Lim Biow Chuan
Singapore
“Sir, just two short supplementary questions. First, currently, the United Nations define seniors as 65 years whereas we have set ours at 67 years. So, would the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) consider reducing to 65 years for the age eligibility criterion for getting the concessionary rate for the MDW?”
“In light of this, the existing practice of the Ministry, which disallows the repeated renewal of shorter term COEs, should also be eliminated to preserve the maximum flexibility for EV drivers to extend the use of an environmentally friendly car.”
“Sir, in June last year, the Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL) was launched. Sir, let me express my gratefulness to LTA for the TEL line, as there are three TEL MRT stations within the Mountbatten constituency. The TEL line has facilitated travel for many residents in my constituency.”
“Sir, I receive many queries from Polytechnic and GCE "A" level students wanting to know about their enlistment dates, asking about their Physical Employment Standard (PES) status prior to enlistment for. Sir, I also receive queries about NSmen hoping to study overseas.”
“MFA has said on several occasions that Singapore supports the right of Palestinian people to a homeland of their own. Singapore delivered not one, or two, but a total of six to seven tranches of humanitarian aid for Gaza in January 2025.”
“Even in Parliament, Sir, our Clerks and other staff work such long hours because MPs debate long hours, spend time debating Bills until late in the evening and sometimes until late at night. Sir, I have on many occasions, received emails from Ministers late in the middle of the night.”
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Every one of 802 lines we hold for Lim Biow Chuan, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 9 of 17.
“A dependant under this Act is quite rightly crafted and it means the wife, husband, parent, grandparents, stepfather, stepmother, child, grandchild, stepchild, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, stepbrother, or stepsister, irrespective of whether that person is actually dependent on the employee's earnings or not. If I may ask the Senior Minister of State, in light of the recent case in the High Court in April 2015, Justice Quentin Loh had made a decision and, in that decision, he had said that "In my judgement, the next-of-kin of a mentally incapacitated employee do not have, without more, the requisite capacity to make a claim under the Act on behalf of the employee. Only a person duly appointed by the Court under the Mental Capacity Act will have the legal capacity to do so". I am sorry if this House is struggling to understand what I am saying because this is quite legalistic. That was a High Court case made in April 2015 and, in March this year, the Court of Appeal had affirmed that particular decision. In light of what the Courts are saying, which is that only someone who is either a donee appointed under a Lasting Power of Attorney or someone who is appointed by the Court under the Mental Capacity Act as a deputy would have the power to make such a claim. Could the Senior Minister of State clarify who would be the rightful person to make a claim to the Commissioner of Labour and whether that decision made by the next-of-kin or dependant is final and binding on the employee's dependant because the law and the case law seem to say something differently? I think it would be useful for the Senior Minister of State to clarify that. With that, Mdm Speaker, I support the Bill.”
“His next-of-kin had purportedly accepted compensation under the Work Injury Compensation Act but, subsequently, his brother, who was appointed as a deputy under the Mental Capacity Act, then proceeded to sue the employer for damages under common law instead of claiming for compensation under the Work Injury Compensation Act. I note that the amendment to this Act states that section 22(2) of the Act has been deleted and the following has been substituted. Let me cite the section 22(2) which has been substituted. It says: "Where it appears to the Commissioner that compensation or interest is payable to an employee under this Act and the employee lacks capacity within the meaning of the Mental Capacity Act, before such payment is made, it is lawful for the Commissioner to receive and pay the compensation or interest to any one or more of the dependants of the employee for the benefit of the employee, even if there is no donee of a Lasting Power of Attorney which is granted by the employee under the Mental Capacity Act and under which the employee confers on the donee authority to receive the compensation or interest, and even if there is no deputy who is appointed or deemed to be appointed for the employee by the Court under the Mental Capacity Act and who is conferred power to receive compensation or interest". This section seems to suggest that the Commissioner of Labour continues to have the power to receive and pay compensation to any one or more of dependants even if there was no donee, even if there is no deputy appointed.”
“Mdm Speaker, I rise in support of the Bill. This Bill seeks to make several amendments to about 51 Acts, most of which are mainly technical in nature. Several amendments to the Act involve dealings by Government authorities with a person without mental capacity either through his Deputy or through his donee appointed under a Lasting Power of Attorney. Some of the amendments also allow the Minister to designate either the Second Minister, the Minister of State or Parliamentary Secretary to hear appeals. I wish to raise two queries for the Senior Minister of State. Like my hon colleague Mr Louis Ng, I have a query about clause 3 of the Bill where section 21 of the Community Mediation Centres Act is repealed. From an accountability point of view, when a Community Mediation Centre is established by the Government and funded by the Government, and the Director and staff are deemed public servants, surely the Director should continue to provide a report to the Minister. This is to allow proper accountability of civil servants to the Executive arm of the Government. I am also of the view that the Minister ought to continue to lay the report before Parliament and account for the activities and efficacy of the Community Mediation Centres. So, could I ask the Senior Minister of State to clarify the rationale for repealing section 21 of the Community Mediation Centres Act? The next clarification required is on the amendment to the Work Injury Compensation Act. Mdm Speaker, there was a recent case involving an engineer who had lost mental capacity following an accident.”
“Mdm Speaker, I have a question for the Senior Minister of State. The feedback that I have is that many residents say that they have balloted many times for the NDP tickets but have never been successful. Would the Ministry consider, for those who have never ever successfully balloted before for an NDP ticket, just to give them the opportunity to experience NDP live in the stadium, can they be given, say, triple or double chances, just to give them the experience?”
