annual first-timer families’ income. The monthly instalment of these families is typically less than a quarter of their household monthly income. This means that most buyers can service their housing loans using their monthly CPF contributions, with little or no cash outlay. HDB will continue to price its new flats with affordability as the key consideration and offer a wide range of flat types in various locations to cater to different budgets and needs. We also encourage flat buyers to exercise financial prudence in their housing choices.”
“HDB will work closely with our contractors and assist them in tiding over this difficult period. We will continue to engage them and review what more we can do to support them to ensure that construction progress remains on track. We also recognise that the delays will affect homebuyers and will do our best to assist them. We remain committed to minimise the extent of the delays and continue to deliver BTO flats in a timely manner, while ensuring that project quality and safety standards are not compromised.”
“In line with overall support for the construction industry, HDB has provided extensive support for our contractors. This includes: (a) co-sharing the increase in foreign manpower costs, by allowing contractors to apply to adjust the contract sum for their projects to account for such increases. HDB and relevant agencies are also supporting industry players who are seeking to bring in more migrant workers from various countries in a safe and controlled manner, to ease the construction manpower shortage; (b) co-sharing the increase in non-manpower related operating expenses arising from the prolongation of construction contracts, such as plant and equipment rental, site maintenance costs and the extension of insurance premiums and performance bonds. In this regard, HDB has provided $36 million in co-funding; (c) providing some $170 million in advance payments to help ease the contractors’ cashflow and exercising flexibility by deferring the start of the recovery of the advance payment beyond the default two months after construction works have commenced and allowing a longer repayment period beyond the default 12 months; (d) extending the original duration of 18 or 22 months for which HDB provides steel price protection. Structural works may take longer than usual and we will further extend the steel price protection period to make it a total of nine additional months, so that contractors can continue to receive full protection from steel price fluctuations for the duration of the structural works which have been delayed due to the COVID-19 situation; and (e) providing additional supplies of concreting materials to contractors for local pre-cast production, going beyond the amount that contractors had earlier opted for at tender closing.”
“This will allow affected sub-contractors the opportunity to work out a suitable arrangement to remain on the projects and complete the remaining works. It will also minimise the extent of delays for flat buyers. We recognise that the delays will affect home buyers and further disrupt their life plans and understandably, many will be disappointed. HDB has reached out to the affected flat buyers and will continue to keep them updated about the situation. We will also inform them of the revised completion date of their flats, once the replacement contractors have been appointed and the construction schedule has been worked out. Flat buyers who are unable to find alternative interim housing arrangements with family members, relatives or on the open market, can apply for temporary housing under the Parenthood Provisional Housing Scheme (PPHS) if they are first-timers. On a case-by-case basis, HDB will also offer Interim Rental Housing (IRH) to low-income households with limited family support and without alternative housing options. In addition, HDB will consider waiving the forfeiture and one-year wait out period for flat buyers who have been affected by these delays and decide to cancel their BTO flats to buy a resale flat, based on an assessment of the flat buyers’ specific circumstances. Flat buyers can contact HDB if there is any further assistance they might require. The construction industry has been one of the sectors worst hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. Construction costs have increased due to an increase in foreign manpower costs arising from tightened border measures, additional compliance costs from Safe Management Measures to lower the risk of transmission of COVID-19 and increases in the cost of construction materials.”
“Members Mr Don Wee and Ms Hazel Poa, as well as Ms Poh Li San1 and Mr Murali Pillai2 who have filed questions for future Sittings, have asked about the Greatearth situation and how it has affected homeowners, main contractors, and sub-contractors. Greatearth Corporation Pte Ltd and Greatearth Construction Pte Ltd (referred to collectively as "Greatearth") are the main contractors for five HDB BTO projects. The five projects are at various stages of completion, with two projects at Bukit Panjang – Senja Ridges and Senja Heights – near completion. Just before mid-August, arising from a feedback from the project consultant, HDB checked with Greatearth and was informed that they had run into financial difficulties and were exploring options to continue with the projects. Slightly more than a week later, Greatearth informed HDB that they were unable to complete the five BTO projects, despite the Government's assistance provided to all construction firms over the past year. Prior to this, work at the sites had been progressing satisfactorily and there were no signs of work slow-down. HDB engaged Greatearth to explore possible options to resolve Greatearth’s challenges, such as the provision of advance payments to allow Greatearth to continue with the projects. However, Greatearth did not have the financial ability to continue operations and made the decision to undergo liquidation. HDB is now working closely with Greatearth and their provisional liquidators Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) to bring onboard new contractors to take over and complete the five BTO projects as soon as possible. As part of this process, HDB is facilitating discussions between potential new main contractors and existing sub-contractors.”
