Lawrence Wong
Singapore
“Sir, we will provide more information. I see the value of getting Ministries to put out more information, to share more about how their resources are being used and what outcomes they have achieved.”
“Sir, I agree fully with Mr Azhar that human capacity, human capital is critical. In fact, I would say the long-term potential of Singapore, how far we go really depends on us being able to maximise our human potential. That is key and that is why we have long invested in education. And it is not just about the investments.”
“Sir, we have been maintaining that commitment of 1% for some time now. I do not think it is about saying that we just have to do more and spend more. As many have highlighted, we want to ensure good outcomes from our R&D spending as well. So, we will continue if the outcomes are good.”
“This has never been the case. Temasek, when it started, was always very clear about its mandate from the very beginning – commercial, not doing national service, focused on commercial outcomes.”
“Sir, the MOF economists when they look at fiscal projections use Government's forecast of the economy, which is also published. We would typically use the mid-point of the range and then, of course, because these are in nominal terms, you have to factor for that. And the projections are done on those basis.”
“Sir, I was relieved that Mr Loh said he only has one question, but he asked the most difficult question. To answer the question, we will continue to monitor cost of living across all segments of society.”
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“I think Mr Liang asked, how about that debt issuances by the Statutory Boards. That is quite separate from sovereign debt. Statutory Boards are separate legal entities from the Government. The provisions, the safeguards for the issuance of debt by Statutory Boards are governed in their respective legislation. But, for sovereign debt, SGS, Singapore Government Securities, Treasury Bills, we have the two Acts that we are referring to today – the Government Securities Act and the Local Treasury Bills Act; and the limits for issuance of debt under these two Acts are set out in the Act and authorised by Parliament. From time to time, when we need to increase, we come back to Parliament and we seek Parliament's endorsement for an increase in these limits. Let me see which other questions. Mr Liang asked about borrowing cost and whether we can ensure that we are able to invest well enough to pay the debts, debts that we borrow through the Singapore Government Securities; and the answer is yes. Temasek, GIC are long-term investors. They are constantly looking out for long-term investment opportunities and overall, we are able to meet our debt servicing cost fully from the returns generated from our investments. Mr Liang asked about borrowing for infrastructure too. I think similarly, we will address that separately. He asked also about whether there will be newer variations of issuance like green bonds. That is something we will consider, quite separate from this exercise. So, when we think about borrowing and using debt as fiscal policy for funding of major infrastructure projects, we will study if they are possibilities for different types of issuances like the issuance of green bonds. Finally, Mr Liang asked about negative interest rates.”
“These debt ceilings for the Singapore Government Securities, SGS and Treasury Bills are raised periodically. I think Members have highlighted, it is almost like a routine exercise. The reason why we do this every four or five years is twofold. The purposes of raising the debt ceiling and to issue bonds, SGS or SSGS are twofold. Number one, to develop the domestic bond market; and number two, to meet the investment needs of the CPF and the CPF members. So, why are we doing this? Number one, CPF needs are growing and I have highlighted, almost 75% of the increase in the proposed limits will be issued for SSGS, for CPF needs. What are the assumptions behind CPF members' needs growing? It is not really about GDP. It is linked to resident workforce growth, CPF contribution rates. These are quite predictable and the needs are growing and therefore, we need to cater for it. And I said, the significant part of the increase will be put for SSGS purposes, which means for the needs of CPF and CPF members. The second area is to develop the domestic bond market. Here, it is not so much about the overall economic condition, but it is about the demand for high-quality assets from financial institutions in tandem with the development of our financial markets. We get that assessment from MAS, they tell us that there is strong demand, continued demand. In fact, even in this period, there is continued strong demand for high-quality safe assets. And SGS and Treasury Bills are safe assets. So, financial institutions have demand for these assets. We have reached the limits and therefore we are also providing for an increase in the GSA and in the LTBA to provide to issue more SGS and the shorter term Treasury Bills. So, that is the basis for raising the debt limits.”
“I started my career in the Civil Service as a Budget Officer. I know all about zero-based budgeting. We do that. We do that. So, we have a framework of block budgets. Yes. That is to give certainty and assurance to Ministries for spending and for planning. But from time to time, we go in and we review Ministries' projects, Ministries' spending and we take a zero-based approach to make sure that there is value for money in Government spending. Finally, Mr Leong suggested increase in taxes. Excellent! We fully support that. And when the Government were to put up proposals for increase in taxes, please, we would certainly hope that the opposition Members of this House would also support us in making these moves in order to strengthen our fiscal position. And I assure you, each time we make such a proposal, we will want our taxation system to be progressive. It is already a very progressive system, in fact. We have highlighted this many times in this House. We have said that for every tax dollar that a person pays, if he is lower income, he gets $4 in benefits, a ratio of one to four. Whereas, if you are higher income, for every tax dollar you pay, you get much less in benefits. It is already a very progressive system. Even in the way we do GST, we have introduced elements of progressivity because we have a permanent GST Voucher which we give back to the lower income. So, the whole basis of our taxation system is designed to be fair, to be progressive, to enable us to move towards a fairer and more equal society. So, we are in complete agreement in moving in that direction. Next, there were some questions raised about assumptions. Assoc Prof Jamus Lim asked about the assumptions behind the increase of the debt ceilings and I think Mr Liang Eng Hwa asked the same question.”
“Mdm Deputy Speaker, I thank the speakers and Members for their support of the Motion. You know, there is a time and season for everything under the sun. Members have raised many issues that are outside the scope of these two Acts and the Motions that I have raised. But I will try, nevertheless, to address some of the points that are raised. I think Assoc Prof Jamus Lim gave us an economics tutorial on the virtues of using debt financing, and Mr Leong Mun Wai also agreed with the merits of using debt financing. I am in complete agreement with the broader points that are raised, that there is scope for debt financing in Singapore. And that is why we have said that we are studying very carefully the use of borrowing for long-term major infrastructure projects. So, that is coming. But that is not the scope of today's Motions. We will have a full presentation on the Government's plans when we are ready and we can have a full debate on the extent to which debt financing is used, the limits for such borrowing and the scope of such borrowing. So, we will do that in due course. Mr Leong asked about Statutory Boards having excess cash. We are very mindful of the cash that is in Statutory Boards. That is why we have put in place a framework to look at centralised management of liquidity across the whole-of-Government. So, from time to time, very regularly, we will discuss with the Statutory Boards if, indeed, they do not have specific plans for use of these reserves, we may very well and we have in the past swept back the reserves into the Government funds. So, that has happened and we will continue to do that. The point that Mr Leong raised is a valid one. We will continue to do so. Mr Leong also asked about Budget processes. It is an area close to my heart.”
