Khaw Boon Wan
Singapore
“Motor vehicle dealerships and showrooms have been closed since the start of the circuit breaker. As COE bidding is done mostly by the motor vehicle dealers on behalf of prospective owners, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) suspended COE bidding for the months of April and May.”
“Though stressed by the financial pain, they press on with the immediate priority of fighting the virus and supporting essential services. Post-pandemic, we will see how public transport evolves. Will demand for public transport services simply return to the pre-pandemic level?”
“Under our rail financing framework, the Government fully pays for the cost of building new rail lines. In other words, we do not recover the cost of building the Cross Island Line (CRL) from commuters through fares. The CRL project is being implemented and the final costs will depend on tender bids.”
“There are around 5,000 private bus operators with a combined fleet of 13,500 private buses. As we do not track the number of private bus trips and passengers, we do not have data on their carbon emissions.”
“There are nursing rooms at 50% of our bus interchanges. We will provide nursing rooms at all new bus interchanges and integrated transport hubs. For the MRT network, we will provide nursing rooms at all new interchange stations. We will also explore providing such facilities when MRT stations undergo upgrading.”
“Over the last three years, Singapore carriers have reported a total of 20 incidents of food allergies on board their flights. None required the use of epinephrine or emergency flight diversions.”
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“The whole process takes two to three minutes, and it is not a problem. But for a bus, there is only one door. And one-at-a-time sequential alighting and boarding hold up the whole traffic. We are a very busy city. If you look at our bus lanes, there are many buses per hour. The frequencies are huge. So once you pile up, it causes other kinds of problems. And that is why it is not surprising that in many other big cities, whether it is New York, London or wherever, they do not fully load the wheelchair needs onto the public bus system, although they try to. But, at the same time, they supplement with dedicated bus services for the disabled. And I think that is where MCDS, working with NCSS, is working in that direction. I think that is the right direction to take. So, my message is this. It is good to achieve door-to-door, curb-to-curb user-friendliness for all, but everyone has to play his or her part. MOT will play its part. Assoc. Prof. Ngiam Tee Liang: I thank the Senior Minister of State for clarifying that an alternative to the bus system is being pursued with maybe a dedicated scheme, rather than this public at large scheme. With regard to that, the crucial aspect would be the cost of even providing a dedicated service. If you look at the National Council of Social Service's latest annual report, CommChest funds are used, that is, the public at large funds are used to provide a public transport scheme for the disabled. This is where the public is also playing its part. I am just wondering what part would public bus operators be playing. In the initial years when this was first broached, there was actually funding from the bus operators to start a fund for NCSS. But my understanding is that they have stopped providing this.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I share the Member's wish to make our system as user-friendly to all and sundry. After all, every Singaporean matters. If they are unfortunate, have certain disabilities, we hope that we can also include them in the transport system. I think that is an ideal that we should always strive for. But to achieve such an ideal requires the part to be played by many parties. It is not just Government. The corporate sector is also involved. The NGOs are involved. The people themselves are involved, and even within the Government, different Ministries are involved. MOT will play its part, but many other people will have to play their part too. The bottomline is this. If we look back today and, say, 10 years ago, I think we are a lot more disabled user-friendly now than 10 years ago, and we continue to make improvements. We cannot achieve it tomorrow, but we are making progress. As I said, the existing MRT stations which are not yet disabled-friendly, we are putting in a lot of resources to retrofit them. The whole exercise should be completed by 2005; so that makes MRT disabled-friendly. Bus is quite a different story because to load the whole requirements onto the entire bus service has major implications. I see two major implications. One, financially, because buses which are made to be wheelchair-bound friendly are more expensive than those buses which are not. So, that will translate into higher cost, and that higher cost has to be borne by somebody. It means the rest of the commuters. Secondly, the time taken to board and to alight by the wheelchair-bound naturally is longer. We can do so in MRT because MRT has many doors, so that at the same time the disabled and those without disability can board.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I do not know whether the Member was in this House when we had a very robust debate about transport fares and the role of bus operators. I think we all know that they are commercial entities, they have to make ends meet. My Ministry is just a regulator of these licensees. They have to make ends meet, and whether they should subsidise a particular segment of their passengers or commuters, we know that finally the overall cost has to be borne by the rest of the commuters. If Singaporeans, the majority of the commuters, are prepared to cross-subsidise the other smaller segment of the population who are disabled, then that is a different consideration. But, as I said, the overall issue of how we should assist financially the disabled Singaporeans is a larger issue because their needs go beyond transport. There may be medical needs and there may be other occupational training needs. I think it is best looked at holistically and the appropriate Ministry to look at that, I believe, is MCDS. I am just a SMS, Ministry of Transport.”
“Sir, how we should assist Singaporeans who are disabled and, at the same time, financially disadvantaged is a larger topic. I think it is best addressed holistically. I believe this is the purview of my colleagues in MCDS working with NCSS and the various VWOs. Whether financial assistance for them is best focused on transport needs, medical treatment or skills training can then be examined on an overall basis. In my Ministry's primary focus, we have to target at the rapid transportation of the masses. We will as far as practicable accommodate, be sensitive and sympathetic to those commuters with disabilities. And I think we have been improving over the years, as I elaborated earlier. Assoc. Prof. Ngiam Tee Liang: As public transport operators, the bus companies, is there an obligation on their part to provide this service to the public at large, and that includes the disabled and the elderly? If so, what measures is LTA having to ensure that the obligations of a public bus operator include helping financially, or in other ways, the disabled and the elderly? Otherwise, the cost will be passed on to the individual families and the disabled themselves or the VWOs, who are already burdened with finding enough funds for the other services that they run.”
