Indranee Rajah
Singapore
“Mr Speaker, I would like to make a clarification in relation to two written answers on childcare leave issued by the Prime Minister's Office on 25 September 2025 and 3 February 2026 in response to Parliamentary Questions filed by Members of Parliament Ms Cassandra Lee and Ms Valerie Lee respectively.”
“Based on Year of Assessment (YA) 2025 data, about 9,500 working mothers claimed a lower amount of Working Mother's Child Relief (WCMR) under the fixed-dollar basis than they would have under the previous percentage-based basis, for children born or adopted on or after 1 January 2024.”
“We regularly receive feedback on enhancing child-related leave provisions, including the Member's suggestion. In recent years, parental leave provisions have been significantly enhanced, such that parents now have 30 weeks of paid leave, including 10 weeks of Shared Parental Leave.”
“The Government does not have data on the number of transactions involving multiple units on a single residential title that have not been subdivided. Such properties are treated as a single property for Additional Buyer's Stamp Duty (ABSD) purposes when it is bought, so no ABSD is foregone.”
“The Government publishes data on personal income tax, which is publicly available on www.data.gov.sg. This includes data on the number of course fees relief claimants and the amount of the relief granted. The Member may refer to the website to access the data for the first three questions.”
“In considering the duration of leave, we will look at the need. In this case, as I have explained, there is a difference between those who give birth physically to a child and those who adopt.”
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“Mr Louis Chua sought a clarification on whether it would then be a good idea to give notices to all individual households informing them about the incident and letting them know what to do. The first thing to clarify is that the NRIC numbers in Bizfile are not the NRIC numbers of all Singaporeans. So, actually, sending notices to all households would necessarily go beyond the NRIC numbers that are with ACRA. The other thing to bear in mind is that those who have incorporated a business or have taken on board directorships and so on, and have their information with ACRA, would know that the information can be made publicly available. I think the better approach is really this – for everybody who has provided information in lodgements or filings with ACRA to take heed of what we have indicated, which is: one, do not use your NRIC as a password or authenticator; two, be careful if somebody comes citing your NRIC number asking you to do something, and this will be part and parcel of the public education that we will put out. But it is not necessary to notify all households.”
“But my understanding was, when ACRA was looking at this, they were deciding whether or not to even give full NRIC numbers. But on the MDDI side of the house, they had been indicating that they were reviewing this. So, that was put on hold. Then, after that, the July circular came along and the misunderstanding occurred, and then that is what happened. So, that is the short sequence of what I know, but the review panel will look into this in more detail.”
“If the Leader of the Opposition could just give me a moment to check the notes on this. Okay, just a few things. I do not have all the details of what the Leader of the Opposition has asked, but what I can give him are some of the details. First, the summary of the public consultation was issued in April 2024. In the summary of the consultation, what was said was this: the proposal to "partially mask the identification number of all individuals in ACRA's registers which are made available to the public, and introduce a contact address as the default address of individuals that will be shown to the public instead of the individual's residential address". The feedback was: "Some respondents expressed concerns on the need to have access to full identification numbers and other personal data for corporate transparency and compliance with know-your-clients requirements. Some respondents sought clarification on whether there would still be sufficient information to identify an officeholder that is tied to a particular business entity on ACRA's registers." So, you can see there were two types of feedback: some expressed concern about having full identification numbers made available; others needed to know how to identify the right person. ACRA's response was to proceed with the proposal to introduce a contact address as the default address of individuals that will be shown to the public. On the proposal to mask identification numbers, the concerns on requiring access to full identification numbers have been duly noted. We will review this further and provide an update in due course. I think that was what the Leader of the Opposition was referring to. This is going to have to be dealt with more deeply in the review because the review panel will be looking into the matter.”
“Just a very quick response to Ms Tin. Her comment was that she hoped that the review would be fair to ACRA. As far as the review panel is concerned, the intention is to be thorough and also to be fair to all. Both to ACRA as well as MDDI, to all involved. But it must undertake the review seriously and carefully. As I mentioned earlier, based on the preliminary findings, the incident seems to be a genuine case of miscommunication, but at the same time we do not want to prejudge the issue. So, as I also mentioned, if the panel uncovers facts that suggest actionable wrongdoing or serious lapses, then it will refer the matter to relevant bodies or authorities for further action. So, they will be objective, they will be fair, but they will also be thorough and rigorous.”
“This Parliamentary Question will be addressed through a Ministerial Statement by the Second Minister for Finance during the Parliament Sitting on 8 January 2025. [Please refer to "NRIC Numbers in ACRA's Bizfile Service", Official Report, 8 January 2025, Vol 95, Issue 149, Ministerial Statements section.]”
“This Parliamentary Question will be addressed through a Ministerial Statement by the Second Minister for Finance during the Parliament Sitting on 8 January 2025. [Please refer to "NRIC Numbers in ACRA's Bizfile Service", Official Report, 8 January 2025, Vol 95, Issue 149, Ministerial Statements section.]”