“Agencies that manage public land carry out regular inspections on slopes that may pose a risk to public safety and implement appropriate mitigation measures to stabilise the slopes if required. For example, NParks inspects slopes in parks and gardens on a quarterly basis during fair weather and on a weekly or monthly basis during periods of intense wet weather. In addition, BCA requires all slopes that are formed as a result of building works to be assessed for risk of failure by a Qualified Person (QP) before construction commences. The QP is required to recommend slope protection measures to be put in place, such as earth retaining walls and stabilising structures, to ensure that the slope remains stable under adverse weather conditions, including extreme rainfall. BCA also issues regular advisories to remind land and building owners to implement measures to manage the risk of landslips for their slopes. These include ensuring adequate drainage and proper maintenance of slope- and earth-retaining structures. Sinkholes in Singapore are generally caused by larger scale excavation or underground works. For such works, BCA requires a QP to conduct a site investigation and recommend measures to prevent sinkholes from occurring. BCA also requires the builder and the QP supervising the works to monitor ground and building movements during construction, and to implement additional safety measures as necessary.”
“Through the Centre, NParks is also collaborating with international experts on studies related to ivory and pangolin scale seizures and will share the findings of these studies with the international community. This will strengthen our global expertise and enforcement efforts to tackle illegal wildlife trade. Lastly, we are currently reviewing the Endangered Species (Import and Export) Act, to strengthen our regulatory processes and enforcement powers against illegal wildlife trade. We will share more details on this soon.”
“As a signatory to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), Singapore is committed to the global fight against illegal wildlife trade. We have put in place a whole-of-Government regulatory and enforcement framework to tackle the illicit trade in CITES species, and we work closely with our regional and international partners on this front. Due to travel restrictions as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, NParks has observed more cases of illegal wildlife trade detected in parcel post, as consumers have turned to e-commerce and online shopping platforms. This is in contrast to cases detected in air passenger baggage, which were more common three years ago. NParks is investigating these cases and will take the necessary enforcement actions. In view of these trends, we have put in place measures to ensure that our enforcement regime remains robust and effective. Our officers stationed at the border checkpoints and parcel post offices are trained to screen and look out for suspicious parcels that may contain wildlife and wildlife products. NParks is also working with logistics companies and e-commerce platforms to identify such parcels upstream and to remove online listings of illegal wildlife for sale. NParks’ new K9 Unit is also being trained for deployment in different situations to help uncover illegal wildlife and wildlife products passing through our borders. Beyond enhancing our enforcement regime, we are also leveraging science and technology to support our investigation and prosecution efforts. For example, NParks recently opened the Centre for Wildlife Forensics, which will enhance its capabilities in wildlife forensic science and research.”
“Sir, in response to Ms Sylvia Lim's first question, we will look at the facts and circumstances behind each case. Some of the instances of suppression of material information may have been deliberate; some of it may have been a misunderstanding. We will have to look at it case by case. On the second query, of the 1,055 cases, we think we should be able to complete it by or before the year-end. And as to whether we will report back, the answer is yes.”
“HDB has taken immediate action to recover the grants that were disbursed to ineligible applicants and is working to verify the eligibility status of the remaining 1,055 applicants flagged by AGO. HDB is also implementing process improvements and automating eligibility check processes. This will allow HDB to more efficiently and accurately assess the eligibility of the very many grant applicants, even if they fail to declare any material information to HDB.”
