S Jayakumar
Singapore
“It is well and good for countries to announce various targets and emissions. But one vexing issue ultimately is: what will be the method for verifying compliance with each country's announced measures? Another vexing issue, of course, is the issue of financing.”
“I would appreciate it if she were to give me some specifics of the negative feedback. But the general feedback I have had about our judiciary, both of the Supreme Court and the Subordinate Courts, has been nothing but positive.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the information that I have is that there is always medical advice present when caning is administered and that if the medical opinion is that caning cannot proceed beyond a certain point, that medical opinion will be observed and the caning will not proceed.”
“Mr Liang Eng Hwa asked the Minister for Transport in view of the recent announcement to make immediate improvements to the public transport system (a) whether the Ministry has set a timeline for the increase in frequency of feeder bus services; and (b) whether the Ministry can immediately target such services that are currently running at…”
“SCDF will continue to work with HDB and other relevant agencies to ensure that such older buildings with one exit staircase meet the prevailing fire safety requirements when they undergo major renovation or upgrading works. CIVIL SERVICE PENSIONERS 3.”
“The Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports (Mr Teo Ser Luck) (for the Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports): Mr Speaker, Sir, with your permission, I would like to take Mrs Jessie Phua's and Dr Lim Wee Kiak's questions together as they both relate to the same issues.”
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“It is well and good for countries to announce various targets and emissions. But one vexing issue ultimately is: what will be the method for verifying compliance with each country's announced measures? Another vexing issue, of course, is the issue of financing. There are these two aspects, I wish I have a crystal ball, but I am a bit more encouraged now than immediately after Copenhagen when the pieces were very slow in being picked up. ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY FOR FOREIGN HEALTHCARE WORKERS 2. Er Lee Bee Wah asked the Minister for Health (a) what is the level of English language proficiency required from foreign applicants before they are appointed as nurses at our hospitals; and (b) whether they have to undergo an oral test to ensure their proficiency to communicate in English.”
“I would say that there are two aspects which would have to be addressed – the process as well as the substance. On the process, I must say that immediately after COP 15 in Copenhagen, there was a hiatus and things were slow in re-starting. But there now seems to be a sense of urgency and the parties are going to meet fairly soon at negotiators level in Bonn in April. The new Chairman of COP 16, the Mexican government, is also showing seriousness and enthusiasm in consultating with various Members. In fact, our Chief Negotiator and the team were visiting Mexico for the past two weeks, with visits to New York and Washington. They had good talks to see how we can work together to advance the process. The United Nations Secretary-General is also showing some urgency in this. He has formed a high-level advisory group on one important aspect, that is the financing aspect. He has invited Singapore to be a Member of this high-level working group. Our representatives to that working group will be the Minister of Finance, Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam and Second Minister of Finance, Mrs Lim Hwee Hua. Other meetings have been planned including a meeting of Ministers in Petersburg, Germany and the recent meeting held at Bali, attended by Minister Yaacob, which was also useful. These are good developments which, hopefully, will kickstart the process and show an urgency in coming to an agreement. On the substantive aspect of what needs to be done as the process unfolds, there needs to be a bridging of differences between the parties, especially the major economies on both sides – the developing as well as the developed countries – on some key outstanding and unresolved issues such as measurable, verifiable, reportable measures (MRV).”
“For the reasons which were outlined in my answer in this House in January this year, Singapore attaches great importance to these international discussions on climate change, in which we have been participating actively. As PM Lee Hsien Loong outlined at the Bali meeting, any new framework must recognise the vital importance of economic growth and take into account differences in national circumstances and constraints of the countries concerned. As a responsible global citizen, we will continue to play our part on climate change if there is a global agreement to do so. ACQUITTALS OF ACCUSED AND PRESUMPTION OF INNOCENCE 5. Mr Alvin Yeo asked the Minister for Law in view of the public comment that has generated, if he will make clear the Government's position on the letter written by the Attorney-General's Chambers to the Straits Times on 14th May 2008 that people acquitted of crimes may not necessarily be factually innocent. 6. Mr Christopher de Souza asked the Minister for Law whether the Government supports the presumption of innocence and if yes, whether he will clarify the comments in the letter by the Attorney-General's Chambers to the Straits Times Forum page on 14th May 2008.”
“Since the 13th Conference of the Parties Meeting of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in Bali in December 2007, two meetings in Bangkok (31st March – 4 April 2008) and in Bonn (2nd to 13th June 2008) have been held this year to clarify the Bali Action Plan and to discuss the framework for the negotiations in 2009. A third meeting in Ghana is taking place right now. Further discussions are scheduled to be held later in Poland in December. To date, I am afraid progress has been slow especially on substantive issues. This is because the discussions are complex and also highly politicised. Discussions have thus far proceeded along the divide between the developed (Annex 1) countries and the developing (non-Annex 1) countries. Developing countries want to see a greater commitment from developed countries to reduce CO2 emissions. They would also like to see greater transfer of technology and financial support from the developed countries. On the other hand, while developed countries subscribe to the principle of "Common but Differentiated Responsibilities" (CBDR), they would want to see the major economies amongst the developing countries taking on commitments to reduce the growth of emissions. Our assessment is that progress will continue to be slow this year as 2008 has been earmarked for exchange of views and discussions to facilitate the actual negotiations which are scheduled for next year. The forthcoming US presidential elections, with policy changes, including for climate change, by the new US Administration in 2009 has also been a contributory factor.”
“Mdm Deputy Speaker, I beg to report that the Committee of Supply has made further progress on the Estimates of Expenditure for the financial year 2008/2009, and ask leave to sit again tomorrow.”
“Madam, may I seek your consent to move that progress be reported now and leave be asked to sit again tomorrow.”
“I would appreciate it if she were to give me some specifics of the negative feedback. But the general feedback I have had about our judiciary, both of the Supreme Court and the Subordinate Courts, has been nothing but positive. If there is feedback of specific instances, then, of course, I will channel it to the Attorney-General and the Chief Justice who are in the Legal Services Commission, which in turn has oversight over all aspects of the legal service, including the appointment of Subordinate Courts judiciary.”
“I have spoken to the Attorney-General and he has informed me that IAD will be expanded and given more resources. And also, it will develop its expertise further and form pools or clusters of expertise in different areas of international law and practice. And there is a programme to emplace them and work closely with other agencies, especially the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Indeed, a scheme of attachment of IAD officers to MFA was already initiated a few years ago. On her point about academia, yes, our talent pool is small. We should be prepared to enlist the services of legal luminaries in academia, as well as in the private sector. I know that the Attorney-General and the Solicitor-General are fully supportive of this. I am also glad to say that the Ministries and the statutory boards have also recruited officers who are lawyers, many of whom have background or training in international law. In fact, MFA has some 30 or so foreign service officers who are law graduates. Finally, let me say that the Law Faculty of NUS, Attorney-General's Chambers and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs are working together to set up a Centre for International Law. This Centre will be the focal point of our common efforts to build a hub in international law. Hopefully, it will bring together academics, legal service officers, diplomats and private sector lawyers to leverage on the experience and expertise already available in Singapore. I hope that the teaching and research will not just be wholly theoretical, but will contain a substantial dose of practical experience. We envisage that the Centre will concentrate initially on areas where we have some comparative advantage, like law of the sea, aviation law, international trade law and ASEAN law. This is just an indicative list.”
