Teo Ho Pin
Singapore
“Mr Chairman, Sir, when Total Defence was first introduced in 1984, it was recognised that threats will not simply affect our military but potentially Singaporeans, combatants and non-combatants alike. Thus, we must continue to build resilience in our people and community.”
“Chairman, over the past year, we have witnessed an increase in the number of cybersecurity breaches. As a response to these incidents, many countries are stepping up efforts to strengthen their cybersecurity capabilities.”
“Sir, I wish to seek an update from the Minister on the skills upgrading and development of public officers as well as aspiring public officers, especially in the three areas which I have mentioned. Can the Government also consider giving out scholarships to nurture and attract talent in these fields? Role of PMO”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, we should empower the community to come up with innovative solutions like North West 911 and build capabilities in our people to cope better during emergencies.”
“The French Government passed a law in 2016 mandating that large supermarkets have to donate excess food to food banks and charitable organisations. If we had a similar initiative in Singapore, we can not only reduce the amount of food waste, but we can also help those in need.”
“Sir, I have three clarifications for the Senior Minister of State. First, will the Ministry consider licensing PMDs so as to manage the growth of PMDs in Singapore and also to make it compulsory for the PMD riders to attend a safe riding course?”
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“In this aspect, I would urge the Finance Minister to provide tax incentives for buildings which convert their rooftops into green spaces. As the majority of rooftop in Singapore is flat, there are lots of potential to make our roofs green. This will reduce the temperature in our built environment and reduce air-conditioning loads of our buildings, thus saving energy. In addition, we should build more green corridors within our built environment such as park connectors or community gardens. This will reduce the ambient temperature of our living environment and prevent adverse "heat island" effects. Besides greening the built environment, we must also encourage Singaporeans to adopt Green living lifestyles. Simple eco-friendly living values like 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle) should be inculcated among Singaporeans especially young children. I would urge the Finance Minister to consider setting up a "Green Education Fund" to spearhead environmental education for all Singaporeans on a sustained basis. We must adopt a more integrated approach towards building a green culture among Singaporeans. At present, the piecemeal and sporadic approach in environmental education lacks resources, consistency and sustainability. Government agencies, educational institutions and community-based organisations have limited funding to promote environmental education on a continuing basis. As such, we have yet to develop strong green values among Singaporeans. Sir, I hope the Finance Minister will provide strong support to make Singapore "An Eco City". 12.53 pm”
“Sir, I would urge the Finance Minister to consider providing tax incentives for building owners to upgrade their buildings to meet BCA's Green Mark Standard. Eco homes. Sir, as Singaporeans' standard of living increases, more homes will be installed with air-conditioning, water heating systems, refrigerators and many electrical appliances. This will increase energy consumption drastically if nothing is done to encourage Singaporeans to adopt green measures at home. Instead of simply upgrading the electrical capacity of our buildings, we should encourage building users to reduce energy consumption. The Singapore Environment Council has developed energy and water efficiency labelling schemes. Unfortunately, the level of awareness and take-up rate is low. Many home users or decision makers are still purchasing inefficient electrical home appliances. Very often, more eco-friendly appliances (four ticks energy labelling) are more costly as compared to less eco-friendly ones. Thus, many home owners continue to purchase and use inefficient electrical appliances at home. Sir, consumer education on eco-friendly appliances is challenging as reflected in the low take-up rate of eco-friendly appliances at home. I would urge the Finance Minister to consider providing tax incentives or cash rebates to encourage home owners to replace or purchase eco-friendly home appliances (those with four ticks). The Government can provide a "Green Credit" Scheme to make every home eco-friendly in Singapore. Eco community. Sir, to build an eco community, we need to set up proper infrastructure in the community. More green spaces or parks should be developed within the community.”
“But I would urge the Finance Minister to consider providing a yearly grant to SAC to provide school bus services in the morning for all students. School buses can pick students from the Residents' Committee (RC) centres, MRT stations or bus interchanges. Students can walk to their respective RC centres or go to the designated MRT or bus interchange to take the school bus. In this way, students need not compete for public bus spaces with working adults during the morning peak hours. This will also reduce traffic congestion and carbon monoxide emission during the morning peak hours. Eco buildings. Sir, Singapore has made good progress in keeping our environment clean and green. We are ranked among the top green cities in Asia. However, there is still room for improvement to further improve the eco-friendliness of our built environment especially in older built-up areas like Chinatown, Little India, Queenstown and Shenton Way. There are many areas which require Government's support to go green. For example, many buildings in Singapore are not eco-friendly; many business processes are not eco-friendly; many homes are not eco-friendly, and there are not many people adopting eco-friendly lifestyles. Sir, I understand that the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) has a Green Mark Scheme for new buildings. More needs to be done to incentivise or encourage building owners of existing buildings to upgrade their buildings to be eco-friendly. Many existing buildings are still operating using inefficient energy installations and appliances, thus consuming lots of energy. Some buildings are poorly designed and thus increase their air-conditioning load while others use housekeeping processes which are not eco-friendly.”
“The increase in human activities will intensify the density of our built environment and exert demands on transportation, energy, water and waste disposal. Sir, many mega cities in Asia which experienced a sudden influx of people to the cities over the last 20 years are now facing enormous strains on housing, transport, waste disposal, pollution and many urban living problems. The existing infrastructure of these cities is not eco-friendly and is on the verge of failure. People living in these cities are prone to serious health problems and disease outbreaks. Sir, I would urge the Finance Minister to consider putting resources to enhance our infrastructure to be more eco-friendly. For example, we need to invest more on our public transport system to increase the connectivity of our MRT, LRT and bus services. More incentives should be provided to boost the competitiveness, productivity and innovation of our transport service providers to make public transport fees more affordable. Sir, many cities have started providing free public transport services so as to reduce traffic congestion and reduce vehicle emissions. I would suggest to the Finance Minister to consider providing free eco-friendly shuttle bus services linking neighbourhood centres, schools or shopping malls to housing estates. In addition, we can have a free shuttle bus linking up large shopping malls and nearby MRT stations in the city centre. This will encourage more people to use public transport especially during the weekends, thus reducing our carbon footprints. Sir, I support the $4.7 million top-up fund for the School Advisory Committee (SAC) to help needy Singaporeans.”
