Zaqy Mohamad
Singapore
“Deputy Speaker, may I seek your consent and the general assent of Members present to move that the Question Time at this day's Sitting be exempted from Standing Order No 22(1) so as to enable questions for oral answer to continue until the completion of Question Nos 7 to 29, including relevant supplementary questions, until 12.45 pm?”
“Mr Speaker, may I seek your consent and the general assent of Members present to move that the proceedings on the item under discussion be exempted from the provisions of Standing Order No 48(8) to remove the time limit in respect of the Minister Tan See Leng's speech, please?”
“I think on the hawker front, we keep our rentals as low as possible to sustain our hawkers. But for food prices, we continue to monitor. My colleague, Minister of State Gan mentioned about how we are monitoring food supply of food prices, and I think that we will continue to do so.”
“I thank the Member for his question. On seafood specifically, we do not see immediate risk. We have diversified our food imports. We have also got local production of seafood readily available. At this point, as both the Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister have shared, our main risk for agriculture lies in fertiliser.”
“Mr Speaker, as I shared, we are monitoring the situation. The Government is monitoring at this point. There is no need at this juncture, because we have not seen the price hikes hit the hawkers in the same way as yet. There will be downstream impact. I think that is quite sure.”
“For us to also look into buying local produce, that helps our farms to increase capacity at this point, helps them build resilience over time and should there be disruptions or should there be a need for us to divert supplies or look to ramp up local production, I think they would be in a better position if we do what we can today to supp…”
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“I thank the Member for his question and interest on KMM. I will take the question in two parts. First, on the programmatic level. At preschools, we have beyond the KMM programme, STEM programme as well for preschoolers and their parents at Raikan Ilmu at Heartlands as an example. We give them exposure to playing with robots, toys and other ways in which to explore more experientially rather than typical tuition or academic formats. We also have Instagram platforms to engage parents as well to give them courses, classes and exposure to the developmental programmes that they can take kids through with STEM. 2.45 pm At the data and studies level, those are just as important because that informs us on the effectiveness of the KMM programme. First, now that we have established a programme evaluation office in MENDAKI, we are tracking closely and we have done studies internally. That is how we have come up with results that nine in 10 kids in who have gone through KMM for a reasonable period no longer required the Learning Support for Mathematics (LSM) programme in primary school. So, it has been quite effective in that sense and we continue to monitor it, especially when we scale. When we started KMM, it was only about 300 students. We are now covering about 3,000 students and parents. So, that is quite significant. And one of the key factors is really how we engage parents and the parents in cultivating that love and interest in Mathematics. That makes a difference for many of our preschoolers who may have underperformed or may not have been able to clear LSM in the past but today, are with current cohorts.”
“With support from the Tertiary Tuition Fee Subsidy (TTFS) and SMU scholarships, he graduated with Magna Cum Laude Honours in 2008. Today, Firdaus is a Senior Counsel and regional Head of Legal for a large multinational firm. He also serves on MENDAKI's Education Trust Fund and has joined the second cohort of Tunas Bersama M3. Firdaus' journey against the odds, inspires us, not just for personal resilience, but also to greater endeavours so we can empower those in similar situations to overcome their challenges and succeed. Chairman, I started my speech sharing about MENDAKI's humble beginnings 43 years ago. MENDAKI will keep transforming to better serve the community, whether to expand into preschools, enhancing our mainstream schools' offerings or moving into the workforce to help our workers upskill, reskill and transform to be relevant to the industries. With the support of our volunteers and partners, we are in a good position to continue progressing as a Community of Success for the future.”
“In the past, our community leaders contributed their expertise and influence primarily through the Malay/Muslim organisations (MMOs). Today, many Malay/Muslims are successful across various industries. Our vision is to draw on all our networks to cultivate leaders of tomorrow who are adept as both community and industry leaders. To this end, MENDAKI introduced Tunas Bersama M Kuasa Tiga (M3), in 2022 to equip the next generation for leadership roles. The first cohort of 13 participants graduated in April 2024 and continue to contribute at national and community levels. To widen outreach, MENDAKI has drawn on initiatives such as the Professional Networks to support youths with leadership potential from a broader spectrum of the community and different industries. The second cohort of 23 participants includes not just MMO representatives but also M3@Towns Chairpersons and Leads from the Professional Networks. The programme allows younger leaders to forge stronger collaborations and exposures, cutting across both community organisations and industry networks. Sir, I am hopeful that initiatives like Tunas and our Professional Networks can cultivate a stronger pipeline of community and industry leaders for the Malay/Muslim community and hopefully, even on the national and international stage. Mr Chairman, our community has built a strong ecosystem to uplift individuals and prepare for the future. This would not have happened without those who have persevered through many challenges and steadfastly contributed back. Take, for example, Mr Ahmad Firdaus Daud. When he was a student at the Singapore Management University (SMU) in 2004, his family ran into financial difficulties. Firdaus made personal sacrifices so that his younger siblings could continue with school.”
“In 2024, MENDAKI's #amPowered programmes matched nearly 1,400 students to more than 400 mentors – double the number of mentors involved compared with 2022. Apart from mentoring, our Malay/Muslim professionals have also come together through MENDAKI's Professional Networks to help youths build social capital and open pathways for them to reap the benefits from Singapore's investments in growth sectors. The Professional Networks now cover 13 different industries with a growing membership that has doubled to over 850 in the past year. Of these members, about 60% have actively contributed back through MENDAKI's programmes and ground-up initiatives. For example, in 2024, the Professional Networks collaborated with MENDAKI to engage close to 650 youths across 17 interactive learning journeys that provided exposure to opportunities in different growth sectors. Professional Networks in Banking and Finance, Aviation and Technology have also organised networking events for youths to engage professionals on prospective career pathways with these industries. MENDAKI's corporate partners have also come on board to support our youths through scholarships that open doors to job opportunities upon graduation. Over the past five years, MENDAKI's corporate partners have awarded around 45 scholarships to support students in their post-secondary education. One example is the Micron Foundation Scholarship and their internship opportunities for polytechnic students pursuing engineering degrees. I am glad these efforts have galvanised so many to step forward and I encourage all our professionals to continue reaching out in whatever capacity you can, to make a difference in the community. Ms Nadia Samdin asked about how we are nurturing the next generation of community leaders.”
