Lim Hng Kiang
Singapore
“The company has made commitments to recycle the ash, and as for renewable energy, the gasification project is not an energy project, it is not a generation company (genco). It is to produce hydrogen and carbon monoxide or, essentially, carbon. Because as feedstock to the petrochemical sector, you need more C and more H2.”
“The Government will continue to recover the IIA awarded if the company fails any conditions or breaches the legislative amendments. I would like to highlight that there are no errant cases in the last five years for IIA and the current amendments are, therefore, not reactionary in nature, but are being made for legislative clarity.”
“In addition, the IIA scheme will be extended till 31 December 2022. Clauses 10 to 13 give legislative effect to this change. The remaining legislative changes arising from our periodic review of the income tax system are either administrative or technical in nature.”
“Data on household and individual savings rates by income groups are not available. However, data on the aggregate level of household financial assets can be obtained from the Household Sector balance sheet compiled by the Department of Statistics.”
“The aggregate level of financial assets owned by Singapore’s household sector6 in each of the past five years is provided in Table 1 below. Data on the amount of financial assets owned by households and individuals in the different income percentiles is not available.”
“The Second Review of the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (Second CECA Review) is ongoing. The review is taking some time as both countries have our respective interests to work through, such as in the area of labour mobility. Our agencies regularly engage Indian counterparts to work through issues collaboratively.”
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“Disciplinary Procedures Sir, let me now move on to disciplinary procedures. To expedite the handling of complaints, and to allow for wider representation from dentists in general and from the lay public, the Bill allows for the setting up of Complaints Committees to include Dental Council Members, other dentists and lay persons. Presently, there are no provisions for lay persons in the disciplinary process. The concept of lay persons being involved in disciplinary procedures is in the Medical Registration Act, the Legal Profession Act and Accountants Act. It makes the disciplinary process more transparent and open. Today, dentists are disciplined only if they are convicted of any heinous offence, or are guilty of infamous conduct in a professional respect. The proposed amendments will allow the Council to discipline dentists who have been guilty of any improper act or conduct which brings disrepute to his profession, or who have been guilty of professional misconduct. This is also in line with provisions in the Medical Registration Act. If a dentist is guilty of infamous conduct in a professional respect, the existing Act prescribes only one penalty, that of striking his name off the register. This does not allow for a graded penalty according to the severity of the offence. The Bill addresses these shortcomings by enhancing the penalty options available to the Dental Council. It empowers the Council to: (i) remove the name of the dentist from the Dentists Register; (ii) suspend the dentist from practice for a maximum period of three years; (iii) impose a fine of not more than $5,000; or (iv) censure the dentist.”
“In future, members of the Council shall themselves elect one of its members to be the President. This will give the Council greater autonomy and self-regulation. To ensure that Council members take their appointments seriously, clause 8 provides for the removal from office of any member of the Council who is absent without leave for three consecutive ordinary meetings of the Council or its Committees. The Bill will make it compulsory to vote for the elected members to the Council. This is similar to the provisions in the Medical Registration Act and the Legal Profession Act, which also provide for compulsory voting of members to the Medical Council and the Law Society respectively. Functions of the Dental Council In addition to the current functions of registering dentists, issuing practising licences, and regulating the professional conduct of dentists, the Bill seeks to broaden the functions of the Dental Council. Clause 4 enables the Dental Council to make recommendations to the appropriate authorities on: (i) the content and nature of courses of instruction and examinations leading to the dental degree at NUS; and (ii) the training and continuing education of registered dentists. This is to ensure that our dental students and practising dentists continue to receive appropriate training, and to keep abreast of advances and developments in order to maintain high professional standards. Register of Dental Specialists With the increasing number of graduate dentists and the trend towards specialisation, there is a need for us to establish a dental specialist register. Clause 31 provides for the establishment of a Dental Specialists Register through the publication of Regulations to be made under this Act as and when necessary.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time." This Bill seeks to provide for the registration of dentists and for matters connected therewith, and to repeal the Dentists Act (Chapter 76 of the 1985 Revised Edition). It will enhance the role of the Dental Council so that it can perform its functions more effectively and raise the standards of professional conduct and practice. Singapore enjoys a high standard of dental care. Today there are almost 1,000 graduate dentists and 67 Division II dentists. And amongst our graduate dentists, more than a quarter have postgraduate qualifications, providing a wide range of specialist dental care. To maintain this high standard of dental care, we need to ensure that dental students are trained effectively and registered practitioners are kept abreast of advances in dental sciences to meet the needs and expectations of Singaporeans. Let me now highlight the major new provisions that are being introduced in this Bill. The Dental Council The current Act provides for a Dental Board of eight appointed members and two ex-officio members. There is no provision for the election of members to the Dental Board. To bring it in line with the corporate governance of the medical and other professions, the Bill proposes a Council of six appointed and five elected members. The appointed members will represent the cross-section of dentists, with one member from the academia, one member from the non-graduate dentists and the rest from the public and private sectors. The election of five council members will provide the mechanism for representatives to be elected by their peers. In the current Act, the Director of Dental Service is designated as the President of the Dental Board.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That Parliament doth agree with the Committee on the said resolution." Question put, and agreed to. Resolution accordingly agreed to. SULTAN HUSSAIN (AMENDMENT) BILL Order for Second Reading read.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to report that the Committee of Supply have come to certain resolution. Resolution reported. "That the sum of $1,760,000 shall be supplied to the Government under the Head of Expenditure for the Public Services shown in the Final Supplementary Main Estimates of Expenditure for the financial year 1st April, 1998 to 31st March, 1999, contained in Paper Cmd. 4 of 1999."”
