Mah Bow Tan
Singapore
“The previous generation of Singaporeans overcame huge odds together to create this improbable nation which we call home. Let this generation work as one to define our country for the next lap of our journey. Sir, on this note, I fully support the amended Motion. Page: 143”
“Like all upgrading programmes, there is a certain budget, and a certain pace at which we will build. We have completed the LUP and now we are going on towards the HIP. The Estate Upgrading Programme (EUP) is ongoing.”
“For those who cannot afford home ownership, we will provide rental flats. For the rest where there is hardship involved, that is where the safety net comes in. I do not think we should make the safety net so wide as to bring in everybody.”
“Building a studio apartment is no different from building any other HDB flat. If a person applies now and the building works start now, he can get it in two-and-a-half years to three years. We have stepped up the building of studio apartments over the last couple of years.”
“Mdm Halimah Yacob asked the Minister for Health (a) how many people have signed an Advance Medical Directive (AMD) and how many have revoked them since; and (b) whether there is a need to review the current rules on AMDs which do not require a person who has revoked the AMD to inform the Registrar, thus causing uncertainty for hospitals t…”
“Parents who wish to exert more control over the maximum mobile service charges incurred by their children may consider service options such as mobile pre-paid cards. IDA is aware of the public's concerns on mobile subscriptions, and will continually review policies and look into measures to further protect the interest of consumers.”
The complete record
Every one of 3,030 lines we hold for Mah Bow Tan, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 22 of 61.
“So, when Prof Ivan Png asked what if we were to accelerate the programme and complete it within five years, what is going to be the extra cost, the answer is really that it is not likely to be less than that. In fact, it may even be more. At the moment, we have low construction cost, but I do not think that this is going to be the case for ever and ever. Costs are likely to rise. In fact, they have already risen. Material costs have gone up. Labour cost will go up, and construction cost generally will rise over time. But, more importantly, we have to ask ourselves, if we were to accelerate the programme, whether HDB, the contractors, suppliers, etc, will have the capacity to cope with such an accelerated programme. We also have to take into account the funds that are available for completing this programme quickly. Obviously, when you do it in five years, you are going to spend much more per year, and the budget within each year would have to be considered very carefully. So, our assessment is that 10 years is a realistic timeframe. It is achievable. Considering the fact that we have up to now been looking at a 15-year timeframe, I say that the target of completing it within 10 years is quite a challenging task for HDB. If we want to do this within 10 years, we will have to take several steps. The first is that we will have to pick more precincts for the LUP and IUP Plus programmes, especially the LUP, starting from this year. So, for FY04, we will be selecting 43 precincts in total, compared to 24 in FY03. With more precincts selected for LUP and IUP Plus, given the same budget, we can afford to do less MUP each year. FY02, we did 10 MUP projects. In FY03, we did not select any because some of the MUP precincts had deferred the polling.”
“Sir, first of all, on lift upgrading in HDB estates, Members would have heard the Prime Minister announce that MND will be targeting to complete the Lift Upgrading Programme in 10 years for all eligible blocks. Members have also asked whether we can speed up the programme. Let me now give some details about how we intend to implement the LUP in 10 years, as well as to address some of the Members' concerns and suggestions. We introduced LUP in 2001, and that was to meet the needs of our ageing population by providing lifts on every floor, and the programme has been very, very popular with residents. I say that it is going to be even more in demand as our population ages. What is the status so far? We have selected about 600 blocks for LUP. Some of the works have been completed, while others are in various stages of completion. Another 650 blocks have had their lifts upgraded under another programme, which is the Main Upgrading Programme (MUP) which incorporates lift upgrading. Blocks that are built after 1990 already have direct lift access. So, if we do our mathematics, it gives us about 3,000 high-rise and 800 low-rise HDB blocks which are still waiting for their lifts to be upgraded. To provide lifts on every floor, we will have to add new lift cars, landings, lift shafts, depending on the different block configurations. This is a very major and costly exercise. The cost per unit ranges from as low as $1,500 to as high as $80,000 or $90,000 per unit. To provide for lifts for all the remaining blocks, it is going to cost the Government something like $5 billion. To put this figure in perspective, this is more than four times what the whole Ministry's public housing budget is for the financial year of 2005, if Parliament approves the budget for MND. That is $5 billion.”
“Sir, we already do this. In fact, when we expanded the eligibility ceiling from $800 to $1,500 last year, the second tier is actually at a less subsidised rate. The $1,500 ceiling already corresponds to something like 20%-25% of the people. So we should refrain from expanding it even further. Of course, the other option really is for them to rent from the open market. One of the reasons why we are relaxing the subletting rules is really to free up the market further and, hopefully, to bring down the rental prices for HDB flats in the secondary market. In this way, I hope that those who do not wish to rent or buy a HDB flat, for one reason or another, can look at this as a viable alternative.”
“I would ask HDB to look into it as soon as possible.”
“Sir, if Dr Tan has any specific cases in mind and he wants us to evict any of his residents, please let me know. Mr Ang Mong Seng: Sir, first of all, I would like to thank the Minister for agreeing to look into my proposal to convert some of the flats in Jurong West for the senior citizens. Since there are so many requests and the Minister has mentioned there are 3,200 cases at this moment, can the Minister inform the House when this idea can come true?”
“Dr Tan Cheng Bock's compassion scheme, not welfare scheme, is another subsidised rental scheme. Because the bottom line is that the resident is actually renting the flat at a subsidised rate. As I indicated earlier, there is another option, ie, if a flat owner is in financial hardship, he can sell his flat and he can come back and rent a subsidised flat from the HDB. The variation that Dr Tan Cheng Bock has proposed is to actually rent that same flat to him. I will ask HDB to look into it but the issue of having another subsidised rental scheme freely available to residents should be very carefully considered. At the end of the day, we are talking about how to allocate the public housing budget to as many people as possible. We already have tried to accommodate this group through other means. What Dr Tan has suggested is something that we will study. 3.00 pm”
“First of all, I would like to apologise to Dr Ong Chit Chung for lumping him together with Dr Amy Khor. Maybe I should not apologise, but I think I may have scribbled my notes wrongly. As far as reverse mortgages are concerned, yes, there are countries which have practised reverse mortgages, but these are mainly countries where the conditions are different from us, either the interest rate regime is different or lower, or the value of the houses is different, much higher. Yes, they have worked successfully in other countries. We just want to make sure that the conditions in Singapore are suitable for such schemes. As I said, it is a very attractive option and something that I would like to pursue. But we cannot pursue it unless there are insurers, banks and financial institutions who are prepared to offer favourable terms to our lessees. Otherwise, it is academic. There is no point in having a reverse mortgage scheme where your repayments are so low as to make it not worth the while.”