“Sir, applicants for Central Provident Fund (CPF) housing grants must declare all relevant information about themselves and the proposed occupiers of their Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats, as well as submit documentary proof of income, employment and details of their ownership of private property, if any. HDB assesses each application by manually verifying, amongst other things, the declared incomes against the documents submitted by the applicants and their occupiers, such as pay slips, employers’ letters, commission statements, CPF contribution histories and Notices of Income Tax Assessment. For ownership of private property, HDB will verify documents such as the Notice of Transfer, Transfer Instrument, and Sale and Purchase Agreement. The verification process is often complex, especially when flat buyers and their occupiers have multiple sources of income and/or property ownership, both local and overseas. The Auditor-General's Office (AGO) checked a total of 22,627 resale applications with the Family or Singles Grant approved by HDB between 1 April 2018 and 30 September 2020. These applications involved a total of 47,808 applicants and occupiers. AGO found that HDB had disbursed grants to 13 applicants who did not meet the eligibility criteria. Of the 13 applicants, HDB has since verified that one applicant had in fact been correctly assessed for the grant disbursement. Further investigations revealed that the grants were wrongly disbursed for the remaining 12 applicants because the applicants had failed to declare material information such as their actual income and private property ownership to HDB. This omission was not detected in the verification checks.”
“Government agencies are required to use the Public Sector Standard Conditions of Contract (PSSCOC) for their construction contracts. The PSSCOC includes a fluctuation clause that allows contract prices to be adjusted according to the prevailing material price indices of key construction materials, that is, ready-mix concrete and steel rebars. This means that Government agencies are contractually bound to adjust their contract prices according to the changes in these price indices during their projects.”
“In the last five years, HDB did not issue any notices to repossess flats due to the owners not complying with divorce court orders regarding the treatment of the flat. In general, HDB only takes compulsory acquisition action as a last resort. As the divorce court orders are issued to the divorced parties, flat owners who disagree on the treatment of the matrimonial flat set out in the divorce court order can seek further legal recourse with the Court.”
“From 2016 to 2020, NParks received around 8,400 requests for the removal of bee, wasp and hornet hives. NParks works closely with stakeholders including agencies and the nature community to conserve key pollinators, such as bees, butterflies, bats and birds, in Singapore’s biosphere. Guided by the Nature Conservation Masterplan, these measures include habitat enhancement at our parks and nature reserves. Specific to bees, NParks has also constructed nest boxes in selected parks and nature reserves, to create conducive habitats for bees. In 2018, NParks launched a bee trail at HortPark to educate visitors on various bee species and their ecological role. NParks also conducts studies on key pollinators to better understand the ecology of these species, such as their movement and distribution. Public safety is a key priority in the management of key pollinators such as bees. For example, bee hives found in public areas are typically removed, to prevent stinging incidents. This may involve engaging pest control operators to remove these hives quickly, to safeguard public safety. The ecological impact of removing such bee hives is assessed to be relatively low, as most of these hives are used by the honey bee species, which are common and widespread locally. NParks and NEA will continue to work together to manage pest control methods, with public safety and health as a key priority, while safeguarding our native biodiversity.”
“NParks adopts a holistic, science-based approach to manage the population of birds in Singapore, comprising measures, such as habitat modification, food source reduction and population control. At HDB housing estates, NParks carries out habitat modification, such as the directional pruning of trees. The intent is to deter birds, such as crows and mynahs, from perching and to break up large roosts. NParks also works with Town Councils to remove the nests and to replace certain tree species with suitable ones to discourage roosting. In addition, NParks carries out studies to understand the ecology of birds, such as their roosting patterns and movements, to support its bird management strategies. To reduce the availability of food sources, NParks works closely with SFA, NEA and Town Councils to encourage proper food waste management at food establishments around HDB housing estates and to enforce against littering and illegal bird-feeding. NParks also partners agencies and Town Councils to educate the community on proper refuse management. NParks will continue to work closely with agencies to enhance its bird management strategies to reduce bird-related disamenities, such as noise disturbances caused to residents.”
