Jeffrey Siow
Singapore
“These solutions have been installed for the Bukit Panjang LRT in 2023, and for the Sengkang-Punggol LRT in 2024. While physical and technological constraints have prevented the installation of platform screen doors at LRT stations thus far, this incident reminds us that we must never stop looking for better solutions.”
“The point-to-point transport sector in Singapore is market-based, which allows the needs of both commuters and drivers to be met. We have no plans to regulate ride-hail platform commission rates or passenger fares.”
“The amended route for Service 965 was designed to bring residents closer to amenities near Sengkang town centre, including schools, Sengkang General Hospital and the Sengkang Community Hub, compared to the alternative of routing through Compassvale Road.”
“The Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Health (MOH) work closely together on transport options for healthcare needs. Our public transport network is barrier-free and wheelchair accessible. Taxis must accommodate foldable wheelchairs.”
“The Land Transport Authority (LTA) is the primary agency responsible for enforcing Active Mobility Act (AMA) offences on public paths, which comprise footpaths, shared paths and pedestrian-only paths. National Parks Board (NParks) officers are authorised by LTA to enforce AMA offences within NParks-managed parks and park connectors.”
“As earlier announced, the new bus stops, overhead bridges and lifts along the Tampines Expressway (TPE) will be completed between 2030 and 2032. Once works are completed, more residents in the northern parts of Rivervale estate will be within a 10-minute walk from a bus stop along TPE.”
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“The amended route for Service 965 was designed to bring residents closer to amenities near Sengkang town centre, including schools, Sengkang General Hospital and the Sengkang Community Hub, compared to the alternative of routing through Compassvale Road. Compassvale Walk residents can use Service 27, which serves Compassvale Road, to travel to Buangkok or to make a same-stop transfer to Service 965 to travel to Woodlands. Alternatively, residents can also walk to the bus stop along Sengkang East Way to reach Service 965, which is less than five minutes away from the bus stop near Block 240 Compassvale Walk which the service used to call at.”
“CAAS has launched a review of the end-to-end worker journey at Changi Airport and Changi Airfreight Centre, with a focus on common worker facilities and amenities. Together with our tripartite partners, we will sustain attractive and sustainable careers and a strong Singaporean core in the aviation industry.”
“The Ministry of Transport and the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) work closely with tripartite partners to attract, develop and retain a strong Singaporean workforce in the aviation sector, which directly employs more than 60,000 workers. As air travel grows and Changi Airport expands with Terminal 5, we are working on three fronts to keep aviation a meaningful career choice for Singaporeans. First, we are transforming jobs into higher-value roles so that as the sector adopts technology and artificial intelligence, Singaporeans can capture these opportunities and command competitive wages. The Aviation Jobs Transformation Report published in July 2025 guides this effort and CAAS has committed $200 million to the OneAviation Manpower Fund over five years for initiatives to support the aviation workforce. This is complemented by Workforce Singapore's initiatives, such as its Career Conversion Programmes. Second, we are supporting Singaporeans as they develop their careers. In May 2026, CAAS and the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) launched the inaugural sector-wide OneAviation Early Careers Mentorship Programme to promote structured mentorship at scale for young workers joining the sector. At the same time, with support from CAAS, the NTUC Aerospace and Aviation Cluster of Unions announced a new Youth Chapter to strengthen engagement with and support for young workers in the sector. The mentorship programme aims to provide structured mentorship to around 2,200 early-career workers over five years. Third, we are enhancing the workplace experience to make aviation a more attractive career choice.”
“Of the 9,900 bus captains today, 30% are aged 40 and below; 57% are between 41 and 60; and 13% are aged above 60. Forty percent are Singaporean or Permanent Residents; with the rest being Work Permit holders. Eighty-five percent hold secondary or lower qualifications.”
“The Government does not specifically track the economic value of senior bus captains mentoring new bus captains and providing on-the-job training. However, bus operators do acknowledge the valuable role that senior bus captains play in guiding and mentoring newer colleagues, and reflect this through higher salaries or allowances.”
