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.”
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“As for the road tax surcharge, it is part of a package of measures to ensure that all vehicles on our roads are in good condition and do not cause excessive pollution. These measures are needed because, as a general rule, older vehicles are less roadworthy and more pollutive. Inspection statistics show that cars above 10 years old are almost twice as likely to fail the regular inspection tests on their first try compared to younger vehicles. Additional statistics from the Automobile Association, which operates a fleet to look after vehicles that break down on the road, show that the breakdown rate for cars above 10 years old is 50% higher than for cars under 10 years old. Further, older vehicles are not as well-designed and are not fitted with gadgets that make them less pollutive. For example, the fitting of catalytic converters was made compulsory only in 1994. Nevertheless, we recognise that there are owners who take great care in maintaining their cars in mint condition. That is why there is no statutory lifespan for cars, unlike taxis. In other words, car owners can keep their vehicles for as long as they like, provided they have a COE or pay the Prevailing Quota Premium. They can continue running their old cars so long as they are also able to pass the regular inspections and, of course, pay the road tax surcharge. These measures have kept the fleet of vehicles here relatively young, roadworthy and help to check pollution. We enjoy smoother journeys and better air quality. As our city becomes more compact and traffic becomes heavier, it will be even more necessary to continue with these measures. 1.30 pm”
“Mr Speaker, Mr Teo and Mr Cheo's questions seem to suggest that the lifespan of a COE should be related to the actual mechanical life of a vehicle. Let me take this opportunity to clarify that the two are quite separate. They are not inter-related. The COE is like a land lease, which is independent of the lifespan of the home or flat which sits on the land, if I may use that analogy. We have set a fixed lifespan for the COE because road space is a scarce resource. It is the common property of all Singaporeans, and it should not be given away freely, nor should it be retained by any individual in perpetuity or over a prolonged period. A 10-year COE represents a right for a vehicle to take up road space for 10 years, no more no less. When the validity of the 10 years is over, the owner can choose to renew it by paying the Prevailing Quota Premium, or he can give it up, in which case the COE will be recycled for bidding amongst all prospective owners. Amongst all the COEs released for bidding this year, more than half are such recyled COEs. This present system therefore allows ownership of COEs to change hands and to circulate amongst Singaporeans. If we were to extend the validity period of COE, say, to 15 years, 20 years or even longer, there will be fewer and fewer COEs available for future generations. The result is that COE prices will soar. Existing owners, of course, will benefit from a windfall, but prospective buyers, including younger Singaporeans, will find the aspirations of owning a car fading away. Sir, my Ministry does not intend to change the 10-year lifespan of the COE, as it is a fairer system for both existing as well as prospective car owners.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, may I have your permission to take Questions 14 and 15 together as they are related?”
“Sir, the question of pollution control is a separate matter. We are always very conscious about keeping our air quality at its highest level. And this is the reason why the Ministry of Communications and the Ministry of the Environment introduced compulsory catalytic converters, introduced frequent inspections, checks and so on, to make sure that our vehicle population does not contribute to air pollution. Whether it is big or small cars, there is no strong correlation to justify the proposal that the Member has made earlier. Small cars without catalytic converters, which are not well maintained and do not go for regular maintenance and check-ups, may be more pollutive than large cars. So I think there is more to the question of pollution than just the size of the car. CERTIFICATE OF ENTITLEMENT (Extension of validity period) 14. Mr Teo Chong Tee asked the Minister for Communications, following the proposal to extend the life span of a taxi beyond seven years, whether he will also consider extending the validity of the Certificate of Entitlement (COE) for private cars from the present 10-year restriction to, say, fifteen years without having to pay for the prevailing quota premium on the expiry of the COE's 10-year validity. CERTIFICATE OF ENTITLEMENT (Extension of validity period) 15. Mr Cheo Chai Chen asked the Minister for Communications whether he will consider (i) extending the validity of the Certificate of Entitlement from 10 years to 20 years and (ii) abolishing the surcharge imposed on vehicles which are more than 10 years old.”
“As a close proxy to what the Member is suggesting, we take that demand to be what is the proportion of the vehicle population as at 1st May or 30th April before that quota year. That is the first approximation. Anything other than that, I think, would be a guesstimate. It would be trying to second guess what the market is and, more importantly, trying to second guess what the economy is going to be like. I do not think anybody in the Ministry is capable of doing that.”
“Yes, ideally, that should be the case. If we wanted to do that, we will be putting all the COEs into the Open Category and let the market decide what it wants. But if we were to do that, I think there will be a big hue and cry because then all the small car buyers would have to bid against the luxury car buyers. So we have decided that it is equitable or fair for us to try and protect the various categories of car owners. Hence, the segmentation. But the Member is right. Strictly speaking, there should be one class of COEs, whether it is additional COEs or replacement COEs. All the COEs should go into a pool. Everybody bids and then everybody decides what car he or she wants. Is that the system that the Member is proposing?”
“Sir, it would be logical to do that. But if we did that and if we started on that premise in 1990, today we will be having a vehicle population mix which is exactly the same as that in 1990, and similarly further down the road. So the replacement COEs, as I have explained to Mr Chiam, are not all put into the existing categories, but 25% of them are used for the Open Category. However, not all of them are put in the Open Category. Ideally, we should put all the recycled or replacement COEs into the Open Category and let the market decide for itself what it wants. However, again, we come back to this question of equity and trying to protect the small car owners from the big car owners. So we have put 25% of them into the Open Category. Of course, at this stage, the Open Category is more popular with the larger car owners, but it does not necessarily follow that this will always be so.”
“Sir, another word for "recycled" will be replacement. For cars that are replaced or scrapped and sent to National Iron and Steel Mills or exported, a scrap certificate is given and is delivered to the Land Transport Authority (LTA). The LTA will take that particular vehicle off the vehicle register and, in return, issue one more COE to be put into the pool. This is the replacement part. The increase in the vehicle population will come from the 3% and this is where every year we have got COEs which are more than the 3%.”
“That is determined based on the different proportions of the four categories as at the start of the quota year. I do not have the figures offhand, but I will be able to give the Member the answer very easily. There is a registration table of all the vehicles of each category. So it is a very transparent system in that respect. Mr Chiam See Tong: Sir, can I get a clarification from the Minister? He mentioned recycled COEs. The life of a COE is 10 years. What does he mean by "recycled" COEs? If a person has used his COE for three years and gives up his car, does it mean that the balance of seven years is recycled?”