“It does pain me to see the elderly struggling to climb the high pedestrian overhead bridge as they head towards the market. Although there is a ramp, none of the elderly wants to use it because it is too long a distance to climb and, hence, has become a white elephant. Hence, I appeal to the compassion of MOT and LTA officers to reconsider having a lift at the pedestrian overhead bridge or, alternatively, to consider a signalised traffic crossing. If the signalised crossing is aligned to the traffic lights at the next main road junction, it will not impede traffic flow since the green wave conditions will allow traffic to flow smoothly at the same time. The interest of the elderly residents should always be paramount when reviewing policies and I know that the Minister for Transport thinks in the same manner. Public Transport for Persons with Disabilities”
“This will strongly encourage commuters who used to drive, to leave their cars at home and use public transport as a choice mode of travel. So, Minister, this will alleviate road congestion during peak hours and will be environmentally friendlier. May I also appeal to the Minister for LTA to also consider a pilot project to provide bicycles for rental at some private estates to allow residents to cycle to the MRT station? Any cyclist can pick up a bicycle near their home, ride to the nearest MRT station and park the bicycle there. In the evening, they can pick up any bicycle and ride home and park at the bicycle station near their homes. This will be akin to the bicycle rental scheme available in cities like London, Paris and Taipei. If these cities can do so, I believe Singapore can do so, too. May I urge MOT to consider this scheme? Improving Access for Elderly Elderly residents are more vulnerable when travelling along public roads. As there are more and more elderly citizens, LTA should design the public roads and supporting amenities to facilitate travel for these elderly residents. There should be more lifts for pedestrian overhead bridges, and where such lifts are not feasible, signalised crossing should be provided. If there is proper coordination and implementation of the green wave for vehicles, traffic speeds will not be adversely affected as all traffic lights along the same stretch of road would be green or red at the same time. I had, over the past few years, appealed to MOT for a lift to be built at the pedestrian overhead bridge at the Tanjong Rhu area to allow the elderly residents to cross the road safely. Because Page: 13 Tanjong Rhu is an old estate, it has a high proportion of elderly residents.”
“To promote a car-lite Singapore, the Government should provide better public transport for residents so that they can get to office and back home without the need to drive. Currently, despite the high costs of driving to work, many people still grit their teeth, bear the ERP charges and bear the expensive parking charges because they have limited options of getting to office and back home. One option is to provide better connectivity from the private estates to the nearest MRT stations. Within my constituency, I have many residents living in the condominiums at Meyer, Amber, Haig Road and Tanjong Rhu. Many of them drive to work daily. If they have a better option of a bus service to the nearest MRT station, I am confident that many of these drivers will leave their cars behind and take public transport to work. During my dialogues with residents, many of them have requested for a shuttle bus service to bring them to the nearest MRT station during the morning and evening peak hours. Their feedback is that the train station is not that far off, about 1.5 to two kilometres away, but the weather in Singapore is too hot and too humid for them to walk too long a distance to the nearest MRT station. Imagine if we are able to persuade 20% to 30% of these drivers to leave their cars behind and take public transport to work because it is just as convenient and less expensive than their cars. With the new bus model system, would LTA consider running shuttle buses during peak hours from MRT stations to and from the private estates? If the bus journey is a round-trip service, this would take a bus only about 15 to 20 minutes to make one round trip and pick up the next batch of commuters.”
“We need to think out of the box to better utilise scarce resources like parking lots which are not well used during off-peak hours.”
“Mdm Chair, during my house visits to residents living in the landed properties, I receive many complaints about vehicles that do not belong to the residents but are parked along the road just outside their homes. The residents tell me that these vehicles include large pickups, lorries and vans belonging to non-residents. The drivers of these vehicles would park along the road because parking is free. In the morning, the drivers would collect their vehicles and then go about their business. The parking of such vehicles has caused disamenities to the residents as they are unable to find places for their own cars at night. Although the vehicles are not classified as heavy vehicles which require a heavy vehicle parking certificate, many of these vehicles are large commercial vehicles. Often, these vehicles are parked in an indiscriminate manner, obstructing other road users. Residents are also concerned that there are total strangers parking just outside their homes. In contrast, I do notice that there are places like URA car parks and sports stadiums which are heavily used during the day or during sporting events but are relatively less occupied in the late evenings or at night, depending on where these car parks are located. We can find a win-win solution for the residents if we can persuade such vehicle owners that they can park their commercial vehicles at an URA car park or at a sports stadium, either free or with minimal charge. May I appeal to the Minister to study which car park lots are underutilised in the late evenings or at night which can be converted to free parking. The key objective is to try to ease the woes of residents who have total strangers parking their vehicles, including large commercial vehicles, just outside their own homes.”