“They have a difficult job of balancing, not profitability, but the long-term interests of commuters and the short-term effects on them. Inevitably, judgment has to be made. We can certainly disagree with PTC's judgment, as honest people would. But we cannot fault them for not being diligent. They are certainly not apologists for operators, as Mr Tan Soo Khoon put it this afternoon. But we certainly should not inadvertently weaken the PTC by undermining the independence of this important public institution. To weaken the PTC will, in fact, be to go against commuters because PTC is there to protect them. We should strengthen PTC; we should not weaken it. I, therefore, have grave misgiving about the Motion as currently worded. The first part on urging the PTC to review its decision must surely undermine it. If we over-ride the PTC, by getting it to reverse its decision, or even if by getting them to delay the hike, as suggested by, I think, Mr Leong Horn Kee, then what is the point of appointing the PTC? Fare Increases During Recession But MPs are correct to say that the timing of the fare increase is bad, as we are still recovering from the recession. PTC is, of course, fully aware of the economic backdrop, but it operates on the principle that regular small fare increases are better than large infrequent increases. It is to make it easier for commuters to adjust. I support this principle. But PTC may want to revisit this principle, to see if there is scope to apply it with greater sensitivity at times of recession. Certainly, fare increases can be better explained. I would, therefore, urge Mr Tan Soo Khoon and others to relook the Motion to see how it can be amended to make it clearer on the follow-up action of the PTC without undermining its authority or independence.”
“Her house is about a 10-minute walk from the Jurong East MRT station. She can either walk there or take a feeder bus. She chooses to get up just a little bit earlier so that she can walk to the station in time. That way, she saves on shuttle fares every day. This is a very sensible, down-to-earth approach. Now, do we want to distort such sensible decisions by, for example, subsidising feeder fares? Pillar No. 4 - Preserving the Independence of the Regulator. We set up an independent regulator to regulate the transport operators. When PTC was set up 15 years ago, there was a full debate in this House. I was then a young civil servant and I remember the debate. This House gave birth to the PTC. Mr Tan Soo Khoon and several veteran MPs in this House could claim paternity to the PTC. We know that public transport fares had to be adjusted periodically if we are to enjoy continuous service improvements. But fare adjustments are unpopular and we should try to de-politicise it as much as possible, if at all possible. In fact, a point was brought up during the debate in 1987 on whether some MPs should sit in the PTC. It was quickly rejected as unwise. Instead, the independence and professionalism of the PTC was stressed by several MPs, both during that debate, as well as this afternoon. We can argue over the composition of the PTC, whether we could widen its representation to include, eg, grassroots leaders, as suggested by some MPs, or to exclude the transport operators. We can debate whether the PTC could have better explained its recent decisions to the people. We can discuss whether PTC should revise its modus operandi, eg, to make its deliberations more transparent. There is nothing wrong in criticising the decision of the PTC.”
“It is precisely because of profit that drives innovations. From the discussion this afternoon, I gather there is not a good appreciation of the CPI + X framework. But time does not allow me to go into the nitty-gritty of this system. But the CPI + X system was precisely to allow us to incentivise operators to innovate and to seek out and benefit as much productivity gains as they could, subject to the framework within which they are entitled to certain price increases. Then, it is the job of the PTC to decide what is a reasonable rate of increase, and that is the CPI + X framework. So, if you fully understood what the CPI + X framework is supposed to achieve, all this discussion about profitability and so on is irrelevant. It has nothing to do with profitability. Within this CPI + X framework, we decide what is a reasonable rate of fare increases which is commensurate with the affordability level of the population, then it is the job of the operators to go all out to make profit out of this approved system. That is the only way to drive innovation. That is the only way to drive productivity. Pillar No. 3 - Targeting Government Subsidy on Infrastructure. We provide a huge Government subsidy, but we have been careful to target it at infrastructure and capital investment. We cannot leave public transport purely to the market, because then many Singaporeans would not be able to afford the full fare of public transport. So there is a role for Government in funding, but we have deliberately not subsidised the operational cost of public transport. The operators will have to make the operation viable. I was delighted to read the Streats' article last week, July 2, in which it quoted a Madam Soh Lay Hoon who stays in Jurong but works in Ang Mo Kio.”
“But if we take a pause, and think back on what we had 10 years ago, 20 years ago, it is a vast improvement. And for those who have used public transport in other cities, whether in the first world or in the third world, they know that we have not done too badly. Just last week, someone e-mailed me to relate the experience of one Singaporean now working in London. According to him, it has now become common for people to expect to come in late to office because the trains there frequently break down at peak periods. I used to be amused by the picture of the old rickety Indian bus, overflowing with commuters. Some have to climb onto the roof where, in fact, the best "seats" are. The next best "seats" are for those who recklessly hang themselves outside the bus by clutching onto doors and windows. Those with seats inside the bus turn out to be the most uncomfortable - hot, steamy, sweaty and suffocating! But you have to see it with your own eyes to appreciate this experience. So, the fact is that over the years, we have evolved a good public transport system, and it rests on four key pillars: Pillar No.1 - Responsive to Rising Expectations. The operators know that they have to be responsive to the rising expectations of Singaporeans. As education and income level rises, our service level has to rise to match it. Pillar No. 2 - Leveraging on Private Enterprise. We let private enterprise operate the service. This is to take advantage of the financial discipline of the market, and their greater capacity for innovation and speedy execution. There were some suggestions from Steve Chia just now, or is it Low Thia Khiang, "Forget about profit motive. Move to cost plus". Yes, we can do that. But then it would immediately lose the incentives. Profit is not a dirty word.”