“Sir, we embarked on the programme to improve elderly housing several years ago, and we stepped it up quite considerably. And as a result of this, I visited many of these flats which benefit the elderly not just within the flat, not just in the provision of features such as emergency cord, sitting toilets, non-slip flooring, elder friendly taps and so on and so forth, but it also creates a community that allows them to be involved, that allows them to get help when they need to and allows them to do some of the things that they enjoy doing - the singing, the qigong exercises and so on. Why? Because as we upgrade the flats, we also upgrade the block. We also provide facilities for VWOs to be located there and to provide all these community facilities for the elderly. Yes, it is a worthwhile scheme. It is something that we are very interested to do, and we will continue to do so. Many of the flats in Dr Neo's constituency have been upgraded. Old estates in Queenstown, Whampoa and others have been upgraded. We have done most of it and we will accelerate the rest in the next few years. On retirement villages, so far, there has really been no activity, because the private sector has been looking for land and they are asking us whether we can provide such land, and the answer is yes. We will be looking for such land and the URA will be considering whether they are suitable places for this. Retirement housing in HDB estates would be the studio apartments. Is it possible for the private sector to also build studio apartments? Maybe.”
“I am glad to hear Dr Lily Neo talking about selling land on shorter leases to private developers to develop private retirement housing. I think this is something worth studying and we would certainly explore it further. Mr Ang Mong Seng also had another suggestion of converting vacant blocks in Jurong West for senior citizens' rental housing. Again, this is something that I would ask HDB to consider further. Sir, finally, the issue of neighbourly disputes raised by Dr Tan Boon Wan. I just want to let him know that, in fact, under the existing lease agreement, HDB flat owners have agreed not to create nuisance for other residents. That, of course, does not mean that they do not. They obviously do. Otherwise, he would not have raised it here. But we do have the legislative powers to actually persuade and encourage HDB residents to be more tolerant and be more mindful of their neighbours' needs. In the worst case or nightmare scenarios, HDB can actually acquire the flat under the Housing and Development Act. If they have neighbours from hell, this is something that is very tempting. 2.45 pm But the point is that we should not have to come to this point. We should not have to do this. If we can force a sense of community, if we can get neighbours to understand that they are actually living in a wider community, whatever they do to their neighbours, their neighbours can also do to them, then I think we should not have to resort to such things. And this is probably the more fundamental point, that if we can create this more harmonious living environment, we can actually enhance the HDB experience for everybody and therefore create a more active, a more self-reliant citizenry and strengthen the social bonds that bind us together as a nation.”
“First, HDB has built studio apartments and the studio apartments which are on short lease. They are equipped with all the necessary elderly-friendly features. The elderly can sell their current flat, use the proceeds or part of the proceeds to buy a studio apartment and keep the rest for their old age. Second, we have liberalised our subletting rules for HDB flats. The elderly can now rent out a room, or the whole flat, and they can move in to stay with their children. Many elderly have done this. They sublet their flats and they have moved in with their children, slightly more than half have done so. Third, the elderly can sell the flat and rent a flat or room from the open market, and I hope that with the further relaxation of the subletting policy, with more HDB flats available to be let out, this would help to keep rentals competitive. The Government will look at other options to facilitate monetisation of flats by the elderly. Many Members have mentioned reverse mortgages. We have done many feasibility studies on reverse mortgages. In principle, it is a very attractive concept. But, so far, the schemes that we have studied indicate that monthly repayments are low. What is more worrying is that because the reverse mortgage currently has fixed tenure, if the elderly outlive their reverse mortgage term and are unable to repay the loan, they actually risk losing their homes. But we will continue to pursue this option. We will talk to the banks, the insurers and, if they are able to offer schemes on more favourable terms for HDB flats, we will certainly consider such schemes. Sir, to effectively address the challenges of our ageing population, the Government would need to work very closely with the private and the people sectors.”
“For example, for a 1-room flat we are talking about $26-$30, for 2-room flats we are talking about $60. The market rate for a room is only probably $200-$250, maybe more depending on the location. Why are they so heavily subsidised? It is for the simple reason that they are meant for the very low income families who could only afford to rent the flats. The fundamental issue is not whether we should retain or remove the 30-month moratorium, rather it is whether we should widen our safety net further and create another welfare scheme for elderly HDB flat owners who have already enjoyed one subsidy, who are already owning a HDB flat, sometimes maybe more than one over time. If we do this, we are simply going to increase the demand for HDB rental flats. Last year alone, for example, HDB received something like 2,300 requests for waiver of this 30-month debarment. If we were to build another 2,300 flats just to cater for this demand, we would really have to up our public housing budget considerably. I do not think the Ministry of Finance is going to be very tolerant of this. So how else would it be funded? Money from within the budget? If we took it from the existing public housing budget, we would have to scale back on other expenditures, lift upgrading, particularly subsidy for first-time home owners even. So, at the end of the day, it is a matter of prioritising our resources, making sure that the many competing needs are met, and met as fairly as possible. Giving elderly flat owners who already own a flat another subsidised rental flat is not a sustainable option in the long term. So what are the options available to them? Because the problem is there, and it is a real one, how do we ensure that the elderly have enough funds for their retirement?”
“For MND, the challenge really is to provide a comprehensive range of housing options, such that these diverse needs can all be met. For example, Dr Lily Neo spoke about the need to have lifetime designed homes that would change as the lifestyle changes. Our public housing policies today encourage our elderly to age in place. In other words, they should continue to live in a home that they are familiar with, strong family ties, strong community support. And it is for this reason that our HDB flats can be modified to enable residents to stay in the same flat over the various phases of their life cycle. It is for this reason that we constantly upgrade our HDB flats, especially the older estates to make sure that they are elderly friendly, both inside the flat as well as in the surroundings. Later on, I will be speaking about the lift upgrading programme, which is another way for us to make sure that our HDB estates continue to be elderly friendly. Besides making sure that estates are elderly-friendly, we also need to look at how we could help retirees who are so-called "asset rich but cash poor" to monetise their asset for their retirement. Mr Ang Mong Seng suggested removing the 30-month time bar that is currently preventing elderly lessees from selling their flats and moving to a rental flat. This is a very common and current request in our MPS sessions. We are now seeing many such cases, but there is a problem with just depending on this as a solution to our problems. HDB's rental flats are part of the social safety net provided by the Government for low income Singaporeans who could not afford to own their own flats. The monthly rentals are very low. They are substantially below the market rates.”