“We will see what the definition is and what it will cover. We do not want to constrain the way properties are being marketed. There are so many things that go into the advertisement brochure. The sales and purchase agreement has enough technical parameters, in terms of schedule of payments, etc, without us complicating it further. So let us wait and see how the market defines it. And if it is acceptable and people understand what it is, we will let the matter rest. SPECIAL ALLOWANCE FOR HOTEL REFURBISHMENT SCHEME 9. Mr Chuang Shaw Peng asked the Minister for Trade and Industry whether he will consider extending the Special Allowance for Hotel Refurbishment Scheme beyond the safeguarded hotel zones so as to encourage more hotels to upgrade during the current low occupancy period.”
“The sales and purchase agreement covers a wide range of parameters, including the obligations of both the developer and the purchaser. Definitions regarding the quality and fixtures are very difficult to pin down. In the official submissions of developments, URA uses the term "gross floor area (GFA)". That does not convey the same meaning to the purchaser. It is more technical. So some developers have tended to use more market friendly terms, like "built-in" or "built-up". Therefore, we think we should leave it to the market to try and define these terms so that the properties can be marketed in as unambiguous a manner as possible. If the Government were to step in, then the Government is more likely to use the more technical terms which have been established, like GFA. But since the industry is prepared to come up with an acceptable definition and everybody else will follow the definition, we will let that surface first.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, arising from the recent court case, a High Court judge has determined that there is no consensus in the meaning of the term "built-in area", and since it is imprecise, suggested that the property industry come up with an acceptable definition. The relevant professional bodies such as the Singapore Institute of Surveyors and Valuers (SISV) and the Real Estate Developers' Association (REDAS) have indicated that they will work together over the next two to three months to come up with an acceptable definition. The Government welcomes the property industry taking the initiative to define the terms so that properties can be marketed in an unambiguous manner.”
“If they are richer, I see no plight. POLICY ON PROSTITUTION 5. Mr J. B. Jeyaretnam asked the Minister for Home Affairs if he will state what is the policy of his Ministry towards prostitution.”
“We will look at each case on its own merits. If indeed, they are under financial stress and they cannot continue with their payments, we will, of course, facilitate their downgrading to a 3-room flat, notwithstanding their not meeting the 5-year occupation rule.”
“If they want to downgrade, they can sell off their 4-room or 5-room flats and buy 3-room flats in the resale market, as long as they have satisfied the 5-year occupation rule. Assoc. Prof. Chin Tet Yung: Is there any chance for a review of the policy on the 5-year rule? Because some of the newer flat owners who have just taken possession of their 4-room flats find that it is rather difficult to keep up with their payments due to the economic downturn.”
“If they want a new flat, then they have to settle for the small flats. Assoc. Prof. Chin Tet Yung (Sembawang): Sir, may I ask what is the Ministry's policy towards current HDB owners of budget flats, like 4- and 5-room flats, who wish to downgrade to smaller flats, like 3-room flats, due to the fact that they cannot afford payments for the larger flats because of the economic downturn?”
“It shows that the policy is working. We give them the choice. They exercise their choice. We are not unhappy about it. They are happy; we are happy.”
“The 4-room flats come in a wide variety of sizes, from the smaller ones, 85 sq metres to 90 sq metres, to above 90 sq metres. If they want bigger 4-room flats, they can buy from the resale market, and with the aid of the CPF housing grant, they can go for the bigger 4-room flats of 100 sq metres and above. So there is enough variety in terms of sizes.”
“Sir, the aspirations of young families to have better and more spacious housing would have to be balanced with the limited land resource of our small country. Compared with the 1970s and the 1980s, we now have smaller family units. We would not be optimising land use if we had continued building new flats of the same size as the older models without taking into consideration the family size of today. However, this does not mean that those living in new flats today are worse off. The living space per person has increased through the years due to the reduced household size. What we can do to meet the higher expectations of today's young families is to build flats with better quality, finishes and design. HDB has also been building more Design-and-Build, and Design-Plus flats. The designs of such flats are comparable with private condominiums. HDB will continue to review the design and finishes of new HDB flats to meet the preferences and needs of the majority of flat applicants. Dr Lee Tsao Yuan: Sir, is it not possible to give potential applicants a choice; in other words, to have 4-room flats of various sizes, because a certain family size of, say, parents plus two children, may only need a 4-room flat, but they may prefer a bigger 4-room flat rather than the present size of smaller 4-room flats.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, during the budget debate in March this year, I informed the House that the Government will announce in September 1999 the land sales for next year. There is no change in our schedule. Although demand in the private residential sector has picked up in the last quarter of 1998 and the first quarter of 1999, there is still ample supply of new private housing units. As at first quarter of 1999, there were 4,100 launched but unsold units. Another 9,800 units had the pre-requisite approvals to be launched for sale. In addition, there were 6,300 units from other land sales projects and 3,700 units from private land projects under construction which did not have approval for sale yet. This adds up to 24,000 unsold units in the pipeline available for future sales. A resumption of land sales for residential units in year 2000 would ensure that this pipeline is maintained. As for land sales for commercial development, the Government has announced in June last year that it would release a site at Clarke Quay this year. There is also sufficient supply of commercial space. The supply of office and shop space under construction was 790,900 sq metres and 150,300 sq metres respectively as at first quarter 1999. These would be sufficient to meet demand for the next few years. We would review the situation and announce our plans for future land sales for commercial developments in September as well. NEW HDB FLATS (Size) 4. Dr Lee Tsao Yuan asked the Minister for National Development why new 4- and 5-room Housing and Development Board flats are discernibly smaller than older models of 4- and 5-room flats respectively, especially since the general expectation will be of better and more spacious housing when average incomes increase.”