“Send a strong signal to these companies that there are serious consequences for flouting the rules. Can the Minister also share how we can tweak our policies to ensure that Singaporeans are able to find alternative jobs quickly if they are retrenched or lose their jobs due to no fault of theirs? I urge the Government to ensure that Singaporeans should always remain the core of the workforce. Any foreign workers who come to Singapore to work on an S Pass or EPass should complement our workforce rather than displace our Singaporean core. I had, in my Budget speech, asked the Government to consider introducing a retrenchment benefit law to ensure that Singaporeans who have lost their jobs would receive compulsory compensation whilst they reskill themselves. Many other countries have similar retrenchment compensation laws. I know that this will have a financial impact on the companies. But I urge the Government to study this so that we can be fair to employees who have lost their jobs through no fault of theirs and in the process, allow them some time to find alternative employment. It will also deter companies from retrenching their staff just so that they can employ less expensive foreign employees. The details can be worked out so that the financial burden would not be too heavy on the companies. Transform SMEs amid Changing Demography 4.30 pm”
“Mdm Chair, over the past year, I have seen more Meet-the-People Session (MPS) cases where residents seek help because they have lost their jobs and are unable to find alternative jobs. In a recent Straits Times article, it was reported that higher-skilled workers make up the bulk of layoffs. More than seven in 10 who lost their jobs last year were PMETs. This is quite disturbing as one would have expected that higher-skilled workers would have less difficulty keeping their jobs. Given that the economic lookout for the next year appears much weaker, I am concerned that more Singaporeans, especially PMETs, will find themselves displaced and unable to find another equally well-paying job. There is little comfort if Singapore proclaims that we have full Page: 77 employment when, in actual fact, the majority of unemployed workers are Singaporeans. I would like the Minister to update the House on how effective the Jobs Bank is, in helping Singaporeans find alternative employment. What about efforts by the Employment and Employability Institute (e2i) and the Community Development Councils in helping Singaporeans find employment? Would there be a report card on their efficacy? Can the Minister also comment on whether companies are simply complying with the rules without making any real efforts to help Singaporeans find jobs? If so, what can MOM do to discourage such companies which are not sincere in providing employment for Singaporeans? If such companies list their vacancies in the Jobs Bank without any effort or attempt to employ Singaporeans and instead insist on employing foreign workers on EPs, would MOM consider imposing a one- or even two-year ban on the company from employing any foreign employees?”
“Mdm Chair, many studies have suggested that young children of school-going age ought to get adequate rest every day. To do so, they should not have to wake up very early in the morning and then make their way to school which may be 30-45 minutes away from home. Our current primary school registration system does not give priority purely based on proximity to schools. Several other factors are considered like whether a sibling is at the same school, whether the parent is a former student or alumni from that school or whether the parents are linked to the school through a religious order, clan association or community leader. I acknowledge the importance of each factor in wanting schools to have links to former students and to develop a school culture. These are important factors. However, whatever reason a parent has for wanting a child to attend a particular primary school, it simply does not make sense for young six- or seven-year-old students to have to travel more than 20 minutes to attend their school. I urge MOE to review the current primary school priority system. We should discourage parents living more than five kilometres away from the school from sending their child to the school and give greater priority to students living near the school. This way, the students benefit from having more time to sleep and not having to wake up at some unearthly hour. Compulsory Education”
“This happened when a bridal shop closed last year and, recently, when a travel agency ceased operations. I appeal to the Ministry to introduce greater consumer protection for consumers who have made advance payments to businesses in good faith, and then, these consumers find that when the business subsequently cease operations, they are left without recourse, except that they can make a claim as an unsecured creditor against a liquidator. 6.30 pm I urge the Ministry to consider introducing laws to ensure that prepayment deposits collected are paid to an escrow account only and not directly to the business or, alternatively, some other ways to protect prepayment deposits for consumers. Last year, I expressed concerns about the lack of teeth in the Consumer Protection Fair Trading Act (CPFTA) and for criminal action to be taken against dishonest traders or contractors who have cheated consumers. MTI agreed to review the matter. So, may I seek an update on the proposed amendments to the CPFTA? Finally, may I also ask the Ministry whether they can provide up-to-date information about petrol prices so that there is more transparency about petrol prices? This will allow consumers to know which is the cheapest petrol being sold by the petrol companies and allow greater competition.”
“Mr Chairman, may I declare my interestss as President of the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE). Over the past few years, more and more Singaporeans go online to buy goods and services. And with more transactions, CASE has also seen more complaints. The major complaints are: (a) failure to honour; and (b) misleading claims by vendors online. Unfortunately, online transactions are not well-regulated. Consumers are sometimes made to tick some boxes and agree to the vendor's standard terms and conditions. Some of these clauses are unfair or unreasonable. For example, one vendor made it compulsory for disputes to be referred to arbitration, knowing full well that most disputes involve smaller sums and consumers cannot afford the high costs of arbitration. It also means the ouster of the jurisdiction of the Small Claims Tribunal. Another case involves a vendor who introduced pre-ticked boxes for consumers, making them sign up as a member paying monthly fees without the consumer realising it. I urge the Government to review the legislation regarding online purchases. Make it compulsory for vendors or retailers to provide clearer product information and full details about the online retailers. Allow online consumers to be given a right to return goods within seven days and get a full refund. Ban the practice of having pre-ticked boxes whereby consumers are misled to agreeing to certain terms unless they know how to untick the boxes. Ensure that all disputes can still be referred to the Small Claims Tribunal and not restricted to arbitration. CASE is also concerned that more and more businesses are collecting prepayment for their products. When the business fails, consumers would not be able to recover their deposits and would suffer losses.”