“For that matter, if we compare the Foreign Service, Malaysia has over 100 overseas diplomatic missions and our Foreign Service has only 45. So we are not in a numbers game. When we pay attention to this issue, it is because of the reasons that she mentioned, ie, that increasingly, there is greater and greater involvement of international law. We have more conferences and forums where our delegations have to be sufficiently familiar with issues of international law so as to effectively participate in those conferences and meetings. And, of course, there are new emerging areas of international law, a good example being climate change. I should also add, in parenthesis, that we are not developing local international law expertise because otherwise we would have to hire foreign counsel for cases like Pedra Branca. Nearly every country in the world, as far as I know, which has a case before the ICJ or other international tribunal hires foreign counsel, not because of any aspersions on their local lawyers, but for the simple reason that these foreign counsel have appeared before these tribunals regularly and have pleaded before these courts. And, therefore, it is important to use their services. Let me say that, for example, in the Pedra Branca case, much of the legal work, ie, the getting up and the drafting was, in fact, done by the Singapore legal team. Of course, the International Affairs Division (IAD) in the AG's Chambers is a lean outfit. But let me say that having worked with them over many years on many issues, I can say that they are a very dedicated and competent group, able to address issues of international law of immediate concern to us by prioritising and optimising their resources.”
“At the same time, he noted that such a change would radically alter a conveyancing system which may have a serious effect on the efficiency of the property market and, therefore, this requires careful thought and he has appointed a Judge of Appeal, Justice V K Rajah, to head a working committee to look into this matter and consult various stakeholders, and to consider the desirability and feasibility of introducing this or any other schemes to deal with such problems. He has given him three to five months to study the problem and make recommendations. Let us wait for the recommendations of this Committee. 6.00 pm I should also say apropos the discipline of lawyers, that it will be enhanced by some changes which have been proposed by Justice V K Rajah's Report. There will be firm adherence to stipulated timelines at every step of the disciplinary process. The current four-member Disciplinary Committee will be reduced to a one-man Disciplinary Tribunal. That tribunal will consist of a Senior Counsel, retired Judge or Judicial Commissioner of the Supreme Court appointed by the Chief Justice. I think all these changes are designed to cut delays and ensure a more effective disciplinary process for lawyers. Let me finally touch on Prof. Thio Li-ann's points about developing international law expertise. Basically, she has urged us to pay attention to developing local international law expertise. Let me say that the Government is paying attention to this. I myself have had discussions with the Attorney-General and officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Of course, we do so not because of comparisons with Malaysia, ie, they have so many Federal Counsel and we have so few.”
“Many operational details are involved in this exercise, and a comprehensive and holistic approach will be taken by Mr Walter Woon's Committee. On Mr Hri Kumar's proposal for a bar examination, this was in fact envisaged by Justice V K Rajah's Committee, which said: "The Committee believes that, eventually, it will become necessary to impose a second gatekeeper to entry into the law profession as the number of law graduates increase." I also highlighted this long-term goal when I announced the Government's acceptance of the Report last December. Now that we have two law schools, and many routes of entry – scheduled universities, Australian universities, and so on – and more of our students are coming from these universities from abroad, I think this will be a sensible direction to go in the longer term. For now, since we are restructuring pupillage, rethinking the Board of Legal Education's structure, bringing in Vocational Training Contracts, and so on, let us get these changes in place first, and we will be better placed to move in that direction later. Dr Teo Ho Pin talked about the conduct of lawyers and the mechanisms for promoting professionalism. Dr Teo must have had in mind the recent publicity over a few high profile cases of misconduct. The Solicitors' Accounts Rules were significantly tightened in 2007 by the Law Society. The question one may ask is whether the new cases actually exploited loopholes in the amended rules. Of course, our rules must be practical, workable and at the same time adequate. The Chief Justice has pointed out at the Opening of the Legal Year that one option may be to completely bar lawyers from holding clients' monies.”
“The consensus is that we can treat such candidates in the same way as Singaporean graduates who have come home with Second-Lower degrees from scheduled universities. With the same proven work record, the Board of Legal Education may interview outstanding candidates, and we are prepared to consider them for admission to the Singapore Bar under the various exemption schemes. Let me also highlight that the local law firms should take advantage of the special scheme under the Rules and the Legal Profession Act, which allows foreign lawyers who have worked for a local firm for one year practising offshore work, to then practise Singapore law in prescribed areas, such as banking, finance, corporate and other areas of legal or regional work, after passing a qualifying examination administered by the Board of Legal Education. There is an examination scheduled to take place this June. So, to sum up, we have had many changes to enhance talent within the legal industry. Let us see how these changes work, and refine it as we go along. Mr Christopher de Souza and Mr Hri Kumar talked about the various requirements, including the Diploma in Singapore Law course (DipSing), and Mr Hri Kumar talked about the bar examination. I shall give consideration with the Attorney-General's Chambers to their suggestions, ie, what they said about the Practice Law Course, the DipSing, and the idea of a local bar examination. I am not able, of course, today to give a firm indication of what the changes will be. But let me say that Solicitor-General Walter Woon is heading the Committee which will implement the recommendations concerning matters affecting the Vocational Training Course and the whole area of professional training.”
“The fact that we took incremental steps shows that we were attuned to the changing needs of the marketplace and we made adjustments whenever it was necessary. Yes, while we may need more lawyers, I would like to stress that it cannot be at the expense of quality. The 1993 controls have ensured that we have a sound crop of lawyers in this generation. We need to continue to maintain high standards in the admission of lawyers to the Singapore Bar as we adapt to the changing needs of our economy. Mr Hri Kumar makes a fair point. I agree that we must not be too rigid to the extent of denying ourselves exceptional candidates who ought to be admitted to the Singapore Bar, given the need for more numbers of lawyers. As he knows, we introduced the Second-Lower Scheme less than two years ago where we will give consideration to Second-Lower graduates and, under that scheme, we have seen a total of 18 applicants who have applied, 14 of whom were admitted last year. Justice V K Rajah's Committee has recommended shortening the three years' required work experience and we are prepared to consider that. With that change, we anticipate a larger number of entrants to the Bar through this method. Going further, the Ministry of Law has also reviewed our exemption policy. Under our current policy, we only recognise law degrees from scheduled universities of UK, Australia, New Zealand and USA. They must be on a full-time basis and must have attained a certain standard in their degree. MinLaw has reviewed this issue and, together with the Board of Legal Education and the Attorney-General's Chambers, we agreed that there is a further need to review how our current policy could be fine-tuned even further so as to maintain our high standards and not exclude deserving candidates.”