“The foot and mouth disease (FMD) is a serious viral disease affecting cloven hoof animals such as cattle, pigs, sheep and goats. However, FMD does not affect humans and is, therefore, not a health risk to the general public. I would like to clarify that the Foot and Mouth Disease is totally unrelated to the human disease called Hand-Foot-and-Mouth disease. We have managed to keep Singapore free from FMD over the years even though it is endemic in the region. To maintain Singapore's FMD free status, the Primary Production Department (PPD) allows cloven hoof animals to be imported from FMD free sources only. As for Malaysia, PPD only allows imports from accredited farms in the FMD free areas. Upon arrival in Singapore, the animal consignments are inspected for signs of disease. In addition, animals, such as dairy cattle, brought in from FMD free countries for breeding and production are required to go through at least 30 days of on-farm quarantine in a specified isolated area. Singapore is free from FMD. I see no reason why we cannot maintain this position. The current ban on the import of pigs, cattle, horses, dogs, cats and other mammals from Malaysia imposed by PPD since 19th March 1999 for the pig problem will also be effective against the spread of foot and mouth disease to the animals here.”
“Chin Tet Yung asked the Minister for Communications if he will update the House on what non-criminal measures will be taken to deal with electronic road pricing defaulters. 4. Dr Lily Neo asked the Minister for Communications if he will consider a violation of the use of Cashcards and In-Vehicle Units as a minor or unintentional offence, requiring only the collection of a higher rate of fees payable from the car owner through a monthly or even six-monthly invoice.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Nipah virus, or formerly known as the Hendra-like virus, is a newly discovered virus. Currently, little is known about the new Nipah virus. Experts from the US Center of Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, and the Australian Animal Health Laboratories are still investigating the cases in Malaysia and carrying out more studies on the nature and epidemiology of the Nipah virus. Although there have been recent reports of Nipah virus infection in dogs and goats in Malaysia, there is no risk of the spread of the Nipah virus to Singapore via animal hosts. This is because PPD has imposed a ban on the import of all mammals, including goats and dogs, from Malaysia since 19th March 1999. The control measures taken by PPD are still in place today. PPD will not lift this ban until it is confident that the import of animals will not pose a danger to public health. PPD and the Customs Department have also stepped up surveillance to prevent smuggling of meat and animals into Singapore. In addition, PPD is also monitoring closely the situation and developments in Malaysia, especially the recent occurrence of the Nipah virus in Johor. It maintains close contact with the American and Australian experts and the Malaysian veterinary authorities so that it is kept updated of the latest findings and developments promptly. PPD will respond swiftly if the studies or developments suggest that other additional precautions are necessary in future. The current ban on pig imports from Malaysia remains and we will resume imports from Johor only when the area can be declared to be a disease-free zone according to international standards. ELECTRONIC ROAD PRICING DEFAULTERS 3. Assoc. Prof.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the answer is yes. PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS (AMENDMENT) BILL Order for Second Reading read. 1.28 pm”
“The flat that he sells today in Hillview Estate to another person in the open market attracts a higher price because it comes with the option to buy another brand new flat in the Bukit Gombak area with a discount and all the benefits associated with SERS. So if he is not happy with buying a new flat from the HDB, he can sell his existing flat which will fetch a higher price than the current market value. Why? This is because it comes with a rehousing option. With the price that he gets from his present flat, he can buy back the same type of flat, the same remaining lease and still have some cash balance in his pocket. So it is eminently fair. They have so many options that they can choose. POLITICAL ORGANISATIONS IN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE (Release of statements on issues of public interest) 12. Mr Chiam See Tong asked the Minister for Education whether the statements of political organisations in the National University of Singapore to express their views on issues of public interest, have first to be approved by the University administration before they can be released to the press and the public.”
“Sir, let me explain the situation of these cases who are required to pay resale premium or levy. Basically, they have already enjoyed a subsidised flat from the Government. They bought a subsidised flat from the Government many years ago. They sold away this flat. At the point of selling the flat, you have to decide whether to pay a levy on the flat that you sell or that you pay a premium on the next flat that you buy from the Government. So when these people sold their flats, they had to opt. Either they decide to pay the levy or they decide to pay the premium. Many of them decide to pay the premium. When they sold their first flat, they have already made an undertaking that when they buy the next flat from the Government, they will pay a 10% or 20% premium. Now, when they are buying this flat from the Government, we are asking them to pay the premium. So this is part of what they have decided, because if they have paid the levy, now they would not have to pay the premium. So you cannot say that just because they have opted to pay the premium, now they should be excused. Then what happens to all those people who have paid the levy when they sold off their first flats? It is not fair to the other group. So we say that for these people who are affected by the premium that they have paid, we are prepared to back-track the decision, go back to the original date when they sell their flat, pay the premium as what the others have done, plus the 5% interest since then, which is very fair. If a lessee cannot pay, he can sell his flat to somebody and he does not have to pay the premium.”