“For those pursuing full-time long-form training, they can get a training allowance of up to $3,000 per month or up to $72,000 over two years. The Government enhanced this initiative during this year’s Budget to include eligible participants of part-time training who will receive a training allowance of $300 per month. For lower-wage workers, the Workfare Skills Support (Level-Up) will provide a similar monthly training allowance for selected part-time and full-time courses from age 30. Such programmes provide our workers with opportunities to get a substantial skills reboot and build career resilience, so that they can secure better futures for themselves and their families. For Focus Area 4 (FA4) of M3 headed by Mr Fahmi Aliman, it complements national efforts in lifelong learning and helps workers stay competitive as job demands increase. Through collaboration with NTUC and community organisations, FA4 has supported about 25,000 Malay/Muslim workers through career fairs, job matching, skills development as well as mentoring programmes over the past three years. 2.15 pm (In English): Mr Chairman, we have also intensified efforts to prepare youths to enter the workforce. Mr Sharael Taha and Ms Nadia Samdin asked about the impact of mentoring programmes for our youths. MENDAKI's mentoring programmes, overseen by Minister of State Rahayu Mahzam, aim not only to motivate youths to stay in school but also to raise awareness of career and education opportunities available to them. Mentoring can help transform perspectives and motivate those from lower-income households, who may not have strong support networks and career role models.”
“Local data has shown that children who attend preschool from age three are less likely to require additional support in primary school. MENDAKI piloted KelasMateMatika (KMM) in 2018, an early intervention programme, to enhance children's appreciation of numeracy concepts and parents' skills in supporting their children's learning. KMM sets the foundations early for students to perform well in Mathematics, which opens up more educational pathways for them. Today, 90% of students who enrolled in KMM enter primary school without needing additional learning support. In the past five years, over 12,000 parents and children have enrolled in KMM. MENDAKI will continue to work closely with the M3@Towns and social service agencies for even more targeted outreach to young families. Chairman, in Malay, please. (In Malay): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] Beyond education, MENDAKI has also responded to the professional upskilling needs and to encourage lifelong learning in the Malay/Muslim community. As Mr Fahmi Aliman highlighted, one priority is helping our workers to build resilience and constantly be ready to seize new opportunities. This became clear when COVID-19 hit and many workers struggled to keep their jobs in the changing economy. Today, with the rapid technological advancements and innovation, our workers must constantly upgrade and refresh their skills to keep pace with evolving job requirements and secure higher wages. To enable more workers to actively upskill and reskill, the Government introduced the SkillsFuture Level-Up Programme last year for Singapore Citizens aged 40 and above. This included a $4,000 SkillsFuture Credit top-up.”
“We have made enhancements to the MENDAKI Tuition Programme (MTP), one of the first education initiatives introduced by MENDAKI in the 1980s. I was a beneficiary of the programme then and also volunteered as a tutor when I was in the university. Today, MTP has expanded to 100 centres across Singapore, with close to 9,700 students enrolled in 2024, a 35% increase over the last five years. MTP has also adjusted to changes in the education system, such as Subject-Based Banding. This year, MENDAKI will further enhance MTP's programmes by integrating artificial intelligence (AI) systems into our curriculum to better prepare our students for an AI-driven future. We will sign memoranda of understanding (MOU) with two institutions which will partner us in this endeavour. First, we will work with the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology Centre (SMART) to provide students with access to AI tools that will help them better grasp Mathematics with topics, such as geometry, and improve the effectiveness of our volunteer tutors. Second, through our partnership with Quantedge Foundation and Temasek Foundation, we will pilot an individualised learning system with diagnostic quizzes and interactive activities, for better student engagement and academic outcomes. MENDAKI has also moved upstream to invest in preschool education as part of the continuum of support we provide to young families through M3’s Focus Area 1. This is led by Minister of State Faishal Ibrahim. I agree with Mr Zhulkarnain and Ms Nadia Samdin that preschool builds a strong foundation, not just for academic performance but for holistic development in those crucial years of early childhood.”
“Mr Chairman, when we look at the progress of our Malay/Muslim community today, there is much that we can be proud of. About 40 years ago, Malay/Muslim leaders rallied together and founded MENDAKI, when we saw worrying trends in our students' educational performance. Many were not completing their Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE), "O" and "A" levels. Our leaders then recognised the importance of education for the Malay/Muslim community to progress with higher education and better paying jobs. Today, we see the impact of the community's self-help efforts through MENDAKI to complement Singapore's education system. From 2000 to 2020, more than twice as many Malay youths obtained post-secondary or higher qualifications, rising from around 30% back in 2000 to around 80% in 2020. Among Malay adults, the proportion of university graduates has increased fivefold from 2.1% to 10.8%, and more Malays now hold PMET positions, with a steady rise from 23% to 40% in 2020. To better prepare the community for current and future challenges, MENDAKI has adapted and transformed to stay relevant in raising the competency of the Malay/Muslim community. We approach this with three thrusts: one, expanding MENDAKI's role over the years to address evolving educational needs; two, to better support youths entering the workforce and encourage lifelong learning and upskilling among workers; and three, building community and industry leaders of tomorrow. Our community has made solid progress, but the work does not stop here. Mr Saktiandi Supaat asked how we are supporting our students to thrive in new learning environments. MENDAKI has adapted to new developments in the education landscape while upholding its core mission of student support at every milestone.”
“So, this ensures that there is no gaming, hopefully. But if there was any gaming, please surface it to us and we will take them to task with the Police. These are aspects in which there is still protection available because this is a licensed sector. Nonetheless, having said that, one of the key reasons why we moved towards a gross wage structure for PWM is to make sure that they do not game the system, such that everything is all-in or all-encompassing, and as long as you meet the PWM requirements for gross wage, I think that is sufficient to ensure that there is a minimum amount that security officers can benefit from PWM. [Please refer to "Clarification by Senior Minister of State for Manpower", Official Report, 10 March 2025, Vol 95, Issue 161, Correction By Written Statement section.]”