“The Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Health (MOH) work closely together on transport options for healthcare needs. Our public transport network is barrier-free and wheelchair accessible. Taxis must accommodate foldable wheelchairs. Certain hospitals and other healthcare institutions also provide shuttle services to support last-mile travel from transport nodes. In addition, MOH funds Senior Care Centre, Community Dialysis, Day Hospice and Medical Escort and Transport service providers to provide subsidised transport services, so commuters with more specialised needs can have affordable access to care.”
“The point-to-point transport sector in Singapore is market-based, which allows the needs of both commuters and drivers to be met. We have no plans to regulate ride-hail platform commission rates or passenger fares. The best way to improve the livelihood of point-to-point drivers is to help them ensure that the market is open and contestable. The National Trades Union Congress, its affiliated associations and platform operators jointly developed a set of principles on fair earnings and safe incentive schemes for platform work in September 2025. These principles guide platform operators in setting fares and incentives, including ensuring fair earnings for drivers.”
“As earlier announced, the new bus stops, overhead bridges and lifts along the Tampines Expressway (TPE) will be completed between 2030 and 2032. Once works are completed, more residents in the northern parts of Rivervale estate will be within a 10-minute walk from a bus stop along TPE. Residents can also take Service 86 to Jalan Kayu Flyover, to make a same-stop transfer to bus services plying TPE. There are no plans at the moment for additional feeder bus services to the new bus stops, but we will continue to review the situation over time.”
“From 2021 to 2025, Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore invoked its anti-avoidance powers on 124 occasions and assessed $49 million in additional tax. Thus far, $48 million has been recovered. All but one of the cases involved taxpayers extracting profits as tax-exempt dividends or interest-free shareholder loans.”
“The Land Transport Authority (LTA) is the primary agency responsible for enforcing Active Mobility Act (AMA) offences on public paths, which comprise footpaths, shared paths and pedestrian-only paths. National Parks Board (NParks) officers are authorised by LTA to enforce AMA offences within NParks-managed parks and park connectors. Within Housing and Development Board estates, LTA may enforce AMA offences on public paths and Town Councils may also apply their by-laws relating to common property or public safety where active mobility devices are involved.”
“The ongoing electric vehicle (EV) mobile charging systems sandbox trials will complete by 2Q 2028. The Land Transport Authority will analyse the usage patterns at the end of the trials. Companies interested to trial new charging technologies can still apply to participate in the regulatory sandboxes. EV users interested in participating in the use of such mobile chargers can reach out to these companies directly.”
“As at May 2026, 21,234 HDB households, or about 2% of the households eligible for U-Save, have accumulated more than one year of excess U-Save rebates, based on average monthly utility bills for each flat type. U-Save rebates do not have an expiry date, so households need not rush to utilise U-Save rebates within a certain time period. This design also preserves the incentive for households to use energy efficiently.”
“The Singapore Government works with Malaysian authorities on passenger connectivity and dispersal from the Rapid Transit System Link. However, specific transport modes, like the Johor's elevated Autonomous Rapid Transit (e-ART) feeder network, are under the purview of Malaysian authorities. In Singapore, commuters arriving at Woodlands North can transfer to our domestic transport network, including the Mass Rapid Transit via Woodlands North station on the Thomson-East Coast Line.”
“These solutions have been installed for the Bukit Panjang LRT in 2023, and for the Sengkang-Punggol LRT in 2024. While physical and technological constraints have prevented the installation of platform screen doors at LRT stations thus far, this incident reminds us that we must never stop looking for better solutions. I have, therefore, asked LTA and the public transport operators to re-examine all available solutions. This includes manually operated platform screen doors that do not need to be synchronised with train doors, as well as Mr Edward Chia's suggestion on automated rope barriers. We should not assume that what was not feasible before will remain infeasible forever. Commuter safety will always be our highest priority. The transport sector has made significant improvements over the years, but there is always more to be done. We owe it to the family who has lost a loved one, and to every commuter who entrusts us with their daily journeys to keep working at this, so that we can all travel with peace of mind.”