“Mdm Chair, I receive regular feedback from residents about the many heavy vehicles travelling along the roads within Mountbatten constituency. Many Page: 62 of these heavy trucks carry soil, sand and other debris heading towards the staging site located behind Fort Road. Unfortunately, these heavy vehicles travel at fast speeds and do not keep to their lanes. I have personally seen on several occasions how they speed and how they occupy all three lanes along the road. Such driving behaviour poses a danger to other road users, especially when the vehicles are heavy trucks. Residents also complain that on many occasions, the heavy vehicles are not properly covered. As a result, the roads become dirty due to soil falling off from the trucks. Mdm Chair, I have also received complaints from residents about drivers of sports cars using East Coast Parkway and Mountbatten Road as a speeding track on weekends and late at night. Despite my many appeals to Traffic Police to carry out enforcement, the traffic situation, unfortunately, has not improved. May I ask the Minister how else can Traffic Police work with the heavy vehicle owners and the heavy vehicle drivers to encourage compliance with traffic rules and to promote road safety among other road users? For cars which are speeding or racing, can we install speed cameras to deter speeding which is dangerous for all road users? Traffic Safety near Schools”
“The payment for retrenchment benefits should be made compulsory instead of leaving it to agreement between employer or employee or leaving it to becoming discretionary. It should also apply to all staff including PMETs and management. In this way, the staff retrenched will be able to concentrate on learning new skills for the future job and not have to worry about paying off the family's monthly expenses. It would make the transition less worrisome if they are able to rely on some short-term retrenchment payment to tide them over for a few months whilst they find another job or undergo retraining. Many other countries like Australia and the UK have laws requiring companies to pay retrenchment benefits. Perhaps, it is timely for Singapore to consider similar laws, especially since a recent report suggest that higher skilled staff make up the bulk of layoffs. This means that it is no longer the case that if you are skilled, you can find alternative employment so easily. Details can be worked out by reference to the amount paid in other countries and the Government can always impose a cap on the amount of retrenchment benefits to be paid. So, I urge the Government to explore this option. Mr Deputy Speaker, I support the Budget Statement. 5.46 pm”
“Get the banks, the accounting firms, the lawyers and other professional advisors involved in helping to refer their clients to the SME Advisory Centres or the SME Help Centres to understand more about the types of schemes available to help the businesses. I am also glad to hear of the Adapt and Grow initiative to help our people adjust. The Government's expansion of the wage support scheme to encourage firms to hire workers affected by retrenchment or business restructuring is welcomed. One feedback which I have received from residents who are retrenched or have lost their jobs is that they find it difficult to find another job easily. Some of them remain unemployed for several months, and during this time when they are unemployed, it is a huge challenge for them as they have to juggle with bills to pay and other family expenses. The last thing on their mind is to retrain or reskill because they need to find alternative sources of income to cover their daily expenses. Some of these workers are also upset that having served their employers faithfully for several years, when the company downsizes the operations and has to retrench staff, no consideration is given to the staff for their loyalty or their efforts in building up the company. So, I ask the Government: will the Government consider introducing a retrenchment benefit law that would compel companies that retrench staff to pay a minimum of between three and six months of retrenchment benefits depending on the length of service by the staff? Currently, the law is that if you have served for a minimum number of years with a company, you are eligible for retrenchment benefits. However such payment is not compulsory unless you have an agreement with the company or the union has negotiated an agreement for its workers.”
“5 billion Industry Transformation Programme (ITP) to strengthen enterprises and industries, and to drive growth through innovation. There is the Automation Support Package, support for industries to scale-up and encouraging internationalisation, schemes to develop and deploy new technologies. I think these are good schemes to help nudge businesses towards being more innovative and to improve productivity. One challenge is how to ensure that the benefits of these schemes reach the companies and businesses. One feedback which I had received regarding the Productivity and Innovation Credit (PIC) was that many businesses did not fully understand the purpose of the scheme. As a result, there are consultants who helped these companies apply for the PIC, not because it would result in improved productivity, but simply because the Government is giving away monies to businesses. This is an abuse of the intent behind the PIC. So, I urged the Government to ensure that the Industry Transformation Programme (ITP) is better explained to the industries or businesses. More should be done to prevent abuse of the scheme and to ensure that the funds are properly applied to achieve the purposes of helping companies innovate and improve. Expand our SME Centres so that we have more staff on board to help reach out to the businesses to explain the many schemes available to assist them. Make it a target that the majority of businesses will think of SME Help Centres or SME Advisory Centres first if they need any advice or help regarding Government schemes.”
“Is it the intent of the Government to push these seniors, at this stage of their lives, to uproot themselves from their neighbours and a familiar environment just to qualify for Government support and for a better quality of life? I am quite sure that it is not the intent of the Minister for Finance. What about seniors who are living on the charity of their relatives who are not their children, but staying in private properties? These seniors would be excluded from the Silver Support Scheme because, their nephews, nieces or their god-children staying in private properties had, of their kind heart, decided to look after them even though they have no obligation to do so. Should the Government disqualify these seniors from benefitting from the Silver Support Scheme and then place a heavier financial burden on relatives or even friends who are simply being charitable to them? How about seniors living in nursing homes or old folk homes; what is the address used by the Government to consider whether they qualify for the benefits of the Silver Support Scheme? Hence, I urge the Government to reconsider using housing type as a criterion in determining whether seniors should qualify for the Silver Support Scheme. The Prime Minister had said that the Singapore Story belongs to all of us. Let us include this small group of seniors who, for one reason or another, live in properties which do not meet the qualifying criteria. The second aspect of the Budget which stands out for me is the push towards transformation of the economy. I agree that businesses need to take a good hard look at themselves and ask themselves how can they prepare themselves for the future? How can their businesses grow, bearing in mind, the uncertain economy? The Government has launched a $4.”