“Because it is a calibrated approach and the changes will be gradual, I expect our Singapore law firms will be able to rise to the challenges and competition, and I think, in the longer term, they will be stronger for it. Sir, Dr Teo Ho Pin asks for the measures to increase the supply of lawyers. Actually, the Government has put in place several measures. These include the recommendations in August 2006 from the Third Committee on the Supply of Lawyers chaired by the former Attorney-General Mr Chan Sek Keong, such as setting up the second law school, increasing the intake of students for the NUS Law Faculty, allowing Singaporeans and PRs who graduated from recognised overseas law schools with Second-Lower degrees to practise law upon fulfilling certain conditions, and enabling Singapore law firms to recruit outstanding lawyers from abroad under a special scheme to practise limited Singapore law. We also have the recent broad ranging recommendations in Justice V K Rajah's Committee Report. The Singapore Management University School of Law has been set up. It has taken off with an intake of 120 students. This, together with the increased intake for the NUS Law Faculty from 220 to 250, will result in an almost 70% increase in the number of law graduates in two to three years' time. So, to the question whether we should set up another law school, I would say, let us see how this develops because the decision to set up another law school would be premature at this stage. Mr Hri Kumar has asked for more immediate measures to address the current shortages. He was comparing the various steps to our family planning population. But I will ask him to look at it in a different way.”
“Potential joint venture parties may, in fact, propose to the Law Minister and the Attorney-General for permission to shape their EJLV scheme in a way that they prefer, to broker better arrangements for themselves to prosper in the long term. We may be prepared to consider it. I think the local law firms have a key role to negotiate with and offer an attractive enough deal for the international foreign law firms to forge a fruitful win-win partnership. We have yet to firm up the details of the QFLF scheme. But I want to emphasise that the structure will be based on an assessment of what would bring the greatest benefits to Singapore in terms of supporting the needs and demands of our economy - that is why I said the national interest is paramount - and in terms of positioning ourselves to benefit from the tremendous growth in international and cross-border work, and the need to attract and retain top talent in Singapore. We will look at the details of the proposals, but some of the things which we will look at are whether they will increase offshore law work from the region, whether they will increase the legal expertise and transactional skills of Singapore lawyers, especially in areas such as private banking, intellectual property and corporate law, and whether these foreign law firms will promote the use of Singapore law in international transactions - just to give Members an indication. After the schemes come into operation, we will review them in 18 to 24 months' time with a view to further liberalisation at that time. It is, therefore, a calibrated approach – only five firms initially – and several areas of law practice will be ring-fenced.”
“They will look into the details of the implementation and, where necessary, propose amendments to the legislation, especially the Legal Profession Act. Some may not require legislation in order to implement. We hope to have the legislation ready sometime later this year. We will be implementing two new schemes: the Enhanced Joint Law Venture (EJLV) scheme and the Qualifying Foreign Law Firm (QFLF) scheme mentioned by Mr Alvin Yeo. The EJLV scheme will be available in the second half of this year, once our legislation has been amended. To offer greater breadth and scope of legal services, we will award five QFLF licences by the end of this year through a Request for Proposals process. Some time will be needed, of course, to consult properly with various stakeholders, such as the legal profession as well as the industry; to put the necessary legislation in place; we need time to call for tenders, examine the various tenders and conduct the necessary interviews. Mr Alvin Yeo made several suggestions, for example, that the EJLV scheme be targeted at the very large international firms, and the QFLF be aimed at those firms whose main objectives are to follow their clients to Singapore rather than to compete for local and regional clients. The Joint Law Ventures scheme has always been a priority for us, since its commencement in 2000. Some have been successful. On the other hand, many foreign law firms have told us that they do not wish to participate in the joint ventures. They prefer autonomy and independence of action. But joint ventures are an excellent way for local firms to upgrade and acquire new skills. That is why, when we announced the EJLV scheme in December recently, we decided to go a step further than the recommendation in the Report.”
“As a focal point between India and China, as well as Europe and US, we are a convenient locale for legal services, including international arbitration. The third reason concerns attracting talent and keeping our own talent. We have to remain attractive for foreign talent and also ensure that we do not lose the cream of our own talent. By liberalising, our legal services, we think, will be enhanced and be better able to attract legal talent around the world. We have to remain attractive for our own legal talent because, as the Members who have spoken and who are in the legal sector know, quite a number of our legal talent have been lost because they prefer to work in international firms abroad. By liberalising, we offer them the same work opportunities and work exposure which will be available in global cities elsewhere. 5.45 pm Dr Teo Ho Pin has asked about our key performance indicators. We will measure ourselves by how well we have achieved our objectives. Of course, this is not easy to do, because some aspects may be measurable and some not. For example, in 2007, our legal sector contribution stood at 0.5% of our GDP. I think we can do better than this. But, of course, growth is always subject to vagaries of the general economic situation. We will regularly monitor feedback from the key economic sectors on how well our legal sector is or is not able to support the development of these sectors. In short, we will look at a combination of quantitative as well as qualitative indicators. How will we implement the Report? We have three Implementation Sub- Committees: the first, concerning the liberalisation of the legal services sector; the second, on legal education and professional training; and third, recommendations concerning the legal profession.”
“Madam, I thank the Members who have spoken. They have raised several issues. I will respond to the comments made on legal services sector and the Report of the Committee headed by Justice V K Rajah, which includes the points raised by Dr Teo Ho Pin, Mr Alvin Yeo, Mr Hri Kumar and Mr Christopher de Souza. I will also touch on the points raised by Prof. Thio Li-ann. My colleague, the Senior Minister of State, Assoc. Prof. Ho Peng Kee, will respond to the other questions. First, Dr Teo Ho Pin and Mr Alvin Yeo made some broad comments on the Report of the Committee, chaired by Justice V K Rajah. In responding to the suggestions and comments that they made, may I recapitulate why we accepted the recommendations of that Committee. We did so because we considered that it was in our national interest to do so. And why is it in our national interest to do so? Mainly because of three important reasons. The first is that it will help meet the needs and demands of our economy which has become more diversified and broad-based. As more and more international companies establish their presence in Singapore, the demand for corporate legal services in Singapore has continued to grow. In fact, our financial institutions, and even MAS, have fed back to us the need for increased legal services. The second reason is because of the changing nature of the global legal landscape. Globalisation has led to an exponential increase and change in the volume and the types of international cross-border legal work, spearheaded largely by the rise of China and India. So we need to seize the opportunities and position ourselves as a centre for legal services to benefit from these changes.”
“Mr Liang Eng Hwa asked the Minister for Transport in view of the recent announcement to make immediate improvements to the public transport system (a) whether the Ministry has set a timeline for the increase in frequency of feeder bus services; and (b) whether the Ministry can immediately target such services that are currently running at intervals of 30 minutes or longer.”