“As I explained in my answer to Mr Imram just now, the COE categories are made up of two components. The recycled COEs come from the cars that have been scrapped or deregistered. So there is no relationship to the existing proportion. If there are many big cars that are replaced, there will be many big car COEs in the system. That is one component. The second component is the additional COEs - 3%, 3 l/2% or whatever number for each particular year. This number is then distributed among the different vehicle categories according to their respective proportion in the vehicle population at that point in time when we allocate the COEs, which we do once a year.”
“Sir, if the Member will file a Question, I will provide him with the answers.”
“Similarly, in the large category, if he chooses to buy the biggest car in that category, so be it. That is his choice and if he is able to afford it and he wants to spend his money that way, then so be it. But the COE system in itself does not try to favour the big car owners, as the Member has suggested.”
“Sir, this question of equity has been addressed when we first designed the COE system in that we segmented the total COEs into four categories: Category 1 for cars below 1000 cc, ranging to Category 4 for cars above 2000 cc, the so-called big cars. Within each category, we have endeavoured to try and put in the number of COEs which reflects more or less, at that particular point in time, the number of vehicles of that category in the population. That is the supply of COEs in each category. The demand for COEs and the prices in each category will then, in turn, depend on how many people are in the market for cars in that category. So the fact that COE prices in a particular category are high or low is simply a reflection of how many people are in the market for cars in that category. For example, if COE prices for the large cars are low, it simply means that there are less people bidding for COEs in that category, and vice versa. So the COE system per se, in itself, does not favour any particular category of cars, whether big or small. We have tried to build in some equity considerations, in that we do not have all the COEs in one category. If we were to do so, then I would agree with the Member that while this is a more correct, more economically rational solution, it would pit the small car buyer against the large car buyer, and the small car buyer inevitably loses out. But we have endeavoured to segment the car population in such a way that we try and minimise this. But within each category, as the Member may allude to, for example, within category 2, there is a range of cars from 1000 cc to 1600 cc. Some people will still favour buying a bigger car with a category 2 COE, but that is the market. That is what he chooses to do.”
“When the quota is set for each quota year, that quota is fixed for the whole year. However, as a result of changes in the transportation conditions and perhaps because of further restrictions on the usage of vehicles, the 3% figure is varied from time to time. I will give the Member an example. When we introduced the Whole Day Area Licensing Scheme which further restricted the usage of vehicles and as a result of which the roads were freer, the number of COEs allowed was increased slightly from, say, 3% to something like 3 1/2%. Mr Imram bin Mohamed (Nominated Member): Would the Minister agree that the COE system now favours the bigger cars since the Open Category is mainly used to purchase bigger cars? This is also reflected by the lopsided value of the COE at the moment where the COEs for bigger cars are lower and the trend is actually going up for Category 2. Would the Minister agree that the COE system now favours the bigger cars, ie, the larger capacity cars?”
“The Ministry sets the quota at the beginning of each quota year which is May. There is a 3% increase which is based on the vehicle population as at that point in time.”
“Sir, the additional COEs that I referred to are the COEs that are allowed under the quota system. Based on the increase in our road space and based on the increase in the number of new roads and expressways that we have built, we have set a figure of about 3% a year to be the allowable increase. So when I referred to the additional COEs, I am referring to this additional 3%. But on top of that, in addition to this 3% increase, we also recycle COEs. We recycle the COEs from those cars which are deregistered and these are also included in the COEs. So this is why I tried to explain that there is a quota. But this quota is made up of two components, the additional 3% plus the replacement or recycled COEs. The recycled COEs do not breach the quota because it is a one-for-one replacement.”
“As for the "Pay-As-You-Bid" system, this matter was considered by the Committee to Discourage Double Transfers, chaired by Mr Heng Chiang Meng. If the Member may recall, in March 1994, the Government accepted the recommendations of the Committee and implemented, on a trial basis, measures to curb the practice of double transfers. To allow the Committee to assess the impact of the measures more accurately over the next one year, the Government then decided to consider "Pay-As-You-Bid" only after the completion of the double transfers trial. The Committee studied the results of the one-year trial and found no conclusive evidence to show that the measures to curb double transfers had any impact on COE prices. The stabilised COE prices over the past year was likely due to other factors, such as the MAS's restrictions on car loans and slower stock market which affected demand. Sir, the number of Singaporeans that can own cars is ultimately determined by how many COEs are issued. Curbing double transfers or implementing "Pay-As-You-Bid" does not change the number of COEs or the number of people owning cars. So our immediate tasks are to regulate the demand for driving and to improve public transport for those who do not drive. Our traffic conditions will then improve, and we will have scope to release more COEs, which in turn will stabilise COE prices. Mr Chiam See Tong (Potong Pasir): Sir, I thought that the COE was part of the quota system. Now the Minister has said that additional COEs are allowed. In other words, this will be breaching the quota. Can the Minister explain further?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the COE quota every year is made up of two components: (i) Additional COEs representing the allowable increase in the vehicle population which is then distributed among the different vehicle categories according to their respective proportion in the vehicle population; and (ii) Replacement COEs from vehicles which are deregistered in the previous year, 75% of which are put back into their respective vehicle categories. The remaining 25% are pooled into the Open Category, which can be used to register any type of vehicle. The Open Category is to ensure that the relative proportions of different vehicles in the total vehicle population is not fixed for all time. By allocating some COEs which can be used to register any type of vehicle, the Open Category allows market forces to determine the vehicle mix. This way, the vehicle population truly reflects what the market wants. The method of allocating COEs among the different vehicle categories has remained unchanged since the COE system was introduced in May 1990. From 1990 to 1995, the population of cars above 1600 cc grew by 72% while the population of cars of 1600 cc and below grew by 13%. This shows an increasing demand for bigger capacity cars during this period. This trend is also reflected by the higher number of "open" category COEs being used for registering bigger capacity cars. The higher growth in the number of bigger capacity cars is simply market forces at work. It shows that more and more people are able to afford bigger and better cars. This is a result of a healthy economy over the last five years and reflects how some people choose to spend their money. Whether this is a desirable trend or not is not for me to comment.”