“Intensive development would cover both more intensive public housing as well as higher value private housing. This means that the site reflects higher potential for redevelopment, and we acquire these sites. We redevelop them for the interest of the country and we share the benefits with the lessees. We pay the lessees market price for their existing flats. We assure them a new flat in the vicinity at a price which is subsidised, and we give them an extra 20% discount. So the benefits of the redevelopment are shared between the lessees and the country. Mr Ang Mong Seng (Bukit Gombak)(In Mandarin): Mr Speaker, I would like to thank the Minister for his answer. On the resale premium, I would like to inform the Minister that about 15% of the residents will have to pay the premium, and they have sold their flats five or 10 years ago. If they have not been affected by the SERS scheme, they may not have to pay the resale levy or premium. I would ask the Minister whether he would consider waiving the levy payment.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I thought I have answered the questions. What was the basis of the quantum of compensation? It is on market value as at the date of the announcement. What is the purpose of acquiring these flats? We acquire them because these sites show potential for higher intensity development. When did the HDB decide to acquire those flats? We announced this on 21st March 1999. On his fourth question of whether we would grant a waiver to third-time buyers, our policy so far is that every Singaporean family will enjoy two concessionary mortgage loans. The third loan will have to be at market interest rate.”
“In this way, they will not be required to pay the resale premium or levy. With the sale proceeds that would include a premium fetched for the rehousing benefits, they can buy an equivalent resale flat from the open market with some cash balance. 4) They can transfer the existing flat to eligible persons, eg, family members. The rehousing benefits will then be based on the transferor or the transferee's eligibility, whichever is more restrictive. Notwithstanding these measures, I have asked my Ministry officials to take a look at how this group of lessees can be further assisted if they still have problems paying the resale premium or levy.”
“As it is, HDB already grants mortgager loans of up to 90% to those lessees who have opted for 4-room new replacement flats and whose available CPF monies in the ordinary account and balance compensation are insufficient to meet the downpayment and the stamp and conveyancing fees for the new flats. This will include cases where the compensation is not sufficient to pay for the outstanding mortgage loans of the affected SERS flats. If there are specific cases of existing 5-roomers having problems purchasing 5-room replacement flats, HDB is prepared to take a look at how to help them on a case-by-case basis. Lessees under SERS are also exempted from the payment of resale levy, unless they have previously sold their first subsidised HDB flats elsewhere and have opted to pay resale premium or levy on the next direct purchase flat from HDB. The amount of resale premium or levy to be paid will depend on when their first subsidised flats were sold. According to HDB's record, 87% of the lessees at Hillview Estate will not be required to pay any resale premium or levy. For the small group of lessees who need to pay resale premium or levy, they have currently a few options to choose from: 1) They can pay the resale premium together with the selling price of the replacement flat. This can then be paid using CPF or through the mortgage loan taken from HDB. 2) They can re-opt to pay the graded resale levy based on the lower percentages prevailing at the time of resale (plus the 5% interest since then), instead of the current higher percentages of resale. 3) They can sell the existing flat together with the rehousing benefits in the open market to eligible buyers, instead of taking up a replacement flat themselves.”
“Sir, the Selective En-bloc Redevelopment Scheme (SERS) is implemented in sites that have potential for more intensive redevelopment. As the redevelopment of such sites would benefit the country as a whole, HDB flats affected by SERS are acquired under the Land Acquisition Act. Voting is not used to decide whether a site will undergo SERS. Affected flat lessees are compensated for their existing flats at the prevailing market values as at the date of the announcement of SERS. In addition, they are assured allocation of new replacement flats at subsidised prices, frozen as at the date of the announcement of the SERS, plus a 20% price discount up to a maximum of $30,000, if they are eligible to buy a flat directly from the HDB. Blocks 1 to 8, 10 and 12 to 14 of Hillview Avenue were announced for redevelopment under SERS on 21st March 1999. HDB conducts a survey among the affected lessees immediately after the announcement of each SERS site to obtain their feedback. The survey also serves to ascertain the lessees' preferred rehousing options so that the HDB can plan and build the new flats at the replacement site taking into account their preferences. SERS has been well received by the affected lessees in those precincts that have been announced for redevelopment under the Scheme. For the 29 SERS sites announced from August 1995 to end 1998, the average support level from affected lessees is about 94%. Even for the Hillview Avenue site, 84% of the residents who have returned their survey forms so far supported the scheme. The MP for Bukit Gombak has requested for a higher mortgage loan to be granted for SERS lessees in Hillview Estate who have bought their existing flats from the open market at a high price and who still have substantial outstanding mortgage loans.”
“Sir, may I have your permission to answer Questions 10 and 11 together?”