“One area where we have continually strengthened safety is at train platforms. When the MRT first opened in 1987, there were no screen doors on the platforms of above-ground stations. This was the international norm at the time and remains common in many train systems today. But we were not content to leave things as they were. To better protect commuters, we began installing platform screen doors for MRT stations in 2009. We completed the programme in 2012. The LRT, however, presented a much more difficult engineering challenge. Platform screen doors require power supply, communications and signal control equipment to operate safely and in sync with train doors. Our LRT stations are much smaller than MRT stations, which means there is insufficient space to install the equipment and cabling required. Installing such systems may also require some LRT stations to be closed for extended periods. After careful consideration, we concluded that, unlike the MRT, platform screen doors would not be installed on the existing LRT system. Instead, we introduced a suite of other measures to mitigate the risk of people falling onto the tracks. We installed fixed barriers with intermittent gaps for all LRT platforms. These are not a perfect substitute for platform screen doors. In fact, we have observed some commuters leaning against the fixed barriers, which carries its own risks. But on balance, they provide better protection than having no barriers at all, particularly during busy periods. In addition, our public transport operators have been experimenting with technological solutions to raise an immediate alert when a person moves past the fixed barriers and enters the LRT tracks.”
“At about 5.00 am on 18 May 2026, a man fell onto the tracks at Segar Light Rail Transit (LRT) station, in front of an oncoming train, and lost his life. This is a tragedy and my heart goes out to his family. I know Mr Edward Chia, who is the family's Member of Parliament, has been in close contact with them and I thank him for this. SMRT has also been in contact with the family and is rendering support during this very difficult time. As the incident is still being investigated, I am not able to share the specifics of the case at this point. My reply will instead address the broader questions Members have raised about the safety of our public transport system. I am deeply saddened that this happened. All of us who work in transport carry a profound responsibility for the safety of commuters and we feel the weight of that responsibility every day. Safety is and has always been our first priority. It is the foundation on which we design and operate our Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) and LRT systems. Whenever an anomaly is detected, trains are designed to come to a complete stop, and services resume only after we are satisfied that it is safe to do so. This may sometimes inconvenience commuters, but we always put safety first. Our public transport system is, by any measure, a very safe one. More than seven million trips are taken on our train and bus network each day. On the MRT and LRT, there have been two fatalities in the last three years. By comparison, there were 149 road fatalities last year – roughly one every three days. But behind every statistic is a person and a family. Every loss of life matters. This is precisely why even a single fatality on our network is one too many and why we treat each one with the utmost seriousness.”
“The deployment readiness assessment framework for autonomous vehicles (AVs) sets out technical performance and public acceptance metrics that must be met before the AVs are allowed to take passengers and eventually progress to driverless operations. These include clocking sufficient distance within the actual deployment route without the need for intervention by safety operators, and the ability to handle various traffic scenarios presented within the authorised geo-fenced area. Technical Reference 68, which serves as guidelines for the AV industry in Singapore, was last updated in 2021 and is currently being reviewed. In the meantime, AV deployments will continue under the existing authorisation regime.”
“The average utilisation rate for electric vehicle (EV) chargers at the Housing and Development Board (HDB) carparks is about 20%, with higher utilisation typically at night. HDB chargers in Tengah, Punggol and Sengkang have higher utilisation rates. JTC-managed carparks have an average utilisation of about 9%, with higher utilisation in the day. The Singapore Land Authority has not deployed any charging points. The Land Transport Authority publishes EV adoption and charger deployment data regularly and will look into doing so for utilisation.”
“Public Transport Vouchers (PTVs) are provided in years where public transport fares are increased to cushion the impact of the immediate cost increase on lower-income households. The PTVs are not intended to offset cumulative fare increases over time. There are other structural support measures in place to keep public transport affordable. The Government provides over $2 billion in annual subsidies to fund bus and train services. In recent years, the Government has also provided additional subsidies of $200 to $300 million annually, which has allowed the Public Transport Council to defer the bulk of fare increases. Concession groups, like students, senior citizens, Person with Disabilities (PWD) and Workfare recipients, also enjoy discounts of up to 70% off adult per-journey fares.”