“The increase in private housing prices since the second quarter of 2020 reflects broad-based demand for housing, supported by the low interest rate environment. However, the pace of price increases slowed in the second quarter of 2021, with prices increasing by 0.8% quarter-on-quarter, compared to the 3.3% increase in the first quarter of 2021. As has been previously communicated, the Government’s intent is to ensure a stable and sustainable property market, where prices move broadly in line with economic fundamentals. To this end, the Government continues to monitor economic and property market conditions closely.”
“HDB flats are designed with a variety of configurations. Some of the older flats built in the 1970s and 1980s were designed with multi-step entrances so that their windows could be raised above the eye level of passers-by for improved privacy. About 170,000 HDB flats, or 17% of all HDB flats, were designed with multi-step entrances. The breakdown of HDB flats with multi-step entrances based on the year of completion is shown in the table below.”
“Flat owners are responsible for maintaining the interior of their flats. This includes repairs to ceiling leaks and spalling concrete that may occur due to wear and tear over time. Nevertheless, HDB offers assistance for HDB residents to address these issues under the Goodwill Repair Assistance (GRA) scheme. Under the scheme, HDB will arrange for the repairs and co-pay 50% of the repair cost. The remaining 50% will be borne by the affected resident for cases of spalling concrete and shared between the upper and lower floor residents for ceiling leak repair. With the current industry-wide shortage of construction workers arising from the COVID-19 situation, there has been delays to HDB’s upgrading and repair works, including those under the GRA scheme. The current average waiting time to complete each case under the GRA scheme is between four and six months. We understand that residents will be disappointed with the longer waiting time. HDB is doing its best to continue with the necessary works under prevailing safe management measures (SMM) guidelines and will prioritise urgent or critical works, and assist residents wherever possible. Residents who wish to have the repair works carried out earlier can consider engaging their own contractor to carry out the repairs. HDB can provide flat owners with a list of repair contractors whom they can then engage on a private basis. Residents who need financial assistance with the cost of repairs can seek assistance from grassroots organisations and Community Development Councils (CDCs). HDB will assist such residents by referring them to these community organisations.”
“Singapore consumed an average of 11.5 million cubic metres of concrete per year over the last five years. Concrete consumption is projected to remain within the range of 10.5 million to 12.2 million cubic metres per year until 2025. BCA prescribes minimum environmental sustainability standards for buildings under the Building Control (Environmental Sustainability) Regulations. Projects can meet these requirements by making efficient use of concrete in the building design and using sustainable and recycled materials in concrete elements of a building. Under the Building Control (Buildability and Productivity) Regulations, BCA also requires all residential non-landed developments to use non-concrete drywalls for internal partitions between rooms. On top of this, BCA’s Green Mark scheme recognises projects that go beyond the regulatory requirements, for example, by using alternatives to concrete, such as Mass Engineered Timber. As part of the Singapore Green Building Masterplan, BCA will place greater emphasis on reducing concrete use in the design and construction of buildings.”
“The new M3 Engagement Coordination Office will partner other Government initiatives, such as MOE’s UPLIFT and MSF’s ComLink, as well as other Malay/Muslim organisations, to strengthen outreach and train volunteers to reach out to Malay families staying in public rental flats. These efforts will be augmented by Project DIAN@M3, which aims to provide more holistic and integrated support for Malay/Muslim families staying in rental flats by connecting them to a wide range of national and community programmes across education, employment, health and social support. The Government will continue strengthening partnerships with the community and press on with our efforts to uplift lower-income and vulnerable families.”
“MND and HDB have a suite of housing grants and priority schemes to ensure that public housing continues to be affordable and accessible to all Singaporeans. We have also enhanced our measures to support families staying in public rental flats and help them move to home ownership. In addition to generous housing grants, families in public rental can receive personalised guidance from HDB’s Home ownership Support Team as they work towards buying a flat. MND and HDB are also working closely with MSF as part of the Community Link (ComLink) initiative, which partners families with children living in rental housing in achieving stability, self-reliance and social mobility. We are encouraged that many families who were staying in public rental flats have moved on to their own homes. In the past five years, about 4,600 households have done so, an increase of more than 70% compared to 2,600 households in the previous five years. Of the 4,600 households, around 40% were Malay households. Another 2,000 households staying in public rental flats have booked new flats from HDB and are awaiting their completion, of whom around 40% are Malay households. Overall, the Census of the Population 2020 findings also showed that the Malay community has achieved significant progress in education, employment and household income. Strong education foundations, which, in turn, enable stable employment, are critical for improving housing outcomes. The Government will continue to provide opportunities for all Singaporeans to develop to their full potential and upskill and reskill for better-paying jobs, regardless of background. Within the Malay/Muslim community, the M3 network has strengthened support for lower-income and vulnerable families.”