“The payment was made to Qwek not because his claim was meritorious, or he deserved it, or had any legal right to it, but rather the Attorney-General made the decision on ex gratia payment, among other things, in order to save time and cost involved in arguing the case before the High Court and probably even before the Court of Appeal. It was assessed that the effort and resources committed to the case would be disproportionate, considering that the previous Attorney-General had already decided to exercise his prosecutorial decision in a manner that I outlined. But let me stress that had Qwek insisted on proceeding with the court action, the Attorney-General, at that time, had no doubt that he would robustly contest the case in the court. So, it was not a case where there was a mistake or there was an error of law. It was just an ex gratia payment. Column No : 352 PUBLIC BUS SERVICES 13. Mdm Ho Geok Choo asked the Minister for Transport (a) whether the decision to allow more bus companies to operate on public routes will result in more congested roads with the higher number of buses plying the roads; and (b) if this will worsen the current traffic situation especially when car drivers are unwilling to switch over to public transport. 14. Mdm Cynthia Phua asked the Minister for Transport (a) whether the announced 10-minute waiting time for bus services is also applicable to the feeder bus services; (b) when is the review of the trunk and feeder bus services targeted to be completed; and (c) when and how will other bus operators be allowed and encouraged to participate in the reviewed bus network. 15.”
“Mr Speaker, that is a good question because when I said that no offender is caned for more than 24 strokes at one session, that does not mean that no offender will ever be caned beyond 24 strokes. Why do I say that? Because there can be very good reasons when an offender may, over a period of offending, receive over a course of time, caning of more than 24 strokes. Let me elaborate. Take the case of a serial offender who, say, over a period of weeks or months, is tried on several occasions for several different offences. The first set of offences, say, maybe this week, could involve rape; in the following week, he may commit armed robbery; and in the third week, he may commit rioting with a deadly weapon. These are all serious offences. So if we say that in any such case there is an absolute cap of 24 strokes, then we are, in fact, giving such a serial offender permanent immunity from further caning. We cannot treat such a multiple offender who has committed, say, 50, 60 or 100 offences the same way as an offender who has committed, say, two offences. So there may be a limit of 24 strokes of the cane in any one caning session but that does not mean that if he has been tried for different offences, that when he is sent to prison, he may not be receiving different sessions of caning.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the information that I have is that there is always medical advice present when caning is administered and that if the medical opinion is that caning cannot proceed beyond a certain point, that medical opinion will be observed and the caning will not proceed. Whether in some cases, because of the caning, certain injuries are suffered and, if so, will there be hospitalisation, I do not know of specific cases. But I am sure that if caning results in injuries, the due medical treatment will be accorded. And if it requires hospitalisation, I have no doubt that hospitalisation services will be provided.”
“However, in the previous year, the Attorney-General had reviewed the whole issue of section 230 of the Criminal Procedure Code and decided that, as a general rule for future cases, he would exercise his prosecutorial discretion to proceed only on a limited number of charges upon each occasion where an accused faces multiple charges, such that the total number of strokes which would be imposed by the court would not exceed 24. The Attorney-General did so because he assessed that 24 strokes, together with the custodial sentences which are usually meted out in cases of this nature, would be sufficient to meet the purposes of deterrence in sentencing. When Qwek's case finally came up for pre-trial hearing, the then Attorney-General advised making a token ex gratia payment to Qwek after he discontinued his case for compensation. Anyway, the previous Attorney-General had already changed the practice, in any event. Finally, Sir, the Government has also decided, as part of its process of reviewing the Criminal Procedure Code, that the provision would be amended to reflect the practice which has been adopted.”
“In one case, the Court of Criminal Appeal enhanced the sentence from eight years' imprisonment and 16 strokes to 16 years' imprisonment and 30 strokes. There was also a petition for revision filed in 1989 by an offender who had been guilty of a series of armed robberies and had been sentenced to more than 24 strokes. The issue of excessive punishment was raised. The then Chief Justice, having considered the issues, declined to exercise his power of revision. Arising from those precedents, Sir, I would expect that there would have been cases where offenders were sentenced to more than 24 strokes. But it will require some research into old records to establish the actual number of such cases. Mr Speaker, Sir, maybe this question has been prompted by recent media publicity about one Qwek Kee Chong, who filed a civil suit against the Government in 1991. Qwek was a member of a four-man gang that was responsible for a spate of armed robberies between January and August 1987. The gang was armed with parangs and several people were hurt. Qwek faced 17 counts of gang robbery, 15 counts of armed robbery and one count of house-breaking. He was convicted in 1987 of four charges of armed robbery and sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment and 48 strokes of the cane, the other charges being taken into consideration in sentencing. When he came forward with his claim, in view of the long line of authorities that I have mentioned, the Attorney-General advised that Qwek did not have a chance of succeeding in his suit. Furthermore, he had not appealed against his sentence.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Member has asked whether there are cases where prisoners have been inflicted with more than the limit of 24 strokes of the cane and how this came about. To answer her question, we must first address the question as to what the legal limit is for the number of strokes that may be imposed by a court. This is governed by section 230 of the Criminal Procedure Code, formerly section 220, as interpreted by the courts. Section 230 reads: "When a person is convicted at one trial of any two or more distinct offences any two or more of which are legally punishable by caning the combined sentence of caning awarded by the court for any such offences shall not, anything in any Act to the contrary notwithstanding, exceed a total number of 24 strokes in the case of adults or 10 strokes in the case of youthful offenders." I have been advised by the Attorney-General that this provision was dealt with in a 1976 Magistrate's Appeal by then Chief Justice Wee Chong Jin (PP v Suhaymi b Harith & ors, MA 153/1976, the so-called "Swimming Trunks Gang case"). In interpreting this provision, the Chief Justice took the position that where an offender is convicted upon several charges, each charge constitutes a separate trial. Hence, legally, an accused person could be caned more than 24 strokes. That decision has not been overruled and therefore was - and still is - binding upon all subordinate courts. Subsequent to the decision in the Swimming Trunks Gang case, there have been at least three appeals to the Court of Criminal Appeal in cases where more than 24 strokes were imposed on an offender. The Court of Criminal Appeal affirmed the sentences imposed by the High Court in each of the appeals.”
“SCDF will continue to work with HDB and other relevant agencies to ensure that such older buildings with one exit staircase meet the prevailing fire safety requirements when they undergo major renovation or upgrading works. CIVIL SERVICE PENSIONERS 3. Ms Sylvia Lim asked the Minister for Defence (a) how many former civil servants are currently receiving pensions in their retirement, segmented by the size of the monthly pensions in $300 intervals; (b) of these, how many are entitled to dependants' benefits, and the nature of those benefits; and (c) of those with dependants' benefits, whether such benefits survive the death of the pensioners.”