“The suit which the Member mentioned was started by the CTE tunnel contractor when they decided to file claims under a number of heads, including alignment, drainage, planning permission, and so on. To protect the Government's interest, the PWD who was administering the project then, counter-claimed for liquidated and ascertained damages and defective work, which included the water leakage. How this leakage rate was measured, and whether our specification was breached, were points of contention in court. The suit was eventually settled out of court. Last year, the LTA engaged a consultant to look into rectifying the leakage. The consultant's report is being studied and the officials will be making their recommendations shortly. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT FROM CONDOMINIUM DEVELOPMENT 9. Dr Kanwaljit Soin asked the Minister for National Development (a) whether environmental impact assessment studies were done before permission was granted for 2 large-scale condominiums to be built at the edge of the nature reserve in Bukit Timah and, if so, what were the results of these studies; and (b) what were the reasons if no such studies were made”
“Revenues from Certificates of Entitlement from 1992 to 1995 are as follows: ($mn) 1992 836.5 1993 1323.3 1994 1924.2 1995 1891.2 BREACH OF WATER PROOFING CONTRACT ON THE CENTRAL EXPRESSWAY 8. Mr Low Thia Khiang asked the Minister for Communications why the Land Transport Authority withdrew the suit against the contractors who were alleged to have breached water proofing specifications for the Central Expressway and what were the rectifications recommended by the civil and structural engineering consultants engaged to study the tunnel's leakage problem.”
“The Land Transport Authority's (LTA) recent survey showed that pedestrian and traffic volumes at the location mentioned are too low to warrant a pedestrian overhead bridge. LTA also observed that demand was dispersed -- pedestrians did not cross the road at any one point. Further, the road is narrow with no central divider. From LTA's experience, pedestrians do not find it convenient to use overhead bridges under such circumstances. LTA will monitor the traffic situation and will provide a signalised pedestrian crossing at the area when traffic builds up in future. NEW CHANGI HOSPITAL 3. Mr Teo Chong Tee asked the Minister for Health (a) whether he will give a progress report on the construction of the Eastern General Hospital in Simei Estate; (b) whether the hospital will be re-named Changi General Hospital; and (c) what is the future plan for the present Changi Hospital. BG George Yong-Boon Yeo: As at end of February 1996, building works are about 67% completed. The entire construction of the hospital is scheduled to be completed in December 1996. The hospital will be named New Changi Hospital. After the opening of the New Changi Hospital, the present Changi Hospital will be closed and the land and buildings returned to the State. The site has been earmarked by URA for sports and recreational use, in line with the development of Changi Point into a recreational resort.”
“There are currently three pedestrian bridges across the Pan-Island Expressway (PIE) near Simei Estate near Blocks 114, 122 and 126 respectively. The LTA did not provide shelters for these bridges because of their low usage rate, and also, they do not connect areas that are under shelter. However, LTA is prepared to assess the need and will be willing to work with the Town Councils to provide shelter for commuters walking from their flats to the pedestrian bridges, and along the bridges to cross the PIE. CONSTRUCTION OF OVERHEAD BRIDGE 2. Mr Teo Chong Tee asked the Minister for Communications whether the Land Transport Authority will consider constructing an overhead pedestrian bridge along Upper Bedok Road near Simpang Bedok Post Office in view of the increasing pedestrian movements along this road.”
“I am sorry. Mr Low is pushing for some kind of a rebate for safety devices like air bags, etc. 5.45 pm”
“But I just want to reiterate one last point and, that is, it is not just the responsibility of the operators or the drivers, I think we, as other road users, also have to play our part. And if everybody involved plays his part, our roads will be safer and accident rates will come down. There were some specific queries from Dr John Chen about using the black box. Yes, the black box has been installed. It can be installed. It can make drivers more conscious. It can also assist us when we investigate. There are in fact some fleet owners and operators who have already installed a device such as this. But both the LTA and the Traffic Police are of the view that, at this moment, there is no need to make it mandatory. The majority of our road accidents are minor and the causes are relatively easy to determine. However, if any operator or fleet owner wishes to install this, I am sure the Traffic Police and the LTA will welcome such an installation. But they will not insist upon it as a compulsory device at the moment. On the question of parking meters, yes, I think theoretically, it is a good idea to incorporate a parking meter in the vehicle unit. But at this stage, let us allow the ERP system to be introduced. It is a leading edge technology in the sense that we are the first people to use such a technology on such a scale for this purpose. The design is already pretty complex. I do not think we want, at this stage, to further complicate the design by incorporating other uses. So let us keep this matter in view and we will consider this when we upgrade the system in the future.”
“I think it was a serious accident and the people who were hurt and injured in the accident deserve our fullest sympathy and assistance. But having said that, I believe that there are measures being taken that indicate that all concerned are taking the situation very seriously. Earlier, in answer to a question from Mr Chiam in this House, I indicated that SBS accident rates are comparable with those of other countries. I cited those statistics not to show that we are doing well. I cited those statistics to show that even in countries where public transport in a major crowded urban conurbation operates effectively and efficiently, they still suffer from accidents. I cited the figures for Hong Kong which is probably the closest to us. The point I want to make was that the accident rates have come down over the years. There was a spate of accidents which were more serious than normal in the first two months of this year. They caused a lot of concern. Many reasons were advanced as to their cause. The Traffic Police has investigated these nine accidents. They have come to their conclusion. As far as these nine accidents are concerned, their conclusion is that it is not due to mechanical faults. They will be taking the appropriate action thereafter. But the bus company, the union and the authorities have taken very seriously this spate of accidents and have left no stone unturned to look for the probable causes and to make sure that they do not repeat it. Since then, the accident rates have come down, which appears to indicate that the measures that they are taking are beginning to take effect. I do not wish to go into the details as far as the specific measures are concerned. I cited a long list of measures the last time I spoke on this matter in this House.”
“Sir, first of all, I would like to assure all Members that safety is a primary concern, whether it is in the design of our transport network, our roads, or when we set standards for the vehicles that ply our roads, especially public transport vehicles. I said, in an earlier reply, that safety cannot be compromised. This is a commitment on the part of the Government. The LTA can do some things. It can and it has set up a special unit that looks at safety, safety standards of buses, MRT, etc. The name of this unit is the Safety Assurance Unit and this unit was one of the first units that was set up when the LTA was formed in September 1995. The role of the unit is to make sure that there is total transportation safety, in other words, safety not just on the hardware side but also safety in respect of the software aspects. Therefore, there are stringent safety standards - Mr Low Thia Khiang asked about them - for the construction of buses, MRT and the soon to be constructed LRT. There are safety standards for facilities like roads and rail. There are also safety standards that serve to protect the safety of passengers as well as the workers. This is done not just by LTA alone. It has to be done in conjunction with the other authorities. It has to work with the Traffic Police, the Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of National Development, URA, and so on. But I cite this to indicate that there can be no compromise as far as safety is concerned. But at the end of the day, I think Members will not disagree with me that even with the best of efforts, accidents will happen. Mr Chiam has given us a very graphic description of one of the nine accidents that took place. I do not want to trivialise the incident.”