“Based on the findings from the Census of the Population 2020, the proportion of Malay households living in 1- and 2-room HDB flats increased from 8.7% in 2010 to 16.0% in 2020, while the proportion living in HDB 3-room flats has remained stable, at 22.0% in 2010 and 21.1% in 2020. The increase in the number of Malay households living in 1- and 2-room HDB flats was due to various factors. First, there was an increase in the number of Malay households staying in HDB public rental flats. This was in tandem with the increase in the supply of HDB 1- and 2-room public rental flats over the last decade, from about 45,500 in 2010 to about 62,000 in 2020. This increase in public rental supply has enabled HDB to provide housing for more lower-income and vulnerable families who do not have other housing options. Amongst the Malay households who entered public rental, some were young families who were unable to continue staying with their parents and needed housing while they worked towards buying a flat; some were families who were left with no other housing options after having to sell their previous flat due to changes in their family or financial circumstances; and some were seniors who had little savings or income and did not have family support or were unable to stay with their children. Second, there was also an increase in the share of Malay HDB flat buyers who bought 1- and 2-room HDB flats. Three percent of them did so in 2010 and this increased to 8% in 2020. Similar increases were also observed for other ethnic groups. This could be partly due to singles being able to buy new 2-room flats since July 2013, as well as seniors right-sizing from bigger flats to 2-room Flexi flats.”
“BTO flat applicants can expect to receive the balloting outcomes within three weeks from the close of the flat application period.”
“HDB has various priority schemes in place to help first-timer families and other applicants with their housing needs. For the Parenthood Priority Scheme (PPS), applicants who meet the eligibility criteria of being first-timer married couples with young children are automatically emplaced on the scheme and do not need to apply. This is because the PPS does not impose additional conditions that need to be met by the applicants after their flat purchase. However, the other priority schemes, such as the Married Child Priority Scheme (MCPS) and the Third Child Priority Scheme (TCPS), impose specific terms and conditions that flat buyers need to comply with until the end of the minimum occupation period of their BTO flats. As such, applicants have to apply for these schemes as part of their HDB application to allow them to decide which priority scheme will best suit their needs and whether they will be able to comply with the corresponding terms and conditions. To ease the application process, the HDB flat application system will prompt flat applicants to choose from a drop-down menu of the priority schemes that may be relevant to them, based on the information that they have provided in the online flat application form. While home seekers have to make a fresh application for each BTO exercise they would like to participate in, those who have applied for a BTO flat previously can retrieve the particulars they provided in their previous application via MyInfo so that they do not have to fill in their particulars again. In addition, applicants do not have to submit documents when they apply for a BTO flat and are only required to do so during their appointment to book a flat.”
“Generally, BTO flats in the mature estates are highly sought after by home seekers. Given the high demand and limited supply, not all applicants applying for BTO flats in the mature estates can secure a BTO flat in these areas. It is not meaningful to track the time between the first application and when the applicant books a flat in a mature estate as flat buyers may not apply in consecutive BTO exercises and some may apply for flats in non-mature estates as well. To meet the high demand for flats in mature estates, HDB has launched more new flats in mature estates in recent years. The proportion of BTO projects in the mature towns and estates increased from 44% in 2017 to 55% in 2020. Nonetheless, to increase their chances of securing a BTO flat, home seekers may wish to consider applying for flats in the non-mature estates. First-timer families who are unsuccessful in two or more applications for BTO flats in the non-mature estates will receive an additional ballot chance in their subsequent application in the non-mature estates. Between 2019 and the third quarter of 2020, the mean number of attempts by first-timer families who were successful in their flat applications was 1.3, and the mode and median number of attempts were both 1. Home seekers with preferences for specific locational or flat attributes may also consider buying a resale flat on the open market, where eligible first-timer families can receive up to $160,000 in housing grants.”
