Janil Puthucheary
Singapore
“Sir, I thank Ms Lee for her two supplementary questions, which address what are our targets and what is it that we measure. Indeed, the issue of how we should think about recycling and waste disposal will be at the heart of our review of our Zero Waste Masterplan.”
“Another strategy that we are embarking on is the strengthening of the reuse of waste residue and treated toxic industrial waste before and after they are landfilled.”
“Sir, about half of our recycling material is exported. It is processed overseas. There are business arrangements between businesses here in Singapore and businesses in the region or overseas, to be able to handle the recycling of waste and recycling of material, whether domestic or non-domestic, already today.”
“Sir, I thank Ms Poh for her questions. Indeed, we do have to shift behaviours. The incentives and disincentives around recycling and waste disposal are an important part of it. We will consider her suggestion on looking at the fees.”
“The heat advisory that goes out is clearly defined. In my original answer, I explained what a heat wave was. There are clear definitions that we have been using in Singapore since 2016, if I recall. It was then last revised in 2023.”
“Sir, in the planning of schools, the Ministry of Education ensures that our students can access a primary school near their homes. Except for a small number, 15 of Special Assistance Plan schools, all primary schools offer the three official mother tongue languages.”
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“Maybe, out of 10 decisions, I might agree with nine, and have a different perspective on the tenth. What you do with that difference is critical. You can spend time explaining how you agree on most of the plan; you can spend time explaining that the physician is someone you trust and is it not good that you have an opportunity to discuss and agree on the best way forward. Or you can focus your energy on that one point of disagreement and suggest, imply or even outright say that you are better and the other person is bad, and the patient will be far better off with you.”
“I will try my best. How might we recognise playing politics with healthcare? It can be recognised by politicians taking pot-shots at easy targets, not discussing outcomes or consequences. The more politicians use healthcare as a tool for advantage, the more the health of the nation suffers. Madam, I am not for one minute suggesting that debate and a diversity of opinions are not necessary, merely that they are not in themselves sufficient to help us navigate difficult choices in the future. In medicine, we are often asked to provide a second opinion. Sometimes, there are many different teams looking after one patient with many opinions. When I consult for a second opinion, usually, there will be many points of agreement with the primary team.”
“Trust is the key issue in choosing a healthcare provider because, at heart, we know about the information asymmetry. We know that there has to be a leap of trust in taking a recommendation from our physician. There are risks and, therefore, there needs to be trust. Do we have this trust? Do we have the long-sighted, clear-headed approach needed to address the vision of what our public healthcare landscape needs to look like in 20 years' time? Do we have the institutional ability to do the right thing, in anticipation of unknowns, in dealing with the anxiety of an uncertain future? Doing the right thing seems so obvious, just like the eight steps to lifelong health and happiness I laid out. Will we do the right thing? Or will we go down the route laid out for us by many other advanced economies, where the key issues of healthcare financing, structure and delivery are increasingly polarised and politicised? Looking around at the world outside our borders, it is clear that the more politicians play with healthcare, the worse the health of the nation, because short-term popular political interests overthrow the long-term outcome and the true deep issues. What would the increasing politicisation of healthcare look like? Page: 46 It would start with sound-bite politics, like making comments about active ageing as joke about corridor beds when these are not reflective of the health outcomes. It may progress to attacking spending on healthcare instead of addressing the success we have had in terms of healthcare outcomes.”
“How would we get there, how would we navigate the difficulties and uncertainties? We will need a long-sighted, clear-headed approach. We will need the ability to make rational choices that may not be immediately popular and we will need the ability to balance Page: 45 between the risks and benefits. One of the key challenges in the practice of medicine is to persuade a patient to take some medicine to prevent a problem in the future. You are asking a patient to take a substance with side effects, sometimes unpleasant side effects, in order to prevent a problem that they have not yet suffered. Right now, sitting in front of you, they feel fine. One example is hypertension, high blood pressure. Usually picked up on a health check, the patient feels completely normal. Untreated, this can lead to serious problems, perhaps even to death. You have to persuade the patients that they have to change their lifestyle, get some exercise, watch their diet, take this pill, suffer the side effects now. All to deal with something that they have not yet experienced. "But, doc, I feel fine." It is not easy to make those changes, to accept those trade-offs. No wonder there is a thriving industry making money persuading people that everything will be okay, just take this herb, this "koyok". All natural, organic even, no side effects, cures everything. People want to believe it is that easy for everything to be okay. Some folks want to believe that just by having more choices and everything will be okay, do not worry. And how do we deal with this misconception? How do we persuade the patient to do the right thing? You can explain, you can reason, you can discuss but, at the end of the day, it comes down to trust.”
“There are many reasons why this is the situation we find ourselves in. Some are reasons of history and development; some are reasons of science as we did not know then what we know now. We did what we did with the best intentions on the basis of what was known at the time. But, mostly, we are in this situation because, like democracy, for all its faults, we have not found a better solution. It is the least bad solution to the problem of public healthcare services. Yet, should we invert the situation? Should we move to have a diffused, market-based competitive environment to drive the key human behaviours around things like diet and exercise that result in better health, and a centralised command approach to the complex acute expensive care so that inefficiencies are removed and the information asymmetry is no longer a problem? This would be a radical change from the current situation, but what if this were the ideal solution for our nation? I offer this idea not as a solution, but as an idea, as a thought experiment, if you will. I do not know what the future of our healthcare landscape should look like ideally, but this is the kind of outcome-driven, evidence-based, restructuring that we will have to think about if we want to plan ahead. The actual ideal destination may be quite different from what I have described and it will take a lot more work to develop a vision of where we want to go. But getting there from here, from where we are now, will be no less challenging. No less challenging than changing our system to match the ideas I have just described. There are many complex pieces of the puzzle, there are counter-intuitive scientific findings, there are competing ideas and there are vested interests.”