“They too offer much cheaper rates than IDD. Several consortia are planning to launch satellite based mobile telephone systems, which allow seamless, cross-border personal communications. ST itself is participating in several such projects overseas. So even if we could enforce ST's exclusive licences in such an environment, it would be at great cost to the economy. For Singapore to stay competitive as a business and service hub, we must keep pace with the technology, and offer telecommunication services which are as comprehensive, as convenient, and as cheap as our competitors. [Mr Deputy Speaker in the Chair] 5.18 pm Both TAS and ST are fully aware of these worldwide industry trends. They also know the regulatory philosophy of the Government, a philosophy which TAS as a regulator has followed since 1992 and which I am taking the opportunity to restate in the House today. ST has been actively gearing up for competition, both at home and abroad. It has shown over the last few years that it is more than able to hold its own against competition. I am confident that in a more competitive environment, it will continue to do well as a company, and to provide Singaporeans and all those who do business in Singapore with first class telecommunications to link up with the world. There will be more changes to come, and at an even faster rate because the environment is a dynamic one. All those with a stake in the industry - governments, regulators, operators and consumers - must closely monitor developments and trends. We must constantly review and, whenever necessary, adjust our policies, if we are to stay ahead and reap the benefits of these changes. I wish to assure the Member that this is what MinCom and TAS are doing.”
“This "ancillary and incidental" clause allows TAS progressively to introduce competition, even in basic services such as IDD and local basic telephone services, from the year 2002 onwards, before ST's exclusive licence runs out in 2007. These three provisions have enabled TAS to develop the industry and consumers to benefit from lower charges and better services. TAS acts as a proxy competitor by regulating ST's tariffs to keep them internationally competitive. It also has the freedom to introduce competition for mobile services after 1997, and for other basic services after 2002. 5.15 pm As Mr Chng pointed out, the environment has not remained static in the three years since we corporatised TAS and listed ST. Technology is forcing the industry to open up even faster than we have envisaged. There has been an almost total change in the industry and regulatory regime world-wide. Last month, President Clinton signed a Bill to fully liberalise telecommunication services in the US. The EC, which was very reluctant to open up, will liberalise by 1998. At the WTO, countries are now aggressively negotiating an agreement on telecommunications, in order to reduce barriers to competition worldwide by 1998. Rapid technological change is also rendering ST's exclusive licences less and less meaningful. One major factor is the explosive growth in the Internet. The Internet transmits data, E-mail, images, and voice. And it can also already carry telephone conversations at a fraction of the price of an IDD call, although voice quality is still not very good at the moment, it will get better. Broad-band Internet services will be even more versatile. International "call back" services allow foreign telephone companies to access local customers for international calls.”
“Those which are not yet fully open are opening up rapidly. So their telecommunication charges are falling steadily. Because we peg our charges to theirs, our tariffs will also follow theirs down. Therefore, even without any change in regulatory policy, or any increase in the degree of competition in Singapore, over time ST's rates will approach the rates that would prevail in a competitive market. However, regulation cannot substitute fully for real competition to spur providers to raise efficiency, improve services and lower prices. Just to give Members an example. When ST introduced Internet services in March 1994, it was the only Internet service provider. But last year Pacific Internet started. Soon, a third operator, Cyberway, is going to start. Since these competitors appeared, SingNet's rates have fallen by more than 50%. Its service has improved. Subscriber base has gone up, I believe, by about 50%. Indeed, the overall subscriber base has also gone up. This could not have happened in a restrictive environment, no matter how effective the regulation. Thirdly, before ST was floated, TAS added a proviso to ST's licence, to allow broadcasting operators and other public telecommunication licensees to offer telecommunication services which are ancillary and incidental to their principal services, from the year 2002 onwards. This statement also appeared in the IPO prospectus. These public telecommunication licensees include mobile cellular phone operators, paging operators and, in future, cable vision operators. The services they can provide will include those where ST has an exclusive licence.”
“But we built in flexibility into the licence to allow TAS to progressively introduce competition in the industry and to ensure that consumers receive quality services at competitive prices. Let me elaborate. Firstly, TAS has interpreted the scope of ST's exclusive licences narrowly. It has licensed other providers to compete for services which are at the fringe of ST's basic services, or which did not exist when the licence was first issued. As a result of this, new services have proliferated, such as Internet services, value-added services, VSAT, mobile data services, and so on. ST itself has also introduced new services to keep up with the competition. Prices have fallen, giving customers a better deal and service providers a bigger market. Secondly, TAS has used other countries as benchmarks to regulate ST's charges for services where ST enjoys an exclusive licence, for example, IDD. The benchmark countries include Hong Kong, Japan, US, UK, Australia, the NIEs and emerging economies. TAS reviews ST's tariffs quarterly, so that they never get too far out of line without competitors. In the last two years, ST has cut IDD rates to 37 countries by up to 47%. Mr Chng Hee Kok mentioned that Singapore Telecom's charges to several countries are not competitive with cities like Sydney, Hong Kong and so on. He is correct, but that was for 1995 rate. I believe that with the recent round of cuts, effective 1st April, Singapore Telecom is competitive with these countries. So ST has not set tariffs at the maximum level that the domestic market can bear, even though it has a monopoly. The countries that we use for benchmarks have liberalised their telecommunications sector in varying degrees. Many already allow more competition than Singapore.”