“All these are a strong signal that the Government is very mindful of the needs of the lower income. This Government should continue to render care and assistance to low-wage workers, seniors and those with disabilities. Regarding care for our seniors, I strongly support and welcome the Silver Support Scheme. It continues the Government's approach to care for our seniors. The Minister for Finance had announced that the Government will use three criteria in combination to identify those seniors who are low-income or without income and are at the bottom 20% to 30% of the seniors. These criteria are lifetime wages, housing type and level of household support. I hope to urge the Minister to reconsider and exclude the criterion of housing type. In my constituency, I have several seniors who have worked hard all their lives and are living in either 5-room flats or private properties. They have worked hard to purchase their dream home and today, some of them have no income as they are retired and are advanced in age. If they do qualify for the Silver Support Scheme based on the other two criteria, why should their housing type exclude them from being eligible for the Silver Support Scheme? They may not have children who are supporting them so the fact that their housing type excludes them from being eligible for the Silver Support Scheme would be of great disadvantage to them. The fact that they live in 5-room flats or private properties does not mean that they are financially able. Some of their properties may be very old walk-up apartments which are not easy to sell. Some may have inherited the property and some may have worked hard and lived in their current property all their lives.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, it is always difficult to speak after such a vibrant and refreshing speech, but I think I need to speak for my residents, so allow me. Last year, we had a Budget that many people cheered about because we were celebrating SG50. This year's Budget is slightly more muted. However, there are several things which stand out in this year's Budget Statement. First is the Minister's promise on building a caring and resilient society. I applaud the Government's continued efforts to look after the different segments of society which need more help. It is critical that a caring Government continues to help the less advantaged in an affluent society. I support the fact that the Government is raising the qualifying income ceiling for Workfare Income Supplement (WIS) from $1,900 to $2,000. This will enable a bigger group of workers to supplement their income and CPF savings. I urge the Government to regularly review the qualifying income ceiling to ensure that those who would really benefit from the WIS are not excluded because they had worked harder during the past year. This is the target group of people whom we are trying to help so that they can eventually get out of the poverty circle. We can be more generous in giving them a boost or a leg up to eventually achieve financial independence. I also support the fact that WIS payout would see increases between $100 and $500. This would help these lower-income workers to cover increases in cost of living as well as ease their financial burden. The improvements to WIS, the increases in public assistance and increases to the Singapore allowances, together with other schemes like the GST Voucher scheme, rebates on Service and Conservancy (S&C) charges and so on.”
“Mdm Speaker, I want to thank the Minister for clarifying that priority will be given for areas where there are more elderly residents. I have spoken on this topic for the past three years in Parliament, asking for an elevator to be built in my ward. I have written to the Minister personally. May I ask the Minister would there be a timeline within which I could get a reply before the elderly grow even more elderly and may not make it?”
“Mdm Speaker, may I ask the Minister for Health, I have a resident who has exceeded the age for MediShield, the pre-MediShield Life insurance. Rather than getting that patient discharged and then re-admitted after 1 November, would it not be better for MOH to automatically allow a patient in those circumstances to be eligible for MediShield Life rather than force him/her to be discharged and then re-admitted?”
“Madam, I would like to ask the Acting Minister, in the light of the reply to Dr Lim Wee Kiak, does that mean that MOE will, in future, consult grassroots advisors, Members of Parliament, before they make a change of policy? This is because I came to learn about a lot of feedback from parents who were caught unawares about the change in policy and, because of that, they were quite upset. The other clarification that I wish to ask the Acting Minister is: does that mean MOE is now going back to the situation where a student's PSLE score is the main factor in deciding where to go for a Secondary school? Because I understand that, previously, MOE did say that PSLE score is not the main thing. So, right now, it seems that if you do not meet the cut-off point, that is it for you. You cannot go to a school of your choice. So, perhaps the Acting Minister for Education can clarify.”
“Mdm Speaker, I just wanted to ask the Minister a clarification. Each time I speak to my residents who have got a damaged drain, PUB seems to give me the answer that I have got to wait for the Interim Estate Upgrading Programme (I-EUP). Can I ask the Minister to confirm that if I do have a damaged drain or a drain that is not flowing properly, I can request PUB to carry out immediate repairs? Otherwise, it becomes a potential source and we cannot solve the problem of dengue until the drains get repaired.”
“Mdm Speaker, may I ask the Minister of State whether MTI would consider publishing petrol prices, both retail and crude oil prices, and make them readily available to the public so that members of the public can see how the prices move? The Consumer Association of Singapore (CASE) did a study recently and realised that despite crude oil prices coming down, the price of Octane 98 went up by S$0.02. Clearly, there is some issue of education. The other question that I wish to ask the Minister of State is whether MTI would consider encouraging a third party, for example, the cooperatives under the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), to run another petrol company, so that we would have greater competition. This is very much like what the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) did to introduce a fourth telco to provide greater competition, so that our consumers have greater choices.”
“Yes. Would MOT introduce speed limits for cycling at parks or park connectors?”
“Mdm Speaker, the Senior Minister of State has said something about education for safe and considerate cycling. Can I ask the Senior Minister of State whether the Ministry of Transport (MOT) would think about introducing speed limits for cycling at parks or park connectors? Just to share that I was doing a jog at Gardens by the Bay East and I had cyclists zipping by at high speed as if they were on a racing track. I thought it was very dangerous because there were also young children running along the park connectors. It may be a Ministry of National Development (MND) issue because we should not really design park connectors with too-wide bicycle paths that allow bicycles to speed.”
“Mdm Speaker, I just wanted to ask the Senior Minister of State whether the Ministry of National Development (MND) will consider other options. I raised this during the Committee of Supply (COS) last year, which is about using other car park places available at night. For example, sports stadiums. If you go to a sports stadium, the car parks at night are totally empty because there is nobody in the stadium. Can we not think about converting such places to become parking lots for heavy vehicles on a temporary basis? Essentially, we are talking about more efficient use of land. Whenever we talk about heavy vehicle car park lots, most of the time in the day, they are empty. So, we are keeping them empty in the day, only to be used at night. Can we not think of a way where we have lots of car park spaces that are for commercial or sports use and they are available at night, and we allow the heavy vehicle drivers to park there.”