“In order for a market to function efficiently, the consumer, the patient, must have enough information in order to make valid comparisons. In healthcare, this is missing. This is not a local problem. It extends across healthcare systems throughout the world. The information asymmetry is huge. The outcomes that a patient can know about, that the Ministry can collate, analyse and publish, such as length of stay, bed occupancy, infection rates, complication rates, mortality rates and so on rarely address the true value of healthcare quality. We all know this intrinsically. This is why a personal referral to a healthcare provider is so much appreciated, especially for complex and difficult problems. Simplistically put, only another cardiologist can truly assess if a cardiologist is any good. This is the basis for the self-regulating, self-governing nature of the medical profession. Regulatory authorities and agencies have difficulty in assessing the professional performance of healthcare providers. Not for lack of trying, not because they are not Page: 44 collecting, analysing and publishing large amounts of data. It is just that this information does not truly reflect the underlying quality of the provider. Could it be that one of the reasons that healthcare costs continue to rise is because of this very significant information asymmetry, leading to inefficient market mechanisms? So, we have a market-driven, competitive environment for expensive, inefficient healthcare interventions, without the true information flow needed for market-driven choices. And we have a centrally controlled Government agency-driven approach for simple, effective cheap preventive interventions that are proven to have deep positive impacts on the healthcare outcomes that matter. Why?”
“Yet, if we look at our healthcare system and that of any advanced economy, what do we see? We see that these key ideas are dealt with by a public health authority, by a Government agency. These key drivers of health are centrally addressed, or left entirely to individual choice, to the individual to make the behavioural change. If we look to the typical interventions of medicine on the other hand, clinics, hospitals, pills, surgery, chemotherapy, MRI scans; if we look at what we do as reactive medicine, rather than preventive medicine, we see a market-based, competition-driven ecosystem, centred around large academic hospitals that support technology-intensive, expensive interventions, some of which will only result in marginal improvements in key health outcomes. Why? Because for these complex, difficult, expensive treatments, we want to drive competition to manage costs. We want to use the market and competition to drive innovation and novel solutions, we reduce central control in the hope that it results in better health. But there is a problem. In order for an efficient market to drive the right outcomes, we need two key factors. First, the ability of citizens to make a choice by choosing their healthcare provider. This is happening. Singaporeans are not tied to a provider by location, where they live, or by a primary care gatekeeper, like in some advanced economies. The public health insurance is truly portable across a variety of providers and, in addition, the citizen can choose to access private healthcare. This comprehensive access and mobility are a strong and important part of our system. But the second factor is based on information.”
“Jokes aside, if we take this seriously and introduce this into our healthcare planning, we can significantly improve the health of the next generation, the yet-to-be-born, by helping young women ensure they are in optimal health prior to starting a family. The health of the mother before and during pregnancy has been shown to affect the health of the child throughout their life. Have a healthy mother. Number seven – have a purpose and a mission in life. Not a problem for all my colleagues in this House, clearly. This is rarely an issue in our childhood, teens and while we are in education or building our careers. But there is good research to show that as we age, those of us that continue to see ourselves as having a purpose in the world cope better, live longer, live healthier. Have a purpose in life. Number eight – and this is why you need your friends to stop smoking. Maintain your friendships, social networks, family ties and relationships. These need nurturing and attention. We know that seniors that are part of an extended network of social relationships live longer, healthier lives. Isolation is bad for your health. Stay close to your friends and family. Eight key points and such simple ideas. Many do not require any expense – I would not go so far as to say "free". All will result in a better, healthier life. Taken together, these eight points could completely change the health outlook of an individual, let alone a nation. We Page: 43 have the answers, but are we asking the right questions? These are not flights of fancy. These are not fads. These are proven through science, research and experience to be extremely effective at driving important health outcomes and are all very cost-effective.”
“Number three – this may be painful for some – if you are going to drink alcohol, make sure it is less than one glass of wine a day, on average. Number four – this should not be painful to anybody – do not smoke. Ever. Do not let anyone around you expose you to second-hand smoke. And stop your friends from smoking, because you need them to live long enough to help you with point number 8 which is coming Page: 42 up soon. Do not smoke, ever. Number five – get some exercise. This can be divided into three types of exercise and you need to think about all three. Get some continual low-level, low-intensity exercise, equivalent to taking about 10,000 steps a day. This keeps everything ticking over, ensuring an optimal metabolic rate – walk, get off the bus early, maybe get off the bus two stops early, take the stairs. Find little ways to walk as part of a daily routine. Next, you also need to play a sport, or do something which is an occasional high-intensity effort so that you build up your reserve capacity which allows you to cope with the surprises that life will throw at you. Thirdly, as we get older, we need to pay attention to maintaining strength, particularly in the upper body. This helps you to cope with falls, helps you to keep mobile and what was taken for granted in terms of strength in our youth needs work and attention as we work past 40. Get some exercise. Number six – this may be difficult for all of us in this House to fix at this point in time – have a healthy mother and, especially, make sure she was healthy before she thought of having you.”
“The key factor in answering the question is the health of Singaporeans. We are living longer, living healthier and we are having a better quality of life, one that is the envy of the world. If we check the facts, we come to the conclusion that, on the whole, we have the privilege and the luxury of living in a healthy nation, with one of the best healthcare systems on the planet. That is where we are now. Where are we going? How should our system evolve? How should we decide on the balance between preventive strategies and acute interventions? Which aspects should be centrally controlled and directly delivered by the Government agencies? Which aspects should be decentralised, deregulated, exposed to market forces to drive multiple innovative solutions and be allowed to find a true pricing? Before we tackle these issues, allow me another digression. I have in front of me here the secrets of a long, happy and healthy life. It turns out the secrets were hiding in plain sight all this time and I propose to share them with this House. I have a list of eight steps which, if followed, will guarantee a better life. Confirmed. This sounds like a dubious link on your Facebook feed, but I promise you there are no adverts. Number one – eat in moderation, do not get fooled by fads or special diets. Just eat sensibly and not too much. It turns out that every single proposed special diet has been demonstrated to be ineffective, but having some common sense about what you eat can work wonders – more fruits, more vegetables, less cake. Eat in moderation. Number two – cut your sugar intake, drastically. However much you are adding to your diet, reduce it. Add as little sugar as possible to your food and drinks. Drink water rather than sweet drinks.”
“We need to keep calm, check the facts, look at the reality and not the hyperbole. As a sidebar, as a digression and as an example of that hyperbole, I am going to choose one example of what I believe is sound-bite politics: "CDC expects a family of four to live on $50 a month." We know this is not the case. The CDC does not expect a family of four to live on $50 a month. But someone has chosen to highlight that one fact, that one number, and make an implication that this is so. Real politics is spending time with this family. I have several families in similar circumstances – low-income, two kids, one or more parents out of work and, yes, they get $50 from CDC a month. But they get a lot of other things as well. They get help from the temple, they get help from us. They get help from members of our civil society, our grassroots leaders, our welfare team. This is civil society in action. That family is not surviving on $50 a month. We mentor them, the volunteers make sure that the kids get some free tuition. When there are toys and books available, they are passed to these families. And most importantly, wherever possible, we look to find ways to upskill and upgrade the work that the parents do so that they maintain the dignity of their family so that they can provide for themselves and that they can go on to look after themselves. This is real politics – understanding all that that family gets and all that that family needs, and not going for the hyperbole of one fact and Page: 41 one number to score points. Let me return to healthcare. The key factor in answering the question is the health of Singaporeans, the outcome. In the hyperbole example I gave, the outcome is: how does the family fare over time? Let me return to healthcare. I will stop digressing.”