“The closure of the Sengkang West Loop is needed to connect new reception tracks from the expanded Sengkang LRT depot to the existing LRT network. These heavy works include modification of existing tracks, construction of connections to the new reception tracks and the diversion and replacement of electrical and mechanical systems. These works must be carefully sequenced and carried out for worker safety. The system must also be thoroughly inspected and tested before being reopened for service.”
“All motor vehicles, including car-sharing vehicles, must be covered by valid insurance policies and insured against third-party claims arising from death or bodily injury resulting from use of these vehicles. The Monetary Authority of Singapore regulates insurers, including those offering motor insurance products. The insurance premiums and terms of coverage offered are part of the contractual terms between car-sharing companies and their chosen insurers. The Government does not intervene in such commercial arrangements.”
“Public transport peak-period modal share has continued to grow steadily over the years. There are several reasons why we have not yet hit the target of 75%. For example, the growth of the private hire car industry has provided Singaporeans with an affordable means of point-to-point transport on a pay-per-use basis. The impact of COVID-19 and the delay to new public transport infrastructure, including new rail lines like the Cross Island Line, Circle Line Stage 6 and the Jurong Region Line, has further slowed public transport adoption. However, there is no evidence that changes in rail reliability have affected public transport adoption. In any case, the reliability of our train system remains above our targets. On improving the attractiveness of public transport, feedback from commuters generally focuses on more direct connections and improved comfort. We expect public transport peak-period modal share to grow over time as new train lines are completed, including the upcoming Jurong Region Line and the Cross Island Line.”
“We have put in place measures to help Singapore's port and maritime ecosystem manage ongoing shipping disruptions. These include measures to enhance port capacity and improve reliability and efficiency of port operations. We are pressing on with our port's capacity expansion plans, which will help address increased demand and volatility arising from unforeseen disruptions. For example, four more berths at Tuas Port are scheduled to commence operations this year. The Ministry of Transport (MOT) and MPA are also working with PSA to ensure sufficient manpower and to develop new capabilities to manage the anticipated increase in demand. In addition, MPA coordinates with shipping lines through the digitalPort@SG Just-In-Time Planning and Coordination Platform to optimise their vessel arrival times in port. PSA also works with shipping lines to support the re-routing of their ships and service recoveries. These measures provide more certainty for shipping lines, reducing the risk of bunching and congestion while enhancing operational efficiency of our port. Port operations have remained stable thus far. MPA will continue closely monitoring developments and their impact on global shipping. We will continue our efforts to strengthen Singapore's position as a trusted maritime hub in the midst of these disruptions.”
“The Land Transport Authority is currently assessing the scope and timing for the refurbishment of the first-generation Circle Line trains. This assessment is based on train performance and condition, the need to replace obsolete parts and whether there are viable upgrades available. Our trains typically undergo one major refurbishment around the 20-year mark, although this can vary according to train condition, before they are replaced with newer trains.”
“It is impractical to mandate parking or holding spaces for vehicles within construction sites, due to the additional space required and operational constraints during construction. To manage vehicular movements in and out of the worksites safely and efficiently, contractors may deploy traffic marshals and schedule vehicle arrivals at staggered intervals. Enforcement is conducted against indiscriminate parking or stopping of vehicles along public roads. Hotspots are closely monitored and technology, such as parking enforcement cameras, are adopted.”
“While cycling is permitted on both sides of the Causeway, Malaysia currently prohibits walking along the Causeway. There are currently no plans for a covered pedestrian and cycling pathway along the Causeway.”
“I thank the Member for the question. The member may refer to our written reply to Question No 56 for the 6 May 2026 Parliamentary Sitting. [Please refer to "Reviewing Adequacy of Path Diversity of Passive Fibre Infrastructure Owners", Official Report, 6 May 2026, Vol 96, Issue 30, Written Answers to Questions for Oral Answer not Answered by End of Question Time section.]”
“I thank the Member for the questions. I have addressed them in my reply for Question No 13 at the 6 May 2026 Parliamentary Sitting. [Please refer to "Inter-agency Coordination to Support Timely Deployment of EV Charging Infrastructure in New Housing Estates", Official Report, 6 May 2026, Vol 96, Issue 30, Oral Answers to Questions section.]”