“However, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) may consider waiver applications for residential buildings and allow the provision of one exit staircase if the following conditions are met: (a) the building height does not exceed 60 metres; (b) the single exit staircase does not serve more than four apartments or maisonettes per floor; (c) the travel distance from the main front door from each apartment or maisonette to the exit staircase does not exceed 15 metres; (d) the approach to the existing staircase is through a cross-ventilated lobby; (e) a fire lift and dry rising mains (which draws high pressured water to every storey for fire fighting purpose) are provided; and (f) there is access to the building for fire fighting appliances. Currently, there are existing buildings that do not meet the minimum requirement of two independent exit staircases for each storey. For example, HUDC or HDB point-block apartments exceeding 22 storeys (60 metres) have only one exit staircase. These buildings were exempted from obtaining approval from the Building Authority when they were built in the 1970s and 1980s. As part of HDB's ongoing Specific Works Programme and Main Upgrading Programme, some of these buildings have undergone improvement works to enhance fire safety, eg, the installation of fire fighting facilities, such as dry rising mains, installation of fire lifts, provision of fire engine space to allow immediate fire fighting and rescue operations from the outside of the building, and installation of half-hour fire rated doors at each apartment's main entrance.”
“There have not been reported incidents where persons ought to have come forward in emergency situations but did not, either because of legal consequences or a lack of civic responsibility. There is thus no urgency at present to adjust the finely tuned framework that we have in place. However we will review the matter if the need arises. FIRE SAFETY REGULATIONS (Exit staircases) 2. Dr Lam Pin Min asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs (a) whether the fire safety regulation stipulating a minimum of two independent exit staircases for every storey of a building applies to all residential and commercial buildings, including those built 30-40 years ago; and (b) whether there are existing buildings that do not meet this minimum requirement, and if so, what measures are in place to ensure safe fire egress in an event of a fire that affects the one and only fire staircase. Mr Wong Kan Seng: Fire safety standards for buildings in Singapore are governed by the Code of Practice for Fire Precautions in Building,commonly known as the "Fire Code". Under the Fire Code, every storey of residential and commercial buildings is to be served by at least two independent exit staircases.”
“There are no plans to enact such a law in the immediate future. "Good Samaritan" laws, adopted in other countries, broadly take two different forms. In some countries, such laws are intended to reduce bystanders' hesitation to render assistance because of significant liability concerns. In British Columbia (Canada) and Victoria (Australia), for example, laws have been enacted to grant statutory immunity from legal liability to persons who gratuitously offer aid to those who are injured or ill, for example, in an emergency situation. Other jurisdictions have a more aggressive approach. In Vermont (USA) and Rhode Island (USA), for example, "Good Samaritan" laws prescribe a positive legal requirement for citizens to assist people in distress, unless by so doing they would put themselves in danger. In Singapore, in contrast to the US, there are no major liability concerns for helpful bystanders. Our laws strike the correct balance. With regard to civil liability, in law, the person who offers assistance need only comply with what is expected of a person of his skills and experience. An untrained person, for example, would not be held to the standard of a qualified doctor. A person who has acted reasonably and exercised due care would generally not be liable. As for criminal liability, that is generally premised upon the intent to cause harm or injury. A person who has acted reasonably and in good faith is unlikely to be held criminally liable. In general, therefore, our law does not impede bystanders taking action to assist. Nor have we encountered reluctance on the part of our citizens to do so.”
“The Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports (Mr Teo Ser Luck) (for the Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports): Mr Speaker, Sir, with your permission, I would like to take Mrs Jessie Phua's and Dr Lim Wee Kiak's questions together as they both relate to the same issues. Mr Speaker: Yes.”
“NGOs, on their part, can help to raise awareness on the practical efforts people can take. NGOs also have an important role to promote forest conservation, reforestation and the sustainable use of resources to protect the world's carbon sinks. In order to understand the various points of view in creating Singapore's climate change policy, we have formed a National Climate Change Committee that comprises stakeholders from the private sector, NGOs and academia. I know that the Member is a participant in this National Climate Change Committee and I thank him for his contributions in that regard. SINGAPORE ROWERS AND NATIONAL ATHLETES (Review of safety rules and insurance coverage) 14. Dr Lim Wee Kiak asked the Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports in light of the Dragon Boat accident in Cambodia (a) whether the Ministry will review the safety rules for Singapore rowers when participating in international events and, in particular, ensure that it is compulsory for all rowers to have basic competency in swimming; and (b) whether the Ministry will consider mandating that National Sports Associations (i) avoid participating in events where international safety standards are not complied with; and (ii) provide compulsory insurance coverage for our athletes participating in international events. 15. Mrs Jessie Phua asked the Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports in light of the recent Dragon Boat incident, whether as a general rule the Singapore Sports Council mandates compulsory insurance coverage for all national athletes and, if not, what steps are being taken to address this.”
“I believe, Sir, that ASEAN must continue to work towards a common understanding on the issue of climate change and its impacts. Given the varying stages of development within ASEAN and the unique economic circumstances of each country in ASEAN, the pre occupations of each country would be different. As a small state that has no access to clean and renewable energy sources like wind, hydro or geothermal power, Singapore faces special and specific constraints. We are heavily dependent on imported fossil fuels, and cannot easily diversify our energy sources. Where possible, we will continue to work with ASEAN partners in relevant international and regional forums, such as the ASEAN Environment Ministers Meeting, to collaborate on common interests. ASEAN leaders at the Singapore Summit also agreed to encourage efforts to develop an ASEAN Climate Change Initiative. Such an initiative will seek to strengthen the region's capacity, both in mitigation and adaptation efforts, through the sharing of information on impacts of climate change and clean/energy-efficient technologies. It will also call for greater cooperation in the region by increasing networking among members and coordination of efforts with regard to vulnerability, adaptation response as well as forestry issues. Turning to the last part of the Member's question, while Singapore plays its part in the international community, ultimately, I believe all of us, including the private sector and NGOs, have to play a part in climate change. For example, the private sector can play a role to ensure that they run energy-efficient operations and facilities, as well as reflect opportunities to improve Singapore's energy efficiency or to use renewable energy to the Government.”
“This includes exploiting technologies to improve energy efficiency and reduce wastage, and economic policies to price energy properly and avoid subsidising over-consumption of fossil fuels. Fourth, we need to protect the world's carbon sinks. Singapore supports the idea of reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, which Indonesia has been pushing for. Slash-and-burn practices and large-scale burning of peatlands release massive amounts of carbon into the atmosphere. In this regard, we have also worked bilaterally with Indonesia to tackle peatland fires and develop sustainable land-clearing practices. Turning to the second part of the Member's question, ASEAN countries are particularly vulnerable to climate change. As the Chair of ASEAN, Singapore will do its part in promoting greater awareness of the issues involved as well as to encourage closer cooperation. Indeed, as Members would already be aware, when Singapore hosted the 13th ASEAN Summit and the 3rd East Asia Summit (EAS) in Singapore in November last year, we proposed "Energy, Environment, Climate Change and Sustainable Development" as the theme. Regional leaders declared their resolve to work closely with each other as well as with other like-minded countries on a fair, flexible and comprehensive multilateral agreement to address climate change beyond 2012. We also secured agreement among ASEAN countries and our EAS partners also, for example, to work to achieve a common understanding on a long term aspirational global emissions reduction goal to pave the way for a more effective post-2012 international arrangement, as well as reforestation targets in ASEAN and the greater EAS region.”