“Even as we strive to ensure that excellent healthcare is delivered in as timely a manner as possible, to as many people as possible, at as low a cost as possible, we have had to pay special attention to ensuring the long-term sustainability and financial viability of our healthcare service. Page: 40 Madam, MediShield Life and the recent announcements are timely, wide-reaching and address many important concerns about our current model as we project forward on the basis of our changing demography, earning power, life span and quality of life. But I hope today to look even further ahead and ask: where might we go next after we have put our system on a more solid foundation of financial viability and outreach, what next for our healthcare service, and how might we get there? One of the first questions to ask is: do we yet have an advanced healthcare system in Singapore? Many other nations think so. We have many regular visits by healthcare professionals and policymakers hoping to learn from us and about us. We rank highly on many lists. The local news very regularly has stories of the latest and greatest new technology or technique that is being implemented in one of our public institutions. An analytic approach would ask that an advanced public healthcare service be accessible, affordable, safe, comprehensive, provide high quality care which is cost-effective and, finally, is one which invests significantly in strategies to prevent disease. In each of these domains, we can always do better, we can always do more, but, in general, we are doing pretty well. The facts are out there, together with a whole host of hysterical, irresponsible and inaccurate claims about a catastrophically dysfunctional system. The facts are out there.”
“Mdm Speaker, I rise in support of the Motion to thank the President for his Address. Healthcare is a topic that has generated much discussion, debate and anxiety. Recently, we have seen a number of significant policy announcements. The centrality of health to our personal happiness and satisfaction with life is often only appreciated in disease or, hopefully, recovery. Health, like many truly important things like family and friends, safety and security, good governance and clean government, is only deeply appreciated when lost or at risk. Health is a topic where much anxiety is the result of us grappling with the unknown. On a personal level, we do not know when, how or if we will get sick. As a family, we are unsure of who will do the caring and who will need support until the situation presents itself. As a society, we do not know what will happen in the next five to 10 years in terms of disease, new treatments and costs. In the healthcare profession, we often have to balance the choices in deciding between a risk-tolerant path and a risk-averse path. We have to weigh the potential benefits of a decision, a new medicine, a surgical approach: what will happen if everything works well, as I planned against the risks that everything will go horribly wrong? What is the worst case scenario? On a society-wide basis, given the uncertainties, it is only right and proper that the policy approach has to be one that is risk-averse. This prudent, conservative approach can be seen in the recent policy announcements and the ensuing discussions.”
“More training and better benefits must be made available to childcare teachers and potential teachers and supervisors. And, until this is done, only then can we expect the quantity and quality of child service providers to go up. I would also like to bring up the issue of special needs children, whose parents are having even greater difficulty getting suitable childcare facilities for them. I really empathise with the parents. Given the costliness of their medical bills, their parents have to work hard to relieve the financial burden and having to run about looking high and low for a childcare centre is really a pain. In Nee Soon, most of the parents will turn to Rainbow Centre for help. I was told that the wait list at Rainbow is very long and sometimes they can wait for years. Childcare is essential in ensuring the children are well taken care of by professionals when parents are working. I hope more can be done to help these parents and children. We must get the sequence right. We have more childcare centres and we will have more babies, but not the other way round. Kindergarten Financial Assistance Scheme (KiFAS)”
“One final point, Mr Chairman. It is not directly related to my cut, but I would like to record my appreciation and thanks to the Social Service Officers on the ground. They do hard frontline work and I have always been impressed that they have served with humility and a real sense of helping fellow Singaporean in need and being part of the society that they serve. I just want to take this opportunity to record my appreciation and thanks for these frontline SSOs. More Childcare Centres for All Children Er Dr Lee Bee Wah (Nee Soon): I have 11 new BTOs in Nee Soon South. The lack of childcare and infant care centres is a pressing issue. If we are to encourage young Singaporeans to have children at an age when many of them are trying to make their mark in their careers, it is important to step up our efforts to cater to this inadequacy. Page: 160 Despite the Government's current efforts, wait lists for such centres are long, from personal observations and as observed by residents who have been sending me emails almost every week. It is challenging to engage and retain suitable staff in the profession when centres do not offer much in terms of career to our childcare teachers. On the other hand, we expect our teachers not only to be professionally-trained in childcare with proper recognised qualifications but who also must have the right attributes for the job, such as good character, patience and be able to handle children well. 6.45 pm At MOE, teachers are offered comparatively much higher salaries – rightly so, as they teach at different levels. However, I think we have a lot to reflect on what should be done to grow our childcare industry and, in turn, groom and care for the little ones.”
“One, the father is a regular in the SAF and the mother was a nurse who took some Page: 159 time off to bring up their newborn baby. Getting full-day childcare was a limiting step for her to return to work. We do not have enough nurses and here is a nurse that needs to go back to work. The longer she stays away from the workforce, the higher the chances that she is de-skilled and the more difficult she would be in reintegrating. The thing preventing that from happening was the provision of full-day childcare. Even as a new centre opened in her estate, there was just not enough teachers to ensure maximum capacity. I have another family living in a rental block. This is the family I mentioned in my initial Budget debate speech where the father is quite unwell and is on dialysis and unable to work. The mother was supporting the family until she became pregnant and had a baby. This family, through the good work of various Social Service Officers, was receiving a lot of help. But if she could go back to work, so much less help would be needed and the long-term future of this family would be much more secure. Again, we found a place for the child, but it was not full-day childcare. This meant that she could not go back to the types of jobs she was skilled for as they require her to work longer shifts and have her child in full-day childcare. There is a real and urgent need for this provision. We need physical spaces for childcare centres as it has already been mentioned. But we also need an increase in the number of teachers and staff and a model of support in subsidies to ensure that this service remains affordable for Singaporeans. I would like to ask what steps are the early childhood development agencies and the Ministry taking to achieve these outcomes.”