“It has established the proper regulator-operator relationship with ST which used to be the dominant part of TAS. As regulator, TAS ensures that the operators, especially ST, price their services competitively. It enforces fair rules of competition and is progressively introducing more competition in what was a regulated monopoly. TAS is also a promoter of the industry, fostering its growth, monitoring industry and regulatory trends worldwide and taking timely steps to ensure that Singapore stays ahead of competition from other countries and has a first class telecommunication infrastructure. When we corporatised ST in 1992, we were among the first countries to do so, except for the UK and Australia. Most countries were just beginning to open up their telecommunication sector. We had to decide on the rules - what to license, what to regulate and to what extent if we want to regulate. We had only the UK model to refer to. We gave ST two exclusive licences: one for mobile and paging services for five years, and the other for basic domestic and international telecommunication services for 15 years. The exclusive licence for mobile services expires next year. That for basic services runs out only in the year 2007. The exclusive licences were to give ST time to stabilise its operations following its transition into a public company, to let ST to recoup its massive investments in infrastructure, and to allow an orderly evolution to a more competitive environment. They were not meant to protect ST, or to allow ST to charge monopoly prices for its services. This would have defeated the purpose of restructuring TAS. The duration of ST's exclusive licences was conservative.”
“Secondly, it enabled the Government progressively to introduce competition in Singapore's telecommunication sector in order to develop the industry as a whole. ST would be only one operator in the industry, although a very important one. This could not be done properly so long as TAS was both the regulator as well as the service provider, even though TAS had been among the most innovative and efficient telecommunication operator in the region and had passed on a large part of its cost savings to consumers. Thirdly, it allowed the economy to reap maximum benefit from an efficient telecommunication industry. Telecommunication is a key component of our economic infrastructure. Financial institutions, OHQs, MNCs and local companies all depend on a comprehensive and efficient telecommunication services at internationally competitive prices. Telecommunication is a significant element of business cost, especially for the financial sector. We want a thriving and profitable telecommunication industry, but telecommunication must thrive by serving the rest of the economy and not at the expense of the rest of the economy. Our experience over the last three years has shown that the decision to privatise ST and progressively introduce competition into the telecommunication sector was a correct one. Both ST and TAS are doing well. ST has successfully transformed itself from a statutory board to a public listed company. It has continued to lower its charges, yet its profits have grown by more than 10% annually. It has also expanded aggressively into overseas markets and is positioning itself confidently to face competition in the local market. TAS has developed and built itself up in its new role.”
“Where it is not possible or where it may affect the safety of the other passengers, we will have to look for other alternatives. And there are other alternatives, as she has pointed out, such as the "Dial a ride" services by the Handicaps Welfare Association and similar services for the aged, and so on. The Ministry of Communications and LTA will encourage more of such services. We have already put in place a scheme in conjunction with MCD to exempt vehicles that are operating these services from COEs and other vehicle taxes. I just want to assure Dr Soin that LTA, with the other relevant organisations, will continue to look into ways to better meet the needs of the disabled and the aged. I think it is important to do so because, as we all know, we are going to have an ageing population. Sir, let me now turn to Mr Chng Hee Kok's question about Singapore Telecom. In 1992, the Government restructured the Telecommunication Authority of Singapore (TAS). We corporatised the operational arm of TAS as Singapore Telecom and we reconstituted the remaining part of TAS as the regulator. And the year after that, we privatised and listed Singapore Telecom in the Stock Exchange. ST's flotation achieved an important political objective. It enabled the Government to enhance the assets of citizens and make Singapore a share-owning society. Today, 1.3 million Singaporeans own ST shares. But restructuring TAS and floating ST also achieved key economic objectives. Firstly, it gave ST the flexibility to operate as a commercial company and to adapt to rapidly changing market conditions. Advances in telecommunication technology were forcing Government to deregulate the telecommunication sector and to open up hitherto closed monopolies to competition. ST had to keep up.”
“It will give us some basis to compare the service level and the efficiency and standards of both operators. We have not made a decision on this yet. LTA will be studying this issue in greater depth and recommend a suitable industry structure in due course. 5.00 pm As far as the daily ridership projection is concerned, yes, it is true that we are still not able to firm up the projections for obvious reasons. But the current projection of 200,000 daily ridership for the North-East line is about one-quarter of the ridership on the existing system. The need to charge a slightly higher fare for the North-East line, I have already explained at length to Mr Goh and to his constituents. It is based on the current ridership and operating cost projections. The North-East line is more expensive to operate. It is fully underground. But we will only know nearer the completion date, in other words, closer to the year 2002, what the exact fare differential will be for the North-East line. Based on the new financing formula for rail extensions that was adopted, I expect the differential will be less than the 20% that I estimated earlier and I believe that will make the fares for the new extension affordable. Sir, I just want to touch very briefly on Dr Soin's question about the infrastructure to enable the aged and disabled to use public transport. As Dr Soin has also mentioned, there are already provisions in the new stations to allow the aged and the disabled to use the stations more effectively. But let me point out that the bus and MRT services are essentially mass transport services. We have also got to take care of the safety of the masses of other people who use these systems. So we will need to have a balance. Where it is possible, we will put in these provisions.”
“This is a significant increase. It works out to a total of 15,000-20,000 extra COEs over the next 3-4 years. As the ERP is extended to more expressways and ring roads, it should enable our road system to accommodate more vehicles and allow us to issue more COEs. We are now studying how to phase in these additional COEs in order to take into account the progress of the ERP project and also the need to cushion the initial impact of the new system. I expect this to take a few months. We will then announce details of when the extra 15,000-20,000 COEs will be released. Sir, I now move on to some very specific queries. Mr Goh Choon Kang and Mr Choo Wee Khiang both asked about bus services in the Serangoon/Whampoa area. With regard to the services that they have mentioned, in the case of Mr Goh, it is service 105; in the case of Mr Choo, he was talking about bus services in the Whampoa area, I would like to ask the Members to give me details about the specific shortcomings of these services. And I will ask the LTA to check and to take the necessary actions to ensure that they meet the standards set by the PTC. The last review that was done by the PTC indicated that they did meet these demands. But since then, the situation may have changed. Demand may have increased and, if there is a necessity to beef up these services, then the LTA will do so. Mr Goh also asked several questions about the operations, the fare structure and ridership projections of the North-East line. As far as operations are concerned, we have not decided who should operate the North-East line. Yes, if the SMRT operates it, they will probably achieve greater economies of scale, as Mr Goh pointed out. But having a second operator also has its merits.”