“I thank the Member for his question. In fact, it is a good thing actually that our security officers now earn above what is covered in the Employment Act, Part 4, because, ultimately, this means that their wages now are growing beyond the bottom 20% mark. Technically, if you want to go by strict definitions, they are exceeding past what we used to think as low-wage workers. So, that is good progress from the unions and the tripartite partners in terms of how we have managed to increase the low wages of security officers such that by 2028, they will even get up to $3,500, which is much higher than what many of our low-wage workers earn today. [Please refer to "Clarification by Senior Minister of State for Manpower", Official Report, 10 March 2025, Vol 95, Issue 161, Correction By Written Statement section.] So, to a large extent, that shows progress. However, I take the Member's point. In short, the Minister for Manpower announced during the Committee of Supply debate that we are reviewing the Employment Act as well and that will include things like this, whether the thresholds have to be increased to keep up with the current pace, for example. These are areas we will look at. But I just want to assure the Member that security officers are not worse off in terms of the maximum number of overtime hours or paid leave entitlements because, ultimately, security officers continue to be licensed by the Singapore Police Force's (SPF's) Police Licensing and Regulatory Department. So, this is a licensed area. Today, the relevant provisions of the Employment Act still apply to them. For example, the licensing conditions provide that the total number of extra hours above the 44-hour work week is kept at a maximum of 72 hours per month.”
“Sir, we do not have data on security agencies which incorporate allowances into basic wages following the implementation of the Progressive Wage Model (PWM). However, we observe that gross wages for security officers, which include allowances, have increased since the implementation of PWM for security officers in 2016. From 2016, when we started PWM, to 2023, the median gross wage of Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents working as full-time security officers increased 19.2% cumulatively. Employers have the prerogative to decide how to structure workers’ overall compensation, provided they comply with PWM requirements. While it is possible for employers to incorporate allowances into the basic wage to offset PWM-mandated wage increases, such practices are unsustainable. PWM requirements increase year on year and there is a limit to how much wage components can be shifted. Let me explain. In 2016, the PWM wage requirements for a security officer employed by a security agency was $1,300. [Please refer to "Clarification by Senior Minister of State for Manpower", Official Report, 10 March 2025, Vol 95, Issue 161, Correction By Written Statement section.] From 1 January 2025, this year, this has increased to $2,870 and by 2028, this would increase to $3,530. So, this translates to PWM raising the salaries of security officers to around 220% more than the wage requirement in 2016. This means that security officers will likely see that total take-home pay, which includes both basic wages and variable components, such as allowances, increase over the coming years. Security officers who wish to report contractual breaches or employers not adhering to PWM requirements can approach their union or contact the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) for assistance.”
“Speaker, I beg to report that the Committee of Supply has made progress on the Estimates of Expenditure for the financial year 2025/2026 and ask leave to sit again on Monday, 10 March 2025.”
“Chairman, may I seek your consent to move that progress be reported and leave be asked again to sit on Monday, 10 March 2025?”
“The WSH Guidelines on Event Management provide practical guidance on health and safety requirements relevant to the creative industry. Together, we can achieve our WSH 2028 goal of reducing and sustaining the fatality injury rate at below 1.0 per 100,000 workers. Chairman, I started my speech with how tripartism in Singapore is Singapore's "secret sauce" that empowers our low-wage workers. That, in turn, uplifts their families and communities. More than that, this harmonious partnership among our unions, businesses and the Government weaves the fabric of a resilient and prosperous Singapore. Let me end my speech with a verse from a Simon and Garfunkel song, “Bridge over Troubled Water”, reflecting the spirit of tripartism in empowering our workers in securing the success of Singaporeans and Singapore then, now and for the future. "Oh! when times get rough and then friends can't be found, like a bridge over troubled water, I will lay me down, like a bridge over troubled water, I will lay me down."”
“Construction worksites with contract value of $5 million and above are required to install a Video Surveillance System (VSS). This helps contractors to identify WSH hazards and facilitates MOM's investigations and deters unsafe behaviours. At the company level, chief executives and board directors in higher-risk sectors, including construction, must attend the Top Executive WSH Programme to understand their duties and learn how to foster good safety practices in their companies. Beyond safety, we agree with Mr Melvin Yong that it is equally important to safeguard the health of our workers. Under the Tripartite Oversight Committee on WSH, more than 136,000 workers have access to the Total WSH Programme. So, moving forward, we will continue to work with industry partners, employers and unions to focus on areas of preventive health and occupational health, in support of national initiatives, such as Healthier SG. WSH is a collective responsibility. Everyone must continue to do our part, to build a strong WSH culture. Company directors must drive home the importance of safety within their organisations and good WSH is integral to business success. Workers are responsible for following safe work procedures to protect themselves and others. Unions must advocate for safe, healthy workplaces and working conditions, for example, by developing WSH champions in each union. The public can report unsafe workplace practices to MOM, as each report can save a life. Ms Jean See asked about shared responsibility for workplace safety in the creative industry. Service buyers must play their part by ensuring that their contractors, including freelancers, have the necessary competency to work safely. Contractors must work safely and not engage in risk-taking behaviour.”
“We must all work together to reduce income inequality, which can cause risks in society if left unchecked. The work continues ahead of us. Over the next two years, the tripartite partners will be negotiating the next bound of wage schedules for the PWMs. The Government has laid the groundwork for this through PWCS, which supports business transformation efforts and brings some relief to cost pressures. We hope that employers and consumers, too, will play their part in uplifting our low-wage workers. Chairman, as we uplift the livelihood of our workers, we must also safeguard their lives. Our performance for Workplace Safety and Health (WSH), has improved over the years. Over the past five years, the workplace fatality rate has averaged at 1.1 per 100,000 workers. This places Singapore among the top performing countries, with just four OECD countries consistently performing below 1.0. We achieved this once in 2023. However, the recent increase in workplace fatalities in the second half of 2024 underscores the need for all stakeholders to remain vigilant and to prioritise workplace safety. While the WSH performance of sectors, such as manufacturing has improved, others can and must do better. We can certainly do much better for construction, which remains the top contributor of workplace accidents today. Mr Melvin Yong asked for an update on the Safety Accountability, Focus and Empowerment measures (SAFE). All SAFE measures have been implemented over the last few years. They are a comprehensive set of measures aimed at enhancing collective WSH ownership. Take construction, for example. At the sectoral level, we enhanced businesses' incentive to prioritise safety by disqualifying poor WSH performers from tendering for public sector construction projects.”