“This will provide more impetus to upgrade the service standards in the F&B sector. In this regard, I would like to propose that the Government consider providing a "Skills Upgrading Credit" Scheme for all adult Singaporeans to continually enhance their employability, productivity and quality. The credit can be topped up from time to time depending on the budget surplus. It can be used by Singaporeans to attend WDA-accredited training courses. The credit scheme will also encourage greater ownership among Singaporeans to constantly update and upgrade themselves thus growing their incomes. Green tax incentives. Sir, one area which does not receive much attention in this year’s Budget is tax incentives or measures to encourage green living. Besides the extension of the Green Vehicle Rebate Scheme for one year, there are no new initiatives to make Singapore an eco city. Sir, by 2030, about 80% of the global population will live in cities. Many mega cities are experiencing strains or failures in providing sustainable urban infrastructure. The impact of urban living and industrialisation has resulted in climate change and adverse impacts on the environment. As a city state with limited land area, it is crucial for Singapore to re-think our urban landscape development and the sustainability of our living environment. We need to develop a holistic Eco Plan to rejuvenate our urban habitat and introduce eco-friendly measures to reduce pollution, increase energy efficiency and water conservation, reduce carbon emission, and encourage greater use of eco-friendly products and services among our people. Eco infrastructure. With an increasing population, Singapore must relook into the capacity of our infrastructure to support future population.”
“The increase could be industry specific depending on the urgency to improve productivity and competitiveness. For example, export-oriented manufacturing industries are facing intense global competition from low-cost production countries. Thus, they need to redesign their work processes and increase productivity to stay competitive. But in certain low-productivity industries such as the construction sector, we may need to identify the causes of low productivity before increasing the levy. Sir, low productivity in construction can be attributed to many factors such as designs which hinder construction productivity; or Government rules or bureaucracy which delays development and construction time; or poor planning of developers, consultants and contractors resulting in unnecessary delays or abortive works; or the lack of skills and low productivity of workers. Sir, unless we identify the root causes of low productivity in the various industries, the increase of foreign worker levy may not achieve its desired outcomes. Another example is the F&B industry where quality of service is more important than productivity per se. The F&B industry also faces difficulty to attract Singaporean workers due to its shift work and long working hours. Therefore, it is more crucial for the industry to redesign its business operations to provide more job opportunities for skilled Singaporeans, especially older workers. To further upgrade the services of the F&B industry, I would urge the Finance Minister to consider providing incentives for Singaporeans working in the industry to upgrade their quality of service. More training subsidies and grants should be given to Singaporeans who pursue skills upgrading courses in service quality.”
“Third, we need to increase our competitiveness to attract investments and secure business. Sir, political stability is the key success factor in ensuring foreign investments in Singapore. One good example is the construction of our two Integrated Resorts, namely, Marina Bay Sands and Resort World Sentosa. Since the operation of the Integrated Resorts, tourist arrivals and spending have increased drastically. Supporting industries for the Integrated Resorts have also seen an increase in demand for their products and services. Many local SMEs have benefited and have also offered more job opportunities for Singaporeans. Sir, I support the measures to increase the productivity of our firms including raising the foreign worker levy but I am concerned about the impact of the levy increase on consumers and businesses. It is difficult to check and prevent profiteering. Some businesses may use the increase in levy as an excuse to increase prices, thus further increasing the cost of living. Theoretically, the increase in levy may force firms to innovate and increase productivity, but some business operations may have limited scope for productivity improvements. For example, how much productivity can you improve for hairdressing salons? Customers usually choose their hairdressers based on price, quality and service. As such, the increase in levy may not improve productivity drastically but will increase cost for consumers. There are many similar situations in the F&B industries where the scope of productivity improvement may be limited. Yet, these businesses will have to pay higher foreign worker levy. I am concerned that some firms may fail resulting in job losses. Sir, I would propose to the Finance Minister to refine the proposed increase of foreign worker levy.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise in support of the motion as proposed by the Finance Minister. Sir, when I first conveyed news of the Budget goodies to 1,000 residents in Bukit Panjang, there was jubilation among my residents. Many were grateful that the Government has responded and addressed their key concerns of rising cost of living, affordable housing and children’s education expenses. This year’s $6.6 billion benefits for Singaporeans are indeed "Pro Growth and Pro Singaporeans". In Singapore, in particular, the "Grow and Share" package provides a comprehensive set of handouts and rebates to reward all Singaporeans for contributing to the 14.5% GDP growth in 2010. Sir, Singaporeans have shown resilience and are willing to take tough measures as proposed by the Government when faced with crisis. The success of our economic rebound last year is the outcome of the trust which Singaporeans place in our Government and the efforts of all Singaporeans working together. This strong partnership between Singaporeans and our Government is unique and not seen in many countries. It has proven to be effective in bringing peace, harmony and growth to our country, thus improving the lives of Singaporeans. Growing incomes for Singaporeans. Sir, I fully support the strategy to grow the incomes of Singaporeans. But, how can we grow the incomes of Singaporeans when faced with an ageing workforce and intense global competition? First, Singapore must continue to provide a conducive business environment for all investments. Political stability, pro-business and sound Government policies must be in place in order to attract companies to invest and provide good jobs for Singaporeans. Second, we need to grow our service industry to provide more jobs for an ageing workforce.”
“The funding support to FSCs should also be directly linked to the efforts of the FSCs in helping needy residents achieve self-reliance. Sir, I wish to ask the Minister the following questions: (1) Are there plans to expand the roles of FSCs to be a one-stop social service centre for the needy; (2) What is the long-term plan to ensure that FSC can provide effective centre-based and mobile social services to the needy; and (3) How does the Ministry measure the effectiveness of FSC? Many helping hands”
“Sir, I wish to ask the Minister the following questions: (1) How does the Ministry define self-reliance when helping the needy; (2) Can the Ministry review the ComCare Schemes so that more can be done to overcome barriers towards self-reliance; and (3) Will the Ministry provide more resources to build capabilities of help agencies to further enhance their success rate in helping the needy to achieve self-reliance? Family service centre Sir, about 40,000 families receive social assistance from the CDCs each year. Twenty-five percent of these cases or 9,500 cases require case management to attain self-reliance. Sir, Family Service Centre (FSC) plays an important role in providing professional social services to help the needy to gain self-reliance. To date, the 36 family service centres in the community have been working closely with many help agencies especially the CDCs to provide social assistance services to the needy. Very often, case management and counselling are required to help needy families to resolve their personal, social and emotional problems. Sir, I would like to urge the Ministry to further expand the roles of FSC so that it can be a one-stop social service centre for the needy. As such, FSCs can be the contact points for social services in our community similar to the community club. In this way, needy families can approach the FSCs, which will in turn partner with other help agencies to provide an integrated service to better help the needy. Thus, needy families can be properly guided to attain self-reliance as soon as possible. Sir, I would like to urge the Ministry to provide more resources to build the case management capabilities of FSCs.”