“For the present Motion, I propose to raise the ceiling for issuing Government Securities under the Government Securities Act by S$270 billion to S$960 billion. The proposed limit of S$960 billion will apply to the outstanding amount of Government Securities and is expected to last for five years till 2025. Madam, I beg to move. [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)]”
“Such temporary cashflow mismatches may occur from time to time as we seek to optimise the Government's treasury and liquidity management and minimise the excess cash holdings in the Government's balance sheet. Cashflow mismatches can occur when there are unanticipated delays in cash inflow, which may coincide with an earlier-than-expected cash outflow. When this occurs, we would address this by tapping on our liquidity buffers. It is, therefore, important for the Government to have diversified sources of liquidity for better risk management, and the ability to issue ad-hoc Treasury Bills when needed would provide the Government with greater operational flexibility to manage our liquidity needs. To distinguish this from the regular Treasury Bills, the ad-hoc Treasury Bills will be called "Cash Management Treasury Bills", or CMTB in short. The tenure of CMTB will be tailored to meet the period of need and will be less than six months as it will be issued solely for short-term cashflow management. I should emphasise that issuing CMTB will only expand our cash management toolkit. Again, it does not increase our fiscal budget available for spending. The maximum size of the CMTB is envisaged to be no larger than S$10 billion, which has been accounted for under the proposed increase in the LTBA borrowing limit. The increases in the borrowing limits are for specific market development and operational needs purposes and not to cover the Government's fiscal shortfall. Any increase in the Government borrowings under the GSA and LTBA will correspondingly increase the Government's cash and liabilities but will not increase the Government's fiscal budget for spending.”
“So, that is for the 74% The remaining 26% of the increase under the GSA will be for the issuance of SGS. This is to support the continued development of a vibrant SGS market, that serves as an anchor for the growth of corporate debt market, and to meet the increased demand for high quality liquid assets from financial institutions in tandem with the growth of our financial markets. Like SGS, we have seen an increase in demand for Treasury Bills from investors. These are shorter in tenure. Issuing more Treasury Bills will help meet market demand for high quality short-term Singapore dollar denominated papers. We will continue to monitor the market demand for both Government Securities and Treasury Bills and will increase the rate of issuance to meet this demand, if necessary. The Government will also put in place a new short-term cash management tool, where Treasury Bills can be issued on an ad-hoc basis to meet temporary cashflow mismatches. The Government strives to maintain a healthy level of Government Deposits with MAS and has a variety of cashflow sources like tax revenue and land sales to meet our liquidity needs for day-to-day operations. The introduction of this new tool is part of the Government's on-going efforts to expand our cash management toolkit and will provide more operational flexibility to raise cash quickly, should any short-term cashflow mismatches occur in future. Issuing ad-hoc short-term bills for cash management is not a new concept, as countries from around the world like Sweden have similar cash management bills programme to meet their governments' temporary cashflow mismatches.”
“These limits are authorised by Parliament. For the GSA, the last increase for the issuance limit took place in 2016, when Parliament approved the increase of the Government's issuance limit from S$490 billion to S$690 billion. Currently, the outstanding amount of securities issued under the GSA is S$642 billion. For the LTBA, the last increase for the issuance limit took place in 2007, when Parliament approved the increase of the Government's issuance limit from S$30 billion to $60 billion. Currently, the outstanding amount of securities issued under the LTBA is S$60 billion. So, the Government has fully utilised the prevailing LTBA limit, and we expect to utilise the prevailing GSA limit before mid this year. There is therefore a need to raise these limits, to cater to the growth in demand for Government Securities and Treasury Bills expected over the next five years. Under the GSA, we project that the outstanding amount of securities will reach S$960 billion by the end of 2025. About 74% of this increase is expected to be issued to the CPF as SSGS. In other words, we issue this to CPF as Special Singapore Government Securities (SSGS) to meet its investment needs. The coupon rates which the SSGS earn for the CPF Board match the interest rates that CPF members receive. We expect CPF balances to increase due to growth in the resident labour force and wages. For example, the resident labour force grew by an average of 1% per year from 2015 to 2020. Over the same period, nominal median gross monthly income from work of full-time employed residents grew by 2.8% per year. Upcoming CPF policy enhancements, like the higher CPF contribution rates for older workers will also increase CPF's investment needs in the coming years.”
“I would invite Members to express their views or raise questions on both Motions during the debate. We will still move and take the Treasury Bills motion separately to ensure that the procedural requirements are dealt with. However, this proposal to have the substantive debate for both Motions taking place now, will allow the substantive arguments to be captured cogently in a single debate. Let me explain why there is a need to increase both borrowing limits. Madam, the Government Securities Act (GSA) authorises the issuance of Government Securities in Singapore. These securities are issued not for Government spending. They are to fulfil other purposes. Specifically, the Singapore Government Securities (SGS) are issued to develop the domestic debt market and provide financial institutions with high quality liquid assets to meet regulatory requirements; the Special Singapore Government Securities (SSGS) are non-tradable bonds issued primarily to meet the investment needs of the Central Provident Fund (CPF); and the Singapore Savings Bonds (SSB) are issued to provide individual investors with a long-term savings option. Separately, the Local Treasury Bills Act (LTBA) authorises the issuance of Treasury Bills, to develop the domestic short-term debt market and to meet market demand for short-term rated Singapore Government debt securities. Madam, let me emphasise again that these borrowings under both the GSA and the LTBA are invested, and do not increase the amount available for Government spending. So, the increases in the respective borrowing limits do not improve the Government's fiscal position. Both the GSA and the LTBA provide for limits on the amounts that can be borrowed through the issuance of Government Securities and Treasury Bills respectively.”
“The Ministry of Education (MOE) does not collect data on household income of students, except for Singapore citizen students who apply for the MOE Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS), where the income criterion is set at about the bottom quintile of the national household income. These students on MOE FAS score a wide range of PSLE T-scores. Over the past decade, including for 2020, their median PSLE T-score has been stable at around 164. Likewise, the median PSLE T-score of the entire PSLE cohort has remained stable at around 207 over the past decade. During the implementation of Circuit Breaker in April 2020, teaching and learning continued via Home-based Learning. Schools reached out to students without access to digital devices and internet access, including those from low-income families. Over 20,000 digital devices and 1,600 internet dongles were loaned out to ensure that students were able to continue learning. To further support students' learning, schools invited and welcomed students to use the school facilities with teacher supervision during the Circuit Breaker, and established channels and processes for students to ask teachers for coaching and help with their assignments. Teachers monitored the well-being of vulnerable students and engaged them via various platforms such as regular phone calls and video calls. When in-person classes gradually resumed, teachers took stock of students' learning progress and provided those who needed additional support with the necessary remediation and consultation. These efforts have contributed to ensuring that even our most vulnerable students were able to continue learning during the period of school closure.”