“The Government understands that it takes time for workers to upskill and for businesses to transform. In the near term, businesses are also concerned about manpower costs. I would like to assure Ms Yeo Wan Ling that the Government fully recognises these concerns. We recognise that uplifting our low-wage workers will lead to some increases in manpower costs. But in a typical business organisation, low-wage workers account for a relatively modest share of businesses' overall manpower costs. They constitute only about one-fifth of our resident workforce and their wages are relatively lower to begin with. Nonetheless, we hear employers' concerns over the broader cost pressures. As outlined by the Prime Minister at Budget, we are enhancing the Progressive Wage Credit Scheme (PWCS) support for businesses. We will raise Government's co-funding of wage increases to low-wage workers from 30% to 40% in 2025 and from 15% to 20% in 2026. This builds on three earlier rounds of PWCS enhancements. In fact, since 2022, the Government has co-funded the majority of wage increases given to low-wage workers and this was added up to 75% and 50% in previous years. For wage increases given in 2022 and 2023, the Government has already disbursed $2.7 billion of PWCS. These co-funded wage increases were given to more than 520,000 employees by over 90,000 employers. The upcoming PWCS enhancements will continue to provide short-term relief, but I strongly encourage employers to make use of this opportunity to accelerate your transformation, so that we can uplift low-wage workers sustainably over the long term. Chairman, we have made good progress so far, but we must press on with our efforts to uplift low-wage workers.”
“We also recognise that workers in lower-wage jobs may need more bouts of long-form training across their career stages. This is to acquire the necessary skills for more complex job roles, or pivot to new sectors. Hence, WSS (Level-Up) will cover up to 24 months of long-form training done before the age of 40 and another 24 months of long-form training after the age of 40. WSS (Level-Up) will be rolled out from early 2026. I would like to assure Ms Mariam Jaafar and Mr Don Wee that we will work with tripartite partners to raise awareness of WSS (Level-Up) and help low-wage workers navigate their upskilling journeys. We will provide more details later this year. Ms Mariam Jaafar also asked if there are plans to extend WSS to low-wage workers aged 25 and over. We will keep this suggestion in mind, but at the same time, there are no plans to do so, as there are other schemes that younger workers can tap on, such as the ITE Progression Award and SkillsFuture Credit. For low-wage workers to put their newly acquired skills to good use, businesses must also transform low-wage jobs for higher value-add and refine their processes for higher productivity. So, upskilling is just one half of the equation. There has been encouraging progress on the business front. In the retail and food services sector, businesses are adopting technological solutions, such as self-service systems and RFID inventory management. So, instead of routine tasks, retail workers can take on more diversified and higher-skilled jobs. In outsourced sectors, such as cleaning, security and waste management, service providers are adopting robots and Internet-of-Things (IoT) solutions to reduce reliance on labour-intensive operations. So, existing workers can then be retrained and deployed to higher-value roles.”
“Since 2010, the Government has been supporting low-wage workers in their upskilling journey through the Workfare Skills Support scheme, or WSS. Currently, WSS is targeted at short courses that can be completed over a few days. It covers the opportunity costs of training for low-wage workers aged 30 and above. For example, those pursuing training on their own receive a training allowance of $6 per hour. However, low-wage workers stand to benefit more from long-form courses that provide more robust upskilling and reskilling, which are associated with more significant wage increments. The challenge, of course, is that these take longer and the opportunity cost for low-wage workers is, therefore, also higher. As announced at Budget, we will enhance WSS by introducing a new tier of support in the form of WSS (Level-Up). This is targeted at helping low-wage workers who wish to pursue long-form training. Taking reference from the SkillsFuture Level-Up Programme, WSS (Level-Up) will provide low-wage workers who pursue long-form training with substantially higher training allowance, to cover the higher opportunity costs. Full-time trainees will receive a monthly allowance set at 50% of their average monthly income based on the latest available 12-month period, and this, with a minimum monthly allowance of $300. Part-time trainees will receive a fixed monthly allowance of $300. This will benefit workers aged 30 and above, earning up to $3,000 per month. So, effectively, WSS (Level-Up) trainees will receive up to $18,000 per year for full-time training and up to $3,600 per year for part-time training. This is more than three times higher than the training allowance currently provided by WSS.”
“Besides tripartite partners to drive wage growth, the Government also provides lower-wage workers with additional support through the Workfare Income Supplement (WIS) Scheme, what we typically know as Workfare, and we have enhanced this further. From January 2025, the qualifying monthly income cap for WIS has been increased from $2,500 to $3,000. And this ensures that WIS continues to help workers in the bottom 20th income percentiles, with some support for those slightly above. WIS payments have also been increased. The maximum payment has been raised to $4,900 per year, up from $4,200. Those aged 60 and above will benefit from this highest payment tier, as well as persons with disabilities, regardless of age. WIS payments for all other age groups have also been increased. These enhancements to WIS will benefit about half a million lower-wage workers. In fact, in total, WIS payments will increase to $1.4 billion in 2025. The Government will continue to work with tripartite partners to help lower-wage workers strengthen their wage and employment outcomes. Mr Melvin Yong would be happy to hear that the tripartite partners are currently studying the expansion of PWM to the Pest Management sector and will provide more details in due course. 11.15 pm Above all, as Mr Edward Chia, Mr Fahmi Aliman and Mr Neil Parekh highlighted, the key to raising wages sustainably over the long term is for both workers and businesses to become more productive. Businesses must transform low-wage jobs for higher value-add and improve the efficiency of their operations. At the same time, with better jobs created, there will be demand for new skillsets and competencies. Workers will need to upskill to seize these opportunities and we will step up our efforts to help them do so.”
“If Members will refer to the handout distributed, our Lower-wage Workers Chart, you will find a chart of all of our lower-wage workers' wage growth that is coming up, in the coming years, especially in the different sectors. And for sectors like security, for example, we have seen very good and strong progress. When it started in 2016, the PWM requirement was $1,300. Today, it is $2,870 and, by 2028, our security officers will have a minimum PWM markline of $3,530. That, I think, shows how progressive PWM is today. It means that even though costs of living rose, the wages of our lower-wage workers rose even more. So, the wage gap between lower-wage workers and the median worker is also narrowing, even while median wages continue to rise. In fact, a big part of this growth took place in the last three years, when tripartite partners agreed to expand PWM to three additional sectors and to two additional occupations. In the Department of Statistics' (DOS') latest report, income inequality in Singapore, as measured by the Gini coefficient, has declined steadily over the last decade. So, this bucks the trend, compared to many other countries where income wage gaps are widening. Here, we have seen the Gini coefficient reduced and I would like to think that PWM had played a role in this, too. Sir, household income per member has also risen in real terms for households in the lowest 20% income group. So, I am hopeful that this will continue in the coming years. And this is a reflection of the tripartite partners' relentless efforts – our partners from the union, our partners from the employers, and as well as partners from the Government – for their unwavering commitment. I would like to applaud everyone involved for their contributions.”