“The Land Transport Authority (LTA) requires that seats on all new trains must minimally be 48cm wide. As buses have more space constraints, seats on all new buses have lower requirements, but must still minimally be 42cm wide. Our standards exceed the relevant European Union standards for bus and train seats. We have no plans to revise the minimum standards for seat width at this time. LTA will continue to evaluate train and bus designs holistically based on commuter feedback and capacity requirements, including to maintain sufficient space for standing commuters and wheelchair users.”
“To guide visually impaired pedestrians, tactile tiles are installed where footpaths intersect with driveways of developments and at-grade pedestrian crossings. The Land Transport Authority is also working with industry to study the implementation of acoustic vehicle alerting systems in new electric vehicles.”
“Since 2022, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) has averaged about 100 complaints annually alleging property damage arising from LTA construction works. These are investigated thoroughly and only a handful of cases each year were assessed to have been caused by the construction works with compensation paid. Given the small number of cases, it is challenging to identify common causes. To mitigate such risks, contractors are required to ensure that workers are adequately trained and brief workers daily on potential hazards and safety measures.”
“We explained the considerations for the goods and services tax registration threshold and why it remains relevant to Mr Pritam Singh at the Committee of Supply debate on 28 February 2024. [Please refer to "Committee of Supply – Head M (Ministry of Finance)", Official Report, 28 February 2024, Vol 95, Issue 126, Budget section.] Our position has not changed. The Member may wish to refer to the Hansard for the reply.”
“There are about 55 weekly flights today between Singapore and Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Doha, Dubai and Jeddah, compared to 154 weekly flights before the onset of the Middle East conflict in February 2026. Airlines adjust, reroute or suspend services depending on their risk assessment and commercial considerations. Changi Airport Group and the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore have worked closely to support our airline partners to add more flights to alternative destinations, such as cities in Europe and Australia, while ensuring that the airlines have the processes in place to assess and mitigate any flight safety risks.”
“The Government had announced a $1 billion support package in April to move early and cushion the immediate impact of the Middle East crisis. We continue to monitor developments closely and will consider further support based on how the situation evolves. In doing so, we track a range of indicators. These include macroeconomic indicators, like gross domestic product growth and inflation, as well as crisis-specific indicators like global oil and fuel prices, and supply chain conditions. We also closely assess the impact of the crisis on different groups, so that any support can be targeted and effective. Working within the sums approved in the Supply Act for Budget 2026, the Government has the flexibility to reallocate resources to meet emerging needs. Should we need to exceed the provisions in the Supply Act, we can tap on an advance from the Contingencies Funds or table a Supplementary Supply Bill. At this stage, we do not expect to draw on Past Reserves.”
“The Bukit Panjang Light Rail Transit (BPLRT) upgrading works, which began in 2018, is close to full completion. All 19 first generation Light Rail Vehicles have been replaced by new vehicles, and all 13 second-generation Light Rail Vehicles have also been upgraded. The signalling system, power supply system and the Operations Control Centre have also been fully upgraded. The final component of works is the replacement of the physical power rail, which is currently 50% completed and due to be done by end-2026. With these upgrades to the BPLRT system, commuters will enjoy smoother, more comfortable and more reliable rides. We would like to thank residents and commuters for their patience and understanding over the years, while these works were being carried out.”
“All feeder services are scheduled to operate at intervals of no more than eight minutes during peak periods, once operations have stabilised. During non-peak periods, the intervals are periodically adjusted based on ridership data and feedback. The Land Transport Authority tracks arrival timing of buses at bus stops against expected intervals and bus operators are penalised for poor reliability.”
“The Land Transport Authority (LTA) currently deploys 60 active mobility enforcement cameras, which are mobile and can be redeployed islandwide to target hotspots. LTA will deploy more enforcement resources, including cameras and officers, to ensure compliance with active mobility regulations and maintain safety on our public paths.”