“The data that the Member seeks, perhaps she could file a written Parliamentary Question, we can give her the data. On her request for more allocation under MCPS, I think I have addressed that in my reply.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, the Married Child Priority Scheme (MCPS) gives priority to families buying new Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats to live with or near their parents or married children. Under the MCPS, 30% of the new flat supply in the mature estates is set aside for first-timer families. For second-timer families, it is 3%. We recognise the importance of supporting the needs of parents and married children who wish to live with or near each other for mutual care and support and, therefore, set aside a significant proportion of flats of up to about one-third of our new flat supply in the mature estates under the MCPS. Other than the MCPS, we also have other schemes, such as the Multi-Generation Priority Scheme and Senior Priority Scheme, as well as 3Gen flats, to facilitate mutual care and support among families. Within our limited flat supply, we also have to meet the housing needs of other groups of Singaporeans, including first-timer families with children via the Parenthood Priority Scheme, and families with three or more children via the Third Child Priority Scheme. Therefore, we are unable to increase the proportion of flats set aside under the MCPS at this juncture. Having said that, we recognise that many children wish to live near their parents for mutual care and support. To meet the high demand for flats in mature estates, HDB has launched more flats in mature estates in recent years. The portion of BTO projects in the mature towns and estates increased from 44% in 2017, to 55% last year. Flat buyers who wish to live with or near their parents or children may also consider buying a resale flat and can receive a Proximity Housing Grant (PHG) of up to $30,000 for their flat purchase.”
“There are thus no clinically proven medical treatments that could fully address hoarding behaviour and would apply to all hoarders. The interventions for each case will have to differ depending on the hoarder's underlying motivations and available support, such as from family members and community (for example, neighbours and social service organisations). The process to fully resolve a hoarding issue through counselling can be long-drawn and is highly dependent on the hoarder’s willingness and ability to change their behaviour. Therefore, we will need strong support from the hoarder’s family and community. In many of the successful interventions, family members and neighbours have worked closely with agencies and grassroots leaders to encourage and assist the hoarders such that their behaviour does not recur. Premature mandated interventions may be not conducive to successful resolution as trust amongst the stakeholders may be eroded. MSO and the agencies involved will continue to review the need for more legislative powers, manpower and resources in tackling this issue.”
“Hoarding behaviour is characterised by excessive acquisition and persistent difficulty in making decisions to discard possessions. This behaviour can lead to a variety of concerns, including disamenities to immediate neighbours. The Municipal Services Office (MSO) leads a multi-agency workgroup to coordinate hoarding cases. The workgroup includes HDB, NEA, NParks, Animal and Veterinary Services (AVS), MSF, People's Association (PA), Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF), Singapore Police Force (SPF) and Agency for Integrated Care (AIC) so that enforcement, social, community, health and medical interventions can all be considered in an effort to address the issue holistically and in a coordinated manner. The agencies have jointly developed a Hoarding Management Framework (HMF), which includes a set of standard operating procedures to guide ground officers in their day-to-day management of hoarding cases. When public feedback is received, cases are assessed and prioritised based on whether there is threat to public health and safety. For severe cases, regulatory agencies can already enter the home to make an assessment of the severity of the existing hoarding situation. For example, NEA for vector or mosquito issues, or SCDF if the materials hoarded comprise particularly flammable materials, such as petroleum or petroleum products. Likewise, SCDF works with the Town Councils and Management Corporation Strata Titles (MCSTs) to remove hoarding in the common areas, which increase fire safety risks by obstructing fire evacuation routes. While we recognise that compulsive hoarding is a behavioural problem, the majority of hoarders do not have treatable underlying mental illnesses such as obsessive compulsive disorder.”
“We are also studying ways to increase the supply of PPHS flats to better support flat buyers who need temporary housing. We will provide more details on these measures when ready. Meanwhile, on a case-by-case basis, HDB may offer interim rental housing to low-income households with no other housing options.”