“As far as PRs with citizen child are concerned, we cannot change the rules for rental housing, for the very simple reason that citizenship must have its privileges. We have heavily subsidised rental flats. We have to reserve them for citizen households. As far as single unmarried mothers are concerned, we would treat them the same as other singles for rental of HDB flats, in other words, age cut-off of 35 and they must also have another single to qualify. This, I must hasten to add, is not to penalise single mothers, but to encourage them to look first to their families for care and support. But, again, for those who are victims of circumstances and who first face severe hardship, HDB would exercise flexibility, on a case-by-case basis, depending on the merits of each case. By the way, I wish to inform Ms Indranee that this policy applies to single fathers too. So we do not gender discriminate. Let me stress that as we provide even more rental flats for low income families, we will continue to assist low income families to buy flats and to become home owners when they are financially ready and we have many schemes under the Special Assistance Housing Programme to do so. Why? Because, it is important that we keep the home ownership dream alive for as many Singaporeans as possible, including those low income Singaporeans who would over time make good and who also feel that they deserve a stake in this country. Let me now move on to the topic of housing for the elderly. Dr Lily Neo, Mdm Cynthia Phua and Mr Ang Mong Seng have raised this. And it is an important issue. Our elderly are not a homogenous group. They have different financial, healthcare, housing, social and psychological needs, as well as lifestyle preferences.”
“For those who could not afford to buy another flat after selling their existing flat, they may also be able to move into a HDB rental flat. And, to help these cases, HDB would consider waiving that 30-month debarment period to allow them to rent subsidised 1- or 2-room flat. So there are many avenues open for this group. I will be talking about another possible avenue later on, which is the reverse mortgage. But, because of all these different options, I do not think that we should start another subsidised rental scheme for flat owners, whether it is 3, 4 or 5-rooms. Now, let me address issues and concerns on rental housing, which has been raised by Members. Mr Gan Kim Yong, Ms Indranee Rajah, Dr Amy Khor, among others, asked whether Government could provide more rental housing or to free up the regulations to have more people to be eligible for such rental housing. As Members would know, the Government provides 1 and 2-room rental flats to meet the housing needs of lower income Singaporean families, those who are unable to own their flats. The rentals under the public rental scheme are very heavily subsidised. And this is the reason why we have to make sure that there are strict eligibility conditions on citizenship, income, family nucleus, property ownership, etc. Otherwise, the demand for such heavily subsidised flats would go up very sharply. Mr Gan Kim Yong asked whether we could relax eligibility criteria for rental flats. In fact, we have done so. Last year, we raised the household income ceiling for rental flats from $800 to $1,500 and this has made subsidised rental housing accessible to more lower income families. Ms Indranee Rajah suggested that MND review its policies on rental flats for single mothers and also for PRs with citizen child.”
“So we do try to advise and educate our residents that when one takes a bank loan, one has to make sure that one does his sums, through the information material that we provide, the info web, newspaper advertorials and many other channels. In fact, even direct face-to-face meeting. I have asked the HDB counter staff to make sure that they explain to the prospective HDB flat buyers that they know what they are in for. So we constantly hammer home this message, that buying a flat is not like buying a TV set or even not like buying a car. It is a long term financial commitment, and flat buyers must do their sums carefully. Those who take bank loans must be aware that they would be subject to the mortgaging financing policies of the bank, not of HDB. So I urge all flat buyers, whether they are taking a HDB or a bank loan to please exercise financial prudence. Buy a flat within their means. We would provide all the counselling that is needed and necessary but, ultimately, the decision lies with them. So please be careful. Dr Tan Cheng Bock suggested a very innovative scheme of helping those who are in difficulty. In other words, the HDB buys back the flat and then rents that same flat back to them at subsidised rates. He says that this is not a welfare scheme. I am not sure that I agree with him. If this is not a welfare scheme, then what is? The point really is that there are many, many ways of allowing a resident to encash or monetise their flat. They could rent out just a single room, which many are already doing today, without too much hassle. Or, they could rent out the entire flat and with the relaxation of the rules that I have earlier announced, more people could actually take this route. They could sell their flat and buy a smaller one.”
“Last year, we approved 40,000 applications for financial assistance from HDB mortgagors, not a small number, but an indication of the last few years' financial difficulties or economic problems. Existing assistance measures are generally adequate in helping flat owners to tide over their temporary financial hardship so that they do not have to sell their flats. But in cases where they do have to sell their flats, where they have been retrenched or have suffered a substantial pay-cut, etc, and they want to downgrade to a smaller flat, HDB would also view their cases sympathetically. HDB is prepared to waive the minimum occupation period to allow them to resell or to grant them another concessionary loan for the next flat purchase, depending on the circumstances of each case, ie, it is not a blanket change of policy but it is a more flexible way of interpreting and implementing the policy. So I want to assure Members that MND and HDB would be as flexible as possible in cases of genuine hardship. 2.30 pm Dr Maliki asked about the number of flat buyers who have defaulted on their bank loans and have their flats repossessed. So far, we only have one case of a mortgagee sale of an HDB flat by a bank, out of some 50,000 bank loan cases, as I indicated earlier. Before this, let us take a step back and just remind ourselves that the flat buyers who have to take bank loans, who are not eligible for HDB loans, are really those who are either better off or those who have already bought a flat earlier with a HDB loan. So, in other words, they have already benefited from the housing subsidy and the subsidised housing loan.”
“I hasten to add that while the numbers appear large, we would expect most flat owners to continue to owner-occupy their flats. The actual number of flats sublet is therefore likely to be much smaller, but still significant. HDB will announce more details of the two policy changes shortly. On the issue of affordability, there is a quick point that I want to make in response to Dr Amy Khor and Dr Ong Chit Chung. I believe they suggested that we should extend the housing subsidies to those who purchase private properties. I am afraid I cannot agree. If they can afford to buy private properties, surely they would have less need for financial assistance from the Government. And in any case, the income ceiling for housing subsidy is already very generous. It allows about 85% of Singaporeans to be eligible. The last point, which is equally important, is that we would still want people to take the housing grant, to live in an HDB flat and go through the HDB experience. Let me now talk about building a more inclusive society. This is the Prime Minister's vision, of building a more inclusive society and public housing will continue to play an important role in helping us realise this vision. In particular, let me touch on the housing needs of two groups which Members in this House have brought up. The first group is the low-income and those in financial difficulty, and the second group, the elderly. HDB has in place various financial assistance schemes to help needy Singaporeans who have difficulty paying their housing loan instalments. Members would be familiar with them - reduced or deferred loan instalments, etc. HDB will work closely with individual flat owners to advise on the appropriate assistance measures.”