“ERP charges will have to be of a meaningful magnitude to be effective in reducing the current rate of vehicle usage. We will first automate our current road pricing mechanism, the Area Licensing Scheme and the road pricing scheme along the East Coast Parkway. As far as charges are concerned, I am not in a position to inform the House at this stage what the charges will be. But let me just say that if the ERP system were to be implemented today, the charges should be comparable to today's road pricing charges. We are working on the exact charges and it will depend on the prevailing traffic conditions at particular locations and can only be finalised closer to the date of implementation. As we have stated in the White Paper, we will concurrently review the vehicle tax structure as we introduce the ERP. On top of that, we will also implement a package of tax rebates to help offset the additional ERP charges. For the quota year 1996, in other words, from May 1996 to April 1997, the Government will allow another 3% growth in the vehicle population. This, together with the replacement COEs, means that there will be about 41,000 COEs available for bidding. The LTA will release the details later this evening. The COE quota for quota year 1996 is about 10% less than last year and this is mainly due to fewer replacement COEs, which in turn is due to fewer deregistrations 10 or 11 years' ago. But fewer deregistrations, of course, also mean that there will be fewer people in the market to replace their cars. The 3% growth for quota year 1996 does not take into account the ERP which will come on stream soon. The LTA estimates that our roads can accommodate an additional half to one percentage point growth in COEs per year over the next few years, as a result of the ERP.”
“But expanding our infrastructure alone will not be sufficient. We need to regulate demand by controlling the ownership and usage of vehicles. COEs and road pricing will continue to be a major part of our land transport system, if we are serious about keeping our roads free flowing. Dr Wang Kai Yuen asked for an update on the trial to curb the double transfer of cars. Members will recall that the Committee to Discourage Double Transfers, chaired by Mr Heng Chiang Meng, was formed in November 1994 and it recommended several measures to curb the practice of double transfers. These recommendations were accepted by Government and implemented on a trial basis in March 1995. The committee is currently analysing the past year's COE results, as Dr Wang has kindly informed us. The Government will make a decision on whether to make the measures to curb double transfers permanent after the committee has submitted its findings to my Ministry. Meanwhile, although the trial has officially ended, we will continue with these measures. Dr Arthur Beng asked about the status of the Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) project. I am pleased to report that preparation for the implementation of the ERP system is progressing on schedule and should be operationally ready in 1997. Since the award of the final contract in October 1995, the contractor has been working with LTA to finalise the system design. The final system proposal has just been approved last month, and the manufacture of the actual equipment will be starting soon. The objective of the ERP, let me remind the House, is to persuade motorists to use their cars sparingly. If we can do so, there is scope to release more COEs and allow more people to own cars.”
“Some town link services will be introduced in HDB new towns such as Woodlands, Yishun, Ang Mo Kio, Tampines, Bedok and Pasir Ris sometime this year. As regards bus shelters, Mr Leong Horn Kee asked whether the Government can fund the cost of upgrading older bus shelters. As he may know, we have already started refurbishing some 100 bus shelters in the city and in Ang Mo Kio. The pilot project is expected to be completed later this year. Upgrading of bus shelters is funded by the LTA. The new generation bus shelters have been designed to take into account feedback from commuters. If the new shelters are well received, LTA will extend the refurbishment programme to other areas. Mr Leong also suggested building queue barriers at bus stops for the safety of school children. I will ask the LTA to consider his suggestion. But I just want to point out that we have to be mindful that at each bus stop, there are people who may be waiting for different buses. So if we do implement that suggestion, we will have to find some way to make sure that it does not cause inconvenience to all the passengers. In the meantime, we can pay particular attention to the safety of school children by providing adequate pedestrian facilities, by making sure that we take enforcement measures against dangerous driving in the vicinity of schools, and so on. Sir, I now come to the issue of COEs. I am glad that over the years, the land transport debate has shifted from the issue of car ownership and from the different methods of distributing limited COEs to the more relevant issue of how we can improve our transport system, in particular, public transport. We will build more roads, up to a point. We will expand the rail network where we can justify.”
“They stop more frequently. They are less manoeuvrable and they are generally more affected by adverse road conditions. So under such conditions, buses do find it difficult to keep to the schedule. We can help by keeping our roads congestion free. We can help by giving them dedicated rights of way, where possible, by giving them priority at junctions, and so on. And this is what the 'B' signal that the LTA has recently experimented with is all about. They are planning to instal more 'B' signals at more locations to give buses priority at more traffic light junctions. There is a whole list of them here. I would not go into them. LTA will also identify suitable sites to implement more bus lanes. The point I want to make is that as more and more of such bus priority measures are put in place, Dr Chen's proposal to set target benchmarks for travelling time and for waiting time can be considered. Sir, on feeder services, several Members in this House just now, including Dr Michael Lim, Mr Goh Choon Kang and also Mr Choo Wee Khiang, suggested that we should try out a new type of feeder service, somewhere between the present trunk service and the feeder services. I have some good news for them. The LTA is now studying with the operators the introduction of a similar type of service. They have tentatively called it town link services. What town link service will do is to link up different parts of the town. For example, commuters who need to take two feeder services to travel from one part of the town to another, can now make use of town link services, which can provide a direct feeder service which is more convenient, faster and cheaper.”
“Car drivers could give way to bus drivers coming out of bus bays, bus passengers could give them a smile, or at the very least, be mindful of their own safety. She concluded by saying that it would be safer for everyone, in the long run, if our bus drivers can do their work under less stressful conditions. 4.45 pm It is sound advice. It reminds all of us - the authorities, the operators, the bus drivers, the motorists and the pedestrians - that we all have a part to play to keep our roads safe and to keep accidents down. Still on buses, Sir. Dr John Chen suggested setting target benchmarks for travel and waiting time. Let me just highlight what the Public Transport Council has been doing. It has taken a step in this direction, I believe, by setting basic bus service standards. There are many standards. One particular standard specifies that at least 95% of trips need not involve more than one transfer. In other words, most passengers, at least 95%, should be able to get to their destinations with either a direct bus or a train, or by making only one transfer. The reason for this requirement is, of course, to keep the public transport journey time short and the cost down, recognising that transfers impose not only a time penalty but also a cost penalty. Another standard specifies that bus companies must operate at least 90% of their trunk services at a frequency not exceeding 12 minutes during peak periods and 15 minutes during off peak periods. There is a different standard for feeder buses as well. So, theoretically, if there are no disruptions on the way, waiting times along the route should be the same as the despatch time that are specified in the standards. However, we all know that this is not the case. Buses share the roads with other vehicles.”