“Sir, helping low-income and needy families to achieve self-reliance can be challenging and complex. Very often, needy families face many barriers which prevent them from gaining self-reliance. At North-West Community Development Council (CDC), we analysed the profile of 69 Work Support for Self-Reliance (WSSR) cases which failed to achieve self-reliance after receiving assistance from the CDC. We found that 60% of these families have household size of five or more members and their breadwinners have GCE "O" level or below qualifications. The key reasons for failing to achieve self-reliance are (1) family members are not willing to work due to employability, childcare or eldercare problems; (2) family members having medical problems or disabilities; and (3) family members and relatives are not supportive. Sir, the vast majority of needy families which face difficulty in achieving self-reliance have multiple problems. Thus "many helping hands" are needed to help these families. I would urge the Ministry to focus on building the capabilities of our "many helping hands". Capable helping hands will definitely help needy families to attain self-reliance quickly. To remove some barriers of self-reliance, the Ministry should also build more childcare and eldercare centre to support working family members. These centres should operate with flexible hours so as to encourage more family members to work to support their families.”
“Sir, I wish to ask the Minister the following questions: (a) What is the strategy in ensuring that all Singaporeans especially the young are committed to the Total Defence of Singapore; (b) Can MINDEF provide an update of efforts in engaging youths in Total Defence both in the virtual and real world? How does MINDEF measure the commitment of youths in Total Defence; (c) With increasing mobility of Singaporeans, what mechanisms are in place to recall Singaporeans to defend our country in times of need? 2.00 pm Commitment to defence”
“Sir, the first and second generations of Singaporeans had experienced war and social unrests. Many appreciate the peace and harmony we enjoy in today's politically stable environment. Unfortunately, many youths have not seen political instability and bloodshed, and thus cannot understand their roles in defending Singapore. Although National Service has been introduced for more than 30 years, many young Singaporeans may not know how to take defence very seriously. Sir, this is indeed a very worrying trend and calls for more engagement of the youths to increase the operational readiness of Singapore in Total Defence. Sir, the concept of Total Defence is that all Singaporeans should play a role in defending Singapore. There are five key pillars in Total Defence namely: Military defence, Civil defence, Economic defence, Social defence and Psychological defence. We need a framework to measure our achievements in Total Defence. How do we measure the Total Defence operational readiness of our people? Sir, another challenge in Total Defence is the inculcation of values among our youths to take the defence of our country seriously. I know that MINDEF has various programmes such as N.E.mation, I will contest and Edugame to engage the youths in Total Defence. I am not sure if these initiatives have strengthened the fighting and defence spirit among our youths. Sir, playing computer games and participating in competitions may not make our youths more loyal and committed to defending Singapore in times of actual crisis. We need to better structure our Total Defence efforts to ensure that our youths develop the dare and guts to defend our country.”
“30 pm Sir, I am glad that MINDEF has set up a Special Operations Taskforce to harness the capabilities of our elite soldiers to respond more effectively to various security threats especially terrorist attacks. The Mumbai terrorist attack has provided useful lessons that it is essential to integrate our land, sea, and air security forces to better counter terrorism. Sir, I understand that security will always be work-in-progress and the security landscape is changing so rapidly. Thus, I wish to seek the following clarifications from the Minister. First, can the Ministry provide an update on the regional security and challenges facing Singapore? Second, what roles do Singapore play in ensuring peace and stability in the region in spite of the strategic competition among major powers? And three, what are our defence capabilities in terms of protecting the air, land and sea security in Singapore? Bilateral defence relationships”
“Sir, the security of Singapore is dependent upon our relations with other countries, the strength of our defence forces and also the political stability of our region. The recent nuclear and missile tests in North Korea, continuing terrorist attacks and growing political tensions in our neighbouring countries have posed new challenges to our regional security. With regard to nuclear weapons threats, Singapore is the first to sign the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) which aims to halt the trafficking and spread of nuclear weapons. But there is still much to be done to seek the co-operation of other countries to prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction. Regional security forums, such as ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), the Six-party talks, and the Annual Shangri-La dialogues have also provided useful platforms for countries to stay engaged to further enhance security. Despite that, the security architecture in our region remains challenging as many of these forums have been criticised to be mere talk shop forums. Sir, as a concerned member of security risks, Singapore has undertaken a number of initiatives to engage the global community. We have been actively engaging many countries in both diplomatic relations, and defence co-operation. We have also signed defence co-operation agreements with Australia, New Zealand, India, China and Vietnam. Such arrangements provide many opportunities for our defence forces to interact and strengthen our relations with countries in the region thus enhancing security. I wish to ask the Minister what more can Singapore do to further enhance our security. 1.”
“(2) can the Government consider setting up an active ageing endowment fund to provide sustainable funding support for active ageing activities and programmes? (3) besides supporting brisk walking, can the Government provide funding to support and promote qigong for our seniors?”
“Madam, research has shown that in Japan, older people who reported a lack of social support was 1.5 times more likely to die in the next three years than those with higher social support. This is of concern to us today as one in 12 Singaporeans is above 65 years old. Officially launched in 2002, Northwest Briskwalking Club, with a network of 128 clubs and more than 50,000 members, provides opportunities for residents to meet regularly through brisk walking activities. Our brisk walking champions, coordinators and volunteers have spearheaded many initiatives to make our members active and healthy. At the same time, the brisk walking club has provided a platform for social interaction. Last year, we were glad to receive support from the Prime Minister's Office to promote brisk walking to all Singaporeans. To-date, a total of 430 brisk walking clubs were formed and many Singaporeans have taken up brisk walking as a form of exercise to keep fit. Madam, besides brisk walking, Northwest CDC has also identified qigong as a form of exercise to build strength, flexibility and balance amongst our residents, especially the elderly. With the support from the Singapore Qigong Shi Ba Si Association, Northwest CDC has formed 29 healthy qigong clubs comprising 2,500 members. These members practise qigong regularly and form social groups to stay active. Based on the experience of Northwest CDC, I would like to urge the Prime Minister to provide support to promote qigong as a form of healthy lifestyle activity for our seniors. Madam, I would like to ask the Prime Minister the following questions: (1) what is the long-term strategy of the Government in promoting active ageing and healthy lifestyle amongst our seniors?”