“On the other hand, transport fares have lagged behind wage growth by a very big margin, and have largely kept pace with general inflation. In fact, depending on which criteria you use, one can argue that the average bus fares have been below the CPI increase over this period. So the fact is that PTC has actively protected the interests of the commuters. PTC members are serious, caring individuals, doing a national service, and doing a good job to the best of their ability. They certainly do not deserve the abuse which has been thrown on them over the last few weeks. The Chairman of PTC incidentally is in the gallery up there. In forming the PTC, we have deliberately included members from all walks of life, to give it a wide representation. In the current composition, it includes an accountant, an industrialist, a labour unionist, a media editor, an economist. While transport operators are also members of PTC, they cannot take part in decisions in which they have an interest, such as fare revisions. They are there so that the PTC will have first-hand knowledge of the industry that it is regulating. Nevertheless, we need to address the widespread concern of Singaporeans and respond to their grievances. But in so doing, we should not inadvertently undermine the foundation which has delivered the present state of our public transport system. Yes, our public transport system is not perfect. The MRT and LRT can go with less breakdowns. Buses can still be more punctual, and commuters would like to see many more bus services added even when the loading is not great. And, we will certainly work with the PTC, the operators, with the commuters, to make our public transport system better.”
“2 - fare increases are to fatten the profits of bus and train operators. Is it really? This can be easily verified. You cannot hide fat profits. In any case, management has no incentive to hide fat profits, as otherwise their bonuses would get affected. The big problem in Wall Street today is that some management has been tempted to produce fat profits through creative accounting. The fact is that our transport operators are not making fat profits. Yes, I have heard Mr Tan Soo Khoon quoting various figures to show the point that they are making fat profits. But if I were the bus and train operators, and I notice quite a few of them in the public gallery, I will immediately push out data to show to the rest of Singapore that indeed this is not the case. Misunderstanding No. 3 - fare increases are due to losses by transport operators in non-transport activities. Some people have speculated that huge losses by transport operators in properties and newspaper venture have caused the fares to be increased. Again, this is simply not true. We require all non-transport activities of the operators to be run by separate companies. They are fully ring-fenced from the basic public transport activities. Misunderstanding No. 4 - fare increases are not opposed by an uncaring PTC. Some people feel that PTC is on the side of the operators and is only interested in ensuring their profitability. They complain that PTC is not diligent in protecting consumer interests, and this criticism is most unfair. Let us check the record. PTC, as Mrs Lim Hwee Hua pointed out, was set up 15 years ago, 1987. Over this period, average wages in Singapore have more than doubled. To be precise, 136%. The general price level, CPI, has gone up much less, by 29%.”
“In a few years, with 3G, with wireless Internet, I expect buses and trains to become mobile offices where commuters continue to work and play while moving from one place to another. So the demand on our transport operators to be more sophisticated in its service offering is bound to rise further. And we will push the transport operators to seek productivity gains. But let us be honest, we cannot avoid some fare increases once in a while. Unfortunately, in the heat of the debate, both in the media and in the coffee shops, some misunderstandings have cropped up, and we need to first correct such misinformation, before we can choose the best course forward. Misunderstanding No. 1 - fare increases are due to frills - air-conditioned interchanges, fanciful bus shelters, TV in buses. Many said "Commuters do not need them, remove them and fare increases can be avoided." Whether these are frills, we can debate about it. But the key point is that the transport companies did not pay for any of these. They got them for free. Government pays for air-conditioned interchanges. Why? Government decided on air-conditioned interchanges because integrating the interchanges into high-rise commercial buildings makes much better use of land, instead of keeping bus interchanges as stand-alone buildings. But having integrated them into buildings, air-conditioning them becomes necessary. Likewise, fanciful bus shelters and TV Mobile, are services provided by other private companies because they expect to make money through advertisements. Since the transport companies did not pay for any of these services, they did not, and would not have been allowed to use these to ask for fare increases. In other words, commuters are not made to pay for these. Misunderstanding No.”