“This Parliamentary Question will be addressed through a Ministerial Statement by the Second Minister for Finance during the Parliament Sitting on 8 January 2025. [Please refer to "NRIC Numbers in ACRA's Bizfile Service", Official Report, 8 January 2025, Vol 95, Issue 149, Ministerial Statements section.]”
“This Parliamentary Question will be addressed through a Ministerial Statement by the Second Minister for Finance during the Parliament Sitting on 8 January 2025. [Please refer to "NRIC Numbers in ACRA's Bizfile Service", Official Report, 8 January 2025, Vol 95, Issue 149, Ministerial Statements section.]”
“This Parliamentary Question will be addressed through a Ministerial Statement by the Second Minister for Finance during the Parliament Sitting on 8 January 2025. [Please refer to "NRIC Numbers in ACRA's Bizfile Service", Official Report, 8 January 2025, Vol 95, Issue 149, Ministerial Statements section.]”
“This Parliamentary Question will be addressed through a Ministerial Statement by the Second Minister for Finance during the Parliament Sitting on 8 January 2025. [Please refer to "NRIC Numbers in ACRA's Bizfile Service", Official Report, 8 January 2025, Vol 95, Issue 149, Ministerial Statements section.]”
“So long as we, as a society and economy, continue to direct technological change in favour of clean, rather than dirty inputs, we will also be able to ultimately realise the dream of sustainable growth for our companies and communities, of course, our children.”
“While the explanations for why going green may not only be environmentally but also financially sustainable are both complex and multifaceted, the logic can be expressed in a more straightforward manner. Think about any kind of investment: whether it be in knowledge or the latest technology or even old-school buildings and equipment. These investments always take time before they pay off. Businesses do not set aside earnings for research and development, artificial intelligence or capital expenditure for fun. They do it because they expect, years, perhaps, even decades down the road, they will be in a more profitable position with these investments, than without. The same can be said for spending on sustainability and green technology. While it may sometimes seem like the money goes directly into a cost black hole, in reality, these are truly investments, which will pay off more in the future. These may be direct. For example, over the past decade, solar and wind power have become cost-competitive with fossil fuels, even without any financial support. They may also be indirect. After all, if irreversible climate change were to become entrenched, business costs will, themselves, be elevated by higher insurance and other business costs due to natural disasters, as we have observed in countries as diverse as Bangladesh, Mexico, Poland, Spain and Thailand. In the meantime, any old brown job that is being displaced means new jobs will also, inevitably, be created. While there is no sugarcoating how companies will have to dig into their pockets, at least in the near term, to decarbonise, in the future, they will reap the benefits of their green investments, which will not only be better for their own bottom lines, but also for the only planet that we all inhabit, too.”
“In the medium run, it may be worthwhile exploring whether subsidies for the green transition should always be directly channeled to businesses or whether there is room to do so via responsible financial intermediaries, who will be in a position to scrutinise business activities and ensure that they truly adhere to green best practices. Some have argued that sustainable projects must entail a "green premium", such that borrowing costs would be higher than the market rate for comparable brown opportunities, with the shift toward ESG-conscious investing, implying that pollutive enterprises now frequently face higher costs of capital, as perhaps they should, if we expect to wean ourselves off such dirty technologies in the longer run. Yet the evidence remains amply unclear as to whether responsible investing must necessarily imply inferior returns. Mr Speaker, I have offered three practical suggestions for how businesses in Singapore can embrace the carbon transition. First, we need to broaden the base for carbon taxation, both to include smaller players as well as stages higher and lower in a firm's value chain. Second, we have to monitor our progress with transparent reporting, which, in turn, has to be supplemented by workers with green skills. Finally, the financial sector must play a role in providing the funding to move things along, which they will only be able to do well if they have access to reliable ESG data. Allow me to close by addressing one of the most common, knee-jerk fears to the pursuit of climate objectives especially held by businesses: that it will raise costs and, hence, undermine competitiveness. This claim, while seemingly intuitive, is, at best, incomplete.”
“Hence, Enterprise Singapore will need to expand the scope to also provide advisory and assistance on how SMEs can best embed sustainability into their overseas ventures. Just like how we cannot succeed in our climate-mitigation efforts by focusing only on large firms, we, likewise, cannot expect to get to net zero by relying only on public sources of green financing. After all, our public expenditure needs are vast and the investment gap that has to be met by companies adapting to higher carbon prices, even larger. This is where ESG financing comes into the picture. There is already a burgeoning sustainable finance ecosystem in Singapore, with lending by both private sector financial institutions as well as public sector entities. Green, social and sustainability loans have exploded to $30.4 billion last year from just $3.3 billion six years ago; as has bonds, rising from $1 billion to $7.4 billion over the same period. By 2030, the Government and statutory boards are expected to issue green bonds that amount to $35 billion, up from $2.1 billion last year. Still, we should not allow the usual hype over ESG financing to eclipse some of the very real challenges on the ground. Some financiers have suggested that there is still insufficient, reliable data on green projects to assure them that corporate actions do not merely account to greenwashing. This reprises the concern that I raised earlier, about the need for high-quality standards for reporting and professionals.”