“PWMs form a network of ladders in the ecosystem, leading the way to improve the wage outcomes for our lower-wage workers. Tripartism is, therefore, our "secret sauce" in providing that balance that, in doing so, we keep businesses sustainable, so that they can continue to hire workers and can sustain their wage growth over time. We cannot take this balance for granted, nor should allow politics to take over and start auctioning minimum wage levels. We have seen how this has played out in many countries – a blunt minimum wage line determined by politics, or rather, auctioned by politics just to win elections. Some are unsustainable and fail to be implemented; others are pushed through but the industry cannot keep pace. So, businesses just hire fewer workers or reduce their work hours. So, businesses lose out and workers lose out. Our tripartite partners are keenly aware of these drawbacks and therefore, for PWM, we negotiate outcomes in the best interests of our people's livelihoods and a sustainable economy. In fact, why offer our Singapore lower-wage workers the minimum when they can already benefit from progressive wages today? Minimum versus progressive. Our suite of Progressive Wage measures – the PWM, LQS and the Progressive Wage Mark accreditation scheme – now benefit up to nine in 10 lower-wage workers today. Mr Melvin Yong asked about the impact of our efforts and I am proud to share that our tripartite efforts have yielded good, tangible outcomes. Lower-wage workers have consistently seen strong wage growth. From 2019 to 2024, real wages at the 20th percentile rose cumulatively by 5.9%, higher than the median worker at 3.6%.”
“Thank you. Mr Chairman, for many years, tripartism has been the critical success factor to raising the incomes and skills of our lower-wage workers. This helps narrow the gap with the median and, at the same time, keeps this sustainable for businesses. How has Singapore achieved this? Under the Progressive Wage Model (PWM), which was introduced in 2014, wage requirements are negotiated by tripartite consensus among unions, employees, employers and the Government. This results in meaningful wage increases for our lower-wage workers. Increases are set at a pace that is sustainable for employers and mapped out over a period, which gives predictability for contracting and business planning. What does this mean for Singapore's workers and businesses and why does PWM work? PWM works because we do not just rely on a minimum wage line to boost wages – but we rely on PWMs that boost wages for workers across different sectors and occupations. Negotiated PWMs are impactful because we can optimise wage increments in different sectors, taking into consideration workforce productivity, sectoral growth and business transformation. From a holistic perspective, this means that we can maximise the wage growth potential of different sectors, such as security, waste management and others, and help our workers and their wages to grow. PWM is not just about wages. It is also about mapping out skills and career pathways. This supports productivity improvements and provides workers with progression prospects. Collectively, PWM sets the pace for wage growth, with Local Qualifying Salary (LQS) shoring up as our last line. We have a progressive and sustainable system, one that works, unlike a traditional minimum wage system.”
“With your permission, Mr Chairman, may I ask the Clerks to distribute the handout detailing our efforts to support lower-wage workers? Members may also access these materials through the MP@SGPARL app.”
“Mr Speaker, I report that the Committee of Supply has made progress on the Estimates of Expenditure for the financial year 2025/2026 and ask leave to sit again tomorrow.”
“Mr Chairman, may I seek your consent to move that progress be reported now and leave be asked to sit again tomorrow?”
“The application enables convenient and secure communication over email and SMS through encryption, eliminating concerns over phishing and bolstering public trust in our digital communications. Since the hackathon, the team behind "5Seconds" has participated in several events to showcase their solution, including at the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises' Artificial Intelligence Festival Asia event in January, sharing their solution to help improve the digital defence of our companies. These are just some examples of the projects we have received from youths over the past year, which we are supporting. The active participation and creativity of our youth give me confidence that together, we can build a strong, secure and cohesive nation capable of dealing with any crisis. Mr Chairman, I would like to close by reiterating that the world we live in is a challenging one and the threat of disruptions in the future is all but certain. MINDEF has been and will continue investing in Total Defence as our best preparation and our best response to these disruptions. We are doing our part towards meeting the sustainability targets as part of the Singapore Green Plan 2030 to safeguard our collective future. I am heartened that Singaporeans have also been preparing and equipping themselves and contributing in creative ways towards strengthening Total Defence. We will continue to partner Singaporeans in this shared responsibility of keeping Singapore strong for the future. I am confident that together, we can build a strong, cohesive and secure Singapore for many generations to come. [Applause]”
“Beyond the fleet of aircraft on display, the refreshed museum will feature precious artefacts and equipment from the early days of the RSAF, telling the story of the growth and innovation of our Air Force. The public can look forward to visiting the refreshed museum in early 2026. Looking further ahead, we can look forward to the re-opening of the Army Museum of Singapore in Jurong in 2027 after it completes a major revamp and the opening of the NS Gallery in 2028. These refreshed museums will inspire visitors to defend what it means to be Singaporean. This is part of our overall effort to explore new and innovative ways to expand our reach and put Total Defence into action. This brings me to my last point – encouraging innovation in support of Total Defence, which Mr Gan Thiam Poh asked about. For the past three years, I have mentioned the Total Defence Sandbox as our flagship initiative to call for and implement ideas from Singaporeans on how the community can put Total Defence in action. Through the programme, we have received a total of 258 innovative proposals. This year, I would like to highlight the Total Defence-themed hackathon YouthxHack as an initiative that empowers our youth to put Total Defence into action. The four-day event organised by Cyber Youth Singapore last September involved over 160 participants across 36 teams coming up with innovative ideas to strengthen the digital, social and economic pillars of Total Defence. Let me highlight one example. In response to the Hackathon's challenge to enable the public to distinguish between trustworthy and malicious interactions, one of our hackathon teams developed the "5Seconds" initiative to provide a secure and scalable communication method between businesses and customers.”