“As of end-August 2020, about 600,000 or 23.5% of eligible Singaporeans had utilised their SkillsFuture Credit (SFC). The latest available data for the breakdown by age groups is as of end-2019. The percentage of older Singaporeans (aged 60 and above) who had used their SFC was about 16%. For Singaporeans in the other age groups (i.e. 25 to 39 years old, and 40 to 59 years old), it was around 22%. Overall, about 540,000 or 20% of eligible Singaporeans had utilised their SFC by the end of 2019. SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) works with various partners to run community outreach initiatives like the SkillsFuture Advice workshops or webinars, which help to raise awareness of SkillsFuture initiatives like the SkillsFuture Credit. To provide more personalised guidance to Singaporeans, SSG also works with Government agencies, unions and self-help groups to provide Skills and Training Advisory services at job fairs, workshops, community events and other touchpoints. These services seek to signpost Singaporeans towards courses that support their desired career and job outcomes. Specific to older Singaporeans, SSG also works with partner agencies to ensure that there is a suitable range of SkillsFuture Credit-eligible courses to cater to their upskilling needs. This includes IT courses offered by the Infocomm Media Development Authority's (IMDA) Silver Infocomm Junction and courses supported by the National Silver Academy, as well as courses in mother tongue languages.”
“Over the last five years, virtually all our schools have teachers with C-, D, E grades. The only exceptions are a few new schools in their first year with relatively few teachers.”
“Responsible consumption is a key aspect of environmental education in schools. Students learn how their actions and habits, such as the consumption of resources, can impact the environment. This is done through both the curriculum and co-curriculum across the different levels. At the primary level, students learn about Singapore's natural environment and the importance of conserving natural resources in Science and Social Studies. They go on to learn about global warming, deforestation and sustainable resource management in Science and Geography at the secondary level. Sustainable consumption of food, goods and services is given greater emphasis in the revised Upper Secondary Nutrition and Food Science and Lower Secondary Food and Consumer Education syllabuses. Through Economics, Geography and Science subjects at the pre-university level, students deepen their understanding of the impact of climate change and the depletion of resources on countries' growth, as well as trade-offs countries make to achieve Sustainable Development Goals. Students also discuss sustainability issues in General Paper lessons. Our students are provided opportunities to apply what they have learnt through daily routines in school, and participation in Values-in-Action and co-curricular activities, such as Green or Environmental Clubs which promote reducing food waste, recycling and upcycling. Many schools adopt the Singapore Green Awards (SGA) framework developed by the Singapore Environment Council (SEC) to audit their efforts in promoting responsible consumption. In 2019, SEC awarded SGA to more than 200 MOE schools, recognising their contribution towards environmental protection.”
“MOE plans schools based on the needs of the current and projected populations in each residential area, especially for primary schools given the young age of the students. Relocating schools to newer housing estates with a higher population density of school-going children is one option we consider in school planning, to improve the geographical spread and access to schools. For example, we recently announced the relocation of two schools to new housing estates. Yusof Ishak Secondary will be relocating from Bukit Batok to Punggol, and Angsana Primary will be relocating from Tampines Avenue 2 to the new Tampines North estate. However, relocation also means disruption to the existing students as well as for potential future students from its vicinity who would have more limited choice of schools. There are also significant infrastructure and financial costs, which requires us to look at whether there is sustained demand for school places at the new site over the medium to long term, as well as whether there are other schools with available vacancies within a reasonable distance to meet the demand there. For these reasons, while MOE is prepared to consider re-location of schools, it is generally carried out fairly sparingly. MOE will continue to monitor closely the needs in housing areas with high population of school-going children and adjust its plans to ensure that there are sufficient school places for school-going children.”
“All primary and secondary schools are equipped with basic handicapped facilities for students with physical disabilities such as handicapped toilets. Over the years, many schools have also been provided with lifts to enhance accessibility as part of their upgrading, and MOE will be implementing a lift installation programme to cover all remaining older school buildings that lack lifts. In addition to providing schools with basic barrier-free accessibility, we will also ensure a good spread of schools island-wide with full barrier-free accessibility. There are currently 64 primary schools, 34 secondary schools and 4 Junior Colleges/Centralised Institute island-wide with full barrier-free accessibility for students with physical disabilities. A list of these schools is available on the MOE website and in the information guides distributed to all parents for Primary 1 Registration and Secondary 1 Posting. This list of schools will steadily increase as all new schools and schools undergoing major upgrading will also be outfitted with lifts and slope ramps to achieve full barrier-free accessibility. Apart from infrastructural facilities, MOE has also made available assistive learning provisions, such as adjustable furniture, to help students with physical disabilities in their learning. In addition, MOE collaborates with Social Service Agencies to provide transition and support services for such students, including assessing and advising students on educational accommodations and how they can better access school activities. MOE will continue to ensure that students with physical disabilities in our schools are well supported in their learning.”
“In addition, MOE will deepen schools’ capacity to foster positive class culture, investigate and address bullying, and work with parents and the community to educate our young.”
“MOE takes a serious view of bullying and works with schools to send a clear message to all students that any form of bullying is not acceptable. Since 2012, the number of incidents reported each year to schools has remained low, at about two incidents per 1000 primary students and five incidents per 1000 secondary students. Schools articulate the zero-tolerance stance for bullying through stating clear school rules and consequences for bullying, conducting regular briefings to staff and students to raise awareness of bullying, and investigating cases and taking action promptly. Appropriate disciplinary action is taken to guide perpetrators and restore relationships with those whom they have hurt. Counselling support is also provided to victims. Parents are involved to reinforce the same values and expectations of their children’s behaviour. The zero-tolerance stance, coupled with an educative and restorative approach to bullying management, has kept the bullying incidences low. However, bullying cases are getting more complex, extending into the online space and often involve unresolved conflicts. There may also be concerns that there may be cases of bullying that go unreported and victims continue to suffer. MOE will thus strengthen support for schools in three areas. First, the refreshed Character and Citizenship Education Curriculum will place a strong emphasis on guiding students to be kind and caring, both online and offline. Next, schools will establish a peer support culture whereby every student understands that bullying is wrong and learns how to help and support those who have been bullied.”
“Blended Learning enriches our students’ educational experience by enabling them to benefit from multiple modes of learning. This includes the integration of Home-Based Learning (HBL) as a regular part of students’ schooling experience so that they have more opportunities to learn in an independent, self-directed manner. MOE has implemented a professional development (PD) programme to enable our teachers to design effective Blended Learning experiences for their students. Teachers can access online learning modules, such as those on bridging in-school and home-based learning, and learn how to monitor students’ learning progress during HBL through online workshops with Master Teachers. Teachers can also participate in Networked Learning Communities where they can learn from one another and collaborate on delivering Blended Learning. Besides PD support, MOE also provides teachers with a growing set of curriculum resources on the Singapore Student Learning Space for their use or adaptation in delivering HBL. MOE has provided schools with a resource guide to support their implementation of Blended Learning, while leaving room for each school to customise their approach. For example, schools are guided on how often to have HBL, and how to decide what learning outcomes can be learned effectively in a self-directed way. Schools that require more guidance can consult MOE directly. Taken together, these measures will help raise our overall capacity as a system.”