“We can expect the negotiations to be rather protracted and complex because of the large number of countries involved as well as the diversity of interests. A potential thorny issue will be how to share the burden between developed and developing countries. The Kyoto Protocol established the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities" to address the problem, but while it binds Annex I countries, mainly developed countries, to reducing greenhouse gases, the non-Annex I countries, mainly developing countries, eg, China, India and Brazil, have no emission reduction targets. Furthermore, the United States has not ratified the Protocol. In our view, any future framework must therefore be more inclusive if it is to be effective. The Prime Minister, in outlining Singapore's position at the Bali meeting, has stated some of the key principles which will guide us in our negotiations: First, Singapore will participate actively in the forthcoming negotiations. We will also take on mitigating actions if there is international consensus for all countries to do so. However, any new framework should take into account differences in national circumstances and constraints of the countries concerned. Second, many developing nations in Asia, Middle East and Africa are concerned that taking on drastic mitigation actions would undermine their economic development. Such concerns are valid. Therefore, any new framework should recognise the vital importance of economic growth and should not undermine globalisation and the international division of labour. Third, efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions must ultimately be pragmatic and cost-effective.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, let me, first, say that Singapore attaches great importance to the international discussions on climate change. Climate change has grown in importance and complexity as a global political issue. It is an issue with many dimensions that cut across the responsibilities of several Ministries. In this regard, the Prime Minister has asked me to coordinate the efforts of the various Ministries involved. Because we need to take a holistic approach and ensure better coordination within the Government so that we can take a principled and forward looking stance as a responsible member of the global community, while preserving our core national interests. We have set up an inter-Ministerial committee, which I chair, that involves my colleagues, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Minister for Trade and Industry, Minister MEWR as well as Minister for National Development (and where appropriate, Minister for Finance) and also senior officials from those Ministries. The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) meeting in Bali in December 2007 was an important signal of political commitment. All countries now recognise that climate change is a serious challenge that needs to be tackled on a collective basis. But the Bali meeting is only the beginning of a long process of negotiations on the kind of international regime that will kick in after 2012. An ambitious two-year timeframe has been set for the Bali Roadmap. It does not specify the concrete actions to take, only that developed nations will take on "measurable, reportable and verifiable nationally appropriate mitigation commitments or actions" and for developing countries "nationally appropriate mitigation actions". Once discussions start, it will not be easy.”
“BUILDING CONTROL (AMENDMENT) BILL Order for Second Reading read. 4.08 pm”
“As most objections relate to claims of financial loss or transactions not made in good faith, they are not really legal issues which lend themselves to adjudication by the courts. Also, allowing appeals on non-legal points, I think, would lead to unnecessary delays in the whole en bloc process. I think the final point raised by Mr Siew Kum Hong is whether the valuer should declare his interest, say, with the marketing agent. Here, it is noted that our new provisions already provide that there must be an independent valuer, independent in the sense that he must not have an interest in the en bloc development. In any case, the owners in the general meeting convened to appoint a marketing consultant and valuer can still require that they disclose this and other interest. Mdm Deputy Speaker, as I said in the beginning, I do not consider that all the suggestions made by Members, which are not reflected in the Bill, as being undeserving of consideration. The position I take is that this is an ongoing process. There will be more en bloc sales. We have to see how this new legal regime works in practice. My Ministry, together with the other agencies, will monitor very closely the operation of these new provisions. It is my hope that they will eradicate or, if not, significantly minimise complaints of harassment, unfairness and lack of transparency. But if it is necessary to make further amendments, then we have no hesitation to do so. Question put, and agreed to. Bill accordingly read a Second time and committed to a Committee of the whole House. The House immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill. - [Prof. S Jayakumar]. Bill considered in Committee; reported without amendment; read a Third time and passed.”
“Individually, it may be a small amount - Mr Siew made the point that it is a small amount - but collectively, it will give the STB a fairly meaningful amount which it can use in cases where it is satisfied that it is inequitable to do so. Mr Siew Kum Hong also talked about having motions at the general meeting of the MC to decide on the basis of share values, and he thought it derogates from the benefits of the new requirement of the 80%/90% decision to have en bloc sales. The additional requirement of the area is actually to address the specific problem of residential owners holding less share value, despite owning a substantial floor area when it comes to deciding whether to sell the development en bloc. In dealing with that specific issue, we have decided that we should not alter the fundamental basis by which decisions are made at general meetings in a strata development. Even if, as Mr Siew Kum Hong pointed out, commercial owners were to dominate at the general meeting, they will still need to comply with all the procedures and requirements which we have set out in the Schedules and hold the required meetings to keep all owners informed. Mr Siew Kum Hong also talked about appeals against STB's decisions. At the moment, it is currently limited to questions of law. I think he proposed whether it is time to consider removing that restriction. When we first enacted the provisions on en bloc sales by majority consent, we had to address this issue. We decided then that the Strata Titles Board, not the courts, would be the appropriate body to hear the application and objections as they would invariably be non-legal issues which lend themselves more to mediation rather than adjudication by the courts. We think this is still the case.”
“I think the objective can also be achieved by requiring key information to be highlighted in the preface to the CSA and the requirement to sign before the lawyer responsible for the CSA, which we have done. Mr Siew Kum Hong expressed his unhappiness with the guidelines, especially the guidelines issued by SISV, on how proceeds should be apportioned or distributed. I would look into this. But let me say that we understand that the SISV is working on refining valuation guidelines which are often used when valuers are asked to determine apportionment in sale proceeds. Of course, we are not able to specify in the law a standard apportionment method because there are a multitude of factors to consider in deciding on a single method of distributing the sale proceeds, including share value, size of unit, market value, and so on. So it would be very difficult to specify one standard method that you could apply to all sizes, designs and types of developments. But I take his point about the guidelines, and we will have discussions with the SISV. Mr Siew Kum Hong also asked about the provision permitting STB to order an increase in payment. I think his view was that it is inequitable to order the increased payment to be paid by all subsidiary proprietors. It is not inconsistent with the provisions in the existing law because just as all owners contribute towards the fees incurred for en bloc sale, it is not unfair for them to contribute towards an increase in the sale proceeds ordered by STB. But this is why we have kept the maximum amount that an owner may potentially have to contribute as 0.25% of the sale proceeds, or $2,000, whichever is higher.”