“Mr Chairman, in new and rapidly growing estates, such as Punggol, there is an increase in demand for childcare and infant care. This is seen as long waiting lists persist at most centres even as new facilities are being opened; and we do welcome the new facilities. As families relocate to new towns, access to assistive care arrangements, such as grandparents or extended families, can become problematic, especially for families that do not own a car. Many parents in the demographic in constituencies like Punggol are young and they are dual-income working households and many of them work irregular hours. There is an increase in demand, not just for childcare, but also for full-day childcare facilities. Apart from distance, there are other issues that affect the ability of grandparents to assist in the care of their grandchildren. For some, the problem is that they are still working as the retirement age, both in law as well as in our social norms, goes up. There is another group of grandparents who have a very large age gap between them and their grandchildren. For these seniors, their own health and physical mobility limit their ability to help. Overall, the number of grandparents who can effectively help in the care of their grandchildren may be significantly lower than we had planned for and may be a decrease in the proportion of families as we go forward. Some of the old social norms and social assumptions may be changing as our demographic is changing. This may need some new planning norms about the proportion of families for whom we have to provide subsidised childcare. If I could just provide two examples, Mr Chairman. I have two families.”
“Madam, a clarification for the Minister about the acute bed situation. In Singapore, we benefit from a combination of universal access to public healthcare, as well as patients' choice. The patients can choose where they go for their acute care. In many healthcare systems, that is not the case, where either legislature or the funding structure removed some of that choice. So, I would like to ask the Minister: how much of what is perceived as acute bed crunch is a result of some asymmetry in where the bed capacity is available and where patients are going to? Going forward, as we increase the total bed capacity, are there some considerations to smoothen out the demand or redistribute some of demand to match capacity, and I am not, by the way, advocating for a restriction of access. I think that is one of the commendable Page: 142 things that we have in our public healthcare system.”
“Mdm Chair, like other Members of this House who have spoken, I agree that, as part of a holistic approach to ensure health and prevent disease, Singaporeans should be encouraged to include healthy behaviour in their regular daily routine with respect to food, activities and exercise. These changes need to become a matter of our routine long before we become seniors. I am glad that MOH and HPB recognise this, and actively work to intervene and change behaviour for the better. How successful has this approach been? Can the Ministry share not only the programmes and number of citizens engaged, but also, perhaps, the outcomes? HPB launched the pilot project on healthy workplace ecosystem at Mapletree Business City last year. How successful has this programme been? How much of the workforce has been reached through the various initiatives and what was the take-up rate amongst the employees, for example, for the healthy dishes that were offered by this food court? How has this changed behaviour and affected outcomes? How many of them participated in the pre- and post-work fitness sessions? Did this translate into an overall change in activity and exercise for these participants? Would there be any more such initiatives for the community and workplace in other companies and areas, and how will MOH be looking at the effectiveness of these sorts of programmes? Healthy Lifestyle”
“Not only with regard to facilitating the different types of road users to acquire the skills to adjust to one another but, at the same time, we will facilitate Page: 112 them getting used to cycling to the different areas. If you look at the map, over time, Singapore will have all these different pockets of cycling tracks. We are going to connect them one to the other. That will facilitate movement. We are at a young age in this journey. Many have mentioned other countries and cities, but when we look at it, we will realise that we are making good progress in this aspect. I recently went to Sembawang, the newly completed cycling track. I am so happy that the cyclists and pedestrians were able to look after one another. It is a journey that we need to take on. In the first few years, it may result in some discomfort but, over the years, when you get used to it, I am sure it will be better. The next issue is about the Black Spot zones. We have a framework whereby we not only look at the Black Spot Programme. As we talk, there are residents also giving us feedback and we will refine the features as we have done in many areas. So, it is not only looking at the Black Spot Programme but the Programme will give us the opportunity to focus on the different areas that we have to look at. As I shared earlier, we are very pleased with the development. We want to see how we can facilitate this process to make the roads safer for fellow Singaporeans and to facilitate the movement of vehicles. 5.00 pm”
“Madam, two clarifications – one on safety and one on cycling. With cycling, given the approach of public transport in committing to an intended share of total commuting, could we not do the same with cycling? Could we not commit to a certain percentage of commuting being done by cycling as a primary mode? If people are forced to measure it, they will then generate a strategy to achieve it. People will have some stake in it to ensure the shifting of behaviour. Could we set a target of percentage commuting by cycling? My second clarification is on road safety. We heard about the Black Spot programme and the Gray Zone programme. The sense of both of these is that, is there a reactive component? Could we not be more proactive, rather than waiting for more than 15 incidents or 12 incidents over three years? Is there some way to model, either from the software point of view or, simplistically, if we have two arterial road crossings in an area where there is an eating house and a high-density area of senior citizens, should we not assume that that will be a Black Spot zone, and be proactive about it, rather than waiting for incidents to happen? Assoc Prof Dr Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim: I would like to thank the Member for the question. Two good questions. The first, as I mentioned earlier with regard to our landscape that we have in Singapore, we have always promoted the motorised kind of transport. Also, the Member would realise that we are building pockets of cycling tracks from town to town. What we want to do, first and foremost, is to take care of the first-mile and the last-mile kind of travel.”
“Such schemes remove concerns about securing one's bike, it allows multi-modal commuting so you can take a bus to one direction, have a shared bike in another direction and then return either on a bus or MRT or a taxi without worrying about how to retrieve a bicycle for your return journey. It offers a much greater degree of flexibility for commuters. Would the Ministry consider implementing similar programmes with bike-sharing stations located at strategic points in specially designed transport nodes? Cycling”
“Cycling Paths For cycling paths, Madam, the Government has shown support for cycling as a mode of transport by committing to building an island-wide cycling network, more than 700 km by 2030. Like many, I support this move and I am eagerly looking forward to the completion of the network. Could the Ministry provide an update on the expansion of this network? In particular, I hope that close attention is being paid to connect the cycle paths that run parallel to the roads with park connectors and other parts of the island-wide network. Further, all these paths need to connect quite seamlessly with public transport nodes to make them very useable. Adequate Facilities for Cycling Madam, providing basic infrastructure, such as cycling paths, is important. However, there are other needs that have to be looked into in order for Singaporeans to embrace cycling as an alternative form of transport. We lack some supporting infrastructure that is needed in order to make Singapore a city fit for people to choose cycling as their primary mode of transport. One example is the need for bicycle racks. Bicycles are significant investments for some people. The safety of that bicycle at the transport node or at places of work is very important. Could the Ministry provide an update on how such infrastructure needs are being met or whether they will be expanded? Page: 83 Bike Sharing Schemes Finally, Madam, as part of a strategy to encourage more people to use cycling, bike sharing has been particularly successful in some cities. Cities that do not have such big hills, cities that enjoy a relatively predictable weather and Singapore certainly needs those two criteria.”