“Such consistent review should be required to secure SSG-accreditation. The Economic Development Board (EDB) and Enterprise Singapore currently provides funding support for large companies to cover their first sustainability report, which have to be consistent with ISSB's standards. But with over 600 listed companies in Singapore, all of whom will be required to make climate-related disclosures, they will have their work cut out for them. More can also be done, however, for our small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Workforce Singapore launched a Career Conversion Programme for Sustainability Professionals (CCP-S) in December 2022, aimed at supporting SMEs in their pursuit of sustainability. However, it remains unclear what the take-up rate for the proposed target of 200 CCP-S professionals is and how many of these will be operating out of SMEs. And unlike multinationals with substantial budgets that they can dedicate to fulfilling such objectives as well as public reputations and reporting requirements to do so, SMEs are often forced to be selective about the aspects of sustainability that they wish to invest time and resources into. Direction on what such firms would focus on will undoubtedly be appreciated and the Government can work on a set of guidelines for priority targets. SMEs will also need to be able to plan for shifting regulations and community expectations, especially when they venture abroad. Smaller firms do not have the same capacity to tailor their market research to not only the traditional needs of consumers as well as cost constraints, but also environmental and regulatory considerations.”
“The number of sustainability-related courses supported by SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) almost doubled to nearly 500 in 2023, up from about 250 in 2022. A quick search on the MySkillsFuture website lists 134 courses related to sustainability reporting, with the most affordable course starting at just $84 for eligible Singaporeans. If this sounds like a marketing pitch, it is probably a good time for me to declare that I am, in fact, employed at the business school which offers such sustainability-related education. Still, impending compliance requirements will steadily accelerate the demand for skills in sustainable finance, carbon management, decarbonisation and sustainability risk assessment. These capabilities must be seen as central to Singapore's long-term survival and adaptability in a carbon-constrained world. Businesses need to be able to hire professionals with such tools and skills; and afforded time to train and groom their existing workforce in acquiring green skills and competencies. A study by Arup and Oxford Economics estimates that there could be as many as 170,000 green-related jobs, across all sectors, by next year. Although the Government's own Environmental Services Industry Transformation Map is more modest, pointing to around 1,600 professional, manager, executive and technician (PMET) jobs, the ones that are most likely to be filled by locals by this time. To further support upskilling and reskilling in the sector, the Government can offer tax deductions or subsidies for employers with a clear training roadmap, in partnership with accredited or approved training providers. Of course, training providers must also be kept accountable, with education materials subject to checks for accuracy and subject to update and improvement.”
“The Government commenced its reporting effort in 2023, with the GreenGov.SG report. To complement this report, Statutory Boards will also publish annual environmental sustainability disclosures, starting this fiscal year. Such disclosures will offer an important demonstration effect, showing not only what the Government is doing to advance environmental sustainability, but also what is achievable by the private sector. Ultimately, a mandatory monitoring and reporting regime will require clear and uniform environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards. This, in turn, also calls for a whole new set of "green skills": the ability to perform corporate carbon accounting, manage firm assets with an eye toward sustainability and provide reporting on a company's ESG impact. Such capabilities are key to Singapore's long-term survival and adaptability in a carbon-constrained world. But they are also presently scarce, a fact that has been repeatedly highlighted as important needs in the multiple editions of the Skills Demand for the Future Economy report. A Green Skills Committee was set up in 2023, under the auspices of the Ministry of Trade and Industry. The group, comprising representatives from Government, unions, industry and academia, placed their focus on two areas: clean energy and sustainability reporting. If we take this signal seriously, there will be a need to further ramp up training for companies, so that they will be equipped to deliver their climate and sustainability reports at international standards. Similarly, there has to be a body of professional assurance providers that are prepared to audit these emissions reports. Institutes of Higher Learning will be crucial to help fill this gap.”
“Similarly, downstream choices by firms, decisions over their distribution network or how they deal with the end-of-life treatment of their products, all contribute toward the ultimate impact that corporations impose on the climate. This is becoming increasingly observed, recognised by observers. It is no longer sufficient to pay attention to only so-called Scope 1 emissions, which are the sources an organization owns or controls directly. Scope 2 emissions, which are caused indirectly by a company based on where it chooses to buy its energy and how it uses it, also matter; as does Scope 3 emissions, which are those not covered by Scope 1 or 2, but are nevertheless created by a business' value chain. Responsible businesses are also getting on board. This includes more than nine out of 10 Fortune 500 companies and these standards have been road-tested by diverse firms across the world, such as 3M, Acer, Airbus, Coca Cola, Mitsubishi, Pfizer and Shanghai Zidan. In Singapore, listed companies will be required to make mandatory climate-related disclosures, consistent with the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), by 2025; and this will extend to large non-listed companies by 2027. This will include their Scope 1 and 2 emissions, but only listed companies will be required to do so for Scope 3 emissions from 2026. Larger, non-listed firms are not expected to do so before 2029, which strikes me as an excessive amount of leeway. Shortening this timeline by a year, for instance, would ensure that they are held to the same standards and expectations as the locally-listed firms. Doing so will also prevent Singapore from losing its competitive edge and status as a global exemplar of climate leadership. On its part, the public sector has, appropriately, stepped up.”