“There is no evidence that the virus has spread to any other meat. OCCUPANTS OF FORMER ISTANA KAMPONG GLAM AND ADJACENT LOT 53 (Resettlement benefits) 4. Mr Ahmad Mohd Magad asked the Minister for Law whether the occupants of the former Istana Kampong Glam and the adjacent Lot 53 will receive resettlement benefits and what is the Government's plan with respect to the Sultan Hussain Ordinance.”
“It is a pleasure to be talking about pigs rather than HDB flats! But I am afraid wild boars do not quite come under my Ministry. These are wild boars in Pulau Ubin and from what I read in the newspapers, there seems to be an over-population of wild boars and MINDEF is taking this opportunity to cull the wild boars. If the wild boars can be tested for the disease, then I hear a comment from behind me that they would not be wild boars. They would be tamed boars!”
“We are in discussion with the association and stallholders. We think it is necessary and important for the stallholders to switch to facilities that can allow them to sell frozen or chilled pork. I think Lianhe Zaobao has reported that a stallholder in Marine Parade market has renovated his stall to sell chilled pork. It shows a very innovative and entrepreneurial approach to the situation. The chiller facilities cost less than $6,000. The Government, through HDB and ENV, will facilitate all this conversion. We will provide the necessary power supply. We will upgrade all our wet markets so that all the stalls can be similarly upgraded.”
“Sir, since 19th March 1999, we have banned the movement of race-horses between Malaysia and Singapore. These horses are kept in quarantine. They have been tested for infection of the virus. The Turf Club in Singapore has also systematically set out to test all the horses in Singapore as a precautionary measure. Only when we are confident that the horses are free from the disease will we admit the horses into Singapore.”
“We have said this repeatedly. First of all, pigs which are affected by JE, the pork is safe for consumption. JE is not transmitted from human to human and it is not transmitted from eating pork. The evidence so far shows that this is the same for the Hendra-like virus or the Nipah virus, ie, you will not contract the virus from a human being or from eating pork. The evidence so far shows that those who were down with the disease were in direct contact with a diseased pig. That is the main source of infection. Mr Simon S C Tay (Nominated Member): Sir, may I ask the Minister, given that there is a Hendra-like virus involved, race-horses which have visited Malaysia in the last six months may be susceptible to this. What measures is the Ministry taking to make sure that these horses are not infected?”
“Sir, the outbreak of the Nipah virus is of serious consequences to us as far as our pig imports are concerned. Even with all the precautions that we have taken, the supply from Pulau Bulan can only meet 20% of our consumption. At the same time, we do not see the supply from Johor or the rest of Malaysia coming in in the immediate future. So our main sources will have to be from other countries in the form of chilled or frozen pork. This is the business environment that we are communicating to those in the trade. We are having discussions with the pork stallholders association and explaining to them that they have to adjust to this new environment and the Government would help them to adapt to this new condition. At best, Pulau Bulan can supply us 20%. The supply from Malaysia will not be forthcoming, and even if it is forthcoming in the following months or years, it will continue to have a question mark because of the outbreak of the Hendra virus. We will always have to look out for possible outbreaks. For reasons of food safety and hygiene and diversification of our sources, we feel that we have to move to chilled and frozen pork from a wider variety of sources and we will be working with traders in the trade on how to adjust to providing chilled and frozen pork to Singaporeans.”
“Prior to 19th March 1999, there were no reports from Malaysia that indicated that another virus other than JE may be involved in the human cases there. Dr Lee also asked about the seriousness of the illnesses. Eleven abattoir workers were affected by the viral illness. Of these, 9 had infection of the brain and 2 had infection of the lungs. One of the patients died and 9 have been discharged from hospital as at 12th April 1999. The remaining patient who is still in hospital has improved and is in stable condition. The patient is expected to be discharged from hospital later this week. The illness caused by the Hendra-like virus is serious and can be fatal. Prompt action by the various Government agencies has limited the number of infections. We were unfortunate to have one fatality but we are thankful that the rest have recovered.”
“Following that, we will do regular blood testing every two weeks to exclude the Nipah virus infection. We will also maintain strict viral security at the farms, ie, the pigs can only be brought into the farms with PPD's approval. We will insist on the maintenance of strict hygiene and control of vectors such as mosquitoes, bats which are potential Nipah virus vector and rodents. In addition, PPD will insist that the following measures be taken: All pigs, from the weaning stage, must wear ear tags that are serially numbered and approved by PPD as a means of identification. Each consignment of pigs must be isolated for two weeks prior to exporting to Singapore. Every consignment of pigs must be inspected by a PPD veterinary officer to ensure that the pigs are properly identified and are healthy before loading into barges for transport to Singapore. Every consignment of pigs must again be inspected for health and identification on arrival in Singapore. In the short term, PPD will station its own veterinary officers full-time at Pulau Bulan to check production and health records, closely monitor the farms for any sign of infectious diseases and ensure that all pigs are properly tagged and accounted for. In this way, we can be confident that any pig imported into Singapore from Pulau Bulan will be disease-free. Dr Lee Tsao Yuan asked whether the illnesses could have been avoided. Let me explain that our actions taken have been effective in preventing the JE outbreak from occurring in Singapore. However, the illnesses affecting the local abattoir workers have been confirmed to be due to the previously unknown Hendra-like virus.”