“Fare Increases are Inevitable The Government is committed to meeting the rising aspirations of Singaporeans. We are committed to making continuous improvements. And over the years, our transport operators have, by and large, been able to meet these higher demands. But it is not realistic to expect such improvements to come with no adjustments in fares. It is just not possible to deliver better services at the same price over a long period of time. Mr Chiam said that if only public transport could be like the mobile telephones where you see prices coming down with more and more competition. In telecommunication, it is possible, thanks to technology breakthroughs. Prices, in fact, have dropped. Unfortunately, in most other industries, such opportunities are not easily available. Because public transport is labour-intensive, cost increases due to wage increases are hard to avoid. Like other workers, transport workers deserve pay rise too. Let us be fair to the many honest, hard-working bus drivers, train operators, who work long hours, often past midnight, so that the rest of Singapore can work all day, and play all night. This is not to say that there is no scope for productivity gain. There is. And it is precisely productivity gains which have largely allowed the PTC to moderate transport fare increases over the years. First, two-men-operated buses became one-man-operated. Next, single-deck buses became double-deck buses. Then, we joined two buses into one, to save one driver. And it is not just productivity gain through hardware. The quality of bus drivers and train operators today is quite different from the old days. They are now better trained and better skilled. And they also need to be IT-literate, given the penetration of IT and Internet into public transport.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, thank you for allowing me to join in the debate. Like the MPs who have spoken earlier, I know many Singaporeans are unhappy over the transport fare increases. There is a general sense of unhappiness, and not just from bus commuters. They are frustrated that the Government seems to be hearing-impaired, or deaf to their pleas, at a time when we are still not yet out of the recession. I face this unhappiness too when I walk around my constituency. Their sentiments have been well expressed by the MPs before me. I would not repeat them. We need to respond to these concerns. As a responsible Government, we cannot govern in a vacuum. To govern effectively, we need the understanding of the people. Rising Aspirations I spent many years running public hospitals. I acquired a habit of walking the hospital wards, talking to patients and their relatives. They came from all walks of life, from the middle class to the lower income groups. But regardless of their background, they all have aspirations for a better life. This is as it should be. As Singapore graduates from third world to first world status, Singaporeans naturally expect to live like their counterparts in the first world. We therefore have high expectations of our public transport service. We demand continuous improvement - more choices, greater frequency, strict punctuality, greater comfort, no breakdowns. When I grew up in the kampong, I was used to waiting, without any shelter, often for an hour, before a dirty, hot and noisy bus would finally turn up. It was a different lifestyle then. People were more patient. Nowadays, my daughters would give me an earful if the MRT service was disrupted, even for a few minutes.”
“Just two-three months ago, I have to give a couple of lectures to a largely Buddhist audience. So I prepared my speech in English, because I am more competent in English. Then I asked my colleague in MITA to do a translation for me. But I have to do the final vetting and, in fact, as it turned out, I had to make a few amendments because the translator, being non-Buddhist, cannot fully capture my intent accurately. But I agree with Mr Seng that MITA, with its pool of language experts, is in a position to help. We can help train translators. We can help standardise the terminology to be used. We can help translate the important Government documents. And we do provide such a service for our colleagues in the other Ministries, but we have to be selective. For example, our service cannot extend to tourism promotion publications which should rightly remain the full responsibility of STB. Language is an important part of our heritage. It can also be a competitive advantage. So we must all try to be better at it. It is therefore very good of Mr Seng to raise this very important point. Credit must also be given to the media for highlighting these incidents. If we do not exert high standard on ourselves, then we will never be able to make progress.”
“Sir, I share the anguish and anger of Mr Seng Han Thong when our "Hungry Ghosts", in the hand of the Shanghainese translator, became naturalised "Hungarians". I was in MTI for seven years. So I know MTI corporate culture very well. In MTI, we are allergic to repeating mistakes. Each mistake leads to a thorough review of the operating procedure so that a similar mistake does not get repeated. So I have no doubt that, from now, in STB, there would not be double vetting, there will be triple, perhaps more. This human error cropped up in STB. But it could have cropped up in other departments, as in Contact Singapore, two years ago. It could have also happened in the private sector. Mr Seng felt that a Central Translation Bureau, or, in the interim, some vetting panel, would prevent such problems in future, at least for the public sector. I am not so sure. These incidents underline the importance of context and knowledge of cultural nuances. Hence, we cannot treat the language as purely technical. For Singapore to be cosmopolitan, we must develop a deeper knowledge of culture and context. And this must be achieved at every level, not just the translators, but the managers in charge must build that up too. Every publication is a communication exercise. The manager in charge is finally responsible for the accuracy of the message. He must take ownership. Passing the buck to a central bureau, or a vetting panel, is more likely to result in a loss of accountability on the part of the manager. The language experts in the Central Bureau can, at best, do a technical translation job but they cannot fully appreciate the nuances of the content or the intricacies of the policy intent. I have personal experience of this.”
“This is a US website, which reaches out to teenagers, allowing them to set up cyber shops to sell virtual goods to one another. It is absolutely cool, and along the way, a whole e-community is created globally. But she learns a thing or two about setting prices, how to take part in auctions and market competition, and that, for example, a price war is fundamentally crazy. Only the other day, she asked me why a particular player was selling her ware at a price way below her cost. She lost a customer as a result. She could have gone on a price war but she decided against it. I thought to myself, when she grows up, she may join PSA. VISIT OF MONGOLIAN PARLIAMENTARY DELEGATION (Presence in Gallery)”
“But by creating this alternative fixed-line infrastructure we bring about greater competition on domestic fixed-line, which I think will further reduce the prices of telephony, as we know it today. 4.15 pm I agree with Mr Zainudin that we should not be too romantic about 3Gs, and its hype. Fortunately for us, we are not too much ahead of the curve. The Europeans were ahead of it. So with huge auction prices, it now caused a big problem to the industry. That is why sometimes, it does not pay to be the early bird because you may end up the early worm. In certain cases, you have to be the early bird, but I think, in this case, it is better to see what has been done elsewhere. And so when we took our 3G auctions, it was many months later. As you can see, the bid prices are quite different. I read the Financial Times last week about the 3G development in Europe where there are great concerns. We are watching this whole development very closely so that we can learn from it. Dr Teo Ho Pin talked about greater use of the Internet so as to bring this application to the whole community, young and old, IT-literate or otherwise, creating, for example, e-communities. I totally agree. This is a very powerful medium and a very effective mass communication tool. The fact is we are under-utilising it. I agree with him that CDCs, Town Councils and Singaporeans individually should think creatively on how much more they can exploit this medium. IDA (with a $25 million budget) will be happy to facilitate and to cheer them on. Clearly, contents and applications are the key drivers. Once I got my mother-in-law to play mahjong, my problem becomes one of how to get her off the screen. My youngest daughter is addicted to Neopets.com and according to her, her entire class too.”