“Sir, I would like to ask the Prime Minister the following questions: (1) What is the Government's long-term strategy in attracting foreign talent to be Singaporeans, PR and foreign workers? (2) Will the Government provide more measures to differentiate between Singaporeans and PRs? Will such measures bring tangible benefits to Singaporeans? (3) Can the Government provide an update on the efforts and outcomes of the integration and naturalisation champions (INC) in bonding new citizens in our community?”
“Sir, Singaporeans understand that we need foreign talent to complement our local workforce to compete in the global economy. But in recent years, the sudden influx of foreign workers has raised concerns amongst Singaporeans. Some foreign workers have also taken jobs previously held by Singaporeans, thus causing unhappiness. The presence of foreign workers in our community has resulted in some social issues such as dormitory problems, overcrowding and fear amongst Singaporeans. Sir, as the Government builds capabilities of our workforce in the future, it is crucial to review the foreign talent and worker policy. Foreign talent must help companies to be competitive so that companies can continue to employ Singaporeans. This must be the basis in attracting foreign talent. The Government must continually monitor the policy to ensure that it is not a zero-sum game for Singaporeans. 3.45 pm Sir, as Singapore attracts more foreign talent to be our citizens and permanent residents, the integration of our people will be more challenging. We need to identify more platforms where new citizens, PRs and Singaporeans can interact and bond. One simple way is to encourage our new citizens and permanent residents to join the PA Passion Card membership and, thereafter, participate in our community activities. Besides our grassroots associations reaching to them, we should provide opportunities for our new citizens and PRs to take initiatives to join our community activities. Therefore, I would like to suggest to the Prime Minister to consider making PA Passion Card membership as part of the new citizen and PR application process.”
“Although, it is crucial to build our economy, the Government should also place more emphasis on the quality of life of Singaporeans. We should be a country and not a company. Every Singaporean should be nurtured to maximise his or her potential to lead a meaningful life in Singapore economically, socially and spiritually. The Government must engage all Singaporeans to find "The Singapore Dream". Madam, the "Live, Work, Play" environment as provided by our land use planning authority (URA) should be complemented by our Government’s support to achieve a healthy work-life balance for Singaporeans. I would propose that more research and development be conducted in this area to determine how we can achieve an "outstanding quality of life" as mentioned by our Finance Minister. We must set out clear desired outcomes to measure our efforts towards ownership, quality of life and nation building. The Government must carry the torch and lead our people to achieve "The Singapore Dream". 6.40 pm”
“Madam, this has indeed benefited many home owners, especially the HDB heartlanders, but I would like to urge the Finance Minister to take bolder steps to revamp our property tax system to encourage both ownership – home ownership and community bonding. Many Singaporeans are home owners but there is still high mobility among Singaporeans in changing their homes. Some have even lost their flats and life savings as a result of early cash out of their nest eggs. The mobility of Singaporeans, as a result of changing homes, has posed serious challenges to social cohesion. The change of neighbours has resulted in the lost of community bonds and also eroded efforts by the community stakeholders to bond our people. This may have adverse consequences on our social fabric if Singaporeans continue to change homes frequently in the future. Madam, to promote home ownership and community bonding, I would urge the Finance Minister to consider abolishing the property tax for all owner-occupied residential housing owned by Singaporeans, irrespective of housing types or annual values. Alternatively, the Government can consider waiving property tax for Singaporeans who stay in their homes for 10 years or more. In this way, we can encourage Singaporeans to purchase residential properties and stay longer in their neighbourhood to build a stronger community. Madam, as a first-world economy, Singaporeans should enjoy a better quality of life, but have we attained the "Swiss standard of living" yet? Despite having a safe living environment, affordable housing, good education and quality healthcare, we still have thousands of Singaporeans emigrating to other countries yearly. Common reason cited being "Singapore is too stressful and boring".”
“With individual CET account, Singaporeans will have more flexibility to choose the relevant CET courses to enhance their employability skills in a dynamic market condition. To further encourage skills upgrading, the CET account should also grant training allowances and bonus payments for the successful completion of skills competency tests of these approved courses. As I have mentioned before, skills upgrading courses must be properly designed and conducted by credible training institutions. Therefore, independent work skills competency tests should be conducted to ensure that high training standards are maintained. Second, we should encourage enterprises to take ownership to upgrade the skills of their workers. Madam, I support the Workfare Training Scheme which provides incentives for employers to send their employees for training. But I am not sure whether this scheme will be effective in making sure that employees who require training will be sent for training. To ensure that employees will continually attend training, I propose that we provide a training leave entitlement for all workers, especially low-wage workers, in our Employment Act. The Government can, thus, use the Workfare Training Scheme to reimburse absentee payroll accordingly. In this way, both the employers and employees can initiate the training leave, thereby providing more momentum to raise skills levels and productivity. Madam, in my past Budget debate, I had proposed for the abolition of property tax for owner-occupied residential properties, citing reasons that it was not aligned with our home ownership policy. I am glad the Finance Minister has responded progressively to this call and come with a Progressive Property Tax Regime.”
“There are many barriers to skills upgrading and continuing education of workers, in particular low-wage workers. These include literacy, affordability, accessibility, indifferent employer support and lack of self motivation to upgrade. From the experience of the Community Development Councils, we found that job seekers generally lack a sense of ownership and drive to upgrade. This could be attributed to the lack of a learning culture among Singaporeans. Many Singaporeans do not prioritise continuing education and training in their lives till too late. Therefore, to encourage Singaporeans to pursue continuing education and training, we need to take a multi-pronged approach. We have to incentivise both the employers and employees to trigger the desired skills upgrading and productivity change. First, there must be self-motivation and incentives for individuals to upgrade themselves. The income tax course fee relief may provide some motivation. But it may not be attractive to the most vulnerable low-wage workers or unemployed. I propose that we set up a CET Endowment Fund for Continuing Education and Training for all Singaporeans. The endowment fund could be funded from the skills development levy and also top-up from our budget surpluses in good years. The CET endowment fund can facilitate the opening of a CET account similar to Edusave for all adult Singaporeans. This will directly incentivise individuals to take up continuing education and training throughout their working life. It will also ensure more ownership among individuals to continually upgrade their employable skills through courses approved by WDA.”