“Following good feedback from the attendees, we will open the virtual visits to all pre-enlistees enlisting in 2026 along with their families to allow more family members to take part in the BMTC tour and understand more about the importance of NS. Miss Rachel Ong also asked about how we are encouraging and enabling conversations about Total Defence, especially with our youths. One way we do so is through our MOU with Temasek Foundation, which was recently renewed to provide cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and automated external defibrillator (AED) training as well as psychological first aid certification training for all nine uniformed groups. Over the past two years, over 10,000 cadets have undergone CPR-AED training and have been equipped with emergency preparedness skills to react to critical medical emergencies in the community. We will extend this initiative for an additional year to continue equipping cadets from uniformed groups with valuable knowledge to identify and respond effectively to medical emergencies. Such initiatives strengthen our community resilience and our readiness for crises. We also want to continue strengthening our engagement of Singaporeans through presenting our defence stories and messages in new and exciting ways. Dr Wan Rizal asked for an update on our MINDEF/SAF museums. Last August, our Singapore Air Force Museum was handed over to Defence Collective Singapore to operate alongside the Singapore Discovery Centre and Singapore Navy Museum. The Singapore Air Force Museum will undergo a refresh this year to update its galleries and introduce more engaging and immersive programmes.”
“Practitioners from Government agencies, educational institutions, community groups and businesses were able to come together to exchange best practices, network and discuss ideas around the theme of "Building Societal Resilience and Readiness in Crises and Disruptions". This year, we will continue to engage specific groups to strengthen community resilience while engaging all Singaporeans to strengthen commitment to Total Defence. One of the ways we will do this is through the Advisory Council on Community Relations in Defence (ACCORD), which Miss Rachel Ong spoke about. ACCORD runs a wide range of community outreach initiatives, bringing society together to champion and advocate for Singapore's defence and for NS. Some MPs such as Mr Don Wee, Ms He Ting Ru, Mr Neil Parekh and Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim are also active members of ACCORD. ACCORD has existing programmes reaching out to pre-enlistees, youths, new citizens, Permanent Residents (PRs), national servicemen, families and women. This year, ACCORD will focus on engaging businesses, particularly SMEs, leveraging on the memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed between MINDEF and the Singapore Business Federation (SBF) last month. Under the agreement, the SBF will conduct activities to engage businesses in support of Total Defence and national resilience and will conduct cybersecurity training and exercises for businesses to strengthen their digital defence and resilience. Since 2021, ACCORD has also been conducting virtual visits to the Basic Military Training Centre (BMTC) for Singaporean families residing overseas, ensuring that both pre-enlistees and their parents have greater access to NS information and feel more connected to the NS journey.”
“We will begin rolling them out in all SAF camps and bases in the next few years, which will further help us to maximise the resource efficiency of our buildings and infrastructure. Mr Don Wee asked about how MINDEF is investing resources to contribute to sustainability. Through these initiatives, I would assure Members that MINDEF/SAF is committed to achieving our sustainability targets in line with the Singapore Green Plan 2030. Chairman, looking forward, it is pertinent that we continue to partner all Singaporeans to strengthen our collective commitment to Total Defence, so as to safeguard Singapore’s future. We need to continue to advocate for and engage Singaporeans on the need for Total Defence, to build a strong, secure and cohesive nation. Mr Chong Kee Hiong asked for a summary of our initiatives last year to commemorate 40 years of Total Defence. Aside from improving our community resilience through Exercise SG Ready, we also focused on inspiring Singaporeans to act and energising our Total Defence practitioners. Let me give you an update on the key initiatives. From February to October last year, we conducted a Total Defence Exhibition at 52 locations around Singapore, where we showcased examples of Singaporeans putting Total Defence in action. Over 300,000 Singaporeans were encouraged to reflect and make pledges in support of Total Defence. 2.30 pm We also engaged and energised over 300 National Education and Total Defence practitioners through the inaugural Total Defence Convention, organised jointly with the National University of Singapore.”
“Over the past three years, we have been installing rooftop solar panels in all suitable SAF camps, as part of HDB’s Solar Nova programme. By the end of this year, we will have rooftop solar panels in most of our camps. On top of that, we will be building a solar farm within Sembawang Air Base this year. The solar farm will comprise 18 mega-watt peak solar photovoltaic systems and will generate energy equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of 4,700 four-room HDB flats. This will lead to cost savings of approximately $1.9 million a year for the SAF and bring us closer to achieving our emissions reduction target for 2030. The locations for these solar panels were carefully selected to ensure that our operational effectiveness would not be affected. This included detailed studies to ensure that the glare from the solar panels would not pose a danger to military aircraft. We will continue to expand solar deployment to other MINDEF/SAF camps and premises where operationally feasible. We are also on track to achieving our other sustainability targets, including a 10% reduction in water and energy utilisation and a 30% reduction in Waste Disposal Index. For example, the RSAF has built a super low energy flight simulator in Tengah Airbase, which consumes up to 40% less energy than previous designs. The Chinook wash shed, which uses up to 60% less water per wash this time. In 2024, the estimated amount of water saved was equivalent to the average daily amount of water used by about 1,500 four-room HDB flats. We have also implemented trials of the Smart Utilities Metering System at three SAF camps, with good results of up to 10% reduction in electricity consumption.”
“Aside from disruptions caused by accidents or malicious actors, we also have to prepare for the risk of disruptions arising from climate change. Climate change is not just an existential threat for a low-lying island like Singapore, its effects are being felt today in the form of extreme weather events. 2024 was one of the hottest years on record, and in January, we felt the effects of climate change in the form of prolonged rain and flash floods because of the monsoon surge. To prepare our community for disruptions caused by such extreme weather, we conducted a community Table-Top Exercise with PUB in November last year. The event brought together over 50 grassroots leaders, residents, youths and business representatives to discuss an extreme flooding scenario, and how to plan and prepare for such a scenario, in partnership with community groups. We will continue to hold more of such exercises to increase our community preparedness and resilience, bringing together the experience of our community leaders, the experience of our business representatives and the energy of our youths. These exercises covered some of the likely disruptions that we may encounter in the coming years, and I am glad that many Singaporeans today are now more prepared to face these disruptions. Beyond preparing Singaporeans for disruptions caused by climate change, MINDEF/SAF is also part of the Singapore Government’s sustainability efforts to safeguard Singapore’s future. To reduce our carbon emissions growth, we had committed in 2021 to deploy more solar panels in SAF camps and bases, to achieve a target of 50 mega-watt peak of solar capacity by 2025, equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of 13,000 4-room Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats.”