“These are three major changes which illustrate how we have freed up rules and regulations over time to encourage residents to be more self-reliant, to be more responsible and to be more entrepreneurial. I am happy to announce that HDB will further liberalise its rules in two areas. First, we will reduce the time bar for households who have bought one subsidised flat to apply for a second subsidised flat from the current 10 years to five years. The 10-year time bar was implemented in 1997, together with other measures, such as the resale levy. This was to better manage the demand for new flats among second-timers. We do not believe that it is necessary to maintain the time bar for 10 years because the situation has changed. So we have reduced it to five years. Second-timer households who need to upgrade to bigger flats can do so sooner. This will take immediate effect. Second, we will further relax the subletting rules for HDB flats. Those who have no outstanding HDB loan will now be able to sublet their flat after occupying them for five years, compared to the current 10 years. Those who have occupied their flats for at least 10 years will now be able to sublet their whole flat even if they still have an outstanding HDB loan, compared to the current 15 years. These changes will give flat owners greater flexibility to monetise their flat and it would also provide more housing options for those who are not yet ready to buy a flat and who want to rent. This move will make 537,000 flats, or 65% of all HDB whole flats potentially eligible to be rented out. Of these, about 300,000 can be rented out immediately as the flat owners have met the 10-year occupation period or the five-year occupation period and do not have any outstanding HDB loan.”
“Together with this increase in responsibility undertaken by the residents, we can relax the rules and regulations. I believe this will improve the HDB's experience. Over the last few years, HDB has made several major key changes to policies and rules aimed at giving residents greater flexibility in the use of their flats. Let me briefly mention three of them. First, bank origination was implemented in January 2003. Many flat buyers have now been able to take advantage of very attractive home loan packages. Yes, some of them have over-extended and Dr Maliki has mentioned the consequences of some of these. I will address the issue later. But to-date, 50,000 bank loan applications have been processed, and almost $9 billion worth of bank loans have been disbursed. The second change we made was in June 2003. We implemented the HDB's Home Office Scheme. This has enabled HDB residents now to work from home. They can list the home address as their office address. Now, some architects, tutors, IT specialists, work from home. It does not just save time and money but it also allows them to spend quality time with their families. Since then, 15,000 HDB dwellers have enlisted under the scheme. Third, in October 2003, we freed up the subletting rules for HDB flats. Prior to this, there was a lot of difficulty in subletting your whole HDB flat except under very exceptional circumstances. Now, we have freed it up. To-date, more than 2,300 lessees have sublet their flats totally, and half of them are elderly lessees. They sublet their whole flat, use the money for their old age and move in with their children.”
“But many HDB rules and regulations are there for a serious purpose. Let me take one example which many Members have commented on. In fact, I get a lot of appeal letters on this, and this is our ethnic integration quota. This policy is there to make sure that we do not have racial enclaves re-forming in our HDB estates. If Members will recall, in the early days of Singapore, we had communities and settlements based on race and sometimes even based on dialect groups. We had Malays in Geylang Serai, the Chinese in Chinatown and Indians in some parts of Serangoon. With the HDB's building programme, these racially based settlements were dispersed. They went to live in different parts of Singapore as a result of the new estates being built in Toa Payoh, Ang Mo Kio, Bedok and so on. But over time, they started to re-form again. This is why we have the Ethnic Integration Policy (EIP). And as a result of the EIP, we now not only maintain the multi-racial character of our HDB estates, but we also allow our neighbourhood schools, hawker centres and shops to also be multi-racial. Together, they form and create that comfort level, that familiarity with one another's customs, traditions, idiosyncrasies, languages, whatever, which bind us together as Singaporeans. Having said that, as I indicated, rules and regulations are made by men. They are not cast in stone and we will change them. We regularly review our policies and when the environment has changed, where the rule is no longer relevant, we will modify or even remove the rule altogether. As Singaporeans become better educated, they want to make more of their own choices. They are prepared to take responsibility for their choices.”
“This resumption of the building of new three-room flats after a hiatus of many years has helped to moderate price increases for resale three-room flats, and it has benefited flat buyers who want to buy three-room flats. Mdm Cynthia Phua and Dr Amy Khor also asked about HDB's plans to ensure optimal supply of HDB flats. They talked about building smaller flats, even two-room flats and less five-room flats. Let me just say that with the new Build-To- Order system, the building programme will be entirely demand-based. In other words, if there is demand for smaller flats, HDB will build smaller flats. If there is demand for larger flats, of course, HDB will also consider. But the focus at the moment is to sell its current stock of flats which encompass a wide range of flat types, ranging from the Executive flats all the way to the four-room flats. HDB will monitor the demand and adjust the supply of new flats and new flat types accordingly. Sir, let me now turn to the issue of HDB rules and regulations. I think many Members - Dr Amy Khor, Dr Ong Chit Chung, Mdm Cynthia Phua and Mr Yatiman Yusof and others - in their speeches, alluded to the many different regulations and rules that HDB has. When I first became Minister for National Development, I asked for a briefing from HDB about their rules and regulations. I was given a folder this thick [indicating]. Of course, I did not look at it. But in the course of the briefing, I discovered that there is actually a reason for every single rule and regulation. There is a reason for every single one of them and it is all very logical. They are there to support current policies. It does not mean that the rules and regulations cannot change because if policies change, rules will change accordingly.”
“In our case, we are talking about public housing. Typically, the benchmark is around 25%-30%. Most flat buyers will be able to service their housing loans entirely with their CPF contributions, in other words, they need not touch their take-home pay. Dr Ong Chit Chung suggested we review the 20% downpayment required for the purchase of HDB flats. He argued that by requiring 20% downpayment, we are making flats less affordable. I just want to inform him that we need a downpayment because you cannot expect to buy such a big ticket item as a house without any commitment on your part. This is meant for financial prudence and it applies equally to buyers of HDB flats as well as private properties. For HDB flats, the conditions are less onerous than private properties because, in the case of HDB flats, for this 20% downpayment, you can actually use your CPF to fully pay for it. I just want to enlighten him further. To further ease the cashflow of younger first-timer couples and to enable them to set up home earlier, HDB has also introduced what it calls the Staggered Downpayment Scheme. In this Scheme, they only have to pay an initial downpayment of 10% when they book a flat that is under construction and the remaining 10% is payable only when the flat is completed, which is usually a few years later. To further enhance the affordability of HDB flats, HDB last year resumed the building of three-room flats under the Build-To-Order (BTO) system, ie, to build only when there is demand. The first contract in Sengkang last year achieved a very high take-up rate of about 90%.”