“11 of these are meat processing plants licensed by PPD. To assist those directly affected by the ban and with little recourse to substitutes, both HDB and ENV have waived the rent for pork stalls in HDB and ENV markets for one month. As for the 75 food factory tenants, they either received a waiver of one-month rent or a half-a-month (if they are not completely dependent on fresh pork supplies), and one month service and conservancy charges given by the PAP Town Councils. Both HDB and ENV would review the concessions given towards the end of the one-month rent free period and may extend the waiver, if necessary. With regard to the resumption of live pig imports, we will only allow it when we are certain and confident that they are safe for the Singaporean public. When pigs can be imported from Malaysia will depend on how successfully the current disease outbreak is controlled. We will resume imports from Johor only when the area can be declared to be a disease-free zone according to international standards. We do not foresee this taking place in the immediate future. The pig farms in Pulau Bulan, Indonesia, were not affected by the JE or Hendra-like virus outbreak. However, now that we know of the existence of the Hendra-like virus in our region, we have to take special precautions. First, Pulau Bulan must be free from the Hendra-like virus or Nipah virus. PPD has recently inspected Pulau Bulan and did not observe any clinical evidence of the disease there. PPD has also taken blood samples of the pigs and sent them to CDC, Atlanta, USA, for Nipah virus testing. When we receive the test results to confirm that the farms and the island are free from the disease, then we can be sure that Pulau Bulan is indeed free.”
“Thank you. Sir, first, let me give a quick summary of what happened. Following the outbreak of the Japanese Encephalitis (JE) in Malaysia, the Primary Production Department (PPD) monitored the situation closely and kept in close contact with their counterparts in Malaysia. As the situation deteriorated in Malaysia, PPD progressively took additional measures. PPD carried out serological surveys on imported pigs to confirm that there was no active JE infection in imported pigs. Mosquito control measures were intensified. Abattoir workers were advised to be vaccinated. When it was reported that a Hendra-like virus has been isolated from human cases in Malaysia, PPD stopped the import of all pigs from Malaysia and closed our abattoirs. As an added precaution, PPD also banned the import of dogs, cats, horses and other mammals from Malaysia. These measures are still in place today. PPD and other agencies in the Ministries of the Environment and Health are still closely monitoring the situation. The measures put in place have been effective in not only ensuring that JE did not occur in Singapore but also that the outbreak of the previously unknown Hendra-like virus has been contained. Next, let me touch on the impact of the ban. The ban on the import of live pigs into Singapore has affected the following groups of people directly: i. 22 live pig importers; ii. 759 pork stallholders (647 pork stallholders in markets managed by HDB, and another 112 by ENV); iii. 98 meat processing plants licensed by PPD. These plants, employing about 860 workers, are involved in the cutting and deboning of pork, meat roasting and the manufacturing of Chinese and Taiwanese sausages, and sweet meat (bak kua); and iv 75 food factory tenants in HDB industrial estates.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, may I have your permission to take Question Nos 1, 2 and 3 together?”
“The history of HDB is that we built a lot of rental flats in the early years and most of these flats happened to be in the central areas in the older housing estates, like Queenstown, Toa Payoh, etc. Therefore, there are more rental flats in these areas to be sold to sitting tenants. By the time we moved up to Hougang area, we built very few rental flats. Therefore, there is a premium. People continue to buy rental flats in the North East zone. So we must keep a sufficient supply of rental flats to meet the demand.”
“We have enough open space within our existing estates that if we want to undertake SERS in future, that can be done. But I must tell you that today the HDB estates are built to quite high density. Mr Low Thia Khiang has already complained that you can fight across the blocks with bamboo sticks. If we build to any higher density, you may be able to fight across with broomsticks. Mr Lew Syn Pau asked about the status of the Executive Condominiums. I agree with him that when the property market was very hot, the role of the Executive Condominiums was very important and they came in very useful. Now that the prices of Executive Condominiums are coming much closer to the low end of private property, the Government needs to review the role and the demand for Executive Condominiums. As we have announced earlier, we will take this review as part of the September 1999 decision on how much Executive Condominium land supply we will release for next year.”
“(2) They can reschedule the tenure of their loans to the maximum repayment period. (3) They can defer payment of their monthly mortgage instalments for six months if they face financial difficulty. If necessary, HDB will extend the deferment period for another six months. (4) They can include more working family members as joint owners so that the CPF monies can be used to settle the arrears and to service the monthly loan instalments. (5) They can pay their loan arrears by instalments over a period of six to 12 months. Since we announced these in November, more than 8,000 HDB mortgagors have come on-board on these various schemes. This is a very, very small percentage and therefore the problem is very manageable. The breakdown is that 5,800 have rescheduled their mortgage loan payments through the reduced repayment scheme; 1,200 have extended their mortgage repayment period; another 1,200 have deferred the payment of their mortgage instalments; 200 have included family members; and 300 are currently on instalment plans to settle their arrears. On the question of downgrading, as we announced also in November last year, applicants on our queue who find that they now cannot afford the flats that they have applied for, can come to HDB to request for a change in their flat type, ie, downgrading of flat type. We will consider their requests flexibly. On the 20% deposit, I am afraid we cannot exercise flexibility. I think this is part of financial prudence. If you want to upgrade and you want to buy a bigger flat, please pay up the 20% deposit. On Estates Renewal Strategy (ERS), Dr Teo Ho Pin suggests that we put in place vacant land so that we can have Selective En-bloc Redevelopment in future. I do not know what the future will look like in 20-30 years.”