“While this remains below the preferred range for the Workers' Party, not least because it remains somewhat below the median in other advanced economies as well as the costs of carbon capture, we acquiesce to this increase, given how it is, nevertheless, superior to the original status quo. We have also spoken about how the tax could be adapted according to the contemporaneous state of the economy, to allow firms some latitude to adapt to prevailing macroeconomic conditions. I had, moreover, previously explained why I believe a broad-based carbon tax is not only consistent with public finance principles, but also ensures psychological buy-in from all carbon generators. To be clear, this would be everyone. I wish to return to this theme here, in the context of businesses. In Singapore, the overwhelming majority, an estimated four-fifths of carbon emissions, are accounted for by just 50 facilities, spread across the manufacturing, power, water and waste. While we may argue that this would largely absolve us from worrying too much about how the remaining companies contribute to emissions, I believe that this mindset is mistaken. This is also because climate change is a global problem and if corporations, including those that are not the primary source emitters, fail to seriously consider their total carbon footprint, they may inadvertently outsource their midstream or downstream activities to other emitters without well-defined carbon action plans. Inattention to midstream activities, such as electricity usage, raw material and equipment procurement and commuting and travel policies, could undermine the upstream efforts by their home country governments.”
“I will speak about three related issues: first, I will touch on why focusing on the carbon emissions of the big players alone is not quite good enough; second, I will discuss who we need to train to ensure that our carbon transition efforts eventually succeed; and third, I will explain what role finance can play in all this. I shall close with thoughts on why climate mitigation efforts need not, in fact, undermine our business competitiveness. The current slate of policies aimed at decarbonisation is comprehensive. In theory, this involves two major steps: decarbonising energy production and electrifying industry, transport and construction. In practice, this encompasses a diverse mix of policies: carbon taxes, energy efficiency standards and grants, shifting our transportation infrastructure toward electrification and sourcing electricity from alternative sources, both in terms of energy type as well as geographically. While the Government has, appropriately, taken the lead in these, we will only succeed when businesses are also aligned with the programme. And this requires widespread buy-in by companies that, understandably, face a bottom line and are primarily responsive to their shareholders, who may or may not share the C-suite's enthusiasm for incorporating environmental goals. Ensuring that pro-environment sentiment is widely shared by companies and their shareholders is, therefore, crucial for success. The bluntest measure for addressing emissions is our carbon tax. This was recently raised to $25 per megaton, from a miserable $5 and, will step up to $45 in 2026, before reaching a range of between $50 and $80 by 2030.”
“Mr Speaker, before I beg to move that Parliament do adjourn, I would like to thank all the hawkers who came today and for staying with us through this very long debate. We greatly appreciate them. [Applause.] Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That Parliament do now adjourn." [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)] The Road to Decarbonising our Corporations 10.01 pm Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim (Sengkang): Sir, it has been an exceedingly long day and, of course, a unique form of torture to debate delicious hawker food on an empty stomach. Therefore, I appreciate all Members who are choosing to stay, so there is not just a soliloquy between the Minister of State Alvin Tan and myself. I cannot promise that a speech on "The Road to Decarbonising Our Corporations" will necessarily be all that riveting, but I will do my very best. Mr Speaker, this House had, on two prior occasions, raised separate Motions on stepping up our nation's efforts to tackle the climate emergency. Following these debates, the Government announced revised targets for our long-term carbon footprint, peaking at 65 megatons of carbon dioxide emissions (MtCO2e) over the next few years, before tapering down to 60 MtCO2e by the end of the decade, to achieve the net-zero target by 2050. As a net energy importer, these are undeniably ambitious targets. Still, ensuring that our planet is livable in the future, requires that we be bold in setting goals that are adhered to not only by our Government, but also our households and businesses. Today, therefore, I wish to speak about our road toward decarbonisation, with an eye specifically for our nation's corporations.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, in the course of this debate, there have been quite a number of queries or comments directed to the National Environment Agency or the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment. Senior Minister of State Koh Poh Koon will be responding to those queries but, as they are quite extensive, Mr Speaker, may I seek your consent and the general assent of Members present to move that the proceedings on the item under discussion be exempted from the provisions of Standing Order No 48(8) to remove the time limit in respect of Senior Minister of State Koh Poh Koon's speech?”
“We do not have targets on the size of the working-age population to support an ageing population. Instead, we focus on keeping our seniors healthy and productive for as long as possible, while ensuring that our population policies are sustainable and able to meet our social and economic needs. To meet the needs of an ageing population, we have emphasised strategies to boost healthy and productive longevity. This includes investing in the skills of our older workers through SkillsFuture to enhance their employability, working with employers and unions to support age-friendly jobs and workplaces, and steadily raising retirement and re-employment ages so that those willing and able to work for longer can do so. We have also taken steps to manage the expected increase in healthcare expenditure to ensure long-term fiscal sustainability. These include placing greater emphasis on population health, implementing value-based care in healthcare institutions, and encouraging the right-siting of patients to reduce demand for acute hospital care. We have also rolled out Age Well SG to help seniors age well in their homes and communities. By helping seniors stay healthy and supporting those who wish to work for longer and save more for retirement to do so, we can age successfully as a society while managing the burden on younger generations.”