“I hope that private sector participation in the development of public housing will help to enrich and enhance the "HDB experience". Let me now turn to the issue of affordability of HDB flats. Many Members have spoken on this. Dr Wang Kai Yuen revealed to us the results of a survey that the Feedback Unit did which showed that there was this gap between what the sample survey considered to be serious and the confidence that they had that the Government would address these concerns. Sir, housing is a basic need, and I can understand why Singaporeans are concerned, and why they have raised the cost of public housing as a major concern, along with public transport and healthcare. Let me assure Members that the Government is committed to ensuring that HDB flats remain affordable to Singaporeans, especially to first-timers. But the question always is: how do we measure affordability? What do we mean by affordability? The universally accepted way is to compare prices with income, ie, what you have to pay versus what you expect to earn. Specifically, this means comparing the monthly mortgage instalments with your monthly household income. This is known as the debt-service ratio, with mortgage as a numerator and household income as the denominator. 2.15 pm Last year, those who bought HDB flats needed to use, on average, less than 20% of their monthly income to service their housing loans. In other words, there was a debt to service ratio of 20%. This 20% ratio is reasonable and affordable by any standard. It is well within the 40% guideline which most banks use when they give out loans and when they do their credit assessment. It is also in line with international benchmarks when you compare across countries on whether housing is affordable.”
“It is unfamiliar to HDB as well as to the flat buyers. So, we will take a cautious approach. We will test out the concept via a pilot project. HDB has identified a site at Tampines Avenue 6 for the pilot project. It will tender out the site to interested developers in the second half of this year. I expect that the majority of HDB projects that will be outsourced to the private sector will be under the tried and tested Design-and-Build (D&B) scheme. HDB will continue to be the developer, and set prices for the bulk of new HDB flats. HDB-developed flats, along with the HDB resale prices, will form the benchmark. It will set prices for the DBSS flats, and this will ensure that public housing continues to remain affordable for Singaporeans. MND will evaluate the pilot DBSS project carefully before deciding whether to implement the scheme more widely. If we do, it will be done selectively, most probably in the more mature estates which are more popular with residents. We will modify the scheme, if necessary, depending on the outcome of the pilot, to ensure that our overall objectives are met, and to make sure that DBSS flats remain affordable for HDB flat buyers. Sir, the liberalisation of the public housing market is a key milestone in the development of our public housing programme. I think it will reshape the way HDB provides public housing in future. It will introduce different ideas, it will bring different designs and minds to bear on how we can provide good public housing. But I want to assure Singaporeans that, even as we involve the participation of the private sector in our public housing programme, we will continue to provide housing subsidies for young couples to set up homes, start a family and for those who need to upgrade from their smaller flats.”
“But under the second mode, which I will call the Design, Build and Sell Scheme (DBSS), the private sector will undertake the entire development process for HDB flats, from tendering for the land to designing of the flat, the development of the flat, the building of it and, ultimately, selling the flat. So, design, build and sell. Upon building completion, the developer will pass the common areas back to HDB. The flats will remain as HDB flats. They will be subject to the prevailing HDB rules and conditions. They will be sold to Singaporeans who are eligible to purchase subsidised public housing. The Ethnic Integration policy will also continue to apply. Dr Amy Khor asked whether we considered other schemes, such as the reverse tender mechanism. Yes, we did. Under this scheme, we would cap the price of the flats and then we will let the developers tender for the land and build. The problem with this is that, having capped the selling price, the only way that the developer is able to make money is to stinge or save on the construction cost and, therefore, may create problems, as far as quality is concerned. And this is the experience, for example, that the Hong Kong authorities had, which they strongly advised us not to follow. Under the DBSS, developers can price their flats, based on what the market can accept. To ensure affordability, eligible first-timers will receive a $30,000 or $40,000 CPF housing grant from the Government, similar to the grant for first-timers who are buying HDB resale flats. Those eligible can also obtain the HDB concessionary loan to finance their flat purchase. Developers will be free to decide on the design and flat mix, so long as the character of public housing is preserved. The DBSS scheme is untested. It is brand new.”
“This is the first point that was raised by Dr Amy Khor when she asked how we intend to involve the private sector in the provision of public housing. Currently, public housing accounts for about 80% of the total housing stock. All of these flats are designed and developed by HDB. This is quite unusual. In fact, most other countries do not practise this. They do not have such a dominant player in the form of an HDB. Hong Kong and Malaysia, for example, do involve the private sector in various forms of public housing. In 2003, when I announced the formation of HDB Corp, when we corporatised the building and development arm of HDB, I explained to the House that, together with this, we will also be opening up the private sector gradually to the private sector, starting with 10% in July 2006, reaching 50% in July 2008. Private sector participation will enable our public housing programme to be more responsive to the needs of our residents. And market competition, I believe, will also result in greater innovation in building and design, greater choice and, ultimately, better value for money for flat buyers. My Ministry has been studying various options for implementing and involving the private sector in public housing development, and we have narrowed it down to two modes. Under the first mode, the private sector will provide the consultancy services, for example, architectural design and project management and, of course, the building works, as one package. This is known as Design-and-Build (D&B). This is a familiar method. It is tried and tested. It has been done for various estates in the past few years.”
“For the minority who upgrade to private housing, I believe their HDB years have formed an important and cherished part of their memory and life experiences. Sir, I submit that we must endeavour to make the "HDB experience" a pleasant, memorable and a rewarding one for all HDB residents, whether they are young or old, for newcomers, long-staying ones, people of different socio-economic backgrounds, different races. That is the challenge for HDB. That is the role that HDB must continue to play, going forward. We must continue to plan and execute our home ownership policies in such a way that the "HDB experience" that I talked about is a memorable and rewarding one. (1) We must make sure that public housing policies are fairly disbursed because, after all, we only have a limited amount of money to spend on public housing; (2) We must make sure that the flats that we build are of good quality and continue to remain affordable, a point which many Members of this House have brought up; (3) We must make sure that the leases are properly administered, eg, rentals, resale, etc; (4) Towns with supporting amenities are comprehensively planned and developed to meet demand; and (5) Older estates are systematically and properly reviewed, renewed and revitalised, so that vibrant communities continue to thrive there. Of course, HDB cannot do all these alone, and this is where I believe that we must now start to leverage on the experience and expertise of others, eg, the private sector, the people who are not currently involved. Let us get them also involved in contributing to this "HDB experience". Let me now touch on private sector participation in public housing.”