“Mdm Deputy Speaker, I rise in support of the Budget. Madam, Singaporeans understand that no one owes us a living and we all have to work hard to make a living. Singaporeans also understand that the global economy is getting more competitive and we need to be creative to find our niches in the future. Thus, we must learn to work hard and work smart to secure our future. Madam, last year’s budget was aimed at "Keeping jobs, and building for the future", while this year’s Budget focuses on "Creating quality jobs, and securing our future". I fully support the $5.5 billion budget to increase the productivity of our economy and workforce. Singapore’s enterprises and workers must learn to work hard and smart. We must produce better quality goods and services to satisfy the rising expectations of our global customers. Although it is important to upgrade the work skills of Singaporeans, provide quality jobs and increase their incomes, we must also strike a healthy work-life balance for our people. Madam, Singaporeans cannot be mere units of production; we need to have our dreams and aspirations to lead a better life in Singapore. There must be more meaning in life than just earning more money. The Government must provide an environment where Singaporeans will be happy with their work, their families, their friends and their country. Therefore, self-reliance and quality of life should be the key issues to address instead of just productivity and inclusiveness. In this regard, I would like to offer several suggestions for the Finance Minister to consider. Madam, no one can dispute that higher skills can command higher income and, thus, improve self-reliance and quality of life. But how come not many Singaporeans are rushing to take up skills upgrading courses?”
“However, to our nation, collective good trumps individual interest, any agreement on international arena should reflect our nation’s identity. Madam, William Blake says "Great things are done when men and mountains meet"; the recent event whereby Singapore women successfully summit Mt. Everest allows us to slightly change the quote to "Great things are done when women and mountains meet". This quote aptly describes a trait of Singapore, a society that openly applauds, embraces and appreciates every Singaporean regardless of race, religion or gender, who rises above adversity, thrives on challenges and maximises his or her potentials when opportunities strike. This feature effectively distinguishes us from many other countries. Madam, I find much meaning in this quote because I truly believe that together, the Singapore Team will scale greater heights. Together, we can and will make Singapore a healthy, wealthy and happy nation.”
“Soon enough, many of us here will become senior citizens and it is indeed saddening to be sidelined as the social currents make their ways. One of the causes, unfortunately arising from our public housing allocation, I believe is the fact that elderly parents live alone, away from their children. We need to reshape our housing policies to provide more opportunities for families to live near one another. Singapore should not be defined by a young generation and an old one, but by a collective body comprising a young generation and an older one. There might be different social and economic roles for different age groups, but the right mentality should be that both groups still have relevance in each other’s life. The challenge to our Government, therefore, is to seek more creative ways to bridge this social separation. Madam, Singapore, though a small country takes pride in being influential in regional and international talks and forums because of our ideas and success that confer us the first-world status. Judging from the number of countries which have come together to solve the current economic crisis, we can expect that there will be more international and regional collaborations and negotiations in the future. Singapore is expected to lead the talks on many of such occasions. However, it is always easier to agree on technical and straightforward issues such as global warming and terrorism than such matters that reflect our nation’s identity and cultural values such as freedom of speech. The Tibet example shows that international watchdogs can and will be commenting and pressuring Singapore on similar matters.”
“Speaking about comparative advantages, many countries, Singapore included, which used to thrive on manufacturing are awake to the fact that they cannot rely on the current comparative advantage for good because cheaper business cost elsewhere will divert investment and reduce the country’s revenue. To Singapore, shaping up new comparative advantage has always been to move up the value ladder and to effectively avoid direct competition with the Chinese and Indian counterparts. Our challenge therefore is to find niche export products with few competitors based on the availability of resources and ability. According to Swiss-based business school, IMD, Singapore has to settle for third position in terms of business competitiveness, trailing after Hong Kong. Competitiveness comprises quantitative factors such as rent, labour cost as well as qualitative factors such as education level, skills and political stability. Many pro-business measures have been installed to make Singapore a more competitive business hub. Current moves such as the SPUR skills upgrading programme, and the proposed fourth university and technology and science-oriented institutes are heading towards the right directions. However, I believe that beside Government’s effort, Singaporeans should take initiatives to constantly improve their skills and be more willing to improve so as remain relevant as comparative advantages are being replaced. Madam, my next challenge has to do with the ageing population. There are many issues attached, many of which have been delineated by the Ministry of Health. The one social challenge that I am going to talk about is segregation.”
“The next step will be to maintain a national database of health and well-being of our ageing population so that appropriate health intervention strategies and policies can be implemented to prevent diseases and enhance the health of our elderly. Having a small and open economy forces us to work harder in the age of globalisation whereby footloose production is a norm. Today, our exporting industries face fierce competition from emerging countries like China, Brazil and Vietnam. And thus the persistent economic challenge is to survive and thrive in the world’s new economic order, which signifies the rise of such hungry powers. It is a fundamental and essential issue because it reflects our unchangeable point of weakness: being dependent on external demand. Singapore’s economy is highly vulnerable to external instability. As a matter of fact, we are dependent on investment of foreign companies and export revenue. On the investment front, the intense presence of multinational companies effectively means possible withdrawal of funds, retrenchment and divestment during economic downturns. Similarly, during recession, there will be a contraction of demand for exported goods as a result of falling global income. At this point in time, when Singapore is facing possibly the worst recession since Independence, there are two ways to ensure our survival. One is to keep having new comparative advantages, which lie in the other end of the value spectrum. The second solution is to remain competitive so as to attract and retain business and investment.”
“We need to have in place quality health infrastructure, such as sports complex and facilities which are accessible and affordable. Cognisant of our hot and humid weather, we need to have more indoor sports facilities. We should allocate more resources to equip our community organisations such as Residents' Committee centres, neighbourhood committee centres, community clubs, and schools with sports facilities. There is also room for more health promotion talks and workshops to encourage healthy lifestyles. Mdm Deputy Speaker, while encouraging healthy lifestyle, there is a need to look after the special needs of our senior citizens. Some elderly face the challenge of getting from their place to the sports complex and CCs. The solution to which is to bring the infrastructure and activities nearer to the elderly residents. I propose to set up more healthy-lifestyle interest groups at the RCs, NCs, CCs and schools to reach out and encourage the elderly to participate in sporting activities such as brisk walking, taiji, qigong, aerobics and other community sports. At the same time, we must train more volunteers and healthy lifestyle instructors to organise such healthy lifestyle activities in our heartlands. To ensure the long-term success of such endeavour, we must adopt a systematic approach to measure the health and well-being of our senior citizens on a regular basis. Madam, although community health screening has been ongoing for many years, it has had limited outreach and many elderly are still not screened because of cost issue. Therefore, I would urge the Government to "best source" and subsidise health screening for elderly at all General Practitioners clinics and hospitals.”