“Madam, I have four cuts but it can be seen as one larger question. Do we want to encourage cycling as a primary means of transport? Not for everybody and not for every occasion but for an increasing number of Singaporeans. If we do, there needs to be a big-picture approach. If we do, we cannot rely on incremental shifts because we would need to shift natural human behaviour and that combination of inertia and habit often needs a big jolt in order to effect change. We will need to put in place a series of measures that leverage off each other to make cycling a viable alternative means of transport and not just recreational. Every time someone decides to cycle, there is potentially one less car on the road, one less parking space that is needed and perhaps one less commuter on the bus or MRT. Encouraging an increased share of commuting Page: 82 by cycling benefits all commuters. There are several factors that need to be addressed in order to make this option more attractive. I will bring up just four – safety, cycle paths, bicycle racks and bike sharing. For safety, there needs to be a sense of trust and confidence in one's safety when cycling. A cyclist can take steps to be careful, to be mindful, but a significant part of safety and that sense of confidence comes with the behaviour we take with each other – the sense of mutual respect, the idea that one is responsible not just for one's own safety but for others as well. Will the Ministry consider a regulatory framework to strengthen the protection of cyclists and pedestrians? Several incidents have happened so there is an increased concern about the education on road safety and responsibilities for cyclists, pedestrians and other road users.”
“Mdm Chair, the Safe Road Singapore Action Plan was announced at last year's Committee of Supply debate with the pillars of education engagement and enforcement. Could MHA provide an update on the implementation of this effort and measures that perhaps have brought about some of the improvements in road safety? Over the past years, the statistics from the Traffic Police show that the total number of accidents with fatalities or injuries has decreased by about 8%. One area of concern is heavy vehicles. More people were killed in accidents involving heavy vehicles last year. Traffic violations by such vehicles have also increased. I would like to ask what measures would be taken by the Traffic Page: 62 Police to address this matter, apart from stepping up enforcement against heavy vehicles who flout traffic laws. Madam, every vehicle on the road is a potential source of danger to other road users, in particular, heavy vehicles, because of the combination of their size and speed as well as issues with the visibility that the drivers have over other road users are particular risks and of particular concern to vulnerable road users, that is, those on cycles, motorbikes and pedestrians. I would appreciate the Minister's comment on this.”
“Thank you for believing that you could take control of your destiny, and through your values, your sense of duty, your understanding of personal responsibility, your hard work, your grit and your sheer stubbornness, you could forge a better future for yourself, that you could make a brighter future for your family, and that you had it in you to drive the peace, progress and prosperity that built the Singapore of today. Thank you. Mdm Speaker, I support the Motion [Applause]. 2.44 pm”
“It has to be something collective, a consensual decision that we want to be that type of people, that we always want to continue to be that type of people. It will have to start with small personal decisions, with role models making choices that will inspire others to move to the same tune. It will be slow, but it is a worthwhile aspiration. Madam, when it comes to risk takers, our Pioneer Generation is full of examples; examples that we should hold up, examples that we should celebrate. They took risks; they lived through war, racial riots and times of social tension. They lived through Singapore's early days where there were no tried-and-tested formulas, there were no SOPs. They had to take risks in finding out what works best for them and for our country. We need to find ways to celebrate their daring, their spirit, to inspire ourselves and our youths. By taking risks, by risking themselves, they showed their faith in their own ability to control their future. The solution to survival, to success, to happiness, lay within themselves, and Page: 69 they rose to the challenge to take control of their destiny. To the Pioneer Generation, I say, thank you. Thank you for your values of hard work, where you believed that with your own hands you could shape your future. Thank you for your prudence where you understood the future to be uncertain and unpredictable.”
“It is very safe, but is there something missing from the experience? Perhaps, we can make some choices. Perhaps, we can take a small risk of queuing at the second longest queue for chicken rice. Instead of the longest queue, take the risk that maybe a meal might be less than perfect, and take responsibility for supporting that family's business rather than the best, the longest queue. Perhaps, we can accept that playground slides need to be steep and fast and accept responsibility that our children might occasionally get hurt as they enjoy them because the five-year-olds, they know that the point of a slide in a playground is to go as fast as possible and take every possible risk. Perhaps, we can risk allowing football and ultimate frisbee in the Botanic Gardens and take collective personal responsibility for ensuring that those wonderful trees are not damaged. Perhaps, we can risk encouraging our kids to do after-school activities with no clear academic benefit, and take personal responsibility for broadening their horizons, instead of asking the schools to do it. Madam, we often talk about what kind of Singapore we want. At the Budget Dialogue yesterday, the same one I mentioned, a young lady asked the panel what kind of Singapore we envisioned in five years' time. We could go on as a society doing what we know works, but is that all we want to be? We prosper, we progress but what happens in times of uncertainty? What happens when a danger strikes? The safe, secure and predictable environment we know is replaced by one full of risks and uncertainty. Will we be prepared? Will we be resilient? Will we be brave enough to take the necessary risk? No policy change is going to achieve this mindset change.”
“Would they be able to care for their families? If times were good, they never assumed that nothing would change. They assumed that the future was a potentially dangerous place and they prudently planned ahead. Apart from prudence and a belief in an uncertain future, what other Pioneer values should we celebrate? Perhaps, their willingness to take risks. Of course, much of their risk-taking was pragmatic, and that pragmatism has served us well in our development as a nation. But now that pragmatism for the best choice, for the safest choice, might lead us towards always going for the risk-free choice. The flip side of risk is responsibility. It is only by personally choosing a risk, that one is forced to take personal responsibility for a choice. In the absence of risk, we do not really have to bear the burden of personal responsibility. We see this in the paradoxical calls for support for entrepreneurship. Inherent in the drive of an entrepreneur is the willingness to take risks. If it is a safe choice, it is not really entrepreneurship. Madam, has our pragmatic mindset led to us becoming a risk-averse society? I do not suggest throwing caution to the wind and taking uncalculated risks for everything. But what about the smaller choices we make every day as individuals, as parents, as families? In providing public playgrounds for our children, we have substituted sand for soft foam-padded flooring. So, no chance of sand in the eyes, or in the hair, or in the shoes, but then the children never learn how to play sand and take the rough and tumble. At the Changi Boardwalk, there is a kelong which is very nice to run and walk past in the evenings but it has railings all the way around. I am not aware of any real kelong that has any Page: 68 railings.”