“Two National Days ago, the parade organisers produced a little red book which they called "Things that make us Singaporean". I still keep my copy, because I find thumbing through it some very nice little snippets. One of my favourites is by a Mr Ong Wee Loong, who is a full-time National Serviceman. He says, "A foreign friend once asked me: How come you know so many languages? I told him I live in a cultural language centre called an HDB flat, learning Malay from the left, Tamil from the right, dialects from the people above and below me." So, each HDB estate is like a "mini-Singapore", culturally, racially, religiously diverse, and yet everybody living harmoniously together. Our public housing programme has played a critical role in bonding Singaporeans together. Like many of my colleagues in this House, I grew up in an HDB flat and I have many fond memories of my childhood. My children grew up in a private property. But, fortunately, for a while, we lived in an HDB flat in Eunos, and that experience had a very big impact on my children. They had the chance to meet regularly and to mingle with Chinese, Malay and Indian children living in the same block or playing in the playground or waiting in the carparks for the school bus to take them to the school nearby. And this "HDB experience" has been a valuable one for them and for me. They still recall with fondness, the friends that they made there, Salleh, Jamal and so on. And this is an experience which as many Singaporeans as possible should have. Today, the first home for nine in 10 Singaporean first-time home owners is an HDB flat. More than eight in 10 first-timers who bought their HDB flats 10 years ago are still residing in an HDB flat, either in the same one or in another HDB flat.”
“And that is why in the design and planning of HDB estates, we consciously set out to create a strong community spirit and foster social integration. So we carefully guide the ethnic balance in our housing estates, we mix different flat types within the same block. We provide recreational facilities to draw HDB residents out of their flats and create plentiful opportunities for them to mix and mingle in the common spaces. The walkways and the corridors that you see in the HDB estates are not just about connecting blocks to blocks or connecting blocks to bus stops. They are also about connecting people and connecting lives. The HDB void decks, in particular, are something which are quite unique to Singapore. If you walk around HDB void decks today, you will see young and old playing guitar; sometimes playing football to the annoyance of some residents; you see older people playing chess, playing qigong; housewives catching up on the neighbourhood gossip on the way to market; or young parents sitting at the void decks waiting for their children to finish kindergarten and during that time, exchanging ideas or gossip. Most Members would also have at one time or another attended a happy occasion, a wedding, or a sad occasion, a funeral of, say, a friend or a resident at the void deck. 2.00 pm Our HDB estates, with their flats, hawker centres and shops, have become a common point of emotional reference for many Singaporeans - just like what we were talking about earlier. National Service for males - in the same way that our schools have brought Singaporeans of different races and socio-economic groups closer together. So, what I call the "HDB experience" has become an integral part of the Singapore experience for many Singaporeans.”
“Sir, Members have spoken on a very broad range of issues relating to public housing. But let me first respond to probably the most fundamental question on public housing, which is the role of the HDB, raised Dr Amy Khor. As Members would know by now, the HDB was set up in 1960 at a time when Singapore was facing very severe housing shortage and most of the people were living in slums and squatters in the cities and outside. And HDB had to build thousands, literally thousands of flats, in a very short space of time. It was a challenge for HDB. It was a challenge to HDB's resolve to overcome. And I must say that it did an admirable job. Today, almost nine in 10 Singaporeans live in HDB flats. Almost all own their flats. No other country, whether you are talking about a developed or a developing country, has been able to achieve this. Now that it has largely met its objective of providing affordable housing for the majority of Singaporeans, the question that all of us are beginning to ask is: what next can it do? What more can it do? What is the role of HDB moving forward? To answer this, I would like to look at the broader context of our public housing programme. Right from the start, the Government's public housing policy has not just been about providing a roof and shelter. Public housing is also very much about promoting rootedness, about giving Singaporeans a stake in this country, a physical stake in giving them an asset. The Government has therefore encouraged home ownership right from the beginning. To own a home is to own a part of Singapore. It is what makes Singapore worth defending and worth contributing to. Rootedness also means being a part of the community and contributing to the well-being of this community.”
“I do believe they will continue to exercise their responsibilities seriously, effectively and adequately in Parliament with the new Standing Orders in the same way that the new format for debate in the Committee of Supply has, as I said earlier, made for a much better informed and more robust debate in Parliament. I think all of us have been the better for it.”
“In fact, I have to rush my answer now, looking at the clock. Sir, the NCMP made a few points. I think one of the questions he asked was what is the proportional value of the time that MPs spend in Parliament versus the time spent in the constituency. I think it is a very difficult question to answer. But let me say this. If the MP does not do his work in the constituency and if he does not convince his constituents that he is worthy of their support and be their representative in Parliament, there would be no time spent in Parliament, to speak of, because he would not be elected. So, he should tell me what is the relative value of work done in the constituency versus work done in Parliament. I think he will know the answer for that, and that is the reason why he is the NCMP and not the elected MP. Sir, why do we choose Parliaments that have limits? The answer is a very simple one. We have looked at all the practices of various other jurisdictions. Some of them have limits and some of them do not. We feel that, in our case, it is relevant for us to have a limit and that is the reason why we have chosen those particular parliaments. The issue is not whether there is a limit or not. The issue is really what is a reasonable number. Having looked at the practice of other parliaments and at our own record, how much time our MPs take and how many questions they file, we have arrived at a standard for us. This is something that we feel is reasonable and I think Members of Parliament have not been constrained in any way.”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, I notice that you have been very generous with the NCMP, giving him sufficient time to speak.”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, I guess the real answer is that we have always tended to bend over backwards to give the Opposition MPs a chance to be heard in Parliament. After all, there are only two elected Opposition Members and one NCMP. I guess other Members would not mind if we give them two minutes extra to say what they have to say. 1.15 pm”
“On the question of MPs' allowances, Mr Steve Chia must know that the elected MPs' responsibilities are more than just in Parliament. They have to look after the interests of their constituents in Parliament by speaking up on their behalf, but also in their constituencies, through the various activities that they organise - mobilising their constituents, explaining Government policies and, in general, making sure that their constituents have a good standard of living and a better quality of life. The MPs' allowance and the honorarium are meant for MPs to meet part of their expenses in the course of these duties. Non-constituency MPs like Mr Steve Chia, of course, do not have any such responsibilities to look after their constituents. So if there is any reduction in MPs' allowance, I guess it could conceivably apply to NCMPs. Generally, Mr Chairman, Sir, I cannot see any correlation between the amending of the Standing Orders last year and the allowance that is paid to MPs.”