“For example, I personally dislike SMS (I do not mean my neighbours in this Chamber), because I cannot stand the tiny screen of the mobile phone and my thumb seems too big for the keys. Likewise, many older Singaporeans are "digitally-divided" because the working language on the Internet is still largely English, and many do not know how to type. So understanding these barriers is important if we are to further bridge the digital divide. IDA's various initiatives have produced meaningful results. I will just name a few. For example, through its collaboration with the Ministry of Manpower under the National IT Literacy Programme, we have trained more than 80,000 Singaporeans. The One Learning Place at Toa Payoh Community Library has trained more than 100,000 Singaporeans in the use of broadband. My mother-in-law attended one of the courses in a neighbourhood community centre and she now enjoys her real-time mahjong session on Yahoo.com, playing with players from all over the world, whom she never met. I watched her play the other day. She could not take part in the cyber-chat which always accompanies such games because she does not understand English. So she just concentrates on the game, and therefore she wins all the time. Mr Loh Meng See talked about the upcoming merger between Starhub and SCV. As the former Chairman of SCV, I played a small part in that merger process, which is on-going. And it has a specific objective, which is to create a fixed-line infrastructure in Singapore as an alternative to SingTel. Just now I talked about the three wires - the SingTel wire, the SCV wire, and a future "wireless".”
“Technology continues to make progress. So we are reviewing, or more correctly, updating our Infocomm 21 Vision, not so much in response to the bust of the dot-coms, but to take into account the continuing progress in technology. But there is one key difference in our approach going forward. In the last 20 years, the Government's role in championing the industry, jumpstarting the development, investing in capabilities and infrastructure, have laid a strong foundation. It has been largely supply-driven, policy-driven and domestic focus. Going forward for the sector to achieve its next breakthrough, the efforts will have to be more demand-driven, industry-driven and export-oriented. It means leadership in exploiting ICT for strategic advantage. It means the ability to extract maximum value from our commanding lead, to go beyond Singapore to penetrate the market overseas. I chair the Economic Review Committee's Services Industry Sub-Committee. We have identified several service sectors which we think Singapore can excel in, and the ICT sector is a clear candidate. Given our 20 years of head-start and investments in capabilities, we are bullish about its continuing growth. A completely industry-driven ICT Working Group, led by Mr Wilson Tan of the Singapore IT Federation, has been busily working with more than 100 industry players to help us draw up the strategy going forward. They will complete their work and submit their recommendations in due course. One strong advantage of Singapore in the ICT sector is that young Singaporeans are not shy of new technology or new gadgets. Our parents may seem to be shy of ICT, but I do not think it is because they are shy of new technology. The lower usage of ICT among the older Singaporeans is often due to other factors.”
“5 billion e-Government Action Plan seeks to transform the civil service into a leading e-Government in the world. Two-thirds of all Government services that can be offered online are already being delivered electronically. But, we will push towards 100%. So, similarly, our private sector should actively review their business processes to see how they can further exploit ICT to attract, to retain, and to delight their customers. Mr Chairman, after 20 years of strong growth, the ICT sector remains in a dynamic, creative and developing phase. Technology will continue to surprise. Broadband, wireless, 3G, web services, digital media, next generation Internet, and who knows what, will open up many new opportunities. In particular, the merger of ICT with media should throw up exciting opportunities. For example, in the digital media content industry, many industry analysts expect it to grow from US$100 billion to possibly US$350 billion by 2004. This is an exciting field where arts, business and technology intersect. Winners will go to those with a good dose of creativity and imagination. Those who can provide the consumers with a differentiated experience will win. It is a wide field, including animation, computer games, music, entertainment, film and print media using digital technology for both content creation and distribution. Our Singapore companies should seriously consider how they can ride on this wave. Dr Tan Boon Wan was correct to highlight the boom and bust of dot-coms. He asked if the bust should lead us to review our Infocomm 21 Vision. Many dot-coms have crashed, but the effects of the Internet Revolution in changing the way we live, work and play, are permanent. Industries and companies continue to be transformed by ICT.”
“On the policy side, let me just highlight three major initiatives, which have particularly positioned us well. First, the Government's decision to fully liberalise the telco sector in April 2000. Competition has brought down prices, and increased the range of service offerings to all Singaporeans, young and old. Many of us have personally benefited from this. My daughters certainly do. One of them told me the other night that she sends 700 SMS messages a month. She assured me that she is not among the heaviest users in her class. Second, the Government's decision to bring about a world-class infocomm infrastructure. Our IT 2000 Masterplan transformed Singapore into an Intelligent Island. We now have 1 million homes in Singapore, all of which have the options to effect broadband connection, either via ADSL, the copper wire, or SCV cable. And, increasingly, some homes will also have a third "wire", which is wireless. Dr Tan Boon Wan asked about progress in broadband adoption in homes and offices, which Mr Loh Meng See asked as well. We had a recent survey and it showed nearly 1 million broadband users in Singapore. This means that 1 in 3 Singaporeans, above the age of 10, are broadband users. More significantly, more than half of them took up broadband only last year. So clearly, the big bang in telco liberalisation has contributed to this growth, by bringing down prices. As far as I know, the cheapest broadband access package in town is only $38 per month, for unlimited usage. Third, the Government's initiative to actively cultivate sophisticated demand. We have, as Dr Tan put it, gone beyond the IT awareness stage to cultivate savvy usage of this very important medium. The public sector is leading on this. Its $1.”