“It was a very common sight, they said, to see a private car with only one driver refusing to yield to buses, which carry 40 or 50, sometimes even 90 or 100 passengers, trying to pull out from a bus bay. They said that this would never happen in Germany. A recent Straits Times feature article reported how cars hogged bus bays during peak hours and how bus drivers got sandwiched by cars at bus bays. The journalist's observations were quoted by the National Transport Workers' Union (NTWU) in the Straits Times Forum page reply. Let me quote Mr Ong Ah Heng, Executive Secretary of NTWU: `The National Transport Workers' Union (NTWU) has always urged bus drivers to exercise patience and care when on the road. But quite often other road users do not cooperate, and they add to the problems of bus drivers.' He went on to add: `We all want to get to work on time. We all want to get home in good time. Even as we urge our drivers to continue to drive carefully, we hope that other road users will cooperate by not cutting into bus lanes. We appeal also to pedestrians to be more careful when crossing busy streets.' Sir, this is an appeal on behalf of workers who spend many, many hours on the roads, 9 or 10 hours, much more than ordinary motorists like you and I. They do not want accidents to happen and suffer the consequences, the least of which is losing their licence. Their livelihood depends on it. Tan Sai Siong, a Columnist in the Straits Times, in her Column on 9th March, pointed out that a bus driver's job is not an easy one. She went on to suggest that we could make life a little easier for them with simple gestures of courtesy.”
“The bus companies must redouble their efforts to attract more bus drivers to join the company and to stay with the company so that safety is enhanced without sacrificing service levels, and vice versa. It is good to see that bus companies are now looking at ways to upgrade facilities at bus interchanges so that drivers' working conditions are improved. I am also pleased to note that bus companies have incorporated new incentive schemes to encourage safe driving. Bus drivers are put on the road only after they have undergone comprehensive training. The companies are now going one step further to engage consultants to draw up specialised training programmes for their drivers. As another level of check, drivers are required to hold a vocational driving licence, a special licence issued by the LTA. These licences are only issued to persons who have a good driving record and who attend and pass a special training course. On the hardware side, all scheduled buses are required to undergo a six-monthly inspection by the LTA. Let me just say that the pass rate for scheduled buses is good, 99% for SBS, 98% for TIBS. Nobody wants accidents to happen. The authorities and the operators can and will inculcate more safety consciousness, provide better training for the drivers, educate them to be more courteous on the roads, and so on. But if we want to reduce accident rates, having courteous bus drivers alone is not enough. It would help a great deal if there are more courteous passengers as well as more courteous fellow road users. Last year, some German transport officials visited Singapore. During their visit, they told LTA officials that they were amazed by what they saw on our roads.”
“But I would like to point out that expanding the rail network to serve more areas only helps the bus companies if we allow the bus companies to adjust bus routes, minimise duplication with the rail line and save buses and drivers. In this way, the bus and manpower resources that are replaced by the MRT or LRT can then be redeployed to better serve areas which do not have such rail systems. We then ensure that the limited resources of buses, especially the limited number of drivers available, are deployed in the most efficient manner so that the bus-MRT network can serve as many people as possible. Also, in this way, we can keep overall costs down and keep fares affordable. I know that in every re-routing exercise, some existing passengers will be affected. Mr Goh Choon Kang highlighted just now the plight of his constituents who were affected by some of these exercises. I would like to assure Members that all proposals to amend bus routes are carefully scrutinised by the Public Transport Council whose responsibility is to ensure that disruptions are kept to the minimum and that there are reasonable alternatives available to those who are affected. Sir, overall, most people will agree that the bus service has improved over the years. But many would also say that it is not quite world class as yet. The recent spate of bad accidents involving public buses clearly shows that we have a lot to do in this area. Safety cannot be compromised. Safety is everyone's responsibility, the authorities, the operators, the management, the union, the bus drivers, the passengers and also other road users. Everybody must play a part.”
“When GLIDE was implemented in the city centre in 1987, travel speeds increased, I am told, virtually overnight by 20%. Over the next 12 months, the LTA will speed up the implementation of GLIDE at the traffic light junctions at Bukit Batok, Jurong, Bukit Timah, Ang Mo Kio, Yishun, Bedok, Tampines, Simei, Pasir Ris, Woodlands, Bukit Panjang and Choa Chu Kang. And by early 1997, all traffic light junctions in Singapore will be computerised. I now come to buses. Encik Othman asked whether there will be a role for buses in the future. The answer is yes. Buses will continue to play an important role in complementing the rail network by serving corridors of light traffic and as feeders to the MRT. The advantage of buses is that they are more flexible and cheaper to operate than fixed rail by MRT or LRT. But on the other hand, they are not as fast and reliable as rail transport. The major disadvantage is that they are very labour intensive. In this regard, I share the concerns of several Members in this House, including Dr Michael Lim and Encik Othman, about the growing difficulties faced by our bus companies in recruiting drivers. It is the responsibility of the bus companies to come out with better terms and conditions of service so that they can attract and retain good drivers. The authorities, on their part, can help to improve the working condition of bus drivers with measures like bus lanes, bus priority signals at traffic junctions, and so on. But the long-term solution, I think we will all agree, is to expand the rail network to serve more areas. This is one of the key recommendations of the Land Transport Authority's White Paper endorsed by Parliament and accepted by Government.”
“Next year, 1997, LTA will complete another 113-lane kms of road. These include major projects like the SLE extension from Upper Thomson Road to the BKE and three multi-tier interchanges. Some Members may be familiar with these three interchanges. One is at the Holland Road/Farrer Road junction, the second one is at the Adam Road/Farrer Road junction and the third one is at the Benoi Circus. The Marina Bridge linking Nicoll Highway directly to Collyer Quay would also be completed next year. This will help to ease congestion along Nicoll Highway towards the city. And finally, Jalan Ahmad Ibrahim will be upgraded into an expressway. Again, this would be a boon to those who are travelling to the Jurong area. At the same time, we will also be implementing some junction improvement measures. These are measures which can make a significant difference to the travelling speeds of motorists. At Ang Mo Kio, for example, we will be looking at providing slip roads and extra storage lanes for four major junctions and we will also provide left turn green arrows at another four junctions. These additional traffic management measures will help to speed up the traffic flow within the town. It may be of interest to Dr Michael Lim that, apart from building extra access roads in the new towns, another effective solution that the LTA is looking at is the implementation of some of these traffic management measures. Another measure is the GLIDE (Green Link Determining) system. Today, 60% of our traffic lights are computerised and linked up by this GLIDE system. What it does is that it coordinates the timing of the green phase of the light so that there is a so-called green wave and motorists do not have to stop unnecessarily at traffic lights.”