“Mr Speaker, I beg to move, that pursuant to Standing Order 10(2), the introduction of the Food Safety and Security Bill be taken now. The First Reading was to have been taken earlier, but Senior Minister of State Koh Poh Koon had inadvertently missed the timeframe for this. And we would ask for leave for it to be put forward now. [(proc text) Question put, and agreed to. (proc text)] [(proc text) Resolved, (proc text)] [(proc text) That pursuant to Standing Order 10(2), the introduction of the Food Safety and Security Bill be taken now. (proc text)]”
“Mr Speaker, may I seek your consent and the general assent of Members present to move that the proceedings on the item under discussion be exempted from the provisions of Standing Order No 48(3) to enable the Senior Minister of State Sim Ann to speak more than once? Ordinarily, the mover of the Motion speaks twice, but in this case, in the course of debate, Members of Parliament have directed queries to the Senior Minister of State Sim Ann, who had spoken on behalf of MND. I therefore wish to move this Motion so that the Senior Minister of State Sim Ann can respond to Members' queries on the specific elements of the Bill and related matters.”
“Mr Speaker, Minister Edwin Tong will be moving the Community Disputes Resolution (Amendment) Bill and Senior Minister of State Sim Ann will also be speaking on the Bill. May I seek your consent and the general assent of Members present to move that the proceedings under discussion be exempted from the provisions of Standing Order No 48(8) to remove the time limit in respect of the speeches of Minister Edwin Tong and Senior Minister of State Sim Ann, so that they can more fully explain the rationale and considerations of the Bill?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That Parliament do now adjourn." [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)]”
“The infrastructure planning parameter in the 2013 Population White Paper was 6.9 million by 2030. Based on current trends and the various scenarios we use to plan for the long term, our total population is expected to remain significantly below 6.9 million by 2030, as stated at the Committee of Supply this year.”
“The 2013 Population White Paper had stated that Singapore’s total population could range between 6.5 million and 6.9 million by 2030. However, the White Paper also stated that there is a wider band of uncertainty and that the actual population would depend on factors, such as fertility and life expectancy trends, the global and regional environment, our economic structure and social needs. The current figure of 6.04 million as of June 2024 is congruous with the qualifications in the White Paper. Our resident population, consisting of Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents, could range from 4.3 million to 4.4 million by 2030 but, again, the actual figures will depend on various factors, such as actual fertility rates and immigration trends. We update our population projections based on the latest assessment of relevant factors, to develop a range of possible outcomes, instead of planning based on a single number.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That Parliament do now adjourn." [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)] Enhancing the Well-Being of Women: A Gendered Informed Response to Menopause”
“Sir, I thank the Member for his supplementary question. The current Code which is in effect would be the latest 2019 version. It provides that where lifts are provided in a building, at least one accessible lift must be provided and it must serve all levels intended for access by persons with disabilities, has a minimum size of lift of 1,200 millimetres by 1,400 millimetres in depth, minimum lift opening of 900 millimetres and a control panel at a suitable height. The lift car of a wheelchair-accessible passenger lift must also have a side control panel to facilitate ease of access and use by wheelchair users. So, as I mentioned earlier, the current Code requirements would be large enough to benefit those using personal mobility aids (PMAs) and prams. That said, I have one qualification. There are PMAs and there are PMAs, and we have seen some very large PMAs that are actually more like small cars rather than what you would expect of a personal mobility device. So, it may not be possible to accommodate very large PMAs in lifts, depending on the building size and configuration. As the Code is currently under review, what we will do is to take this feedback on board and, if others have suggestions or thoughts on lifts, lift access, convenience of use of lifts, please do provide this feedback to BCA. As I said, the review of the Code is underway and a draft of the revised Code is targeted to be released for public consultation by the end of this year. So, best to get the suggestions in early.”
“HDB then decided to install additional rain screens at the lift lobbies to protect the lift, as a key infrastructure in common property, from rain splashing and this was for safety reasons and to avoid disruption of lift operations, which would, of course, affect all residents. And therefore, after consultations with HDB and the consultant, the contractor then served notice to residents of the installation of the rain screens at the affected lift lobbies in mid-August of 2024. The first point I want to make is that for Clementi Peaks specifically, that was before the WDR simulations were put into effect. The second point I want to make is that the works that were done were primarily for safety reason. The third point I want to make, and this acknowledges what the Member brought up, which is that I think the learning lesson from this is that it is helpful to engage the residents earlier, to let them know the reason why the installation is being done, and also possibly to take feedback, because in this case, as I understand it, residents were concerned about the view being blocked. In short, I think we would improve the engagement process where issues like these arise in future.”