“Though many believe that in today's world, a big-scale World War III cannot happen due to mutual dependence, many recent terrorism acts in Pakistan, India and Afghanistan prove that purportedly small-scale military exchanges are enough to destabilise governments and set the people on panic mode. In the contemporary light of rapid evolution of technology as well as swelling trouble spots on the global map, Singapore must therefore be equipped with relevant technology and, most importantly, remain alert in today's war on terrorism. Madam, globalisation devotees now have to think twice when raving about the greatness of globalisation as the current influenza A (H1N1) snatches the limelight from economic indicator, which used to define globalisation's significance. As globalisation forces blur geographical boundaries, business transcends countries and people travel more often, diseases can easily spread, with evidence being the short period of time taken for the H1N1 virus to make itself present in many countries. As Singapore thrives herself on tourism activity, closing door to business as well as tourists is a must-not. Hence, a preventive system, such as the current disease management system is essential. Different modes of alarm with respective easy-to-understand to-do-list actions should be made known to the public, so that they have a comprehensive understanding of how to protect themselves and their family members. Madam, on the same note, I also want to emphasise on improving our population's immunity against any form of contagious diseases. This can be achieved by incorporating healthy activities and sports into our daily life routines. Promotion of healthy lifestyle should start on the infrastructure front.”
“First, Singapore will face the challenge of countering more sophisticated and powerful terrorism activities. Second, we need to prevent and protect our people from diseases outbreak, exaggerated by more air traveling. Third, it is of tremendous importance to stay relevant in the new economic order, in which countries like China and India outpace our twin engines of manufacturing and service. Fourth, with an ageing population, we face a challenge of preserving a cohesive society whereby the older generation is able to connect to and be relevant to the younger generation. Last but not least, Singapore will need to retain our identity and the Singaporean traits, while actively participating in international forums and activities. Madam, modern terrorism activities leverage on the Internet, which is hardly confined by physical boundaries. Terrorism networks have the capability to work on plans and recruit members over the Internet. It is indeed imaginable for such terrorist organisations to recruit potential members on social networks such as Facebook, which can attract an unprecedented number of followers. Many countries rely on Internet policing and filtering mechanisms to prevent nascent machinations that destroy peace. But, to think that these measures are adequate is simple-minded and naive because man-made technology can be outsmarted by people who created them. Madam, the destruction of dynamite may seem enormous in Alfred Nobel's time but is now surpassed by modern ballistic missiles, intelligent nuclear bombs and many emerging chemical weapons, the destruction of which is debilitating to any country.”
“Mdm Deputy Speaker, I rise in support of the motion. Amidst clamouring headlines like the collapse of financial institutions, charity fraud, global warming as well as wars against terrorism, many claim to be disillusioned with globalisation. Its greatness used to be defined by wealth creation and increasing trade, but now globalisation has become the byword of immoral financial manipulation, greed, reckless lending and spread of pathogens. However, spending too much time to debate about the pros and cons of globalisation will trap us in the moral minefield, which distracts us from watching out for the silver lining. To say no to globalisation is suicidal to Singapore as we have a small and open economy, which largely hails sustenance from our export. Besides, globalisation is the pathway for development, undeniable by any country. It is an inevitably natural process as time and space shrinks due to rapid development of technology. Madam, despite being severely impacted by the financial crisis, I think Singaporeans are faring better than our counterparts. This is attributable to our sound education system, healthcare system, financial regulation and insightful prudence approach. We can be relatively sure that with such foundation as well as the recent initiatives announced in the Resilience Package, it is just a matter of time that Singapore will leave behind the shadow of recession. We will be strengthened and become more prepared for global whirlpools in the future. But having said that, we cannot afford to be complacent. Hence, we should look forward and prepare ourselves for the next 10 to 20 years to come. Madam, I am outlining five challenges for Singapore, three of which are products of globalisation, and the other two, I would call them our local products.”
“Sir, clause 42 makes it an offence for an owner or occupier of any premises upon which any unlawful assembly or procession takes place. Although an owner and occupier of premises have a part to play in ensuring public order, it would be unfair to impose such heavy burden on them to prevent unlawful assemblies or processions. For example, unlawful assemblies or processions can happen in any part of a public housing town. Does it mean that Town Councils will be held liable for such activities? It is difficult for the Town Councils to implement all reasonable measures or exercise all due diligence to prevent such activities as the common areas of the public housing estates or towns are easily accessible to anyone. Sir, the Bill is also not clear as to what will be considered as "all reasonable measures and exercise all due diligence" to prevent the assembly or procession from taking place. I would urge the Minister to list out all the reasonable measures and all the due diligence which an owner or occupier must comply when served with a notice to disallow unlawful assembly or procession. Sir, as the security landscape becomes more complex, it is necessary to review our Public Order legal framework in order to safeguard the interests of our people, and yet protect people's right to gather and voice their opinions. The proposed Bill is a step in the right direction in enhancing public order in Singapore. Sir, I support the Bill. 3.22 pm”
“Sir, the penalty of $20,000 or imprisonment of 12 months or both, as stated in clause 37, for persons who fail to comply with the Move-On Order is rather harsh, especially for first-time offender. Sir, many public assemblies or processions attract many people. Some could be curious bystanders who are not related to the cause-related activities. Under such circumstances, it would be challenging for the Police to effectively communicate the written Move-On Order to every single person present at the assembly or procession. If such order is not personally addressed, it would be unfair for the authority to penalise the offenders with such harsh punishment. I support clause 38 which confers special powers on our law enforcement officers to direct any person to stop filming, making picture, exhibiting or communicating any film or picture which would jeopardise security operations or the safety of our officers. But I doubt the effectiveness of this clause in stopping individuals from filming security operations especially in our built-up environment. Sir, the recent Mumbai terrorist attack had witnessed the filming of videos by various parties. This had affected the security operations and safety of both the law enforcement officers and the hostages. In such situations, it could be difficult to stop persons from filming and communicating their films or pictures. I would thus propose that the Minister be empowered to issue a written Order to stop all filming within the security operation area and its operations. This Order could be conveyed through the media to inform the general public of such security operations in progress so that no one will take films or pictures to compromise security operations.”