“Last year, we conducted the first Exercise SG Ready, to prepare Singaporeans for disruptions to food and water resources. I reported last year that over 800 organisations participated in simulated disruptions of our water, our food and our power supplies, as well as cyber disruptions. The positive response has rallied more organisations to come on board this year. Over the past two weeks, MINDEF, together with the Energy Market Authority, conducted the second edition of Exercise SG Ready, focused on enhancing community preparedness for power disruptions and cyberattacks. This year, over 1,200 organisations participated in the exercise, including schools, communities, businesses and Government agencies. Over 600 participating organisations also took the opportunity to exercise their business continuity plans. For example, Senoko Energy simulated a total blackout of their power plant, where all its generators were shut down and restarted using back-up generators. Several multinational and local financial institutions also reviewed their readiness plans through a Table-Top Exercise organised by Quantedge Capital. Close to 200 organisations also took part in a coordinated phishing exercise, of which half were small and medium enterprises (SMEs). This year’s exercise was also unique in spotlighting the need to care for the vulnerable segments of society during major disruptions, as part of SG60. For example, corporates like HP Inc. have adopted Active Ageing Centres to support seniors in times of crises, ensuring that no one is left behind. MINDEF also supported the Singapore Association for the Deaf in developing sign-language educational videos on emergency preparedness for the Deaf community, to ensure that they are aware and prepared for cyber or power disruptions.”
“To answer Mr Saktiandi Supaat’s questions, the threat of such far-reaching disruptions is part of the reason why Total Defence, our concept of a whole-of-society defence, remains as relevant and useful today as it was in 1984, when we first started Total Defence. Looking back, some of the disruptions we face today – food, water, and power disruptions – are similar to those we faced back in 1984. However, as our lives became more interconnected and fast-paced, these disruptions have the potential to be more severe and more far-reaching than before. Other sources of disruption are more recent, such as disruptions caused by cyberattacks on critical infrastructure, or extreme weather arising from climate change. We have experienced some of these disruptions in the past, and we must be prepared for such disruptions in the future. The six pillars of Total Defence – military, economic, social, civil, digital and psychological – working in concert have allowed us to respond to different crises that jeopardised Singapore’s future over the past four decades. These pillars provide us with a strong foundation for our defence and based on a public poll that we conducted last year, we are glad that most Singaporeans are willing to partner with us, to play their part in bringing Total Defence into action. However, the same poll found that Singaporeans were less confident about our preparedness to withstand crises and disruptions. As such, MINDEF/SAF has been working with Singaporeans to strengthen community resilience and readiness for disruptions, particularly though Exercise SG Ready. Mr Alex Yam and Mr Lim Biow Chuan asked about Exercise SG Ready and MINDEF’s efforts in strengthening societal resilience.”
“Mr Chairman, Minister for Defence Dr Ng briefly mentioned SAFRA Bayshore earlier in his speech, allow me to provide more details. SAFRA was set up in 1972 to recognise NSmen and build bonds among servicemen and their families. I cannot emphasise enough the role that the families play in supporting our servicemen through their NS commitments. Today, the seven SAFRA clubhouses across Singapore provide servicemen and their families with affordable recreational facilities and lifestyle offerings. I am pleased to announce that MINDEF will build a new clubhouse in the Bayshore area, to better serve our servicemen and their families in the East. It will have direct access to the MRT, which will provide greater convenience to users. Ms Denise Phua had asked for an update and she will be pleased to know that SAFRA Bayshore will be SAFRA’s largest clubhouse, about 50% larger than the average SAFRA clubhouse, and will offer unique family, entertainment and recreational facilities. We plan for SAFRA Bayshore to be ready in a few years’ time, and to replace our oldest clubhouse at SAFRA Tampines, built in 1988. Dr Ng and Senior Minister of State Mr Heng also updated the House on our efforts to ensure that the SAF remains effective and ready to defend Singapore, and this is amidst a more challenging geopolitical environment. We must also be prepared for the risks of various kinds of disruptions caused by climate change, cyber-attacks or civil emergencies. Many of these disruptions are not limited to the military domain but have impacts on the wider society.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I seek to report that the Committee of Supply has made progress on the Estimates of Expenditure for the financial year 2025/2026 and ask leave to sit again on Monday, 3 March 2025.”
“Chairman, may I seek your consent to move that progress be reported now and leave be asked to sit again on Monday, 3 March 2025?”
“I thank the Member for her questions. On the first question, when it comes to micro businesses and businesses in general affected by PWM and other schemes, there are the Industry Transformation Maps (ITMs) through which the Ministry of Trade and Industry and Enterprise Singapore are actively engaging many of our micro businesses, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) on how to tap on the Government schemes, whether it is the Productivity Solutions Grant or other schemes that are relevant for them, to enable them to transform and help workers. Having said that, I do understand that not every hawker or retailer may understand the schemes. But rest assured that if they wish to, the SME Centres can support them, if they request such assistance. At the same time, I just want to assure the Member as well that there are schemes, such as the Enabling Employment Credit, which provides support or even defrays the cost of up to 20% of an employee's salary if they are persons with disabilities or others who require help. So, we do have schemes to support, including even the hiring of seniors, for example, because we know many of them are also in some of these micro businesses. Rest assured that help is at hand and overall, the Government provides the PWCS. We understand that with the increase in salary or wages that we hope and want to be an outcome of PWMs, that employers are supported, costs are defrayed. Certainly, this is one way in which the Government, too, wants to support our lower-wage workers through businesses, by giving them meaningful employment.”
“Businesses must also transform and become more productive, such as through better technology and processes. Employers can tap on the Government measures mentioned to support their business transformation, upskill their workers and defray wage increases.”