“Mr Speaker, I thank the Member for his supplementary questions. I think he had three. The first one, he asked whether it would be possible to anticipate that there are heavy rains and strong winds, including in the Clementi area. The answer is yes, and that is the reason why HDB has included the modelling of WDR simulations for new public housing. But in the particular case that he raised, which is I believe the case of Clementi Peaks, maybe I should explain what happened here. Before I do, let me just talk a little bit about the WDR simulations. They are computational fluid dynamics, or CFD, for WDR simulations and they are conducted to meet the following HDB requirements: to identify and prevent rainwater from splashing to residential unit entrance gate and lift doors; to identify and minimise rainwater splashing to sheltered accessible routes, including drop-off porches, link bridges and linkways or void decks; and to demonstrate the effectiveness of mitigation measures proposed, such as modifying the corridor layout and/or design mitigation measures up front that will match the façade and meet the fire safety requirement. In the case of Clementi Peaks, however, Clementi Peaks was completed in October 2022 and this means that the design was finalised before HDB began incorporating the CFD simulations for WDR, which was in 2021. And shortly after handover, the residents reported that there were issues of rainwater splashing into the common corridors and lift lobbies on the higher floors, and this posed a risk of seepage into the lift shafts.”
“The short answer is that we would love to, but we are always being called upon to give people education on many things. And every time we are asked, Minister Chan Chun Sing flinches because it always goes back to the Ministry of Education (MOE). So, we have to educate on mental health, we have to educate on being green. We have to educate on many things. We will do our best on this. It is a technical subject; it can be quite complex. Just on ordinary tax, it is tough enough, let alone international tax rules. But the key thing is to put it out in as ordinary, plain layman language as we can. Where possible, we will work with MOE to see what can be included in the general Economics modules. Obviously, students in the Institutes of Higher Learning will have to deal with it, if they are dealing with tax modules. But other than that, I would say that the IRAS website is a good place to start and so are the BEPS websites. 4.53 pm”
“Let me see if I got his questions correctly. On the RIC, Mr Louis Chua's question was on who would get it and what would be the criterion for getting RIC, is that right? I had mentioned that in my opening speech. Essentially, the ones that can get the RIC credits would be those who make investments in high-value and substantive economic activities. So, we have kept it broad at the moment, but there is a certain sense to that – the development or expansion of manufacturing facilities, setting up of headquarters and services, pursuit of R&D, innovation activities, commodity trading, decarbonisation. All of these are part of how they can basically add to or grow our economy and support our green transition. And on the question of guidance and timelines, give IRAS a little time to work on that. We will put it out, but as I mentioned in my speech, we are working and engaging with the stakeholders. But we will make sure that there is appropriate guidance when the time comes for them to implement it.”
“If we want people to have a good quality of life, you must have good quality infrastructure. So, we do need to make sure that we have good capital investments as well. Buildings, making sure we have homes, making sure that the city is a city in nature. All of those things. So, we can certainly agree that we want the best for Singaporeans and will invest in our human resource.”
“I thank Assoc Prof Jamus Lim for his clarification. He asked whether I could agree that we should not invest in capital for the sake of capital and also to acknowledge the importance of human capital. This Government never does anything just for the sake of a single thing. This Government is driven, first and foremost, by the well-being of Singaporeans, the importance of making sure that Singaporeans have personal growth, good development that will enable them to have good jobs, good incomes and, therefore, to have good standards of living and to be healthy and to do well in life. And so, if you look at all that the Government has done, not just in the past years but in the past decades, at the heart of it has been the development of Singaporeans. Nowadays, we call it human capital. When we first started out, we talked about education. If you look at the amount that we put into education, I mean, it is the second highest amount in our Budget. And then, from primary and secondary, which was the initial investments into our human capital, we then went, in the last decade, into SkillsFuture, recognising that as people come out into the workforce, they will need to continue to learn to grow. [Please refer to "Clarification by Second Minister for Finance", Official Report, 15 October 2024, Vol 95, Issue 143, Correction By Written Statement section.] And then, in this year's Budget do not forget we had the ITE Progression Award as well as the various SkillsFuture programmes. So, I think where I can wholeheartedly agree with Assoc Prof Jamus Lim is the importance of investment in human capital, which we will do. But we also obviously have to do investments into hard capital because we have just spent about two hours discussing the MRT.”