“Sir, based on the experience in other countries, political or cause-related assemblies and processions tend to be more emotionally charged, and thus should be subjected to a "Red Lane" regime which requires a more detailed public order risk assessment before permit is granted. In this aspect, I hope the Ministry could develop a risk assessment framework to measure the public order risks as stated in clause 7 of the Bill. This would provide a more systematic, quantifiable and transparent legal framework when approving or rejecting a permit application instead of relying on the apprehension by the Police Commissioner, as stated in the Bill. Sir, I support clause 35 which empowers the Police to exercise move-on powers to de-escalate situations which may cause significant law and order threats. Although the Bill has restricted the criteria in which Move-On Orders can be exercised, there is still subjective judgement to be made by the officer assessing the situation on the ground. Therefore, it is necessary for an experienced officer to assess the ground situation before issuing such order. I support the empowerment of the written Move-On Order to an officer above the rank of Sergeant. But, Sir, I am puzzled to note that clause 35 also states that Move-On Order can be exercised if the person’s behaviour shows that he has just committed an offence or is committing an offence. I would presume that the officer would have taken enforcement action against the offender under such circumstances instead of issuing Move-On Order. Can the Minister clarify as to why Move-On Order is issued instead of enforcement action against such offender?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise in support of the Bill. Sir, very often, seemingly peaceful assemblies or processions in public places can turn violent, resulting in damage to property, human injuries and, sometimes, deaths. The recent peaceful protest in Thailand which ended with attacks on the motorcade of the Thai Prime Minister is a clear example of how peaceful protest could result in violence, thus raising public order and safety concerns. Sir, in a democratic society, there would always be calls for exercising of human rights and freedom of speech, especially in public places. As such, it is important to provide a clear and transparent legal framework to balance between exercising rights and protection of public safety. Sir, I wish to highlight four areas of the Bill for the Minister's clarifications. First, public assemblies and processions. Sir, we need to clearly distinguish between political and cause-related activities from recreational and social activities. In multi-racial and multi-religious Singapore, there are many outdoor assemblies and processions organised by many organisations. For example, Chingay Parade, Thaipusam procession, family and community days, and countdown parties. Sir, these social and recreational activities generally do not pose high public order risks, and thus should be placed on a "Green Lane" permit regime or given full exemption to encourage self-regulation. I would urge the Minister to consider providing a "Green Lane" permit regime or permit exemption for regular and responsible organisers of such festivals, social or recreational activities.”
“Sir, I would like to thank the Law Minister for his inaugural replies to all the Members' cuts and also his positive responses to some of the suggestions by the Members. I would also like to thank the Senior Minister of State for his comprehensive replies. Sir, I beg leave to withdraw my amendments. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. That the sum of $160,320,000 for Head R ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. That the sum of $171,635,000 for Head R ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. Head S – Ministry of Manpower”
“Sir, two clarifications. First, may I ask the Law Minister whether the law schools of NUS and SMU have reached the maximum capacities in terms of offering places for students? And will the Ministry of Law encourage NTU or SIM to set up law schools? My second clarification is to the Senior Minister of State. I commend the Ministry of Law and the Law Society for providing the community legal clinics, but I think the clinics only provide legal advice, not legal services or representation. Is it possible that the clinics refer the cases to a panel of lawyers, say, small law firms which can provide more affordable legal services to their clients, especially the SMEs?”
“(5) How can we support smaller law firms to provide affordable legal services to the community? Legal Education and Liberalisation of Legal Practice”
“Sir, as reported in the Straits Times on 5th April 2008, Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong remarked, and I quote, "Singapore’s lower courts may have been placed high in international rankings, but what matters is the quality of justice people here receive." CJ has called for greater access to justice, and emphasised that justice must be accessible to everyone. This is indeed a timely call for the legal profession to make justice accessible to all at affordable cost. At present, the majority of practising lawyers are involved in corporate services work, thus resulting in a shortage of lawyers in litigation work especially for criminal cases. This problem is compounded by the high attrition rate of practising lawyers. Consequently, there is now left a smaller pool of lawyers available to provide affordable legal services to the community, especially the middle and lower income groups. Sir, I have come across a number of cases in which people cannot afford to pay lawyers to seek representation in courts. Although the Law Ministry and the Law Society have been providing pro-bono legal services, there are persons who do not meet the eligibility criteria, and also cannot afford to engage a lawyer. Thus, there is a service gap in providing justice for all. Sir, I wish to ask the Minister of Law the following questions: (1) What measures are in place to ensure that "justice for all" is accessible to all Singaporeans? (2) Are there plans to further expand the pro bono legal services to lower income Singaporeans? (3) Are there plans to increase the pool of litigation lawyers in Singapore? (4) Can the Minister give an update with regard to the review of lawyers’ handling of clients’ monies?”
“Sir, over the last four decades, Singapore has developed a unique system of governance and public administration which has been regarded by many developing countries as role model. As such, there are lots of potential to develop Singapore into a legal education hub for budding lawyers and public administrators of these countries. In this regard, I would urge the Ministry to consider expanding the capacities of our local law schools or provide more opportunities for established foreign law schools to offer law degree courses in Singapore. Sir, I received feedback that the one-year compulsory diploma course in Singapore Law for returning overseas law graduates is a waste of time and resources. This requirement seems to be an "equal misery" arrangement to ensure that both local and overseas law graduates of the same cohort are called to the bar at the same time. The compulsory diploma course is inflexible, and serves as a barrier in encouraging more overseas law graduates to practise in Singapore. I would urge the Ministry to review the compulsory Diploma course in Singapore Law.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the total sum to be allocated for Head R of the Estimates be reduced by $100. Sir, the high attrition rate of law graduates who do not practise law, and restricted recognition of graduates from overseas law schools have resulted in a shortage of lawyers in Singapore. This problem is further aggravated by the limited capacities of local law schools to train more lawyers. Facing a shortage of lawyers and increasing workload, the legal profession is experiencing work fatigue. This may ultimately have an adverse impact on the quality and professionalism of legal services. Sir, this situation is unhealthy, and calls for urgent action to increase the supply of lawyers to serve our community, economy, and the global market. Sir, Singaporeans who are keen to study law have few opportunities to do so due to the limited number of places offered by NUS and SMU law schools. As a result, many have to go overseas to pursue their law degrees. Sir, to be a legal education hub, Singapore must offer quality and attractive law degree courses for both Singaporeans and overseas students. We should position our law degree courses to be equal or if not, better than the top law schools in the world. Today, the four-year law degree courses of both NUS and SMU are not attractive in encouraging more students to join the legal profession as compared to law degrees offered elsewhere. Sir, NUS and SMU have embarked on a modular teaching system. Therefore, we should consider reviewing our local law degree courses to be a three-year law course comparable to the UK's Cambridge or Oxford law degrees. I wish to ask the Law Minister whether there are plans to review the law degree courses in Singapore.”