“Their life is hard, their life has challenges, but they take pride in addressing those challenges, in rising to meet those challenges and we should not reduce the recognition of that. Finally, I recognise Mr Lien's point about the inter-relationship between economic progress and social progress, but I find it highly ironic that he, towards the end of his speech, noted that the entire funding of his social plans could be funded by our continued return on Net Investment Returns Contribution (NIRC); that economic growth is necessary in order for us to fund an increase in social spending. Page: 67 If I may return to the Pioneer Generation Package, Madam, as we take this step, as we commit funds and position ourselves to honour this promise, we should look at how it is that we can do this. And this has been referenced in my colleagues' speeches. The $8.9 billion that we put away to finance this package is a price that our society can afford, and how remarkable that is. How truly exceptional it is that, as a nation, we can take this step and at the same time ensure that future generations do not have to carry the financial burden. As a result of prudence, good governance and policies that address key long-term issues of our nation, this amount will be set aside completely using this year's Budget. The fact that this measure has been taken is a testament to the peace, prosperity and progress that our nation has enjoyed. The way this measure is implemented reflects some of the values that the Pioneer Generation lived by. When times are good, put money away. When things are going well, look to the future and plan for the worst. They lived and planned this way precisely because their future was uncertain. Would independent Singapore survive and thrive?”
“They know that their daughter has possibility, has opportunity, has equality of access to that opportunity and they can see the future. The lady in question has pride and self-confidence in her ability to maintain and provide for her family. We have to pay tribute to the spirit. We cannot deny that it exists on the ground. I know another family – the grandmother spoke at the Budget Dialogue I attended yesterday. This lady is more than 80 years old. She is part of the Pioneer Generation. She fought, demonstrated, rallied and walked the streets of Singapore in those turbulent times. Now, she lives in a HDB flat with her son, husband and son's family. She stood up and spoke very passionately in Malay and subsequently in English after some encouragement from my colleague, Miss Penny Low. And she took umbrage with the first speaker that day, the first question from the ground, asking the Government to do more. And that particular first speaker had one child, both parents working. This 80-year-old lady that I am referring to, she took umbrage that her son, with his single salary, was able to support her, her husband and son's wife who had stopped working to care for their newborn baby and their older child. One salary was supporting six people. Not that her son made a huge amount of money – he made a modest salary, in a modest middle-income job. But he took pride in providing for his family. They took pride in the fact that they could live through modest means and enjoy life and have joy in life and that, one day, the wife could go back to work and be able to add to the provision and care for the entire family. This is not a reality of an easy life.”
“" A symbol and a set of ideals, but also a measure to address a real need, the gap between the healthcare needs of our seniors, and their ability to finance those needs themselves. With the idea of real needs, I listened with interest to Mr Laurence Lien's suggestions. He called for free education while acknowledging that much of the education is currently very low cost. Free education is not free; it is very, very expensive to the society as a whole. To those societies that deliver free education, there is a very high taxation burden and it drives the behaviour for individuals to seek private education. And so the access to opportunity differentiates across the income spectrum. What is the outcome? The outcome we need is equality of opportunity for all. And free education – will it improve the equality of opportunity by giving similar access to everybody? I am doubtful of that. He also called for the envisioning of possibilities and talked about the reality on the ground. I have to say I take umbrage with this. Ninety percent, 95%, 99% Page: 66 of the time, the reality on the ground is that Singaporeans work hard, they are rewarded for their hard work and they do envision the possibilities. They do have pride in the work that they do, and they have self-confidence that they can build a better future for themselves and for their families. I have one family I know very well through my Meet-the-People sessions in my work on the ground. The gentleman is quite unwell and requires regular help at one of the hospitals. He is unable to work at this point in time. His wife works to support the entire family. But they envision the possibility when their daughter received the education merit bursary.”
“Mdm Speaker, after nearly 50 years as a nation, it is indeed timely that we honour our pioneers for their hard work and for making Singapore what it is today. The Pioneer Generation Package is a symbol of our gratitude to the first generation of Singaporeans who saw us through the uncertain, difficult and turbulent times when we became independent. It is apt that we remember, cherish and honour our seniors even as we move forward and look to the future of our nation. Looking past the symbolism and ideals, there is a very real pragmatic need for the Pioneer Generation to receive special measures. At the time of Independence, there was no opportunity to contribute to Medisave, and so many have not been able to save and ensure that they have enough to see them through their senior years. Life expectancy has dramatically increased and so the expected length of time that they may spend as retired has perhaps doubled or tripled, meaning that their savings will be spread even more thinly. Finally, as a result of our incredible economic progress, the relative valuation of their savings has fallen. So, we have a bold gesture, perhaps a symbolic gesture – a move to hold up ideals and values that we should celebrate, as we celebrate the individuals who held those ideals high. An opportunity to honour and cherish our seniors, but also a way to put to rest any lingering anxieties about the ability of our society to care for and look after the healthcare needs of this important part of our family. The package consists of a complex series of interlocking mechanisms and policy changes but, at its heart, is an idea, "We will look after you.”
“Stronger efforts and social integration will be more effective in helping ex-inmates turn over a new leaf. With that, I support the Bill. 3.20 pm”
“Given the important role that these aftercare institutions and organisations play, I would like to ask for an assurance that measures would be taken to ensure a degree of consistency is applied across the board in dealing with ex-inmates, especially given the wide variety of partners involved. How would the Ministry ensure that the Mandatory Aftercare Scheme is applied in a consistent way by the various organisations? Has the Ministry been able to help these aftercare services develop their skills and capabilities so that they can increase their effectiveness, and will these efforts continue? For some ex-offenders, a degree of psychological rehabilitation may be important, and how would the Page: 48 aftercare services be supported in providing this? As a society, we could do more to treat these ex-offenders with dignity and provide them with the opportunities to take care of themselves. A job is often the key to providing a structured life, a sense of financial security and a set of useful skills. The time spent in these aftercare institutions is very important in the journey of rehabilitation and reintegration for the ex-offenders, and is also an opportunity for the residents to actively seek work. How successful has SCORE been in finding employment for these ex-inmates and how will such efforts be enhanced by the introduction of this Bill? Madam, as a society, we have faced the priority on pragmatism, especially in order to achieve a positive social outcome. In this case, the enhancement of social peace and harmony is aligned with an opportunity to show kindness and to help some unfortunate members of our society who have been rehabilitated following an offence and an appropriate prison term.”