“Mr Speaker, the categories of people who do not require to take the Pre-Departure Tests are spelt out publicly – Singaporeans, PRs who are returning home, children. Those are the key categories. So, I have not looked at the data in great detail but, based on the information we have put out, that the 12,000 which I cited, would largely comprise of these visitors or these returnees. But as I have highlighted and emphasised, whether someone does a Pre-Departure Test or not, so long as they come into Singapore from a high-risk country, we subject them to a quarantine, SHN. It is quite tight and we make sure that these cases, if they were to emerge, are isolated and ring-fenced and do not leak into our local community. That is the more important point. And we have continued to do so.”
“Mr Speaker, as we have highlighted before, without a vaccination, there will be all the various measures that are in place – whether it is testing, whether it is safe distancing, whether it is, you know, tighter control around a particular venue. These are all the prevailing measures that we are used to. They will continue. When vaccination comes in, we may relax some of these requirements. Many of us are not vaccinated today except for the healthcare workers. But we can do many activities subject to prevailing guidelines, prevailing safe distancing measures. The idea is that when you get vaccinated, perhaps some of these measures can be relaxed. And we are studying what are the potential changes and adjustments that we might allow and consider. So, it is not going to be a situation where we say, "No, you can't do this." But it is more likely to be a situation where vaccination will allow you some benefits in terms of activities, in terms of being exempted from certain requirements. Exactly what these are, as I said earlier, it is under study and when we have the data, evidence, when we are clear about what changes are possible in our guidelines and measures, we will put that out to the public.”
“So, between now and the third quarter of the year, let us not rush to make big changes and big relaxations. We have to do this in a controlled manner, recognising that the risks are there and the virus is raging everywhere in the world. There are new strains emerging. So, let us do this in a very controlled, careful, calibrated manner. Even after we have had a lot of people in Singapore being vaccinated, it does not mean that everything is over. Because no country is safe until everyone in the world is safe and it will take some time for the whole world to get vaccinated. So, yes, getting all of us in Singapore vaccinated is important. It will enable us to move further in terms of relaxation of measures for travel, for our own resumption of activities within Singapore. But if your hope is to get back to a pre-COVID-19 sort of normal, I think we still have to be circumspect and we still have to be realistic. The virus is still going to be raging in many other parts of the world, vaccinations will take time to distribute to every country, to everyone in the world. So, we have to be prepared to live with COVID-19 for quite a while.”
“Mr Speaker, Mr Leong reflected the sentiments, he says that people have, that these changes from Phase Two to Phase Three are not very meaningful. But in fact, in fact, when you go from five to eight, in groups of five to groups of eight, you are adding a lot of risk. Particularly, if one person goes out multiple times, each time a group of eight persons eating, dining, visiting, you are adding a lot of risk. So, I would say, "Don't sweat the small stuff". It may appear small but these are significant moves that we are making. I think people do appreciate that they can meet in larger groups, meet with their family members, meet with their loved ones and every time we make one step forward, relax a measure, we are adding risk and all of the risk, do add up. So, it is not just simply saying, "The situation looks very good, let's all keep opening up, let's keep opening up." But each time we make a move, we have to be very sure that we have the tools and the enablers to keep the infection under control. With regard to these different tools on testing, on tracing, we have already reached quite a high level. We have reached the desired capacity of testing that we wanted to build up. We have the capacity to test more frequently and we are going to do more, using rapid test. We have 78% of people in Singapore on TraceTogether. It is already a very high percentage, probably the highest in the world on a contact tracing system; and we will still try to get a higher rate. So, on these, we are doing quite well. The one thing that can allow us to open up more is vaccination. But we will only be able to get people vaccinated, a significant number of people vaccinated, as we said, by the third quarter of the year.”
“Sir, I just want to say I fully agree with Mr Lim Biow Chuan. Thank you for making the plug for the app. For those who have smartphones, there is really no need to collect the token. I have not collected my token. I do not see a need to collect my token either because I am quite happy using my app. So, we will continue to strongly encourage everyone with the app – use the app. We will try to make the app more useful, add more features and hopefully, when we do that, it will further tilt the balance and encourage more people in favour of using the app as opposed to the tokens. But to the extent that Singaporeans want to collect the tokens, I think we do want to make them available, reduce any anxieties associated with the roll-out of to TraceTogether-only SafeEntry and that is why we are doing this one time distribution. We will complete that soon and then, we will transit, as I said, to this new phase of having TraceTogether-only SafeEntry. I share Mr Lim's concerns and I would strongly encourage all of us to put the message out to our residents, the app is just as effective perhaps even more effective when new features are added on, so, please use the app.”
“Mr Speaker, we had indeed considered these factors on whether or not to have a battery or rechargeable version. I think if you consider the imperatives of what we had to do – roll out the token very quickly and get it distributed in a short time – there is no question, we have to use a version that allows us to use off-the-shelf components. We do not have to incur more costs. We do not have to incur greater complexity in manufacturing. So, that was very clear. In terms of battery replacement, yes, for the tokens that we have today, the batteries will need to be replaced and we will put in place an implementation process to facilitate that for free, for everyone. Some of it can be done through a simple replacement. Depending on the version of the tokens, because there are different versions. Some of them can be done just through true a simple replacement of the battery, you need not do a one-for-one swap. In other instances, it may be easier to do a one-for-one swap. But we have indeed taken into consideration all of these factors including the fact that with the current model, you may need to do a one-for-one swap, but we overall still think that this approach, given the circumstances, given the urgency of rolling out the tokens, was a better approach.”
“So, those are the things that we are looking at and these are all being studied very carefully For purposes of the WEF event which Ms Foo highlighted, well, if the travellers come in on a vaccine and if we have the data and evidence, then, indeed, we can review the requirements that we impose on these travellers. Otherwise, the basic arrangements for the WEF event will be through existing prevailing measures. For example, we will bubble wrap a facility. We will put the travellers under frequent testing to ensure that they are safe. We will have safe management measures in place. All of these measures are still effective and we should still continue to rely on them.”
“Mr Speaker, it is important that we look at vaccinations as just part of the broader suite of measures that we have to protect ourselves, including safe management, testing and contact tracing. Vaccination is not a silver bullet. It is just part of that overall system. As I have mentioned just now, we are still assessing the extent to which vaccinations can help reduce transmission risk. We know when you get vaccinated, you are protecting yourself. You do not know how much you can protect others. Yes, there will be some beneficial impact but what is the extent? It is still under consideration. So, until we understand the effects of the vaccine, I think we will not be able to make any changes to our measures, be domestic or travel measures. But if the results indicate that vaccinations do offer protection to others, then, clearly, we can make some adjustments. What are some of the adjustments that are possible? For example, if there is a concert being held today, typically, under today's rules, we would require a pre-event test for everyone going to the concert. Potentially, if you have been vaccinated, we might say: well, someone who has been vaccinated need not take such a pre-event test. That is conceivable. Subsequently, if we have, again, more evidence, we might say, for travellers, well, you do not need a vaccination to travel but, if you are vaccinated, you travel and you come back, I might consider the extent to which I impose the Stay-Home Notice (SHN) conditions or the number of tests you are required to take. These are also possible.”