“Sir, I wish to thank the Deputy Prime Minister and his team for their comprehensive replies. I also would like to commend the good work done by the Home Team. Sir, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. The sum of $2,682,538,100 for Head P ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. The sum of $350,246,900 for Head P ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. Column No : 2064 COMMITTEE OF SUPPLY REPORTING PROGRESS Resolved, That progress be reported now and leave be asked to sit again tomorrow. – [Dr Ng Eng Hen]. Thereupon Mr Deputy Speaker left the Chair of the Committee and took the Chair of the House.”
“The scheme allows the courts to grant a work licence, called restricted licence, which allows the offender to drive for the purposes of employment only. The courts will impose limits upon the granting of a work licence such as: (i) times when the vehicles may be driven; (ii) purpose for which a vehicle may be driven; (iii) class of vehicle which may be driven; (iv) whether other persons may be in the vehicle; and (v) the need to keep a log-book of all trips undertaken. The holders of work licences are prohibited from having any alcohol in their system while driving, ie, a 0% blood alcohol limit applies. Sir, this system will provide some flexibility in reforming drink driving offenders. Road Safety”
“Sir, in 2008, 22 persons died and 213 were injured as a result of drink driving accidents. Despite the Police campaign to fight drink driving, 3,586 motorists were arrested for drink driving. This clearly reflects the irresponsible attitude of motorists in maintaining road safety in Singapore. Sir, every drink driving related death is one too many. We must continue to send a strong and stern message to motorists to keep our roads safe. I commend the Traffic Police for launching several Anti-Drink Drive initiatives, including ringfencing enforcement strategy at entertainment outlets. These efforts have, indeed, reduced the number of drink driving incidents. But there are many other motorists who drink alcohol at private parties and premises and, thus, may escape the ringfencing enforcement and road blocks. We need to step up our enforcement and public education efforts on drink driving. Sir, while I do not condone drink driving, I do feel that our penalty regime for drink driving is too stringent and inflexible. Drivers caught with drink driving, exceeding the prescribed alcohol level, will be charged in courts and face suspension of driving licence. For many of these offenders, the loss of licence means a loss of employment, which causes severe hardship to their family members. Some of the offenders may be non-English speaking and have low educational level. Therefore, they are unable to pass the new driving licence theory and practical tests. As a result, many have lost substantial income to support their families. Sir, I wish to propose to the Ministry to consider a Work Drivers' Licence Scheme, as practised in Queensland, Australia.”
“Sir, "Low crime does not mean no crime". This is a crime prevention message by the Police to the general public. Despite years of public education on crime prevention, we still have 30,000 cases of crimes per year. Although the crime rate per 100,000 population is low, we must not be complacent. The Home Team, its community partners and the general public must continue its close cooperation and good work to further reduce incidents of crime, especially against the elderly and children. With a fast ageing population and severe recession, there is a high possibility that crime rates will rise. In the past, cheating and theft cases increased significantly when times are bad. In 2007, there were 4,084 cases of crimes against persons and 19,522 cheating and related crimes. Sir, many elderly in the heartlands are alone during the morning and afternoon when their children are at school or at work. As such, they become vulnerable to cheats who prey on these elderly by posing as sales agent or use scare tactics to con the elderly of money. Thus, I wish to ask the Minister whether additional measures are taken to protect the elderly from crime during this recession. Are the present crime prevention efforts effective in reducing crime against the elderly? Sir, the use of Internet has increased the vulnerability of children to cyber crimes. Cheating and sex-related crimes as a result of Internet usage are commonly reported. As children spend more hours surfing the Internet, they are exposed to high risks of cyber crime. May I ask the Minister as to what measures are taken by the Home Team to safeguard the safety of children on the Internet and how effective are the cyber crime prevention efforts for children? Public Safety and Foreign Workers”
“Sir, I understand from the reply to my Parliamentary written question that the Ministry has fully implemented the recommendations of the Committee of Inquiry with regard to the security protocols and features of Whitley Road Detention Centre (WRDC). May I ask the Minister, how many detainees are presently housed at the WRDC, and when will the new detention centre be built in Changi Prison? Sir, one of the key reasons cited by the Ministry for the series of security lapses last year was organisational fatigue among officers of the Home Team. Can the Minister update the House on measures undertaken to address the fatigue problems of the Home Team, and what mechanisms are in place to constantly monitor the fatigue of the Home Team in view of the fast changing security landscape? Sir, may I also ask the Minister what is the level of emergency preparedness among Singaporeans?”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the total sum to be allocated for Head P of the Estimates be reduced by $100. Sir, 27th February 2009 marks the first anniversary of the escape of Mas Selamat from our Whitley Road Detention Centre. Despite a nationwide manhunt and the offer of a $1 million reward, we still do not know where is Mas Selamat. The recent terrorist attack at Mumbai clearly shows that terrorism is still a serious threat to Singapore and Singaporeans both locally and overseas. Sir, I noticed that many Singaporeans have simply forgotten about Mas Selamat, and our community engagement programme of the public with regard to terrorism seems to have slackened. For instance, many posters of Mas Selamat were taken down from notice boards and public places. No one seems to be paying attention to the search for Mas Selamat. It is indeed a worrying sign as we may be facing an increased terrorism threat after his escape. May I ask the Minister for Home Affairs to update the house on efforts to arrest Mas Selamat? Sir, in view of the fact that the new Obama administration is looking into closing down the detainee facility at Guantanamo Bay, are there mechanisms through which the Government would be kept informed of the status and movement of any Southeast Asian detainees who may pose security threats to our country? Although the Home Team has implemented many measures to harden potential terrorist targets, there is much work to be done to intensify our search efforts for Mas Selamat, strengthen our home team, and enhance the emergency preparedness of Singaporeans.”
“Sir, I would like to thank Deputy Prime Minister Wong and our Ministers for their comprehensive replies although I still hope that PMO can champion and support ground initiatives to promote brisk-walking. Sir, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. The sum of $242,821,800 for Head U ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. The sum of $38,437,400 for Head U ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. Head P – Ministry of Home Affairs”
“One barrier is the lack of funding in supporting substainable programmes for the INCs. The organisation of welcome parties and roadshows provide limited opportunities for new and existing citizens to interact and may not be effective in integration. We should instead focus on activities which will increase the understanding and interaction of our citizens. Sir, I wish to ask the Prime Minister as to whether there are mechanisms to measure the effectiveness of the INCs' efforts. Will the Government provide more funding to the INCs? Sir, the Baby Bonus has been in operation for a number of years. It has produced limited results. Are there plans to review the Baby Bonus Scheme and provide more incentives to encourage married couples to have more children? Attracting, Developing and Retaining Talent”