“Madam, while the recidivism rate has seen a decrease in recent years, a large proportion of the prison population are repeat offenders. I would like to ask what are the main reasons for the recidivism in Singapore. One of the measures introduced under this amendment is the Conditional Remission System. As the majority of the prison population are repeat offenders, it appears that the risk of spending more time in jail had not deterred them from re-offending. So, to what extent would these measures be effective with respect to recidivism? Is it likely that there would need to be a different effect for the 20% of first-time offenders, rather than the majority of the prison population who are repeat offenders? Does this imply that a different application of the process is needed for inmates who are already repeat offenders? Madam, the amendment also seeks to introduce the Mandatory Aftercare Scheme to facilitate the reintegration of ex-inmates upon release from Prisons through enhanced community support, counselling and case management. This is likely to involve several community partners outside of the Prison Service. I am well acquainted with a number of halfway houses in my constituency, and I am consistently impressed by both the staff as well as the residents of these institutions. The staff are caring and have a deep understanding of the self-discovery and rehabilitation needed for the residents, the personal journey that these ex-inmates have to go through to become reintegrated into society. The residents themselves want a fair chance to get themselves back onto their feet and they do work hard to make that happen.”
“Mdm Speaker, allow me to begin by expressing my appreciation to the members of the Home Team and, in particular, those in the Prison Service. We are well known as a safe city; one where there are very low levels of crime and violence. While a significant part of this is the result of a good environment as well as the many opportunities for success and a generally well-integrated society, we must recognise that the vigilance, the proactive approach and the hard work that characterise our Police and security services, are also very important in maintaining peace and harmony. However, once an offender is in prison, the priority must shift to ensuring that he can one day reintegrate into society and to prevent him from re-offending. In many other societies, a significant proportion of crime, and, in particular, violent crime is carried out by offenders of prior history. The low recidivism rate we see in Singapore is testament to the good work of our prison officers, SCORE and the various organisations and VWOs that work with these ex-inmates. It is assumed that in the absence of a family network, without social support and employment, the chance of recidivism is higher, much higher, as someone who is desperate, who has nothing to lose, is much more likely to do something foolish. The difficulties faced by these men on release are significant and need to be addressed in order to give them a fair chance at rebuilding their lives as Page: 47 this would reduce the likelihood of a repeat offence. Helping them get back on their feet is a kindness but also serves the interest of society at large in enhancing our peace and security. The amendment to this Bill seeks to enhance the system of managing ex-offenders and to help them reduce the risks of re-offending.”
“Madam, a supplementary question for the Minister. For third-party providers that are not covered under the healthcare Act and MOH that are collecting information, either IT-providers or phone service providers, there is uncertainty because some of the information is collected in the context of healthcare but is not technical or medical information. Would that information be covered under the Personal Data Protection Act or the existing regulations? Assoc Prof Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: For third-party providers, in certain cases, depending on what exactly the use of the data is collected for, we have to look at the usage. By and large, it should be covered because you are basically working on instruction of another party to collect the data for certain purposes. Therefore, the individual who is actually giving up the information must be assured that data is collected for that particular purpose. As far as we are concerned, the baseline of the PDPA will prevail across but, if there are exceptions to be made, we have to look at the exceptions because there are exceptions within this threshold.”
“Thank you, Madam. A supplementary question. Would the Minister consider that, wherever the venue is for the National Day Parade in 2014, that improved access for citizens in wheelchairs be considered?”
“Mdm Speaker, I have two supplementary questions for the Minister and they relate to the same issue of doubt. To what extent was there objective corroboration of the extensive eyewitness testimony that was obtained as part of the investigation, for example, by CCTV footage? Secondly, while the cause of death was established as positional asphyxia, was there any other internal injury that could in any way account for the death?”
“These are difficult problems to solve through policy and legislation, but no less critical to address. What is MOT doing to address these issues? Another obstacle to the option of cycling as a primary means of transport is security. To promote cycling, we need an improved provision of secure bike parking facilities, in the HDB estates, at transport nodes, and also at the workplace. I am sure the Ministry has many plans to look at cycling paths, park connectors and other initiatives. But I would suggest that we need to directly address the safety of cyclists and the security of their bicycles in order to positively influence the use of cycling as a primary mode of transport. Increasing Cycling and Pedestrian Safety”
“Mdm Chair, on cycling, Minister of State Teo has spoken up on behalf of cycling as a lifestyle choice and a fitness choice. I would like to also advocate for it as a commuting choice. I would like to ask the Ministry to provide an update on the progress of the National Cycling Plan. Are there any significant observations that have been made in monitoring the patterns of intra-town cycling? What measures does the Ministry intend to adopt to encourage more people to cycle? There are specific obstacles to the adoption of cycling as a primary mode of transport. Foremost is safety. are there measures that are going to be implemented to improve the safety of cyclists on the road? A corollary is the issue of cycling behaviour: are there measures that will be taken to improve the compliance of cyclists to existing road safety regulations? Ours is, generally, a good physical environment for cycling as a primary means of transport. We do have heavy rain, but we do not have ice, the hail, the snow, the sleet; no typhoons or strong winds. Our roads are generally in excellent condition, and there are relatively few steep hills. Some of those steep hills are, of course, of interest to sports and fitness cyclists; but for commuting, thankfully there are relatively few steep hills. Our density means that most things are within a cycle-friendly distance, emphasised by groups of road cyclists that happily traverse the entire nation on an early morning Sunday ride. It is a shame then that the greatest risks to the safety of cyclists are not the large forces of nature, nor the problems of basic infrastructure. The risks to Page: 33 cyclists are not intractable nor intrinsic, the greatest risks are human behaviours, the behaviours of other road users and the behaviours of cyclists.”