“While Singapore’s total population increased by 2% from June 2023 to June 2024, the annualised growth rate over the last five years (2019-2024) has been lower, at 1.1%. This is in line with our expectation for our total population to remain significantly below 6.9 million by 2030, as stated at the Committee of Supply this year.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That Parliament do now adjourn." [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)] Progressive Wages and the Revaluing of "Low-Wage Work"”
“The implementation of the DTT and MTT ensures that Singapore is aligned with the international implementation of BEPS 2.0. The EU, the United Kingdom (UK), Switzerland, Japan, Korea, Malaysia and Hong Kong, among other jurisdictions, have either implemented similar rules or intend to do so in 2025. If we do not impose the DTT and MTT, affected MNE groups would have to pay these taxes to other jurisdictions that have imposed the GLoBE rules. Hence, it is in Singapore's interest to impose the DTT and MTT, so that we can collect the tax, rather than cede it to other jurisdictions. In the new environment where companies are subjected to a minimum level of tax wherever they operate, ecosystem factors will become increasingly important for companies' business decisions. We plan to reinvest the additional revenues from DTT and MTT to enhance our overall business environment in areas, such as upskilling our workforce, growing a vibrant innovation ecosystem, and providing quality infrastructure and connectivity. Finally, the MMT Bill will also provide the Comptroller of Income Tax with the powers to administer, collect and enforce the DTT and MTT. Offences in the Bill include the failure to keep proper records, tax evasion and the obstruction of the Comptroller. These powers and offences mirror those that already exist under the Income Tax Act and ensure that the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) has the necessary powers to enforce compliance with the DTT and MTT. In conclusion, the provisions in both Bills will sustain Singapore’s economic competitiveness, provide better support to businesses and individuals, and ensure that Singapore keeps in step with international tax developments. Mr Speaker, I beg to move. [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)]”
“Next, we will standardise the three-year period for determining the expenditure cap for all businesses, instead of having it commence when each business makes its first claim. The Bill will fix the relevant three-year period, with the first three-year period being from YA2025 to YA2027. This will simplify the process and reduce compliance costs for companies. The third enhancement provides all businesses with a permanent option to claim R&R deductions in one YA, instead of over three YAs. This will give businesses more flexibility to manage their cashflow needs. Clauses 13 and 30 of the Income Tax (Amendment) Bill provide for these amendments. Sir, let me now move on to the second Bill, the MMT Bill. This Bill implements two new top-up taxes, arising from the BEPS 2.0 initiative. These were also announced at this year's Budget. The two taxes are: first, the domestic top-up tax (DTT); and second, the multinational enterprise top-up tax (MTT). The MTT applies the Income Inclusion Rule, which is part of the BEPS Pillar Two Global Anti-Base Erosion, or GLoBE rules for short. DTT and MTT will apply to large multinational enterprise (MNE) groups – those with annual group revenue of €750 million or more in at least two of the four preceding financial years. DTT and MTT will apply from businesses' financial years commencing on or after 1 January 2025. DTT will apply to the Singapore entities of a large MNE group and will be payable if the group's effective tax rate in Singapore is below 15%. MTT will apply to large MNE groups that are parented in Singapore. If the effective tax rate of the MNE group's entities in any foreign jurisdiction is below 15%, MTT will be imposed to top up the effective tax rate to 15%.”
“The tax credits will be offset against corporate income tax payable in the first instance. If the RIC quantum exceeds the amount of taxes paid by the company, the unutilised credits will be refunded to the company within four years from the time the company makes the claim application in respect of the qualifying expenditures incurred. This feature is particularly useful for companies in an early stage of growth, where they have yet to turn a profit. The RIC support will be commensurate with the size and quality of businesses' economic contributions to Singapore. This will be based on our economic agencies' assessment of how much the projects will bring in, in terms of new fixed asset investment, productive capacity and skilled jobs created for locals, as well as whether the investment involves state-of-the-art technological development, strengthens our competitiveness, builds resilience in our economy and creates broader economic spillovers. Another key amendment in the Bill is on the Renovation and Refurbishment, or R&R scheme for short. This was also announced at Budget 2024. Under our normal tax rules, R&R expenses are not tax-deductible because they are capital in nature. The R&R scheme specifically allows a deduction for such expenses, up to a cap of S$300,000 every three years. This is to support small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in customer-facing sectors, like food and beverage (F&B) and retail, which typically need to incur such expenses to enhance their customer service and experience. We are enhancing the R&R scheme in three ways. First, from Year of Assessment (YA) 2025, the scope of qualifying expenditure will be expanded to include designer and professional fees, as it is now common for such fees to be incurred for renovation works.”
“For instance, the United States (US) CHIPS and Science Act sets aside US$53 billion, or about S$70 billion, to support semiconductor manufacturing, research and development (R&D) and workforce development in the US. In July last year, Germany announced plans to invest around 20 billion euros, or around S$29 billion, as part of the European Union (EU) Chips Act to bolster its semiconductor manufacturing sector. Japan also announced in November last year that it would allocate two trillion yen, or about S$18 billion to support its semiconductor industry. Though we cannot match the financial resources of these large economies, we must continue to do our best to remain attractive to investments and encourage business growth in Singapore. The RIC will give us a useful tool to attract and support businesses that undertake substantive and high-value economic activities here. It will allow us to anchor and encourage high-quality investments, create good jobs for Singaporeans and support our green transition. So, let me explain how the RIC will work. This is an expenditure-based grant delivered through the tax system. Companies awarded the RIC will receive tax credits to support their local expenditure in areas, such as capital investments, R&D, manpower, and freight and logistics, when they make new investments in high-value and substantive economic activities. These include the development or expansion of manufacturing facilities, setting up of headquarters and services, pursuit of R&D and innovation activities, commodity trading and decarbonisation. These activities and expenditure categories are aligned with the four pillars of our Singapore Economy 2030 vision – trade, enterprise, manufacturing and services – as well as to support our green transition.”