“Kalyani Mehta, Mr Alvin Yeo, concerning guidelines, best practices, code, model law, and so on. Dr Teo Ho Pin asked that we consider a set of standard collective sale forms to facilitate compliance with the new requirements, such as the new requirements in the Second and Third Schedules. I think Ms Ellen Lee also wanted us to develop a set of guidelines for best practices in collective sales in private properties. Prof. Kalyani Mehta also asked for a code of best practices to be drawn up. Mr Alvin Yeo proposed that the standard terms and conditions be set out in a standard form agreement for collective sale, in other words, standard CSA, if I am not mistaken. Let me deal with the points in turn concerning best practices and forms to facilitate compliance with new requirements. Basically, as the Members would know, the Bill sets out essential requirements that the sale committee would have to adhere to. Notwithstanding that, I agree with the suggestions to develop the best practices guide, forms and such aids to assist practitioners in their work. So my Ministry will discuss with the Strata Titles Board and others, including the Law Society, to see how best we can do that. In fact, STB already has some standard forms, such as application for collective sale order, and we will discuss with them how the new requirements could either be improved or we can add on to the existing forms or include new forms, where necessary. On Mr Alvin Yeo's suggestion for standard CSA contract, I agree with his objective of making clear to the owners what they would be signing. But I do not necessarily agree that the objective can only be achieved by prescribing a standard contract.”
“And there may be people who have genuinely, bona fide, purchased a property within one year, 15 months or 18 months, intending it to be a home. And if they have done so, they may for good reasons want to serve in the sale committee to protect their interest and to protect the integrity of the process. So, I think it would create problems if we were to make that provision which will carry with it the implication and presumption that every purchaser who purchases a property within two years must have a certain taint or colouration about the intention. I think it is best to let the owners assess the candidates according to their own criteria and elect into the sale committee who they think are fit and proper to represent their interest. Prof. Kalyani Mehta also asked whether we could have a special unit to look into complaints of stakeholders in en bloc negotiations in order to troubleshoot and deal with conflicts. Of course, as with all Ministries, my Ministry already has in place a system to receive and consider feedback, complaints and suggestions on en bloc sales as well as other matters, and also to address the issues and respond to them when necessary. This latest review of en bloc legislation is a case in point. Because we have a unit to look into the feedback, this had led to a study which eventually was a genesis of these amendments. But let me assure her that we will work with the Strata Titles Board and the people in the industry to see how the public and owners of strata title units can be better informed of the en bloc sale process, including the new requirements and rules. This leads me to several suggestions that have been made by Dr Teo Ho Pin, Ms Ellen Lee, Prof.”
“Kalyani Mehta was not happy with the phrase "as soon as practicable" because she thought it was open-ended, it can be declared any time. What is important for me to stress is that it is not open-ended because every candidate must disclose this conflict of interest situation. Although it says "as soon as practicable", it must be, at the latest, at a general meeting which is convened to elect members of the sale committee. In that way, there is a finite period - it must be declared by the date of the general meeting. So, all those attending the general meeting would be apprised of this potential conflict of interest situation. What happens if there is intentional non-disclosure? I think that will be quite serious and it will render the person, of course, liable to be removed by the owners at the general meeting. Going back to our original policy purposes, the purpose of the Bill is to make things more transparent. In other words, all candidates must disclose so that everybody knows. It is not appropriate to create a new legal liability in that regard. Then Prof. Kalyani Mehta talked about "condo-raiders". Because of these creatures she described as "condo-raiders", she wants a minimum period of residence to be stipulated as a criterion for being elected into the collective sale committee, and she proposes two years. In other words, you must be residing there for two years or more before you can be elected. I am reluctant to do that. Because if you prescribe in the law that you must have a period of two years, then it is an implication, is it not, that if you have purchased a property within one year, you are deemed to be a "condo-raider".”
“We considered this but we thought that it was fair to require 90% for developments which were less than 10 years. In other words, rather than impose an arbitrary limit, we better leave it to market forces to determine the viability and timing of en bloc sales. Since 1999, almost 70% of developments that had undergone en bloc sales were more than 20 years old. To date, there has only been one case of a development that was below 10 years, and that case was a development which originally had 44 units and was redeveloped to a development with 160 units. Mr Alvin Yeo and Prof. Kalyani Mehta raised questions concerning the disclosure of interest provision. Let me deal with that now. Mr Alvin Yeo actually wants us to go further than what we have provided. What we have provided is fairly exhaustive, in my view: "A person standing for election ... who has any direct or indirect interest in any property developer, property consultant, marketing agent or legal firm, being an interest that could conflict with the proper performance of his functions as a member of the collective sale committee ..... shall, as soon as practicable after the relevant facts have come to his knowledge, disclose the nature of that interest at a general meeting." Mr Alvin Yeo wants us to go further to cover situations where there is no conflict of interest but where the candidate should, for transparency, I guess, declare if he or his family has several units in that development, and so on. I am reluctant to go beyond providing for disclosure requirements to prevent conflict of interest situations as it will make it too onerous for members to volunteer their services for serving on the sale committee. Let us have this conflict of interest provision and see how it works. On the same provision, Prof.”
“If some of the developments, especially the smaller ones, can find a way to negotiate and offer for replacement, of course, they are free to do so. I understand that, in fact, this happens on the ground. Paterson Lodge was such a case. And I was told that some developers have offered the owners who are selling the first preview to purchase a new flat ahead of the public launch. But these are matters which we should leave it to them to negotiate. I would not favour prescribing these because you have to prescribe for a great number of details. Ms Irene Ng asked how many reports Police has received about harassment and intimidation, and what was the most serious case. I am afraid I do not have these statistics with me. But let me emphasise that the new rules which we are going to enact such as requirement for general meetings be held, cooling-off period, requirement to sign before a lawyer, are all meant to address the issue of harassment and intimidation as well as scrutiny of the housing agents. Ms Irene Ng asked why estates below 10 years are allowed to go en bloc when they are not considered old buildings, whether it is environmentally unfriendly, and so on. And this was echoed by Prof. Kalyani and Mr Siew Kum Hong. I will go back to 1999 when we first enacted the amendments providing for en bloc sale, and we had a Select Committee then. At that time when we drafted the first set of legislation, and we referred it to a Select Committee, we, in fact, received serious representations that we should not make any distinction between developments which were over or less than 10 years. In other words, the same rule - 80% - should apply to all developments, regardless of the age.”
“Of course, I should mention in parenthesis that SERS is acquisition under the Land Acquisition Act, and the system is very different. On this one-to-one replacement or exchange, we have considered these proposals for one-to-one exchange as well as requiring the developers to offer a replacement unit which may not strictly be for one-to-one exchange. We also consulted the people in the industry and our expert panel. While I fully understand the sentiments, I wish to point out that there are many practical difficulties. For example, in a letter written and it was published in the local newspaper, one owner was offered a replacement unit but declined the offer, wrote to the press to say that the replacement unit, which eventually his neighbour took, had many nooks and crannies that were not usable, the rooms were all much smaller, the neighbouring unit was so close that he could open the windows and shake hands with the neighbour occupant. So, there will be various complaints. To avoid such complaints that owners are short-changed, we will have to prescribe in the law that developers must provide owners with details such as the size, configuration and the price of the units at the time when the developers make a bid to purchase the development. So, that is a major practical difficulty. And that may delay the process as well as add to the cost which could, ultimately, translate into lower sale proceeds. In the end, because of all these practical difficulties, we decided that the best is to leave it to the owners to negotiate with the developers for the best deal. I think it is better just to provide for the en bloc sale through an open tender or auction so that the owners can get the best price, and they can then decide how best to use their sale proceeds.”