“Sir, first let me thank the four Members who spoke up on various aspects of infocomm development in Singapore. As this is the first Budget in which ICT comes under the purview of MITA, allow me to briefly sketch out MITA's view on this sector, even as I reply to the specific queries of the Members. The ICT sector in Singapore has come a long way since 1981 when we formed the National Computer Board. The early pioneers have gone on with age. Some have moved to take on new responsibilities, like Mr Philip Yeo, who is now leading the charge of growing another new industry for Singapore - the life sciences. Another notable pioneer is Minister Lim Swee Say, who is now championing the cause of clean environment and NEWater. We have these and many other pioneers to thank for the significant progress that we have achieved. They helped lay not only a strong foundation, but a nimble culture, which has allowed us to move in tandem with global market and technology trends. Over the years, we see NCB moving from Mindef to MOF, to MTI and then to MCIT to merge with TAS to become IDA. And now IDA has moved into MITA's stable to help us push the ICT sector to a new height as we position Singapore for the next wave of convergences between IT, telecoms and broadcasting. So after 20 years, the ICT sector has grown to become a very significant contributor to our GDP. Its value-add contributes about 5.5%, which is significant. The total industry revenue is about $26 billion, and growing strongly. Right through the Asian financial crisis, the ICT sector continued its strong and robust growth. The progress we have made in the sector does not happen naturally. It is the result of proactive planning and timely policy interventions.”
“And, as I have reassured Prof. Low just now, we would fully take into account the interests and the concerns of the residents. The role of the MPs in coming forward to give us that feedback will be crucial, and I will be happy to facilitate a discussion between SBS Transit and Miss Penny Low, and her grassroots leaders, to show them our plans for the whole Punggol area, and I think in that way we can have a more productive discussion.”
“I have noted Mr Gan Kim Yong's suggestions on the Bukit Panjang LRT problem. As I explained earlier, let us have some confidence. The period of teething problems is over and the last six months' record gave us that confidence that they have been able, continuously, for six months, to achieve that 99.7%, which is a very high service standard despite the last two incidents a few weeks ago. But those two incidents merely confirm that there is nothing wrong with the system. This is not rocket science. LRT has been around for decades. Like all systems, it requires to be properly maintained. You can have the best of systems, but if it is not maintained, then it creates problems. Having identified that this is the problem, and I think that is the efforts the operator is committed to do, we will make sure that the operator delivers on this one. It can be done. It has been proven for six months since September last year, and I see no reason why it could not continue that way. Likewise, I can reassure Miss Penny Low that the problems of Bukit Panjang LRT of the past will be contained in the history book there. It will not spill over to Sengkang or Punggol. 5.00 pm As to the point about Punggol roads and so on, and the various possibilities, I must confess I am not too familiar with the Punggol area. The last time I went there was many years ago. But I took her feedback, I have to see what does it mean. But she did talk about the gap period between the opening of the Punggol MRT station and when the LRT opens, and there would be a need for service to be delivered during that period, and this is something that we will sort out with the operator of the MRT which happens to be SBS Transit. So certainly routes have to be rationalised, once we open Punggol MRT.”
“I am sure that will be a factor that we will take into account.”
“Sir, I thank Dr Chong Weng Chiew for his feedback on the effects of the current economic slowdown on taxi drivers, and he asked if we could assist them in some way. 4.45 pm Sir, the economic downturn affects everybody, so taxi drivers are not exempted. I have looked at their earnings data and I notice that their average earnings for last year have indeed come down by 10% in the second half, compared to the first half, something like from $2,300 per month on one shift operation to about $2,100. But there are signs of recovery. This year's data, in fact, show steady increases, month by month, in their earnings. Their average earnings in the first few months of this year, $2,500 for one shift operation, is now much higher than the average of $2,150 recorded in the last quarter of last year. This trend, I think, should continue as the economy recovers. As compared to other workers, taxi drivers have done much better. That is why, as Dr Chong noticed, there is a long queue outside waiting to join this profession. The Government is alive to the economic hardship of Singaporeans during the current recession. That is why we have implemented various schemes to help Singaporeans cope with the hard times - New Singapore Shares, rebates on HDB service and conservancy charges, utilities rebates, etc. Most taxi drivers are able to benefit from such schemes. Dr Chong mentioned the safety belt problem experienced by taxi drivers. We have checked with the Traffic Police because this is enforced by them. Traffic Police said that they do not encounter much problem with taxi drivers and their passengers during enforcement. But certainly, we will take a sympathetic approach, as suggested by Dr Chong, if indeed taxi drivers have uncooperative passengers.”