“Hence, it is important for the Government to ensure that policies which affect its citizens are considered carefully before implementation. Just last month, I was surprised to find out that MOE had implemented a policy – appeals for places in secondary schools will no longer be entertained if the students did not meet the school's PSLE cut-off points. This change in policy has deep impact on many students who, for one reason or another, did not do as well in their PSLE. In the past, MOE's point to parents was that PSLE is only a placement exam. Students who are well-rounded in their Co-Curricular Activities (CCAs) but, for some reason, fumble in the PSLE, may still appeal to a particular school for admission. The principal, who is a very senior administrator, is given some discretion to decide whether to allow the appeal, depending on the merits of the appeal. However, it seems that the policy now focuses only on the PSLE score. The rest of the student's performance seems to be less important. The school principal has no discretion anymore. I hope that the Government will not forget that Singaporeans have aspirations. It is the role of Government to ensure that our policies are tweaked so as to benefit Singaporeans and never because it is administratively more convenient. Page: 62 In conclusion, I urge the Government to remain humble, to be sincere in wanting to serve the people, to listen to their concerns and do whatever they can do to help Singaporeans lead a better life. Mdm Speaker, I support the Motion. 6.01 pm”
“Fourth, continue to improve public transport and to keep public transport affordable. I believe our transport woes are well-known to all and I have full confidence that MOT will be able to tackle the issue of frequent train breakdowns. Nevertheless, it is an area of great frustration to many train commuters and I urge the Government to spare no effort to solve the problem so that commuters' confidence in the reliability of our train system will be quickly restored. Only when public transport becomes reliable, will it then be the public's choice mode of transport and, in which case, we can indeed have a "car-lite" city. Fifth, I urge the Government to continue its focus on strengthening the family. We are living in a more stressful world today and family ties are subjected to frequent stress. We need to find ways in which we can encourage Singaporeans to balance their lives and to look after their loved ones. Whilst I agree that ours should be a society where bonds of kinship run deep and people look out for one another, I am concerned that our housing policies inadvertently force our elderly to stay with their children even when they have unresolved disputes with one another. Thus, we do not allow our elderly to rent flats just because their children are able to provide for them. This essentially means that the elderly parents or parents-in-law have no choice but to stay within the same household even though they are not on talking terms. Surely, we can review such policies and make appropriate adjustments. Finally, I hope that the Government will continue its practice of past years of being more consultative regarding policies. The lives of ordinary people are constantly affected by government policies.”
“One concern which I have is that as the years go by, costs of living will continue to rise beyond the average Singaporean's income. For Singaporeans who are retiring, will the costs of living exceed the savings which they had accumulated over the years? Will CPF savings be really sufficient for them if living expenses continue to escalate? What about Singaporeans who are retired, but living in private estates? I appeal to the Government to assess our social assistance schemes based on income, rather than home or asset type. I have many residents living in the private estates who are asset-rich but cash-poor. Many years ago, they had sought to improve their lives by buying their dream homes. Now that they are retired and have no income, they are unable to receive any form of social benefit or assistance just because they live in private estates. Is their only option to sell off the dream homes where they have lived all their lives? In contrast, there are some Singaporeans who have higher income but are still living in HDB flats. They continue to receive the benefits of budget transfers or other social benefits from the Page: 61 Government just because they live in HDB flats. This does not seem right to me. I hope that the Government will find ways to assist Singaporeans who are asset-rich but without income, so that they can live a meaningful life in their golden age. Third, to ensure that healthcare costs are contained and remain affordable. While we have MediShield Life today, what many of us worry about is the cost of the premiums for MediShield Life. Will it be affordable for older Singaporeans after 10 years or after 15 years? If the premiums sky rocket after several years, what will Singaporeans do? Can they afford the premiums for the insurance?”
“Over the past few years, from the many conversations and dialogues held, I have concluded that Singaporeans will continue to support a government that listens to their views, address their concerns and look after them. They want a government that will provide them with security for their future. Besides material needs, as we mature as a society, the people also want a gentler, kinder, compassionate and caring government. Many residents also spoke to me about the rejection of confrontational politics. They want a government that can work with different organisations that are committed to building Singapore to become a stronger and better nation. As we debate the Government's vision for the next five years, allow me to share what I hope to see in the Government's programmes. First, focus on growing the economy. There have been many projections that there will be slower growth in the economy. Thus, there is an urgent need to ensure that jobs continue to be created and Singaporeans will benefit from the creation of more jobs. I urge the Government to ensure that Singaporeans be given priority to secure jobs. Currently, I still receive regular feedback that despite our excellent employment figures, many Singaporeans who have lost their jobs are unable to find another job readily even though they are willing to adjust their expectations. Many Singaporeans also continue to be frustrated when they find that jobs which they aspire towards are taken and given to foreigners. Hence, I urge the Government to ensure that our manpower policies are tweaked towards giving Singaporeans the best option to secure meaningful and well-paying jobs. Second, ensure that costs of living remain affordable for the majority of Singaporeans.”
“Mdm Speaker, in the General Election held in September last year, the people of Singapore gave a strong mandate to the PAP Government to govern the nation for the next five years. Like many people, I was surprised at the strong results when the electorate gave such a strong mandate of 69.86% to the PAP. At the same time, I felt grateful and indeed humbled at the trust given by the residents to each of us to represent their concerns in Parliament. Even though the elections have been over for almost three months, I still receive congratulatory messages from residents. And on many of such occasions, I can sense that the residents are placing their trust in us as their Members of Parliament to look after their interests and work to ensure that their lives can be improved upon. It is a heavy responsibility and, like all Page: 60 my other fellow colleagues in this House, I pledge to carry out these responsibilities to the best of my ability. Singapore has had a good run for the last 50 years. We had made excellent progress from being a Third World nation to a successful nation which is well respected by many other countries. Our success is not just because we have a good Government but also dependent on the other natural resource which we have – the people of Singapore. The next 50 years will be a huge challenge for the Government. How can successive governments ensure that we have continued growth in the economy, that Singaporeans will have well-paying jobs, that we can enjoy good healthcare, convenient public transport and comfortable homes? Can we all continue to live the Singapore dream which the previous generation had lived?”