“My response to that is we have to take a practical approach as it concerns owners who reside overseas. After all, if an owner resides overseas and he knows that there is an on-going en bloc attempt to sell but still does not make the effort to come to Singapore, I think it would not be practical to require that the lawyer for the en bloc sale to fly out to wherever it is and meet each of its owners. It would also not be fair to the owners in Singapore for such arrangements to be made as additional costs will be borne by them. Anyway, I think arrangements can always be made for those residing overseas to contact the lawyers by telephone or other means, or by email, if they have any questions to be clarified. Mr Alvin Yeo also asked about the mandate given to the collective sale committee, the marketing agent, and so on. We have provided that the sale committee will terminate upon the termination or expiry of the CSC. The reserve price is just an indicative value. Depending on the market conditions, the actual value of a development could either go up or below the reserve price. Rather than for the law to state how long the reserve price will be valid, the better approach that we have taken in the Bill is to require the sale committee to obtain a valuation report on the value of the en bloc sale as at the date of the close of the tender or auction on the same date. For example, if the tender price is above the reserve price but below the latest valuation, the owners will have to decide whether to sell. More than one Member asked about one-to-one replacement. Ms Ellen Lee proposed that we provide for one-to-one exchange and, I think, she was particularly concerned about the elderly. Ms Irene Ng also drew a comparison with SERS and asked if we could have one-to-one.”
“I should explain that CPF funds used for the initial purchase - this is the first component - and for monthly repayments of bank loan principal - this is the second component - are factored in financial loss computation as they constitute part of the original purchase price. But CPF funds used to repay bank loan interest - this is the third component - are not taken into account, because if the law were to do that, then there would be no parity between an owner who takes a long-term mortgage with a high component of bank interest and an owner who pays totally in cash or an owner who takes a small loan and pays off the loan faster. Some have asked if CPF interest forgone for the total amount of CPF money that has been withdrawn should also be taken into consideration. This component is not relevant because there is no actual financial loss in the CPF interest forgone. Mr Alvin Yeo then asked about the lawyer's role in explaining the terms and conditions. The reason why we have put in this provision is that we have received feedback that owners do not know what is contained in the CSA. Some have claimed that they have been pressed to sign the CSA under duress or misrepresentation. So, in order to address these issues, we have provided for a lawyer to be present, and this offers the owners an opportunity to ask the lawyer to explain the legal terms and liabilities and address any doubts that they have. But I think we should leave the precise questions that may be asked of the lawyer to the meeting and other opportunities they may have with the lawyer. I think it would not be practical for the law to prescribe the precise items and details on which the lawyer will have to explain. Mr Alvin Yeo also asked, if I remember, about owners who are overseas.”
“So, to that end, we have structured the manner in which the sale committees are formed, how they may function, and so on. It is not our intention, in these amendments, to change the substantive law regarding their potential duties or liability, whether under common law, or as Ms Irene Ng asked about lawyers, whether under the law governing advocates and solicitors. It is not the intention of these provisions to change the substantive law concerning these matters. Whatever the legal position is, it will remain the same. So, as I said, in view of the Horizon Towers case, I do not think I should go into details about the law applicable to the sale committees. Mr Alvin Yeo asked whether the Bill should go the full way to list in the Fourth Schedule all the permitted deductions, in other words, instead of being inclusive, be exhaustive. The specific point that he made was about CPF monies. He said that there is no reason why CPF monies should not be counted as a financial loss. Madam, the list in the Fourth Schedule is based on what the STB currently considers as permitted deductions. It is not meant to be exhaustive. Over time, additional items could be added if the STB comes across other permitted deductions while dealing with future applications. On the treatment of CPF monies, I think what Mr Alvin Yeo is, in fact, asking us to amend the law is to reverse the High Court's decision in the Waterfront case. My Ministry has no ground to disagree with the ruling in that case, and hence we have not sought to amend the law. Perhaps, I should explain. In a property purchase, CPF funds can be used to pay for three components: (1) the lump sum for the initial purchase; (2) monthly repayments of bank loan principal; and (3) monthly repayments of the bank loan interest.”
“The buyer may have his own project development timeline, depending on the market demand and the resources. Therefore, the approach of the law is that it is better to leave it to the owners to negotiate with the buyer a deal that best meets their needs and interest. Dr Teo Ho Pin also asked about the application of the law, whether it is retrospective and so on. As I mentioned in my speech, the proposed changes will not apply to developments where the required 80% or 90% majority of owners based on share value have signed the CSA as at the date of commencement of the Act. I know that, in fact, some have come to my meet-the-people sessions to say that people are rushing to form collective sale committees. The trigger is not the collective sale committee. It is whether they have obtained the 80% or 90%. Mr Alvin Yeo asked several questions about the sale committee, scope of its duties, whether it has fiduciary duties, and Ms Irene Ng also asked about that. Mr Siew Kum Hong likewise asked for the nature of the sale committee, the rights and duties, what kind of duty of care that they have to act and in whose interest. Mr Alvin Yeo, in elaborating the point, also referred to the Horizon Towers case. He was careful to say that the Horizon Towers case is before the court. But his plea was that, for future cases, we should spell out the issue of the rights and liabilities concerning the sale committee. Since the matter is before the court, I think Members will understand that I would not be able to go into details. Our policy intention in introducing these changes is to instill some order and transparency into the various processes. That is the major intention.”
“The Bill, as the Member knows, allows for the Minister to appoint more Deputy Presidents and panel members to the STB. So we will work with the Ministry of National Development to make these additional appointments once the amended Act comes into effect. Dr Teo Ho Pin also asked for clarification about non-contactable owners, whether they should be regarded as minority owners with valid objections and whether the STB should then be empowered to decide on them. When an application is made to the STB by the majority owners who have agreed to the en bloc sale under a sale and purchase agreement, those who object to the sale must file an objection. That is provided for because only then can the Strata Titles Board consider the grounds of objection. There must be an objection. If there is no objection, then the STB would not be able to consider whether, for example, they have incurred a financial loss or have other valid objections. Therefore, those who did not sign the collective sale agreement (CSA) or cannot be contacted, the approach of the law is that they cannot be considered as having objected to the sale. In other words, an objector is considered an objector only if he has filed an objection within the allowable period stipulated under the Act. The next point raised by Dr Teo Ho Pin was about providing a fixed duration where vacant possession is to be handed over to the purchaser of the collective sale. I think it is very difficult, for practical purposes, for the law to provide such details, because it would really be micro managing the issue. Because each development has its own requirements. A later vacant possession date may mean a lower price from the buyer. Also, each owner has his own timeline for vacating his unit.”