“Thank you, Mr Speaker. The provisions of these two Bills are to implement the changes to our tax regime announced earlier this year in Budget 2024, as well as those arising from other policy reviews. They are intended to anchor and encourage high-quality investments in Singapore, to grow our economy and create good jobs for Singaporeans. They are also intended to ensure that our tax system remains relevant and fair to businesses and individuals and align Singapore's tax regime with international tax developments arising from the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) 2.0 initiative. Overall, the changes will sustain Singapore's economic competitiveness, provide better support to businesses and individuals, and ensure that Singapore keeps in step with international tax developments. The Ministry of Finance (MOF) sought views from the public on the two draft Bills in June. We thank the respondents for their feedback and have taken onboard some of the suggestions. Let me deal with the Income Tax (Amendment) Bill first. I would like to elaborate on two key proposed changes. First, we will introduce the Refundable Investment Credit (RIC), which was announced by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong at Budget 2024 to enhance our tools for investment promotion. The global economic landscape is becoming increasingly competitive, and Singapore needs to keep pace with the competition in order to continue attracting investments to grow our economy and create good jobs for our people. Other countries around the world are not standing still. Their governments are rolling out initiatives to attract investments, especially in strategic sectors such as semiconductors and advanced manufacturing.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That Parliament do now adjourn." [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)] Shaping Foreign Policy in a Less Predictable World”
“Because it is not just the Shared Parental Leave; do not forget, there is also the flexible work arrangements – all of which have a common feature, which is this flexibility and how do you replace people or cover in their absence. So, these are resources and tools which the employers can tap on.”
“I thank Mr Desmond Choo for his supplementary question, which is a very valid concern. Because in the post-announcement engagements that we have done, a number of employers have asked us how will they cope. Mr Choo is representing the viewpoint of the older employees; or maybe not older, because it could also be the single employees who will have to take up some of the slack. So, there are a few things. The first thing to remember is that this is Government-Paid Parental Leave, or Shared Parental Leave, which means that the employers do not have to bear the salary for the period when the employee is on Shared Parental Leave. That means that frees up the money that they would otherwise have had to pay. With this money, you could hire other workers to come in as substitutes. That is one possible solution. Another possible solution would be, those who have to cover for their colleagues, you could pay them extra, which is fair, because they are carrying an additional load. And you remunerate and you compensate them for that. So, yes, for the period of time when their colleague is away, they have to work harder but at least you are compensating them. We also encourage employers to continue to invest in technology and systems that would help with automation, digitalisation – anything that lightens the workload. For those, they can tap on things like the Productivity Solutions Grant and all the other grants that the Government has made available. Finally, this is more under the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) than the Prime Minister's Office, but MOM has been putting aside training and packages that employers can tap on, for their human resource departments to know how to do this better and to plan for this.”
“I thank Ms Hany Soh for her supplementary question. The answer is, yes, we are working with the employers and the unions on this. In fact, I think the point Ms Soh made was that some employers may not be acting proactively, they may adopt a wait-and-see approach. But what employers should bear in mind is that come 1 April 2025, it is mandatory, it comes into effect. So, they should use the time between now and 1 April 2025 to get their processes in place. In fact, that start date of 1 April 2025 was at the request of the Singapore National Employers' Federation and the other employers that we spoke to – because they needed the time to put this in place. We are also, as I mentioned earlier, conducting webinars for the employers because many of the employers do have questions. In the engagements that I have had with them, I found that many of the questions are actually operational ones. They are the detailed, technical ones and sometimes, they ask what happens in this situation, what happens in that situation. We thought that the best way to deal with that is to have these webinars for them, so it allows all the employers to come, ask their questions and share their best practices with each other.”
“Employers, on their part, should be facilitative and supportive of employees’ parental leave plans. Employers and employees should work together to put in place covering arrangements that best meet the needs and constraints on both sides. We need to work together as a society to create a culture that embraces families and children, and supports fathers in playing a greater role in child-raising while meeting employers’ needs. Together, let us build a Singapore Made For Families.”
“These include the recent enhancements to the Baby Bonus Scheme that provides for higher financial support, as well as the doubling of Government-Paid Paternity Leave, on a voluntary basis, and Unpaid Infant Care Leave since 1 January 2024 to give parents more time to care for their newborn or to settle caregiving arrangements. During this transition period, before the new SPL takes effect, we encourage employers to update their manpower and business approaches to facilitate more progressive workplace practices and to foster a more family-friendly culture. Employers who can provide more than the current legislated provisions, whether in the form of leave or other support, are encouraged to do so as this can position them as employers of choice. The Government will continue to work closely with the tripartite partners to support the implementation of the enhanced parental leave provisions. We will organise webinars for employers to understand the operational details of the scheme and to provide more information on existing grants and resources employers can tap on to strengthen their manpower planning capabilities and to support their operational and system adjustments. Our research has shown that utilisation of parental leave is often dependent on workplace support. We will work with the tripartite partners to shape workplace norms and culture, including to establish the norm of fathers taking leave to care for and bond with their infants. We will also emphasise the need for good communication and responsible behaviour on the part of both employers and employees. Employees should be mindful of their employers’ operational needs and act responsibly by informing their employers as early as possible once they know that they are expecting a child.”