“Mdm Chair, may I ask what are the Ministry's plans to enhance road safety for cyclists and pedestrians? When policy changes are considered for road safety, traffic flow and regulation, what is the priority? Is it the smooth flow of vehicles, or efficiency, or is safety aspect the primary concern? Would the Ministry consider an approach that requires pedestrian safety to be the prime concern of any policy change? A framework, where in assessing any road safety measures, safety of the vulnerable is put above all other considerations? Where there is an intersection of human and vehicular traffic, could measures be put in place such that the safety of the pedestrian is prioritised above everything else? For example, would the Ministry consider removing the combination of the flashing green man to signal pedestrian crossing and turning vehicles? Traffic flow will be affected as cars will be required to stop at the red light rather than having the option to move on in the absence of pedestrians. But I suggest that this is an acceptable inefficiency in the pursuit of improved safety. Currently, at such junctions, there is a reliance on the good sense of the driver. There is also a presumption that the pedestrian will be visible to the driver of the vehicle. Removing the flashing "green man" at intersections will be an example where efficiency and traffic flow is sacrificed so that pedestrian safety is put ahead of all these considerations.”
“If there is going to be ongoing Government subsidy to support this, I would suggest that any fines for service lapses levied on the transport operator are linked to this process and docked from the Government subsidy and assure commuters that the fines levied are translated directly into subsidising their commute. I also support the calls made by several of my colleagues that a shift in travel time to work should be accompanied by a shift in the travel time to go home. We cannot expect people to go to work earlier just to put in an even longer day.”
“Mdm Chair, in the Budget debate, I suggested a possible tool to use in demand management in the MRT – a period of free travel prior to the morning peak. Would the Minister consider this suggestion? I have a few more ideas and suggestions on this issue. 5.45 pm There needs to be a buffer period between the end of free travel and the start of the peak, to avoid a sudden crush. As the behaviour of our commuters changes, the timing, the duration and the interface between the free window period and the normal service may need to be calibrated. We certainly do not want to drive bad behaviour as an unintended consequence of this idea. Another concern that was raised by the public was that the commuters who would have travelled early anyway would now enjoy free travel without changing their behaviour nor helping to ease the congestion. I agree that this is a concern, but I would add that this is an acceptable cost and an acceptable loss Page: 148 of economic efficiency to achieve a specific outcome, namely, a reduction in the peak-hour congestion. Nothing is truly free. There will be a financial cost associated with the implementation of this idea and I have already suggested that the funds allocated to demand management may be used to directly support this initiative. If that is insufficient, as some further subsidy may be needed and, if so, I would agree with Mr Cedric Foo that any support of this nature should be temporary and specifically time-limited. The subsidy or support would no longer be needed either when the capacity is increased to the point where the crush is significantly reduced, or if the transport operators are able to develop a financing model where some revenue is specifically allocated for this.”
“Yes, Madam. As Singapore engages with the Trans Pacific Partnership negotiations, how would MOH ensure its ability to make these types of decisions in the future?”
“Mdm Chair, I have one question for the Minister which relates to tobacco control. I welcome the changes to the removal of the retail display. It is a step in the right direction and represents the choice of public health over possible commercial interest. My question relates to the ability of the Government to protect its ability to make these types of decisions. In other jurisdictions, these types of decisions involving retail displays or packaging are being challenged as a result of free trade agreements – multilateral or bilateral free trade agreements. I am aware that in many of these agreements, health is an exception. And then there is an exception to the exception which does not cover investments in intellectual property, and trade interests use that as a way of challenging these types of regulatory decisions made by governments. Especially as Singapore engages —”
“Madam, I would like to follow on from the suggestions by my colleague, Mr Patrick Tay, about the discussion for developing a Community Mediation Framework. In particular, whether it is possible if the first round of mediation does not resolve in an amicable situation, then an appointed body or group issues a notice to the party or parties involved requiring them to comply with an appropriate or described set of behaviours. And where the offence then is a failure to comply with the notice, rather than letting cases drag on until one party reports the matter to an authority, the other party gets fined and the relationship becomes more strained and very adversarial, I am not suggesting that we could use this opportunity to develop a framework to draw up a list of offences – which may be a difficult list to agree upon. It is the process which is prescribed and the failure to engage with the process that is the offence. For long-drawn disputes where either party refuses to attend mediation, could the act of refusal to attend mediation be considered as an offence and give the process of mediation more bite and enhance its effectiveness? Bankruptcy Regime”
“While there has been a decrease in the fatal injury and accident rate in 2012 compared to previous years, there has been an increase in the number of traffic violations as well as offences for speeding and running the red light. This has led to the Traffic Police embarking on new initiatives which include having an increased presence on the roads. This enforcement is necessary and appropriate. However, it speaks poorly of our driving culture. It suggests that we are not becoming more safety conscious when we drive, nor are we driving with a gracious mindset. Rather we are looking out for ourselves, and driving defensively. Is this what we want? When we see someone signal to change lanes or make a turn, are we more likely to give way, to encourage graciousness, promote good behaviour and improve traffic flow? Or are we more likely to speed up, keep our place in line, not lose and cut off the other car, thereby worsening the aggression on the roads, increasing our stress and agitation, and unfortunately slowing down average traffic flow? Could the Minister comment on the progress of the new road safety initiatives? Has the increased presence of the Traffic Police on the roads led to an overall increase in road safety? What are MHA and Traffic Police doing to improve safety on our roads, and in particular, what are the plans in relation to serious traffic offences such as red-running and speeding? To what extent is the approach one of regulation and enforcement rather than addressing the Page: 138 prevention and cultural change? Courtesy on the Roads”
“Thank you, Sir. When there are neighbourly or domestic disputes, people may end up calling the Police to complain or to ask for assistance to resolve any issues. However, the response from the Police is usually that since these disputes are private matters, the Police cannot interfere unless it is an allegation of a criminal matter. Residents in this position often feel a sense of frustration that the authorities are not willing to act on their behalf. The argument that no law has been broken and that no offence has been committed does very little to address the distress and anxiety when the relationships between neighbours break down and become threatening. Page: 137 The changes in the Community Policing Systems (COPS) have already been highlighted by my colleagues. In view of these changes, I would like to know if there is a change in the way the Police intends to deal with neighbourly or domestic disputes. Is there also a shift in the public's expectation that the Police should step in and mediate such cases? Could this fall under the remit of community engagement and, if so, will the police officers be trained to provide suitable intervention and support, even if there is no criminal matter to be dealt with? If this is not possible, how will the Police deal with such incidents? Will the case be handed over to another agency or authority which is in a position to step in and deal with the issue? Will this process of handover or agency referral become formalised as part of the COPS? Road Safety Road safety is an issue of concern to many, especially with the recent spate of accidents. Could the MHA provide an update on our road safety situation?”