“Now, we have stood down the facilities at the Expo and Big Box because we do not need them for now. I told the team we will do our best to avoid calling on them again. I think they were quite relieved to hear that. But I was also very heartened when they said, "Don't worry, if the need arises, we will be ready to respond anytime". That is the indomitable spirit that gives me confidence in our fight against COVID-19. We must not allow this prolonged vigilance to wear us down. We must not falter; we must not weaken or tire. Let us approach the new year with the same spirit of fortitude, solidarity and unity that we had shown over the past year. Let us finish the job and complete our mission together. [Applause.]”
“After everyone who needs a token has had a chance to collect one, we will put in place the requirement to use TraceTogether only at the SafeEntry checkpoints. In other words, we have what we call TT-only SafeEntry where the SafeEntry checking in/checking out is done either through the app or the token. We will give further information on this once the details and timelines are firmed up, and will provide adequate advance notice to all the affected establishments, so that they can gear up and prepare. Mr Speaker, 2020 was undoubtedly a difficult year, but we can take heart that we have learnt and grown tremendously in our abilities to cope with the virus. I thank everyone who has worked so hard and made many sacrifices to get us to where we are today. Our healthcare workers and frontline officers – contact tracers, safe distancing ambassadors, our swabbers, enforcement officers, immigration and security officers, airport workers, our SHN operators – have all been working hard round the clock. There are also many who have contributed; many unsung heroes all over Singapore doing their part. Toward the end of last year, Minister Gan and I held a simple appreciation event – in accordance with all safe distancing rules, of course – to thank the people involved in setting up the COVID-19 Community Care Facility. This is at the Expo and Big Box. Members will recall this was a pivotal moment in our fight against the virus. At the peak of the pandemic, we had more than 1,000 cases per day, and our healthcare system was at risk of being overwhelmed. The team came together from both the public and private sectors. In the spirit of SG United, they got the facility up and running in a matter of days. They truly made the impossible possible.”
“Of course, in developing the programme, we remained mindful of the need to ensure value for money. For example, Mr Dennis Tan had filed a question on whether we could work on a rechargeable version of the TraceTogether tokens. Doing so would inevitably increase the cost and also the time needed for manufacturing. Instead, we have designed the tokens using off-the-shelf components where possible to minimise manufacturing complexity, time and costs. More than 4.2 million people or around 78% of Singapore residents now participate in the TraceTogether programme. And we certainly encourage an even higher take-up. Not all of them use the token. Quite a number, around two million or slightly less than half, just use the TraceTogether app on their phones. I am one of them because I think that if I have the token with me, I quite likely to lose it. So, I just use my phone and that works well for me. But we recognise that some people want the tokens and that is why we made them available and distributed them across all the Community Centres or CCs. Given that the TT app was easily available, we had initially not expected such a strong demand for the tokens. On the supply side, there were also some delays in the manufacturing schedule. That is why, as mentioned by Mr Lim Biow Chuan, we were not able to complete the distribution of the tokens across all the CCs. We have been steadily building up the inventory of the TraceTogether tokens and will soon be able to resume distribution in the CCs that are currently closed. As announced previously, we will also be distributing the tokens to school students who have not yet collected them, through the schools.”
“The TraceTogether and SafeEntry Programme has been, and will continue, to be a key part of our contact tracing operations. Before TraceTogether or TT, we had a good contact tracing system but it was manpower intensive. It worked well for SARS, but not for COVID-19, where the virus spreads much faster, well before the onset of symptoms and even in cases who themselves remain asymptomatic. In the past it took two days for us to interview an infected person, establish all of his close contacts and then get in touch with these people and put them on quarantine. Two days. That was too slow. Today, with TT and SafeEntry, we are able to do all this in a matter of hours. Once we identify the contacts, we test them immediately, at the start of their quarantine. For those who are positive, we in turn get their TT data to identity their contacts and then, initiate the tracing process. In this way, we try to get ahead of the virus and contain clusters before they get any bigger. Our ability to do all of these is not just because of the TT programme. It is fundamentally because of the confidence and trust that Singaporeans have in our system – the way we handle the data, the way they go about doing contact tracing. I thank everyone for their cooperation and support because this has enabled our contact tracers to do their work and to keep cases under control. To date, we have spent around $10 million on developing both the TraceTogether app and SafeEntry system. Mr Gerald Giam asked if the cost is justified. Well, the results speak for themselves – TraceTogether has stopped the transmission of the virus in many instances and has helped save many lives. So, I have no doubt about the cost-effectiveness of the programme.”
“We have also been stepping up the use of antigen rapid tests. They are useful as a pre-event measure for larger scale activities. They are also a very good complement to the PCR tests which are more sensitive but take longer to obtain results. The costs of these rapid tests have been coming down. The first of such rapid test kits administered in Singapore cost about $80 per person. That is not just the test itself, but also the operation and manpower costs. Now, it is possible to do this for under $50 per person, and the cost is likely to come down further. Over time, we can expect more innovative rapid test kits that are cheaper, faster and more convenient to administer. These will enable us to test more extensively and conveniently, to detect positive cases and protect our population more comprehensively. When we first deployed testing in a significant way, I know there were concerns amongst certain groups. Some thought it would be a hassle. Others were worried that there would be a stigma associated with being identified for testing. But I hope by now we can all appreciate and understand the reasons why testing is important and necessary. Frequent and widespread testing is a critical enabler, which we intend to ramp up over the coming months. We must all start getting used to the idea of regular testing being a part of our lives during this pandemic period. Third, we will continue to strengthen our contact tracing capabilities. Despite our best efforts at safe management measures and testing, we know that cases will still slip through from time to time. That is why we need to be able to quickly identify and trace the contacts, and ring-fence the clusters.”
“Let us also not forget some of the basic measures that we have put in place. All the good practices that we have emphasised and cultivated over the past few months remain very important – wearing a mask, practising good hygiene, washing of hands regularly, not using your hands to touch your face. Remember we talked about all these repeatedly at the start of the outbreak last year. Let us not forget them. They are simple but still very effective. Second, testing remains important and we are continuing to deploy more tests as widely as possible, so that cases can be detected quickly. Anyone who sees a doctor with acute respiratory infections or flu-like symptoms will be advised to take a PCR test. On average, we have tested more than 14,000 individuals every week in December last year, through this surveillance mechanism. That was how we picked up several of our recent cases. So, it is very important for anyone who feels unwell to see the doctor immediately. And if the doctor advises you to be tested, please comply with the doctor’s instructions. For those engaged in higher risk activities, we are putting them on a rostered routing testing regime or the RRT. This already applies to workers in the construction, marine and process sectors, as well as to airport and marine workers, and now to staff in the SHN hotels, as I mentioned just now. Beyond the RRT, we undertake special testing operations from time to time to do a sweep around specific areas or groups of individuals, whom we assess to be at higher risk of transmission. Over the past few months, we have done such tests amongst staff of nursing homes, hawkers, as well as bus and taxi drivers. This month, we will be testing the students staying in our University hostels.”