“Thank you, Madam. Just to clarify because the complaint from consumers is that when they buy food at a hawker stall, they do not know for sure. So, if I pick one fish, one dish and one meat, I have got absolutely no clue, sometimes it may be $4, sometimes it may be $10. So, it is really a matter of being transparent for consumers. I thought I should clarify that point with the Minister.”
“Mdm Speaker, I represent the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE). When we do a survey of hawker food, many of the stalls do not put up the prices of the food that they sell. Since this is a new approach, can I ask that NEA also require that the food sellers, the stalls selling food, also prominently display every item of food that they sell?”
“Mdm Speaker, I just wanted to put this to the Senior Minister of State again. I asked whether practice runs are conducted, just like army training. You practise and practise and practise to make sure that if, indeed, it happens again, the repercussions are better dealt with. Do you have contingency plans, do you practise the situation where the system breaks down again and there are thousands of commuters in the stations, and what do you do with them?”
“Mdm Speaker, may I ask the Senior Minister of State: on the event in question on 7 July, the feedback given was that the stations were quite Page: 26 chaotic. Many of the commuters did not know what was happening and they did not know where to go or what bridging buses were provided. If, indeed, LTA has worked with the transport operators about how to manage a rail disruption again, then why was the situation not better managed? Having said that, would there be better management, better practices for a similar kind of breakdowns? Would there also be contingency plans to better manage announcements as well as crowd control at the stations? At the end of the day, many commuters accept that trains, like all mechanical things, do break down. But they want to know, "What do I do next as a commuter? Do I get stuck in the station?" Or for commuters who are going to the MRT stations, they have to know, "Do I even go there?" How do we prevent people from going to the train stations when the system has broken down?”
“Mdm Speaker, I support the Bill. 3.48 pm”
“In the USA, the estate of the first President, George Washington, was converted into a museum in his honour – Mount Vernon. In England, there is the Churchill Centre to look into preserving the historical legacy of Sir Winston Churchill. In France, the Government named the airport after their President Charles de Gaulle and also turned his home into a museum. In China, there is a Deng Xiaoping Memorial Hall named after Deng Xiao Ping. And, in Taiwan, there is the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall, named after Chiang Kai Shek. Turning to the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS), it was set up in 1968 with the aim of being a leading research centre and think-tank dedicated to the study of socio-political, security and economic trends and developments in Southeast Asia and its wider geo-strategic and economic environment. It also aims to stimulate research and debate within scholarly circles, enhance public awareness of the region and facilitate the search for viable solutions to the varied problems confronting the region and also to serve as a centre for international, regional and local scholars and other researchers to do research on the region and to publish and publicise their findings. It is thus an important institute carrying Page: 59 out important roles for the country, especially in relation to the neighbouring Southeast Asian countries. It is thus befitting the stature of Mr Yusof Ishak that such an important organisation is named after him. Mdm Speaker, our Government must continue to find appropriate ways to honour leaders of the country who had made Singapore what it is today. Hopefully, this will allow Singaporeans to remember their roots and struggles which our forefathers had to overcome in our journey to become the Singapore that we see today.”
“For myself, my main association with the name of Mr Yusof Ishak was when I studied at the Yusof Ishak House in NUS during my days as an Page: 58 undergraduate. As a nation, we have made much progress since our Independence in 1965. However, as we mature as a society and become a more developed country, it is important for Singaporeans as a people to remember our history and to acknowledge people who had played important roles in the nation's development. Encik Yusof Ishak is one such person whom we should acknowledge. He was a distinguished Malay and was a champion of racial harmony. After he was appointed, he worked very hard to meet people of different races and helped bring trust and confidence in the new Republic. He led Singapore through its most difficult early years, including the racial riots. According to an article in The Straits Times, when he passed away, "people came out in their thousands" to bid farewell to their President. "For Encik Yusof Bin Ishak had always been a man of the people who throughout his public life and despite long periods of ill health had always put people above self." Thousands of people "stood in homage in neat disciplined lines, often six deep, quiet and solemn faces to pay their respect and watch the funeral procession. They did not move away even when it began to rain mid-way through the 90-minute foot procession." That, Mdm Speaker, is a mark of the people's respect for our first President. Whenever I speak to members of the Malay community, many of them are extremely proud of the fact that someone from their minority race had served with such distinction in the highest post of the nation, the President of the Republic of Singapore. Mdm Speaker, in many other countries, important state leaders are honoured in different ways.”
“Mdm Speaker, this Bill is not simply about a change of name in a statutory body called the Institute of South East Asian Studies (ISEAS). This is about this Government's efforts to acknowledge and recognise a leader of the Malay community, an outstanding Pioneer Generation member, our first Head of State and the first President of the Republic of Singapore, Encik Yusof Ishak. Prime Minister Mr Lee Hsien Loong spoke about this at the 2014 National Day Rally. I support the move to acknowledge and honour our first President. According to the biography stated on the Istana website, Encik Yusof Ishak was an outstanding sportsman during his school days at Raffles Institution. He played hockey, cricket and many other sports. He served as a prefect and was co-editor of The Rafflesian. He was also the first student to have been commissioned as a Second Lieutenant of the Singapore School Cadet Corps. He initially worked for Warta Malaya but because he wanted to have a newspaper that was owned by, run by and dedicated to the Malay community, hence, he founded and became the first Managing Director of Utusan Melayu. In 1959, when the PAP won the election and formed the Government, they chose Yusof Ishak as the Head of State because he was a man of integrity, dignity, honesty and had high moral principles. On 3 December 1959, he took up the appointment as Yang di-Pertuan Negara of Singapore. On 9 August 1965, when Singapore ceased to be a state in the Federation of Malaysia and became an independent and sovereign state, Encik Yusof became the first President of the Republic of Singapore. Unfortunately, many Singaporeans do not know much about him other than that he was the first President of Singapore.”