“They can move substantive motions, raise adjournment motions, ie, they can raise a matter upon the adjournment of Parliament, debate on Bills, and introduce cuts during Committee of Supply debates. Indeed, the implementation of this new procedure of allocating speaking time to Ministers and MPs during the debate in this Committee of Supply which we have seen, has ensured that we all have sufficient time to make our points without being guillotined. It has also provided time for Members to question Frontbenchers, and to seek clarifications on certain issues that have not been addressed and needed to be addressed. This has made the debate in this sitting a much better debate, both in substance and in style. I do not see any Member of Parliament having insufficient time to raise his point, even though he may have had a limited time to make his cut. There has been sufficient time set aside after the Minister, the Minister of State or Senior Parliamentary Secretary has spoken, for clarifications to be made. In fact, not all the time that has been allocated has been used up. That is the reason why we are running so far ahead of schedule. There is no excuse whatsoever for the NCMP not to raise his point or to make his clarification. Now, with the new system, we have more opportunities for Members to speak. We have more opportunities for them to question and comment on Government policies and issues of concern of their constituents. Therefore, I totally disagree with Mr Steve Chia that the amendment to the Standing Orders that we introduced last year has curtailed, in any way, the Members' effectiveness in the discharge of their parliamentary duties.”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, Mr Steve Chia's premise is that, first of all, the speaking and questioning rights of MPs have been reduced through the changes in the Standing Orders and, therefore, correspondingly, the MPs' allowance should be reduced. He has made two points which are both wrong. First, is his contention that the speaking and questioning rights of MPs have been reduced. It has not been reduced and I will explain why. If he recalls, last year, in Parliament, we had an exercise to update the rules of Parliament and this was to bring it in line with other parliaments and jurisdictions. One of the things we reviewed was the number of questions, both oral and written, that a Member could ask at one sitting. As part of this exercise, we looked at the practice of other Parliaments - Lok Sabha in India, the Canadian Parliament, the Malaysian Dewan. We saw that these parliaments all have different limits on the number of questions, ranging from three to five questions per Member per sitting. This idea of a limit on the number of questions is not something exceptional. It is not something that we cooked up. In our case, we looked at the number of questions that were asked over the last couple of years and the Committee decided to recommend to Parliament that there be a limit of five questions, oral and written, per Member per sitting. This was a reasonable figure, and Parliament approved it. Sir, this move does not in any way reduce the speaking rights of MPs. In fact, apart from asking questions for oral answer or submitting questions for written answer, there are many other things that Members of Parliament can do.”
“Sir, I just want to reiterate that CIPC funds are made available upon the request of the Advisers of the various constituencies and they go to enhance the facilities within the constituency. In the case of Potong Pasir, I believe funds have been requested for and have been given to Potong Pasir constituency. Of course, the reason why we go to the Adviser is because the request is generated through the grassroots organisations. These requests are assessed by a Committee of which Dr Wang is a member, and all the more deserving ones are given the funds. Therefore, it is not true that Potong Pasir has not received any funds.”
“Sir, I just want to clarify for Mr Chiam's benefit that I believe that Potong Pasir has indeed received CIPC funds. CIPC funds do not go to the MP or the Adviser. It goes to the constituencies. I recall that all constituencies in Singapore do receive some CIPC funds.”
“HDB lets out 1- and 2- room flats at subsidised rents to low-income citizen families under the Public Rental Scheme. Before 1st October 2003, the monthly household income ceiling for eligible applicants was $800. After this date, it was raised to $1,500. HDB received 3,125, 3,491 and 4,188 rental applications in 2002, 2003 and 2004 respectively. The number of rental flats accepted by rental applicants increased from 2,226 in 2002, 2,594 in 2003 to 3,001 in 2004. Over the same period, the number of applicants who were allocated flats but rejected them was 295, 264 and 468 respectively. Since the implementation of the revised income ceiling of $1,500 from 1st October 2003, 12 applications for rental flats were rejected as the gross income of the household had exceeded the ceiling. The average waiting time for a rental applicant on the queue to be allocated a flat in an area of his choice is about 1.5 months for a 1-room flat and 4.5 months for a 2-room flat. Rental applicants who are in urgent need of accommodation can participate in HDB's Daily Selection Scheme where HDB will offer rental flats in less popular estates for immediate selection and allocation on a daily basis. Applicants who are not choosy over location or floor level would be allocated a rental flat immediately and there is no waiting time. CHINESE LANGUAGE 4. Assoc. Prof. Ong Soh Khim asked the Minister for Education (a) what is the rationale for cutting down the Chinese syllabi while there is a growing interest to interact with China, as Singaporeans with poor vocabulary can never understand Chinese well nor can they express themselves adequately; and (b) how it can be ensured that the Chinese language standard is maintained with the reduction of the syllabi.”
“The resale levy is not intended to be a capital gains tax to cream off the profit made on the first flat. Home ownership is an important facet of our public housing policies. Our property market conditions may have changed, but the resale levy is still necessary to maintain an equitable distribution of home ownership subsidies and ensure that they go to those who have a greater need for them. We will however review the resale levy regularly to ensure that it remains relevant and meets with our overall objectives.”
“In effect, we will not be having any more age criteria for lifts because all the flats that were built before 1990, which do not have lifts on every floor, will become eligible. So it is no longer a consideration. HDB FLATS (Resale levy) 3. Mr Leong Horn Kee asked the Minister for National Development if he will (a) state the existing policies on resale levy for HDB flats; and (b) consider updating and revising these policies to be more equitable, such as to charge the levy based on the net profit of the sale of the flat rather than on the resale price. The Minister of State for National Development (Mr Cedric Foo Chee Keng) (for the Minister for National Development): Mr Speaker, Sir, the resale levy is paid only by those who buy a second subsidised flat from HDB. As these second-timers would already have enjoyed a subsidy for their first flat, the resale levy is to ensure that they do not consume more than their fair share of public housing subsidies. In setting the levy rates, we recognise that lessees of smaller flats have a greater need to upgrade. Hence, they pay a lower levy rate as a percentage. The resale levy ranges from 15% for 2-room flats and 20% for 3-room flats, to 25% for 5-room and larger flats. In this way, families who are upgrading from the smaller flats to larger flats still find it worthwhile to do so even after they pay the resale levy. Owners of larger HDB flats have a lesser need to upgrade to another subsidised HDB flat and can consider other housing options, such as private housing or a resale HDB flat. In such cases, they will not need to pay the resale levy. Flat owners, who do not buy a second subsidised flat from HDB, can keep the full sales proceeds from their first subsidised flat and need not pay the levy.”