“Mr Speaker, the Government recognises that businesses may be concerned about rising costs, including wage increases under the Progressive Wage Model (PWM). PWM uplifts lower-wage workers through sustainable wage increases, as well as career and training progression pathways to raise their value add to employers. Each PWM role comes with a list of training modules endorsed by the sectoral Tripartite Cluster. Under the Workfare Skills Support (WSS), all employers, including micro businesses, who send eligible lower-wage workers for such training may receive absentee payroll of up to 95% of the trainee's basic hourly salary, capped at $13 per hour. Besides training their workers, businesses can redesign jobs and transform their business models to improve productivity. For example, they can tap on the National Trades Union Congress' (NTUC's) Company Training Committee (CTC) Grant, which supports businesses by co-funding their transformation projects to raise productivity, to redesign jobs and to improve work prospects. To help employers adjust to PWM wage increases, the Government has introduced the Progressive Wage Credit Scheme (PWCS), which co-funds wage increases given to eligible lower-wage workers. Wage increases were co-funded up to 75% in 2022 and 2023, and up to 50% in 2024. For 2025 and 2026, PWCS will co-fund eligible wage increases by 30% and 15% respectively. This helps businesses cope with the impact of improving the wage outcomes of our lower-wage workers over a five-year period. Mr Speaker, uplifting lower-wage workers is a whole-of-society effort. Beyond improving wage outcomes, we must also ensure that our lower-wage workers continue to be productive in their respective sectors and have meaningful employment through upskilling under PWM.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That Parliament do now adjourn." [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)] Helping our Charities Make a Global Impact 8.11 pm”
“Speaker, may I seek your consent and the general assent of Members present to move that the proceedings on the item under discussion be exempted from the provisions of Standing Order No 48(8) to remove the time limit in respect of Minister Indranee's speech, please?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, on behalf of the Leader, I beg to move, "That Parliament do now adjourn." [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)]”
“And this contributes towards MOM’s OD monitoring efforts and informs us on which OD we should target. So, taking in all the joint data from our polyclinics and hospitals enables us to do, watch trends, to look at sources and what kind of interventions might be needed and where the sources would be. The Tripartite Committee on Workplace Health also recently established a sub-committee on occupational health comprising representatives from healthcare, Government, businesses and worker groups to improve the detection, prevention and management of ODs in Singapore. The sub-committee will develop approaches to strengthen the prevention and management of occupational diseases, especially in high-risk industries. Sir, we remain committed to our Workplace Safety and Health 2028 goal to improve OD prevention and detection. This is not a task that we can achieve on our own. It will require the combined efforts of corporate leadership, industry associations, the medical community, union leaders and workers – and all of us here in this room. Together, we can protect our workforce from the dangers of these “silent killers” and make our workplaces safer and healthier for all of us. [(proc text) Question put, and agreed to. (proc text)] [(proc text) Resolved, "That Parliament do now adjourn." (proc text)] Adjourned accordingly at 10.15 pm.”
“Employers could then use the data collected by such digital wearable devices to pinpoint specific work activities and implement necessary interventions. Additionally, employers can use sound level meters to monitor the noise level real-time, so that they can implement measures to ensure that the noise levels do not exceed pre-set thresholds, thereby lowering the risk of hearing loss among workers. Eligible companies can apply for Government grants, such as the Productivity Solutions Grant, to adopt technological solutions that make our workplaces safer and healthier. Secondly, we are taking active steps to raise the awareness of OD risks, so that the industry can know how to protect their workers better. MOM and the WSH Council have developed and published several industry guidelines, including guidelines on the diagnosis and management of ODs, guidelines on hearing conservation programme and guidelines on improving ergonomics in the workplace. Companies may refer to the guidelines on workplace ergonomics to tackle work-related musculoskeletal disorders. We have also partnered the WSH Council to promote good workplace practices, such as installing noise barriers or insulation to reduce the noise emitted from machines, as well as switching to the use of safer chemicals for work processes. Apart from educating employers in high-risk industries, we collaborated with the Ministry of Health (MOH) to raise awareness in the medical community to detect and report ODs. This is very similar to what the Member shared earlier of what other countries, such as the UK, are doing, where we work with medical practitioners at hospitals and our polyclinics of the importance of reporting ODs to MOM. And this is also circulated by joint circulars by both Ministries, MOM and MOH.”
“Such designated companies must also send their workers for statutory medical examinations to detect early signs of ODs, such as deterioration of hearing or elevated levels of heavy metals in the body. If any worker is found to be exposed to excessive noise or chemicals, the company must implement risk control measures immediately to protect their workers’ health. Companies with excessively high exposure levels must also undergo third-party audits to ensure the effectiveness of their workplace health programmes and these audit reports would have to be submitted to MOM. With the introduction of the Enhanced Workplace Health Surveillance programme, the number of ODs reported increased from 659 in 2021 to 1,229 in 2023. The increased numbers are due to our enhanced surveillance rather than more reporting, but it also shows that it shows up in our numbers as we enhance our enforcement efforts or inspection efforts, and through reporting to the hospitals and polyclinics. Since June 2024, we have also commenced targeted inspections for industries, such as metal-working companies, where noise-induced deafness has been more prevalent since 2022. Hence, we are more targeted, we are more focused and therefore, we hope to intervene a lot quicker in specific sectors that are causing ODs. As suggested by the Member, the Government is also supporting companies to apply appropriate technologies that can help monitor and reduce workers’ exposure to OD risks. MOM publicises the use of such technology solutions on its website. The solutions include digital wearable devices, which can provide real-time monitoring of workers’ health, detect biomechanics and alert workers when they adopt unsafe postures or are exposed to body vibration transmitted from work tools for prolonged periods.”
“Mr Speaker, I thank the Member for sharing his concerns on ODs. While he was speaking, some Members have reminded me they have been here for 11 hours and therefore, they asked if the Member can also advocate for shorter Parliamentary Sittings, so that we can reduce the risk of ODs for Members in Parliament! On a more serious note, tackling ODs is crucial for achieving a healthier and more resilient workforce in Singapore. Every worker deserves a safe and healthy work environment. I share the Member’s views that the latent nature of ODs is a major challenge in tackling them. This makes it a lot harder to pinpoint the source of ODs, such as noise-induced deafness or musculoskeletal disorder, which develop over time as workers move across different worksites or different employers. Employers may also attribute workers’ ODs to non-work-related sources, such as personal lifestyles or ageing, and this makes for a complex issue, which goes beyond the lack of awareness. I will touch on how we are addressing these challenges here in Singapore. First, we are strengthening our surveillance efforts to enable early detection and prevention of occupational diseases before they start to affect workers’ health. For this purpose, MOM had in 2021, rolled out the Enhanced Workplace Health Surveillance programme to address two groups of occupational diseases, namely those caused by excessive exposure to noise or chemical hazards. Under the Enhanced Workplace Health Surveillance programme, companies with work processes that are noisy or involve toxic substances must monitor the noise or chemical levels of their workplace environments respectively.”
“Deputy Speaker, may I seek your consent and the general assent of Members present to move that the proceedings on the item under discussion be exempted from the provisions of Standing Order No 48(8) to remove the time limit in respect of Minister Tan See Leng's speech, please?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I move, "That Parliament do now adjourn." [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)]”