“Like all new technology, the rate of uptake would initially be low, due to consumer inertia. Green vehicle technology is still new, and it will take time for it to earn consumer acceptance. In fact, our low uptake here is not unique. In Japan and the US, their take-up rates are also very low. Last week, I read a Business Week article on green cars which drew the conclusion that the technology is still evolving, and they made the point that, realistically, green cars are not going to be a big thing for another 10 years. So this is a crucial point. What does it mean? It means that it will remain a niche product for quite some time. Therefore, the economy of scale, which is enjoyed by conventional cars, will not benefit green cars. So, despite whatever rebates we may give, green cars will remain expensive. But, like Mr Yeo, my Ministry supports the intent to reduce car pollution, and we will continue to promote green vehicles, and lean in their favour. But, at the same time, I do not think we should go over-board and, certainly, not too much ahead of consumer acceptance. But, meanwhile, we will monitor the development, and we can always review the rebates at the end of next year. We will then see if further changes will be necessary.”
“Sir, Mr Yeo Guat Kwang spoke in support of green vehicles. He felt that our current tax incentives were inadequate and, as a result, we do not see many of them on our roads. As pointed out by him, we first introduced the rebates for hybrid and electric cars in January last year. Then, in October 2001, he may not have noticed, we extended the rebates to natural gas vehicles. Our rebates comprise two components. First, a one-off rebate to reduce the upfront cost of purchase. For cars, this is 20% of the Open Market Value (OMV). For buses, the rebate is 5% of OMV, so, fully offsetting the ARF of a bus, ie, green buses do not have to pay any ARF. Second, there is a recurrent rebate on the annual road tax payable. For green vehicles, the rebates amount to 20% of road tax. For hybrid vehicles, a lower rebate of 10% is granted. Together, these rebates lower the upfront and annual running costs of green vehicles, and reduce the cost differential with the conventional vehicles. With these rebates and the lower fuel costs, the total cost of owning and using green vehicles should be comparable to that of conventional vehicles of equivalent OMV. But the take-up rate is, indeed, very low. To-date, only 15 green vehicles are on the road. Why is this so? Obviously, there are many other factors, apart from cost and rebates, which affect a motorist's decision on whether or not to buy a green vehicle. For example, how many models are available? Is it a limited range? In the market today, there are only three models. And, for some of the young buyers, what is the design like? Is it cool? And there are other factors, eg, what is the subsequent maintenance support by the dealers? All these are very important considerations.”
“Second, we did put it through rigorous tests before we started commercial service although, on hindsight, perhaps we could have allowed more time for trial running. Unfortunately, I think we did not do as well on the third step. We did not appoint the operator, which is SLRT, early enough. So, this is a very important lesson which we have learnt, and that is why for the North East Line, for Sengkang LRT and Punggol LRT, LTA has stepped up efforts to involve the operator, which will be SBS Transit, to prepare it, to gear it up for its tasks ahead. Prof. Low also stressed the need to integrate the LRT with bus routes. I totally agree. LRT and bus routes are different components of a system. They should synergise to bring maximum benefits to the majority of residents, and that is why each time a new LRT system is put in, we have to do some rationalisation of existing bus routes. It cannot be a simple add-on. But, in any rationalisation, we will take into account the interests and concerns of the residents. And, here, the Member of Parliament plays a significant role, in articulating the interests, feedback and suggestions of the residents. This was a role which Prof. Low played wonderfully. And in the recent general election results, there was clear evidence of that.”
“Given an experienced operational and maintenance crew, the wiring faults at the panels could have been identified and rectified speedily. But as it turned out, the operator took longer than necessary in troubleshooting the faults, resulting in prolonged shutdowns. 4.30 pm We will, therefore, continue to stress on staff training and retraining, and, particularly, in troubleshooting skills. Towards this end, the operator, SLRT, intends to engage Bombardier Transportation, which is the original system supplier, to help in its staff training programme. No efforts will be spared by SLRT to ensure compliance with the 99.7% service standard. On hindsight, could the initial teething problems of the BP LRT system be prevented? Yes. What are the steps that can be taken to ensure that we avoided it? First, the LTA applies stringent criteria when selecting a system. We take into account the experience of the designer and supplier, their reliability and their track record. This is done at the tender evaluation stage. Second, the selected system is put through rigorous trials and tests before we put it into service. Third, involve the operator early. The LTA brings the appointed operator on board at an early stage to be closely involved in the system's development. Such early involvement enhances the operator's knowledge and appreciation of the system, and it allows him to build up expertise, so that they are operationally ready before the start of service. Then why did Bukit Panjang LRT system fail to perform as expected? First, on selection. I think we did well. The BP LRT system is a sound system, based on proven technology. It is a mature system, has been running for more than 20 years in other parts of the world and in many cities. So, we got an "A" there.”
“But, nevertheless, we will continue to work with Mr Ang and his grassroots leaders to find if there are better and practical solutions to bring the noise level down. Let me now touch on the frequent breakdowns of Bukit Panjang LRT when it first started. Prof. Low stressed the need for us to minimise disruptions and make it a reliable system. I totally agree. Breakdowns inconvenience commuters. They are therefore not welcome. That is why we impose a very high performance standard on the LRT operator. What is our expectation? We set a standard, what is called service availability standard of at least 99.7%. What does this mean? This means that everyday, over a daily operating period of 20 hours, the maximum down time should not exceed four minutes. This is a very demanding standard. But it can be achieved. Unfortunately, the Bukit Panjang LRT did not perform to standard initially. During its first two years of operation, there were a number of occasions when it could not meet the standard. We share the frustration of the Member and his residents. We had not sat on our palms. A lot of efforts and resources were mobilised to first understand the problem and then to fix them. We have made progress. Since last September, for a continuous six months period, the Bukit Panjang LRT system succeeded in achieving this very high standard of 99.7%. Unfortunately, this very good record was interrupted by two incidents. One, last month, and a second one, this month. Detailed investigations are ongoing but the preliminary assessment confirms that the LRT system is robust and, in fact, is functioning as designed. On both occasions, the system was shut down automatically because the IT system detected some faults which were eventually traced to wiring problems at the termination panels.”