“The Government is co-sharing 50% of the direct additional costs arising from the use of diesel and bitumen in ongoing critical public sector construction projects, where any delay or stoppages would clearly affect public interest. The construction activities being supported are earthworks, foundation and piling works, reclamation works and roadworks, which are the most severely affected due to their heavy reliance on diesel-powered equipment. Other contractors are supported through broad-based support measures for businesses, such as the Corporate Income Tax Rebate and Cash Grant. Private sector developers are strongly encouraged to similarly share the diesel and bitumen cost increases with their contractors.”
“The Government will continue to take steps to make our land transport more family-friendly and provide viable alternatives to private car ownership. Families can use car-sharing services to rent a suitable vehicle or use ride-hailing apps to book larger vehicles with six seats and request a suitable child seat if required for their trip. All public buses and trains are also step-free, which make it easier for families to commute with strollers. We will continue to explore how we can make our transport system even more family-friendly in our Land Transport Master Plan consultations.”
“On 18 April 2026, fibre service cables were damaged during bored pile works carried out as part of the North-South Corridor (NSC) Project. Investigations are ongoing. Should the contractor be found culpable, agencies may take legal action and telecommunication companies may also claim damages. Contractors are required to comply with the requirements of the relevant utility agencies when working in proximity to their services. For instance, prior to work commencement, contractors must conduct utility mapping and obtain written approval from the utility agencies. The Land Transport Authority enforces against non-compliance, which are factored into future tender evaluations.”
“Public transport fares are based on the distance travelled in a single continuous journey. Transfer rules are designed to set a reasonable limit to the different segments of a single journey for the purpose of fare-charging. This avoids commuters stringing together multiple journeys with distinct origins and destinations into one, thus being charged incorrect fares. The 15-minute transfer time limit between train stations was introduced in 2018 to facilitate walking transfers between nearby rail stations which can reduce journey time, for example, between Rochor and Jalan Besar stations on the Downtown Line. This 15-minute transfer rule also applies to a few MRT interchange stations where commuters have to exit and re-enter the fare-paid area to make a transfer, such as Bukit Panjang, Newton and Tampines. A longer transfer time limit is applied to rail-to-bus and bus-to-bus transfers as waiting times for buses are longer than for train services. Fare transfers are not applied to the consecutive use of the same bus service and exit-and-re-entry at the same train station, as there is no reason for a commuter to tap out and tap in again on the same bus service or train station in a single journey.”
“The Land Transport Authority (LTA) deploys signs and path markings where they are needed to guide users to their appropriate paths. We do so judiciously based on ground conditions. For example, at potentially crowded locations, such as bus stops and crossings, there are signs to remind riders to give way to pedestrians and speed regulating strips to slow riders down.”
“The Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA) system relies on physical fibre-optic connections to relay updates on bus locations to a central server, which then computes predictions of bus arrival times. For data security reasons, bus location data is transmitted through dedicated pairs of fibre-optic cables that are privately leased from a commercial vendor. By design, if data cannot be sent through one cable, it will be re-routed to the other cable so that the connection continues to function. This provides a backup against physical damage. On 18 April 2026, Asia Piling Co damaged several fibre-optic cables when carrying out works. One of the damaged cables was part of a physical connection transmitting to the ETA server. As designed, data was diverted from the damaged cable to the intact cable in that connection pair. However, not all data was successfully sent to the server when the incident first occurred. This resulted in a degradation of the ETA system performance, with only 70% of the expected number of ETA predictions throughout the rest of the day. The ETA system was restored to full functionality after the fibre-optic cable was repaired. Our investigation revealed no other hardware or software malfunctions in the ETA system, and no relation to the outage that took place earlier this year. The Land Transport Authority is still investigating why the remaining intact cable did not provide full redundancy for the damaged cable as required of the vendor. We are currently upgrading the ETA system. The new system, which will be deployed by the end of 2027 will be hosted on a cloud platform. This will improve the resilience of the ETA system against physical damage to its data connections.”
“IPCs can also continue to apply to the President's Challenge for funding to grow impactful projects that uplift lives and strengthen our community. In view of the trends in charitable giving and the Government's support measures, we do not expect the donations received, programming and operations of charities and SSAs to be significantly affected by the tapering of the EFR.”