“It is likely that the vaccination can also reduce the risk of transmission of the virus. But at present we still do not know the extent of the reduction. There are several on-going studies on the effectiveness of vaccines in reducing transmission risk and we are monitoring these very closely. To Ms He Ting Ru’s question, if there is clear evidence that transmission risks can be lowered significantly, then we will certainly consider some relaxation to the SHN regime for vaccinated travellers. But for now, we will continue to take a more cautious approach. In other words, vaccinated travellers will continue to be subjected to prevailing border measures and SHN requirements. We will fine-tune our approach over time, once we have understand the effect of the vaccine better. Of course, border measures are just one part of our overall system of defence against the virus. Within our community, we must continue to adopt a calibrated approach towards resumption of activities in Phase Three and minimise the risks of any further flare-ups during this period. The tools for us to do so are not new – we have repeatedly emphasised them throughout the past year, but I think they bear repeating as we begin this new year because memories are short, as we all know. First, we must uphold safe management measures. Under Phase Three we can go out in larger groups of eight people. By all means, use the opportunity to catch up with family members and loved ones. But please do so responsibly and in accordance with prevailing rules and restrictions. Unfortunately, there are a few who persist in pushing their luck and disregarding the rules. We have stepped up checks over the festive period. Firm enforcement actions have been taken and will continue to do so against any such breaches.”
“Even with the multiple layers of safeguards, the risk of leaks, though small, remains. And the recent incident at Mandarin Orchard Hotel is a case in point, as Mr Ang Wei Neng highlighted. Based on our preliminary investigations, there had been no breaches in SHN protocols at Mandarin Orchard Hotel. But investigations suggest that infection protocols can be improved, for example, through better crowd regulation as well as having good ventilation systems to circulate more fresh air. We will continue to work closely with all SHN hotels to ensure that infection prevention protocols are robust. As an additional safeguard, all hotel staff in contact with SHN individuals will henceforth be placed on a 14-day rostered routing testing regime or RRT. Monitoring genetic information of the virus in Singapore’s COVID-19 cases has been important in uncovering the Mandarin Orchard Hotel incident and is required to detect any importation of new COVID-19 strains into Singapore. Specific to Dr Tan Wu Meng’s question regarding whole-genome sequencing in Singapore, this is an established capability within the National Public Health Laboratory or NPHL. Where possible, whole-genome sequencing can be performed rapidly and directly on clinical samples of COVID-19 positive cases. However, in samples that have low viral loads, it may be necessary for the virus to be cultured before the sequencing can be done. We will continue to assess available and emerging laboratory technologies so we can improve our capabilities and enhance our responses. One important issue is whether we can relax our border measures for persons who are vaccinated. We are studying this issue very carefully. As mentioned earlier, the main benefit of the vaccine is that it offers protection to the vaccinated individual.”
“Since 18 November, we have required all non-citizen and non-PR travellers from higher risk countries or regions coming to Singapore to take a pre-departure test within 72 hours prior to their departure. We have not required this of citizens and PRs because we do not want to place additional barriers for them to return home if they have urgent need to do so. Additionally, as paediatric testing services may not be so easily available in some countries, those aged six and below are also exempted from this pre-departure test. But through the SHN, we ensure that community transmission risks are minimised for these travellers, even in the absence of a pre-departure test. So, in response to Mr Gerald Giam’s query, between 18 November and 27 December last year, there have been over 12,000 travellers, including citizens and PRs, from higher risk countries and regions who entered Singapore without pre-departure tests. So far around 100 or 0.85% have tested positive. Importantly, none of these cases has resulted in local transmission. We recognise that our containment measures depend on good management of the hotels which are used as SHN facilities. We make sure these facilities have strict protocols in place to segregate persons on SHN from all other guests. These include placing them in segregated blocks, wings or floors, clearly demarcating their route of movement and instituting regular cleaning and disinfection regimes. Persons on SHN are not allowed to use common facilities in the hotels. Once there is a confirmed case, comprehensive contact tracing and ring-fencing of contacts, including staff working in SHN facilities, will be done to prevent further transmission. And any links between confirmed cases from the same facility will be thoroughly investigated.”
“In order to promote both Singapore’s economic interests and our status as a global business and transportation hub, we will continue to negotiate and formulate additional travel arrangements with other like-minded countries or regions while ensuring that public health is not compromised. Recently, we also announced a new travel lane, called Connect@Singapore, aimed at a limited number of business, officials and high economic value travellers coming to Singapore for short-term stays. As it would not be practical for these travellers to serve a 14-day quarantine, we manage the risk by placing a “bubble wrap” around these travellers. So, the travellers will only stay at dedicated facilities and will not be allowed into the community. They will also undergo regular testing and observe all prevailing safe management measures. Besides these special travel arrangements, we have, on a daily basis, a far larger number of travellers who are returning Singaporeans, PRs and long-term pass holders. There is also a continued flow of new migrant workers coming in, mostly construction workers and foreign domestic helpers. We need them to build our homes and infrastructure, and to support the care-giving needs of our families. For these returning residents and essential workers, we allow their inflow on a controlled basis, but we require those who are from higher risk countries to serve a 14-day Stay Home Notice or SHN at dedicated facilities. They will be tested at the end of their SHN. Travellers from countries with new virus variants will serve their SHN at designated hotels to further minimise the risks of spread. This system ensures that we are able to tightly ring-fence imported cases and minimise the risk of leakage into the community.”
“This is not the first time we have picked up new strains of the virus. Nor will it be the last. The fact is that the virus has always been mutating, and will continue to do so. Other new strains will continue to emerge. We do not know what their cumulative effects will be like. So, we will have to constantly monitor the latest developments around the world, review the data and evidence, and update our measures accordingly. With the virus raging around the world, we clearly cannot afford to freely open our borders at this time. But neither can we close ourselves completely from the world and simply stop all flights or ships coming to Singapore. Trade and travel are our lifeblood. This is an existential issue for us because we do not have the luxury of a hinterland to depend on. Therefore, we take a calculated risk-based approach in managing our borders. Minister Ong Ye Kung recently made a Ministerial Statement on this. So, I will just reiterate the key points. To facilitate essential business and official travel, we have established special travel arrangements with certain countries and territories. We control the number of travellers on these schemes tightly, and we require the travellers to stick to a controlled itinerary and strictly limit interactions with the wider community. For example, we have a Fast Lane between Singapore and six provinces and municipalities in China, established in June last year. Miss Cheng Li Hui asked how many have taken this up. Around 500 travellers have arrived from China under this arrangement. Since early November, we have also allowed short-term Chinese visitors to enter Singapore via the Air Travel Pass.”