“Sir, in this acquisition exercise, as in the others, there are people who will be affected - individuals, families, shopkeepers, businesses. They will be dislocated, and they have to look for new accommodation. I sympathise with these people. They have made a sacrifice for the benefit of many others. We cannot avoid acquisition but we can, and we will, make sure that acquisition is kept to the minimum. 4.30 pm Sir, I turn now to road infrastructure. The LTA is now in the midst of studying the proposed Singapore Underground Road System (SURS). This is an underground road system for the city. This study will look into the possible future alignments, the design, the facilities and the different construction methods. SURS will provide 40% more road capacity in the city. What it means is that motorists will be able to travel at the same average speed as today even if traffic increases by 40%. I expect this study to be completed by the end of this year and thereafter we can proceed to do detailed engineering studies. Our preliminary estimate is that SURS is going to be a very, very costly project, as costly as the North-East line, something like $5 billion. So we have to very carefully evaluate it from an overall national perspective before we make a final decision. But in the meantime, motorists can look forward to many more improvements to the road network before the end of this year. Over the last five years, 267-lane kms of road were completed and by the end of this year, some of the major projects that will be completed include the following: completion of the TPE, Lorong Halus Interchange, widening of Middle Road, Republic Avenue and Temasek Avenue (these are roads in the city) and road improvements at the Robertson Quay area (also in the city).”
“The names of stations are chosen in order to easily identify the station with the location around the area, so that people generally will be able to relate to that location. Anyway, this is something that is not cast in stone and, as he has rightly pointed out, some of the names that we used in the early construction phases for the existing MRT lines were changed. So, who knows? Sir, I just want to also expand on what the Government has done in the case of the North-East line to cushion the impact of land acquisition on affected property owners. First, we have introduced a five-year phase-in period. The five-year phase-in period is to allow some people who may need more time to look for alternative accommodation to retain ownership of their properties. They can do so and stay there free of rental or if they so wish, they can also surrender their property and receive their compensation earlier. For HDB flat owners who are affected, the residents will be given the same terms of compensation as HDB flat owners who are affected by the SERS (Selective En-Bloc Redevelopment Scheme) project. There is a long list of benefits that they can receive under this compensation package. I just want to say that they will be compensated at the prevailing market value of the existing flats and, of course, be given this additional package of benefits. And for owners of private property, those who do not own another residential property, they will be offered compensation at the market value but subject to a cap of $1.8 million. This is likely to be higher than the compensation stated in the Land Acquisition Act, which is market value as at 1st January 1995 or 4th March 1996, which was the date of the announcement, whichever is lower.”
“Of course, Punggol has no ridership because the new town is not there yet. For Woodleigh, it is similar, because the area around the Bidadari cemetery is also not yet reclaimed for redevelopment. Yes, the area around Sennett is full of residential units, but it is a low intensity residential area. Therefore, when we are able to acquire land parcels around the proposed station and when we fully redevelop that station, then we will be able to justify having a station in that particular area. And this is not something that is very unusual. In fact, I would like to point out that for the new Woodlands line, the same considerations applied for two of the stations. One of these stations is between Kranji and Yew Tee. A site has been reserved to allow another station to be built there when redevelopments take place. And that is not the only one. Another one will be between Yishun and Sembawang Stations. We intend to construct these stations when the developments in the area take place and when they justify the building of these stations. Mr Chiam may wish to know that in the case of the North-East line, we have actually gone one step further for these three stations and we are going to build the station box in the locations of these three stations, so that as and when the developments justify, we are able to construct that station. Finally, the name of the station. Should it be Sennett? Should it be Potong Pasir? Should it be Alkaff? Should it be Woodsville? Should it be St. Andrew's? What is in a name? Anyway, I think Mr Chiam may be reassured if I were to tell him that the names of all these stations are still tentative. It would be finalised nearer the completion of the North-East line.”
“Then the land owners will be able to make an informed decision as to whether they want to stay rent-free for a while until they have to move out or they can decide to leave now and collect the compensation money. Some of the land, of course, around the proposed Sennett Station will also be required for actual construction purposes. So this is another reason why we have to acquire some of these lands during this first phase. I may add that by acquiring the land early, the possibility of redevelopment of the land around these station sites will also be much earlier and if we do find the necessity to redevelop earlier, it will also help to boost the potential ridership figures and that means, of course, that the station can also be built earlier. Mr Chiam also asked why we are not building the Sennett Station in the first phase of the North-East line project. I mentioned in my press conference that the reason why we are not building the three stations along the North-East line, not just the Sennett Station but also Woodleigh Station and Punggol Station, is for the very obvious reason that the developments around these stations are not comprehensive enough to justify the building of these three stations in the first phase. Mr Chiam obviously disagrees. I am not surprised. But the consultants' report that was presented to my Ministry at that time made it very clear that the station in that vicinity would be the weakest station in terms of ridership, ie, people getting on and off that station, under existing development plans. I remember giving a reply to Mr Chiam in this House concerning this fact. It is a weak station along that line because the mobility of people in that area does not create that kind of ridership.”
“Mr Chiam also raised some very specific questions concerning the compensation and the notice to quit. I will try and answer some of them but where they are too specific, he may wish to file a Question and we will be able to give him a more comprehensive answer. For example, for the ex-gratia compensation, the Land Office and the Ministry of National Development have, I believe, already announced that compensation will be given and ex-gratia payment will also be given under certain circumstances to top it up to market value. I will give some details a little bit later on. As far as notice to quit is concerned, the Land Office will issue notices as to how long land owners can continue to stay on their property within the next six months. Whether there will be a change in the acquisition plans, I am afraid that it would be very difficult to change the acquisition plans at this stage. All the plans have been gazetted, the alignments have been fixed, the station locations have also more or less been fixed. So the answer to that question is: Very difficult, almost impossible. Mr Chiam also asked why we are acquiring land around the Sennett Station when we are not intending to build that station in the first phase. I think it is very obvious that once we announced that the station site is going to be there, land value around this station is either going to go up, or it may get stuck. Land owners are not sure whether it would be due for acquisition. Either way, I think the land owner is going to be in a precarious position. For this reason, the Government has decided that for those pieces of land which are due for comprehensive redevelopment we also acquire them at this stage in this exercise. This is to give certainty to the residents and to the land owners in the area.”