“The Enhanced Fund-Raising (EFR) Programme was launched in response to the disruptions in charity sector fundraising caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. To assist charities during this challenging time, the Government partnered with Tote Board to boost support by increasing matching funds for donations. The programme was intended as a temporary and extraordinary solution for an unprecedented situation. Since then, charitable donations have rebounded. In charities' Financial Year (FY) ending 2024, total donations reached $3.7 billion, surpassing both the low point of $2.8 billion in FY ending 2021 and the pre-pandemic high of $3.2 billion from FY ending 2019. While data for the FY ending 2025 is still being verified, charitable donations are expected to stay above the pre-COVID peak. At Budget 2025, we announced that matching support for the EFR will gradually return to pre-pandemic levels, consistent with how other COVID-era assistance measures are winding down. Notwithstanding this, the Government continues to provide support for charities and Social Service Agencies (SSAs) in multiple ways, including: a. Direct grants for programming and operations, such as the new $50 million SG Partnerships Fund. This is available to Singapore-registered organisations including charities and SSAs; b. A 250% tax deduction for qualifying donations to Institutions of a Public Character (IPCs), which was extended for a further three years; and c. Matching grant schemes, such as the Community Silver Trust. In addition, the Community Chest (ComChest) rallies the community to raise funds for services that serve critical and unmet social needs. In FY2024, ComChest channelled $74.1 million to more than 300 programmes and projects helping individuals, families and communities.”
“All bus depot technicians handling high voltage maintenance of electric buses are required to obtain the National EV Specialist Safety (NESS-BUS) certification. This ensures that they are familiar with electrical safety requirements when handling high voltage batteries.”
“As of March 2026, there are 298 heavy vehicle charging points across the island, of which 154 are publicly accessible. To support their deployment, the Electric Heavy Vehicle Charger Grant introduced in January 2026 co-funds 50% of deployment costs, capped at $30,000 per charger. Companies can work with the Land Transport Authority if they assess there are under-served areas.”
“Certificate of Entitlement (COE) prices are determined by supply and demand. COE prices have remained elevated due to a combination of factors. First, demand remains strong, likely due to competitive electric car prices. Second, while we have taken steps since May 2023 to increase supply and the combined supply for Categories A and B continues to increase, Category A supply peaked in the fourth quarter of 2025 and has started to decline. Our review of COE categorisation for cars is ongoing. We expect to conclude the review by the end of this year.”
“The increase in Household Liabilities has no direct impact on our overall fiscal position, which is determined by the Government's revenues and expenditures. The Monetary Authority of Singapore works closely with relevant Government agencies to monitor household leverage and encourage prudent borrowing. The Member may wish to refer to the reply to Parliamentary Question No 39, asked by Mr Fadli Fawzi for the sitting on 8 April 2026, for part (b) of his question. [Please refer to "Measures to Encourage Prudence Among Borrowers as Household Liabilities Outpaced Asset Growth", Official Report, 8 April 2026, Vol 96, Issue 28, Written Answers to Questions for Oral Answer not Answered by End of Question Time section.]”
“The percentage increase in elderly pedestrian fatalities between 2024 to 2025 should be viewed in context, where the number of fatalities rose from a low base of 11 cases in 2024 to 27 cases in 2025, compared to an average of 18 fatalities annually from 2021 to 2023. Nevertheless, we want to improve the safety of vulnerable groups. That is why the Land Transport Authority (LTA) has implemented Silver Zones and Friendly Streets, with longer pedestrian crossing times, lower speed limits and features, such as humps and road narrowing to slow down traffic. Beyond Silver Zones and Friendly Streets, LTA is expanding the Green Man+ feature, which provides elderly pedestrians with additional crossing time, to more traffic lights. Overhead bridges are also being progressively retrofitted with lifts. Drivers also play a critical role in keeping pedestrians safe. Strict penalties are in place to deter dangerous or careless driving, which attracts fines, licence disqualification and imprisonment. In Silver Zones and Friendly Streets, offenders incur two additional demerit points and a $100 increase in composition fines for offences, such as speeding, red-light running and failure to give way to pedestrians.”