“I hope the Minister can clarify what kind of counselling they would be given and for what time period because some of these may have long-lasting impact.”
“Mdm Speaker, I join the Minister to express my deepest condolences to the families of those who have lost their lives in this unfortunate tragedy. I want to thank the Minister for clarifying the safety considerations taken by the school as well as MOE to ensure that every student's welfare, every student's safety is paramount regardless of the kind of learning journey or programme undertaken by the students. So, I thank the Minister as well as MOE for that assurance. Tanjong Katong Primary School is located within Mountbatten. I visited the school, I attended the wakes of some of the children, as well as the teacher who passed away in this misfortune. From the conversations with several of the students, what came out were some stories about the heroic behaviour of some of the teachers who went up and down the mountain to help the students and some who shielded the students from the falling rocks. Whilst I appreciate what the Minister had said about the recognition, I hope that the recognition would not just be in monetary terms. I think we must go beyond monetary compensation to recognise the heroic behaviour of the teachers. And some of these teachers are survivors as well. So, may I ask the Minister to clarify that the awards that we are planning would not be purely monetary but also a kind of award to recognise that effort? The other thing that I would like to ask the Minister to clarify is for the students and teachers who survived the tragedy, what kind of counselling would they be given because what was reported in the newspapers was that some of the children had witnessed scenes which they should not have seen as young children. For some of the survivors, there may be a period where they will undergo this guilt trip that they survived the incident.”
“Thank you, Mdm Speaker. Mdm Speaker, when SARS hit our shores quite a number of years ago, I was part of the constituency SARS Page: 35 Taskforce Committee. It was quite a difficult time to try to manage the situation. Considering that there has been such a large number of deaths in South Korea, where the case started because of someone who was quite irresponsible, and considering that it has been spreading and there is a total of 36 people who have died in South Korea, would it not be better for MOH to be safe rather than sorry, and implement health screening at the Customs at the airport or Causeway? How much does it cost to implement such temperature health screening? So, two questions.”
“Thank you again, Madam, for your indulgence. Perhaps, I can just boldly make a suggestion to ask MOT to think out of the box. Let us say we compensate every commuter who has popped into an MRT station, give them $5 credit into their MRT card as a form of compensation. The compensation fund helps the lower-income and commuters who are affected may not benefit from that. So, let us think about giving them a compensation of $5, $3, whatever amount it is. Compensate them so that they can feel that, well, I am adequately compensated for the inconvenience caused to me for disrupting my journey. Would MOT consider that?”
“Thank you, Madam. I think the Minister is fully aware that each time there is a train disruption, commuters who are affected are unhappy and they are not really appeased by the amount of fine that is imposed on the public transport operators (PTOs). The question really is for the Ministry of Transport (MOT) to think of what else it can do to appease the unhappiness that commuters face. I want to ask whether the Minister could consider implementing a form of compensation to these affected commuters. There must be ways of outlining who are the affected commuters and, really, from that sense, their perspective, it would help make them happier, if not less discontented. Ultimately, fines do not go back to them and they feel that, well, so what if the PTOs are fined? I want a compensation for my loss of time, for the fact that I got to take a taxi to work or rush somewhere. So, really, it is a matter of giving them a fair settlement because of the disruption. And I think the PTO should bear that cost.”
“Madam, thank you for your indulgence. I just wanted to follow up with the Senior Minister of State. I read recently in the newspapers of 3 March this year, that NUS Yale had hired 70 academic staff, of whom only 14 are Singapore Citizens or Singapore Permanent Residents (SPRs). To me, that is really a disproportionate number of lecturers. I know NUS Yale is not an AU but, surely, there is something that we can do to ensure that students who enlist in universities based locally are taught by a majority of Singapore lecturers, instead of a large number of foreign lecturers. Otherwise, we will just lose our Singaporean identity after a while.”
“Mdm Speaker, I just wanted to ask the Senior Minister of State, I think the banks say the same thing when they talk about wanting the best talent. Hence, we have a lot of foreign employees in the banks, resulting in a lot of unhappiness. May I ask the Senior Minister of State, considering that university lecturers have huge influence on the minds of our many young undergraduates, would it not be better for us to constantly emphasise in employing more Singaporean professors or lecturers, so that they can emphasise Singapore values to our young undergraduates. Next, MOM has the tripartite guidelines on fair employment practices with the view of strengthening the Singapore Core. Would that not similarly apply to academic places for universities? Because I really feel that we should emphasise employing or giving the best opportunities to Singaporeans to get academic appointments in the universities. The third question is whether MOE tracks the number of university professors or lecturers who have gone overseas to lecture. As a result, basically, that is a loss of talent from Singapore to other overseas universities.”
“Madam, may I ask the Minister two supplementary questions? I do have quite a number of flats that are more than 50 years old. So, would MND consider taking a poll of residents in older flats of more than either 50 or 60 years old to ascertain whether they want their flats to be redeveloped on an en bloc basis; that means, to take a poll of residents where they are staying in flats of more than 50 or 60 years old to see whether they want to have it redeveloped? The second question is: would the Minister give an assurance that residents affected by SERS would definitely get priority in selecting another flat near their affected flats? I understand from the Minister's earlier answer that the answer is yes. I just wanted the Minister to confirm this.”