“It is strictly a scheme by which you convert your present flat to a studio apartment that will last you for the rest of your life, and you make use of the capital gain to give you an annuity, and to look after your medical expenses. This is the same objective as what Mrs Lim Hwee Hua spoke about on the reverse mortgages. We have done the sums several times. It is not as attractive. Reverse mortgages are not so attractive in the HDB context because of the restrictions and the regulations that we have in place, making HDB flats less mortgageable to the banks. We will monitor the market to see how effective reverse mortgages are in the private sector market. And if we find that it is viable for the HDB sector, we will consider the application in the HDB sector. Dr Teo Ho Pin asked about the difficulties of Singaporeans facing rental arrears, rescheduling of loans, downgrading and also the 20% deposit. Rental arrears, we will manage the problem compassionately. We will allow them longer time to settle the arrears through an instalment programme. The rental arrears problem is not very significant. Less than 4% of our rental tenants fall into three months' arrears or more. Particularly over the last few years, with the very generous rental rebates that the Government dished out, every time we have a very high rental arrears, the Government plays Santa Claus and the rents all get paid, and the rental arrears problem was solved by itself. On rescheduling of loans, as we announced in November last year, we have five schemes by which Singaporeans can adjust their mortgage loans: (1) They can reduce the monthly loan instalments for the first five years to 75% of the normal amount. This is called the reduced repayment scheme.”
“Furthermore, the studio apartments are located on small plots of land in built-up areas which are generally not suitable for more comprehensive development on its own. Therefore, taking into account all these factors, the Chief Valuer has valued the land prices for the studio apartments far lower than those for the normal HDB flats. I have also mentioned that the construction costs for the studio apartments have declined because we have adopted a more cost-effective and buildable design, and also there is a general fall in HDB tender prices. So we are now able to sell the studio apartments with a price reduction of 25%. So the average selling price of the 35-sq metre apartments will now be $48,900 as compared to the estimated selling prices of $65,700 in November 1997. For the more popular 45-sq metre apartments, the average price is now $61,600, which is some $20,000 cheaper than that announced previously. We hope that the reduction in prices will make studio apartments more affordable to our elderly lessees. For those who have earlier withdrawn their applications, they can request to reinstate their applications. HDB will be conducting the selection exercise for the pilot project soon and we expect the studio apartments to be completed by the year 2002. Dr Wan Soon Bee made two suggestions. One, to relax the condition that the applicant must live in HDB flats for 10 years. We put that condition in because we want to give first priority to HDB lessees. In subsequent phases, I think we can consider relaxing this rule. The second suggestion is to allow resale. For the reasons I have explained earlier, we prefer to keep the studio apartments with the no-resale condition, so that there is no speculation and there is no bubble in the resale value of the studio apartments.”
“The pilot project of the studio apartment scheme was launched in March last year at four sites, with a total of 650 studio apartments. The response has been encouraging and we have announced that we will have two more sites in Bukit Merah View and Toa Payoh Lorong 4. We will continue to identify more sites if there is demand from our elderly lessees. I think the MPs have made a strong case about the difficulties faced by their residents in purchasing studio apartments as resale prices of their existing flats have fallen. I have earlier asked HDB to review the prices of studio apartments to ensure that elderly lessees would still find them attractive. I am now pleased to announce that HDB will be reducing the selling prices of studio apartments by 25% for both the 35-sq metre and the 45-sq metre apartments. Before you all get too carried away and argue for similar reduction in new flats, let me explain why we are able to secure this reduction after very tough negotiation with the Chief Valuer and the Land Office. We were able to do so because of the lower land prices on the one hand, and also lower tender prices on the other hand. The main source of savings is really from the lower land rates which have been given by the Chief Valuer and agreed to by the Land Office. Why were we able to achieve this? We argued that the studio apartments are sold under more restrictive terms and conditions compared to normal HDB flats. For example, they are sold on a 30-year lease compared to the 99-year lease for normal HDB flats. HDB also argued that there is no resale value. Dr Wan Soon Bee, please note. Therefore, the studio apartments can only be sold to a small group of elderly buyers above 55 years old.”
“Let me thank Members for their cooperation. We seem to be moving along now at a better speed. Mr Kenneth Chen asked about rental flat applications. Our statistics show that there are not more applicants than previously. The waiting list remains the same. In February 1999, the waiting list was 1,331; February 1997 it was 1,341. HDB would continue to make rental flats easily available to applicants. Mr Kenneth Chen also mentioned that 3-room flats have not been provided as rental flats. This has been so since 1982. I will get HDB to look into the possibility of reopening 3-room flats for rental applications. Mr Low Thia Khiang asked for the criteria for sale of rental flats to sitting tenants and he also requested for the sale of the rental flats in the various blocks in Hougang. Let me explain the sale of flats to sitting tenants scheme. Primarily, it is to help those who are already renting flats to have the opportunity to own the flats. So it is our policy to encourage sitting tenants to buy over the flats that they have been renting. There is a strong demand for rental flats in Hougang. There are not very many rental flats in the area. It is a very popular area and therefore we have no plans to offer rental blocks in the Hougang area for sale to the sitting tenants at this juncture. There is still more demand than available flats in the Hougang area. The studio apartment scheme for the elderly was announced in November 1997 as a new housing scheme to cater to the special needs of our senior citizens. Elderly lessees who wish to realise the appreciation in value of their existing flats can consider buying a studio apartment that is purpose-built to serve their needs.”