“We can realise these plans within the next 15 years or earlier. Let me now talk about the noise created by trains. As we build more rails and bring them closer to the people, we cannot avoid some degree of noise pollution. To eliminate it, we have to stop building apartments near to the roads, or MRT tracks. In that case, then there will be no Guilin View in Mr Ang Mong Seng's constituency. In Singapore, we know this is not practical. So we have to accept that some apartment blocks will be subjected to some noise pollution. But we must certainly do our best to cut down the level of pollution. Mr Ang spoke specifically about the noise level created by MRT trains around the Bukit Gombak Station. He wrote to me. I went there to take a look. Within 200 metres of this station, there is this Guilin View, a private condominium, and about a dozen HDB blocks located near there. We have tried to cut down the noise levels by adopting several measures. First, LTA sets very strict criteria when they select trains so that the noise emission limit is subject to certain guidelines which are set by the Ministry of the Environment. Secondly, LTA designs and constructs the MRT tracks to allow them to absorb noise better. That is why ballasted tracks on timber sleepers are used on all our MRT viaducts. Third, and this is a very important point, we require our MRT operators to properly maintain their trains and their tracks. Good maintenance will ensure that noise levels are kept within environment guidelines. LTA has taken noise measurements near Bukit Gombak Station, and those measurements indicate that the levels are still within ENV's guidelines.”
“Sir, Mr Yeo Guat Kwang said that transport infrastructure should be free flowing like the blood circulation system. I totally concur. To achieve such an outcome requires careful planning and sound execution. Mr Yeo is again correct to say that an efficient Rapid Transit System (RTS) network is an important part of our transport infrastructure and its timely expansion is critical to making public transport an attractive alternative to private transport. Today, our RTS network has reached 100 km. We are increasing it by 50% to about 150 km by 2006. This would be achieved when we complete the following projects. First, the North-East Line and the Sengkang LRT by the end of this year. Second, the Punggol LRT by the end of 2004. And third, the first two stages of Circle Line by 2006. Beyond that, our plan is to further expand the network by another 60% to about 240 km by 2015. By then, almost 90% of our City Centre and practically every job or employment would be within 400 metres of the nearest MRT station. This is an ambitious project and requires tens of billions of dollars. An ambitious plan of this kind will need to be executed in phases. First, we will complete the remaining stages of Circle Line by the year 2010, at the end of this decade. Next, we will build several new lines which are now at various stages of planning. They are, first, the Bukit Timah Line to serve the Bukit Panjang, Upper Bukit Timah and Bukit Timah areas. Second, the Eastern Region Line, to complement the existing East-West Line in the East and, finally, the Jurong Region Line, which is a light rail system to serve the residents in Jurong as well as NTU. Mr Yeo Guat Kwang suggested that we expedite the expansion of the network. We will do our best, provided the economy performs well.”
“Sir, they are being installed. Those are called bus-cams and they have been effective in discouraging violators. We still receive cases every month - I cannot remember the figures - but not many. Obviously, they have worked. SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDERS (Exempted Business) With the consent of Mr Speaker and the general assent of Members present, Question put, and agreed to. Resolved, "That, notwithstanding Standing Order 88(2), the exempted business motion be taken now and the proceedings on the remaining items on the Order Paper for today be exempted at this day's sitting from the provisions of Standing Order No. 1. " - [Mr Mah Bow Tan] BILL INTRODUCED INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION BILL "to enable Singapore to become a Member of the International Development Association by acceptance of the Articles of Agreement of the establishment and operation of the International Development Association", recommendation of President signified; presented by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance (Mr Lee Hsien Loong); read the First time; to be read a Second time on the next available sitting of Parliament, and to be printed. PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS Debate on the Address (Fifth Allotted Day) Order read for Resumption of Debate on Question [1st April, 2002], 'That the following Address in reply to the Speech of the President be agreed to: "We, the Parliament of the Republic of Singapore, express our thanks to the President for the Speech which he delivered on behalf of the Government at the Opening of the First Session of this Parliament.".' - [Mrs Lim Hwee Hua]. Question again proposed. 1.25 pm”
“I think it depends on the volume of buses. We have checked. For example, on Saturday mornings, bus schedules remain quite heavy, as compared to weekdays. Yes, on Sundays, the schedules come down significantly. But as far as bus companies are concerned, they treat Saturdays as similar to weekdays. If I may give you some examples of the streets around this area. Hill Street, for example, on weekdays, in the morning, bus volume is about 164 per hour, ie, about two or three buses every minute. On Saturdays, it is 149 or 150, so there is not much difference. On Sundays, it comes down very drastically, about 130. Bras Basah Road, on weekdays, it is 180; Saturday mornings, 165. So it remains quite heavy. I know the concern. We have built roads and roads are expensive. We do not want to under-utilise the resources. Therefore, we are extremely selective when we decide on which roads to impose bus lanes. Although the working criterion is about 50 buses per hour, which is one bus per every 60-70 seconds, in practice, where we impose bus lanes, the bus volumes triple those rates.”