“Cases continue to climb in many countries, including in places which had previously established good control over the virus. In Singapore, in recent days we have already seen two family clusters. Marine workers went on board ships, they got infected and they spread the virus to their family members, including their spouses and children. One of the children had a school-mate who visited the home and was infected. Fortunately, this happened during the school holidays, so they had limited contact with other students. But it is a sobering reminder of how easily new infection clusters can break out. it only takes one super spreader event to spark another major outbreak, so we must continue to stay alert and vigilant. The emergence of new viral strains that may be more infectious, such as the B.1.1.7 variant, is indeed very worrying. And I share the concerns raised by Mr Murali Pillai and Mr Melvin Yong. Where necessary and practical, we will tighten our border restrictions to limit importation risk. For example, from the UK and South Africa we have introduced additional testing and requirements, as well as restricted the number of travellers. We have also recently tightened the testing regime and safe management measures for those working in the aviation and maritime sectors, as they are the ones who are most likely to be interfacing with travellers and crew from overseas. For example, for air crew who have layovers in higher risk countries, we are testing them more frequently after they return to Singapore and requiring them to self-isolate for a few days. Likewise, we are doing a one-time sweep to test all marine workers and we are increasing the frequency of testing for marine workers going on board vessels. We are testing them every seven days instead of 14 days.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, our key priorities for the year are to implement the vaccination programme smoothly and to continue with our re-opening plans safely while keeping the infection under control. Minister Gan has just given an update on our vaccination plans. Let me now elaborate on our other areas of focus and what we should be prepared for over the coming months. We have worked hard together over the past year to get to where we are today. It has not been an easy journey. We have been tested severely. We have put in place some very tough measures. I thank everyone for cooperating with them and taking them in your stride. In a crisis like this, we have learnt to expect the unpredictable. You can have the best laid plans. But new issues will inevitably crop up and some things will go wrong. What matters most at the end of the day is our ability to rally and work together, to adapt along the way and to regain our footing after setbacks. That is how we were able to bring things under control, keep community transmission low, and move to Phase Three on 28 December last year. It is a careful acknowledgement of our state of readiness to resume more activities in a controlled manner. The specific adjustments from Phase Two to Phase Three may not seem like a lot. Indeed, in his Parliamentary Question (PQ), Mr Leong Mun Wai said there’s “little change”. But let us not trivialise these hard-won gains. They are the result of the efforts and sacrifices by many people over the course of the year. Importantly, we are not out of the woods yet. We cannot afford to relax and let our guard down. As Minister Gan highlighted just now, the global situation continues to escalate rapidly.”
“A fair performance management system differentiates performance and rewards those who put in more effort and achieve more. Such a system reinforces good performance and also encourages those who are performing less well to improve. This has helped us to maintain a high-quality teaching workforce over time. In an organisation like MOE where the workforce is large and deployed over many schools, it is necessary to ensure some consistency in how performance management is implemented across schools. Generally, our guidelines are that the top one-third or so officers in a ranking population will be the stronger performers and can be awarded A and B grades, while a relatively small group of about 5% would be regarded as the weaker performers and are given C-, D and E grades. The broad middle who are steady performers form about 60% and are given C+ and C grades. Notwithstanding the ranking guidelines, there is flexibility for deviations from the guidelines, taking into consideration the performance of individual officers and specific circumstances. This ensures that the guidelines are not mechanically applied in a way that demotivates deserving officers who are doing good work.”
“For lower-income students from MOE schools, polytechnics, and ITE, IMDA’s NEU PC Plus (NPP) programme and the MOE Opportunity Fund (OF) are two schemes that support them in obtaining digital devices. In the last five years from 2015 to 2019, close to 20,000 students in MOE schools, and 4,000 students from the polytechnics and ITE benefited from the IMDA NPP programme. Further, about 19,000 polytechnic and ITE students benefitted from the OF for the purchase of devices. Students may access more than one scheme. Besides financial support from OF and NPP, schools and institutions also lean forward to support their students in other ways. For example, they will loan devices and mobile routers to students who need them for their classroom lessons or home-based learning. At the Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs), students from lower-income families can also tap on assistance schemes, or the annual allowances from their scholarships and bursaries, to defray the cost of IT devices. In addition, Autonomous University (AU) students also benefit from schemes such as loans to purchase laptops, or may be provided with second-hand laptops. In the past five years, over 350 AU students have benefited from these AU schemes. COVID-19 has accelerated our efforts in this area. By end-2021, all secondary students will own a personal learning device (PLD) under MOE’s National Digital Literacy Programme, seven years ahead of MOE’s original timeline. Students from lower-income households will also receive additional support so that there will be no out-of-pocket payment for their PLDs.”
“In addition, schools also have sufficient devices to continue loaning them to students for home-based learning.”
“When MOE polled students during the Circuit Breaker earlier this year, close to 9 in 10 students already had access to their own devices at home for learning. For those without access, MOE worked closely with schools to loan more than 20,000 computing devices and 1,600 internet-enabling devices to them. MOE also worked with IMDA during Circuit Breaker to help students from low-income households to apply for devices and internet access via its NEU PC Plus (NPP) programme. From the start of Circuit Breaker till the present, IMDA has deployed close to 10,000 computing devices to needy families with school-going children. After the end of Circuit Breaker, students who had already loaned school devices were asked to hold onto their devices until the end of the school year, even after face-to-face schooling had resumed, to ensure that they continued to have easy access to devices. New student requests for loan of devices have declined significantly since the end of Circuit Breaker, as have new applications for devices under NPP. Going forward, access to devices would no longer be an issue for secondary school students. Under the National Digital Literacy Programme (NDLP) that was announced earlier this year, all secondary students will own a device by end-2021. Students from lower-income households will be provided with additional support so that no out-of-pocket payment is needed for the learning device. For primary school students from low-income households who lack access, MOE and IMDA will continue to work together to help them apply for devices and internet connectivity through NPP. Students under MOE’s Financial Assistance Scheme who cannot afford the NPP co-payment will be fully supported by IMDA’s iNSPIRE Fund.”
“Performance appraisal is a common performance management tool that enables us to assess the effectiveness of our staff, provide feedback on their performance and help them to be more effective in their work. It is important that our School Leaders and Key Personnel in schools are equipped with the skills to manage this process well so that they can continue to motivate our teachers to stay true to their calling as educators, recognise good officers and identify those who need more support. As part of their leadership development, all our Key Personnel and School Leaders attend leadership milestone programmes at different stages of their leadership appointments. Examples of such programmes are the Leadership and Management Programme (LAMP), the Management and Leadership in Schools (MLS) and the Leaders in Education Programme (LEP). Performance management is a key component in all these leadership milestone programmes. Through these programmes, our School Leaders and Key Personnel learn about the performance management framework, the expected standards of performance, and the follow up actions to help officers improve. In addition, the Cluster Superintendents provide close guidance to School Leaders in the performance management process. They are present at the annual school ranking sessions to advise on the performance management process and guidelines. The Ministry HR also regularly updates and engages all School Leaders on the key HR policies and issues which include performance management policies and good practices. We will continue to help our School Leaders and Key Personnel develop and strengthen their performance management skills.”
“SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) provides broad guidance to SGUnited Skills (SGUS) training providers on their selection of applicants. Training providers should select applicants who have a potential fit with the jobs that the SGUS course is designed for, and who are able to cope with the course requirements. This includes accounting for applicants' prior learning and experience. If the programme is oversubscribed, the training provider will direct the applicants to similar courses with available capacity. These can be from other SGUS training providers. To facilitate such cross-referrals, SSG regularly provides training providers with the range of courses offered by other SGUS training providers. SSG actively monitors the enrolment profile across courses, looking at the profile across age groups, highest qualifications attained and industry of last employment. Taken together with feedback from training providers, SSG is constantly reviewing the list of available courses and training places under SGUS to ensure that this meets the needs and matches the profile of potential jobseekers.”
“As SGUnited Skills (SGUS) courses are designed to help trainees acquire industry-relevant skills, they require a functional understanding of relevant technical terminology in English. To cater for jobseekers who are less proficient in English, the SGUS programme includes bridging modules on Workplace Literacy. These modules range from one to three months, and cover skills like reading and writing at the workplace. SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) is prepared to work with training providers to offer SGUS courses in other languages, if there is sufficient demand, and if the industry and designated job roles allow for it. SSG currently supports courses conducted in other languages. For example, basic courses on hygiene and food safety, as well as on information and communications technology are conducted in Mandarin, Malay and Tamil.”
“As Mr Ng highlighted, IRAS' Investigation and Forensics Division maintains a mailbox that businesses or individuals may utilise to notify IRAS of any possible case of tax evasion or tax avoidance. This information including examples of signs of tax evasion and information that may be useful to IRAS is published on IRAS's website. IRAS takes every report of tax evasion seriously, and if the whistleblowing relates to an IRAS officer or a staff of IRAS' vendors, the whistleblower can write directly to the Director of IRAS' internal audit branch. We wish to assure Mr Ng that the whistleblower's identity and all information and documents provided would be kept confidential and subject to an independent evaluation within IRAS. Alternatively, if the whistleblower suspects that an IRAS officer is involved in a corrupt act, the whistleblower may lodge a complaint with the CPIB. Mr Speaker, to conclude, the proposed amendments to counter Missing Trader Fraud are necessary to safeguard public monies. It is critical that all GST-registered businesses undertake adequate and appropriate due diligence checks as well as precautions to avoid being involved in a fraudulent arrangement. These are critical steps that we will need to safeguard and preserve our revenue base. Mr Speaker, I beg to move. [(proc text) Question put, and agreed to. (proc text)] [(proc text) Bill accordingly read a Second time and committed to a Committee of the whole House. (proc text)] [(proc text) The House immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill. – [Mr Lawrence Wong]. (proc text)] [(proc text) Bill considered in Committee; reported without amendment; read a Third time and passed. (proc text)]”
“And, again, if they are dissatisfied with the decision of the Board, they can appeal to the High Court. Mr Louis Ng asked for the level of detail and duration that GST-registered businesses must maintain the documents or the records of reasonable steps that they have taken to determine whether a supply made to them was part of a fraudulent arrangement. So, on record-keeping of documents, what constitutes reasonable steps? As advised on IRAS' website, businesses today must already keep proper records and accounts of business transactions. This includes retaining the source documents, accounting records and schedules, bank statements and any other records of transactions connected with the business. Business should, generally, maintain records of the steps taken to ascertain whether the supply made to or by the business was likely to be a part of a fraudulent arrangement and this includes documents detailing the risks assessed, the due diligence checks that were performed and the actions and precautions taken in response to the results surfacing from these checks. This information should be made available upon request by IRAS to ensure there is proper accountability for decisions made. Again, IRAS will make all this information available in its e-tax guide. On the duration of how long the record should be maintained, under the GST Act, GST-registered businesses are required to keep the records for a period of five years from the end of their prescribed accounting periods. Finally, there was a suggestion from Mr Ng about an alternate anonymous channel for whistleblowers, particularly if they wish to report IRAS officers themselves who are involved in a fraudulent arrangement.”
“So, hopefully, SMEs will start to be more aware of what they should be looking out for and we will also provide some illustrations of the due diligence checks that businesses should take in response to the risk identified. And the Comptroller of GST will take into account all the facts and circumstances of each case, including the firm's circumstances as an SME, where relevant, in considering what is reasonable. IRAS will also work with interested industry associations to conduct dedicated outreach sessions and businesses may contact IRAS if they require further information. Mr Louis Ng sought clarification on how the Comptroller of GST will assess whether a GST-registered business knew or should have known that its purchase was part of a fraudulent arrangement. The Comptroller's assessment depends on the facts and circumstances of each case and will include taking into account all the relevant considerations, like whether due diligence and risk assessment checks were performed by the business, what were the results of these checks, to what extent were the checks appropriate, adequate and timely to address the risks identified and whether the taxable person took appropriate action in response to the results of these checks. Under the proposed arrangement, the burden of proving that the GST-registered business knew or should have known of the fraudulent arrangement lies on the Comptroller, based on the balance of probabilities. And businesses that disagree with the Comptroller's decision may apply for review and revision of the decision under section 49 of the GST Act. And if businesses disagree with the Comptroller's review and revision of the decision, they then may appeal further to the GST Board of Review.”
“You can imagine shipments being sent to different countries in order to bypass. So, there are some complexities around this but we are studying this very carefully with a view towards putting in place a proper regime to ensure that the e-commerce transactions are also subject to GST. We will be updating the House in due course when we are ready with this. Next, Mr Louis Chua and Mr Louis Ng both highlighted concerns about the compliance burden that would be imposed on SMEs and we are equally concerned. So, let me share some of the ways in which we are intending to deal with this. With regard to, for example, guidance to SMEs on the due diligence checks that they have to make, how can we provide more clarity? Today, IRAS already provides and makes available such guidance, and it will continue to educate taxpayers on the kinds of due diligence checks that are necessary. Besides providing ready information on its website and through the media, IRAS has been engaging industry associations and tax intermediaries to raise industry awareness. Newly GST-registered businesses can also access e-learning and other resources on IRAS' website, so that all these will help them to understand and better comply with the GST obligations. As is the case with previous legislative updates, IRAS will publish an e-tax guide soon after the Bill comes into force and this will provide businesses with the latest guidance. The e-tax guide will highlight examples of risk indicators that a business ought to take notice of in relation to a supply that might be part of a missing trader fraud arrangement.”