“In fact, HDB has scheduled a seminar together with all the Town Councils to pass all the design features and how they may give rise to maintenance problems, security problems, mosquito breeding problems and noise. We will leave it to the professionals to sit down and resolve this. What it shows is that there must be better institutional feedback between the HDB and the Town Councils. We had that in the past when the estate management was part of the HDB. We have tried to put in this feedback loop, but obviously it can be improved. So a regular seminar between the various groups would help to improve the situation.”
“The resettlement cases could sometimes pay only 20-30% of the market rent. We are now in the process of moving the resettlement rent closer to the market rent, and reducing the market rent to the current market rent, which reflects 1993-1994 rents. We are indeed moving towards the market rents of the 1990s. But for the person who has been enjoying very low resettlement rent, his resettlement rent in the 1990s was only 20-30% of the market rent in the 1990s. So he will see an increase in his individual rent. But we will take a look into this and see how we could resolve this. If the various associations are prepared to have the 1993 or 1994 market rent across the board, I will be very happy to move everybody to that single rent. That means we must carry all the resettlement cases along. Mr Tay Beng Chuan asked for the residential units above the shops to be used for commercial uses. My own personal view is that this will complicate matters. One of the problems we face today is excess supply of commercial space, especially in the older estates. The purchasing power in the older estates has dropped. Younger families with bigger incomes have moved out. The shop space remains the same and therefore there is an excess in shop space and a reduction in demand. If we now allow the residential units above the shops to be converted to shop space, it will worsen the supply situation. So the approach to this is to restructure. And when we redevelop, make sure the shop space is commensurate with the purchasing power of the immediate catchment. 2.30 pm As for flat design, I have no wish to go through the details. I thank Members for their comments.”
“Sometimes the precinct straddles two RCs. It is a toss up whether you fit the RCs with the precinct boundaries which are physical and therefore more inflexible, or you fit the physical boundaries of the upgrading to the RCs, which is whether you fit the hardware or you adjust the software. I will leave it to the MP to decide. If indeed his RCs are so stratified, then we will break up the physical boundaries. If not, I think it is better to have the precinct forming a natural physical entity. Dr Wan Soon Bee also asked that there be less repetition and duplication in the covered linkways, and asked HDB to coordinate. I think we will try to do so. But MPs play a very important role, because the MPs are the advisers to the working committees of each MUP precinct. The MPs are also the advisers to the Town Council which undertakes the IUP and also undertakes the CIPC developments. So, really, a lot of coordination is done on the ground, and not necessarily by the HDB itself. So it is entirely up to the MPs how they coordinate the walkways and the various developments. Dr Ker Sin Tze asked why there was no sale of shops since 1998. We held back the sale of shops because we were not certain how the regional economic crisis would impact on the sale prices. Now that the situation is more stabilised, we will look into reactivating the sale of shops. Mr Tay Beng Chuan asked that rents be reduced back to the levels of the 1990s. If he says that we reduce the rent to the market rent of the 1990s, I think there is a strong case for it. But I suspect what he meant was the resettlement rent of the 1990s. Let me explain. We have a very diverse group of tenants in our industrial shops. Many of them are resettlement cases. Some of them tender for the premises and pay market rent.”
“Where the flats cannot be redeveloped and if they are old enough, we would undertake the Main Upgrading Programme, and we undertake the Interim Upgrading Programme for the younger flats, as a way of improving the estate before they are upgraded under the Main Upgrading Programme. With that framework, I hope Members can better understand how we select and how we identify precincts for the different programmes. Mr Ang Mong Seng suggested that we raise the number of IUPs, lower the number of MUPs and keep SERS at 10 precincts. We intend to keep SERS at 10 precincts per year. We have decided to reduce the MUP to five, and not to three, because we want a fair balance of upgrading between the older flats and the younger flats. Mr Ang Mong Seng's proposal would favour the younger flats - 25 and only three for the older flats. Keeping the MUP at five and the IUP at 18, I think it would give a fair balance across the various ages. Mr Sinnakaruppan asked why do we offer space adding item to the 4-roomers and the 5-roomers. I agree with him that it is very expensive, because we have to divert the services and it costs a lot. Because it is expensive, we do not encourage space adding item for 4-roomers and 5-roomers and, therefore, we institute a fairer cost-sharing ratio. Therefore, it is entirely up to the 4-roomers and 5-roomers whether they consider it of value to them to do the space adding item. If all the Members here feel that we should not offer space adding item to 4-roomers and 5-roomers, I am prepared to be convinced. Dr Wan Soon Bee asked us to review the MUP programme after sufficient experience with it. He requested that the MP be consulted on the demarcation of the precinct boundaries. I would assure him that we try to do so.”