“The SERS programme is a very valuable programme both from the point of view of the State as well as from the residents because the State benefits by being able to maximise the use of scarce land and the residents benefit because they are able to enjoy another subsidised flat plus all the other benefits such as a new 99-year lease and so on. As far as possible, where a site is viable for SERS, we will certainly carry it out, especially where there are low-rise blocks because obviously the intensification in areas where there are low-rise blocks will be that much higher. So the answer is yes, we will certainly do so. But I must caution that not all sites with low-rise blocks are viable for SERS because in some of these areas the low-rise blocks are actually interspersed with high-rise blocks. So we have to be selective about SERS.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Prime Minister has announced that to meet the needs of our ageing population, we will speed up lift upgrading and try to complete the programme in 10 years for all eligible blocks. He also announced that Town Councils will be allowed to use part of their sinking funds to carry out lift upgrading works, subject to guidelines which MND will announce later. As with HDB's Lift Upgrading Programme, residents will be required to poll and co-pay for the lift upgrading works done by the Town Councils before they can be carried out. MND will announce the details of the Town Councils' Lift Upgrading Programme during the Committee of Supply debate. We are currently studying the implications of providing lift upgrading for low-rise blocks. Members will be informed if there are any changes to this policy. Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan rose ---”
“Cashback arrangements involve necessarily a few parties and I think the real estate agent is one of the parties involved. I will take the Member's suggestion into consideration when we review the scheme further, if necessary, as I mentioned earlier. But I would like to assure the Member that, yes, we will be forwarding the names of the recalcitrant agents to IRAS for further action and one of the measures that we are going to take would be to deregister them, both from IRAS as well as the LHAS, in addition to all the other penalties involved if they are found guilty of such an illegal transaction. TOWN COUNCILS' SINKING FUNDS (Use for Lift Upgrading Programme) 2. Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan asked the Minister for National Development if his Ministry will (a) set out some guidelines under which the sinking funds of Town Councils can be used for the Lift Upgrading Programme (LUP); and (b) consider including low-rise walk-up flats in the LUP since the programme is being speeded up.”
“They are able to do so on a "willing buyer, willing seller" basis, using the facilities that HDB provides them through the Internet and, of course, personally at HDB. So I do not think at this point in time, it is necessary for us to make this condition that it is only to be carried out through LHAS' agents. I believe that the changes that are going to be made by CPF Board and HDB will curb this cashback practice to a large extent. I would like to inform the House that HDB and the other authorities will be monitoring the situation closely to make sure that, if there is a need, we will refine the scheme further.”
“Sir, in so far as the number of cases is concerned, yes, there are media reports that indicate that the practice is rampant but there is no hard evidence that this is in fact so. As far as HDB's complaints are concerned, apart from the case that was cited by the Member just now, there have been two other cases that have been brought to the attention of HDB. In fact, complaints have already been made and these cases are currently under investigation. In total, there are three cases that have been brought to HDB's official notice. Having said that, of course, one must recognise that it is very, very difficult to detect instances of cashback arrangements if all the parties involved collude and do not blow the whistle as it were. As to whether the valuations are inflated, yes, this is part and parcel of the cashback arrangement that the valuations are higher than what they should be. We do not know how rampant these practices are and therefore we also do not know how much the prices have been inflated. It is extremely difficult unless somebody spills the beans and actually makes a report, for HDB to now step in and change the valuation. As for the last question whether we will only restrict the transaction of HDB flats to LHAS' real estate agents, I must point out that the LHAS is not a compulsory scheme. Some real estate agents are licensed by IRAS and there are others who are not on the scheme. Having said that, most of the real estate agents would be involved in this scheme. I do not think it is necessary for us to restrict it at this point in time. I would also like to point out that there are some transactions that are carried out without having a real estate agent involved.”
“The CPF Board and HDB will release more details of the new ruling soon. I would like to advise buyers and sellers that it is not in their interest to enter into a cashback arrangement. Not only is the arrangement illegal, it also exposes buyers to greater financing risks through higher loans and erodes their retirement savings. Moreover, buyers incur higher stamp fees and legal fees. Sellers may also be liable for a higher resale levy if they buy a second subsidised flat from HDB.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, HDB is aware that there are so-called "cash-back" arrangements in the market. In such an arrangement, the buyer, seller and housing agent agree to over-declare the resale price. As the price is usually supported by a valuation that is on the high side, the buyer would be able to obtain a higher housing loan from the bank and withdraw more CPF savings than is actually needed for the flat purchase. The buyer pockets the extra cash, and some of it may also be given to the other parties involved in the deal, such as the housing agent and seller. "Cashback" arrangements are illegal and my Ministry takes a serious view of them. HDB will not hesitate to take action and report the matter to the police, if anyone is found practising or abetting cashback practices. The penalties for buyers and sellers who give false information to HDB are stated in the standard HDB resale contract. The penalty is up to 6 months' imprisonment and/or a fine. HDB may also cancel the transaction and debar them from buying another HDB flat in future. The penalty for housing agents who make a false statement in their Statutory Declarations, which are required to affirm the transacted resale price, is up to 3 years' imprisonment and/or a fine. If the housing agent is from an agency under HDB's Listed Housing Agents Scheme (LHAS), HDB may also delist the agency. As a further measure to curb cash-back practices, the CPF Board will be implementing a new ruling for HDB resale flat purchases from 1st April 2005. HDB resale flat buyers who wish to take bank loans and use their CPF savings in the flat purchase and servicing of the loan, will have to furnish a valuation from an HDB-assigned private valuer. This ruling currently applies to HDB resale flat buyers who take HDB loans.”
“HDB blocks constructed before 1993 were built according to prevailing building requirements. Following the revision of the Fire Code, HDB embarked on a programme in 1994 to enhance the fire safety features in these blocks. The scope of works under the programme to improve fire safety include: (a) Provision of dry riser for fire fighting purpose; (b) Installation of a firemen's switch in at least one of the existing lifts; and (c) Replacement of main entrance door to fire-rated doors for flats within three metres of staircase and lift lobby. This is to prevent fire in a flat from spreading to the fire escape route and to ensure that the lift lobby and staircase are well protected so that all residents in the block can evacuate safely in the event of a fire. There are a total of 4,978 blocks included in the programme. To date, flats in 4,474 blocks have been replaced with fire-rated doors. The remaining 504 blocks which are pending installation are located in various estates such as Hougang, Toa Payoh, Kim Keat, Balestier, Potong Pasir, Geylang West and Marine Parade. Replacement works for these blocks will be completed by 2006. HEALTH PROMOTION BOARD 3. Ms Braema Mathiaparanam asked the Minister for Health what is the role of the Health Promotion Board with regard to enhancing education of the public on their health.”