The Singapore Parliament in session / photo istana.gov.sg

The Singapore Parliament will sit at 11 am on Monday, 3 July 2017, for the 47th session of the 13th Parliament.

85  oral questions and 39 written questions have been scheduled to be asked.

Only one bill will be introduced in this Parliament session.

  1. Administration of Muslim Law (Amendment) Bill – Minister for Communications and Information and Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs

Two bills to be read the second time and would likely be passed on the same day of reading because the Peoples’ Action Party holds majority seats in Parliament.

  1. Monetary Authority of Singapore (Amendment) Bill [Bill No. 25/2017] – (Minister for Finance)
  2. Home Team Corps Bill [Bill No. 26/2017] – (Minister for Home Affairs)

Ministerial statements by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will address the Parliament on the allegations made by his two siblings, Dr Lee Weiling and Mr Lee Hsien Yang (LHY) that he abused his authority as PM for his personal agenda. PM Lee had earlier apologised on 19 June for the squabble between his family over the property at 38 Oxley Road. DPM Teo will be making a statement on the Ministerial Committee formed to deliberate on the Government’s decision on the property at 38 Oxley Road. DPM Teo had earlier said that the Ministerial Committee is not a secret committee as what Dr Lee and Mr Lee had alleged, but did not mention when the committee was formed.

LHY and his sister, Dr Lee issued a joint statement on 14 June delivering harsh criticisms of PM Lee, saying that they are disturbed by the character, conduct, motives and leadership of their brother and the role of his wife, Ho Ching. LHY had earlier commented, “We have serious concerns with Lee Hsien Loong’s attempt to cover-up and whitewash himself in Parliament on 3 July 2017. We have begun to show evidence of his misuse of his position and influence to drive his personal agenda. This is yet another example.”

While PM Lee has said that the party whip has been lifted for his party members, but there is no purpose behind such an act as there is no motion to be voted upon for the statement that he is making.

Apart from the questions filed by Member of Parliament from the Workers’ Party, no further questions have been filed by the PAP MPs on the matter. There does not seem to be any indication that there will be a livestream of the question and answer for the statement by PM Lee.

Below are the questions filed towards the various Ministers

[accordion] [toggle title=”Prime Minister” state=”closed”]

Ms Sylvia Lim: To ask the Prime Minister (a) what rules are in place to ensure that Ministers and senior officeholders with personal or pecuniary interests in the subject matter of Government decisions do not influence or participate in the related deliberations and decision-making and how are the rules enforced; (b) in respect of Government opinions or decisions relating to the estate and assets of the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew, what conflicts or potential conflicts of interest did the Government identify to exist from among the members of the Cabinet and with regard to the Attorney-General; and (c) how are these conflicts or potential conflicts of interest managed.

Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Prime Minister (a) under what circumstances are Ministerial committees whose existence is not made public are convened to address issues; (b) how many of such committees currently exist and whether their terms of reference and composition can be publicly announced unless forbidden by national security concerns; and (c) in respect of Ministerial committee reviewing the fate of No 38 Oxley Road, whether independent heritage experts and processes for public opinion sensing will be engaged by the committee.

Mr Chen Show Mao: To ask the Prime Minister what mechanisms are in place to prevent, limit, detect, and address situations where Ministers or political appointees use state organs to obtain information not related to the performance of their duties, advance personal interests or punish detractors, critics, or political opponents.

Mr Pritam Singh: To ask the Prime Minister in view of public concerns over allegations of abuse of power over the matter of 38 Oxley Road, whether he supports a motion to set up a special Select Committee of Parliament, comprising Members from all parties, to receive relevant evidence and with public hearings that are broadcast live.

Mr Png Eng Huat: To ask the Prime Minister (a) what rules and directives are in place to prevent Ministers and political appointees from abusing their positions by allowing or condoning their family members to access, influence and direct senior civil servants on matters beyond their professional course of work; (b) how often are these rules and directives communicated to Ministers, political appointees and senior civil servants and in what form; and (c) how will such cases be treated when abuse of position and power is proven.

Mr Gan Thiam Poh: To ask the Prime Minister for the past three years, what has been the daily average total number of people in Singapore including residents and non-residents.

Dr Tan Wu Meng: To ask the Prime Minister what measures are used to assess and maintain the stability of the Singapore financial system (i) at the level of individual financial institutions (ii) at a whole-of-system level and (iii) in respect of how polices affecting individual financial institutions can influence system stability through network structure and network effects.

Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang: To ask the Prime Minister (a) how many officers on the Civil Service’s Management Support Scheme have been and are to be transferred to the Management Executive Scheme; and (b) whether the Management Support Scheme will be phased out.

[/toggle] [toggle title=”Minister for Transport”]

Mr Lim Biow Chuan: To ask the Minister for Transport how does LTA currently measure the speed of vehicles in assessing the ERP charges for an expressway.

Mr Lim Biow Chuan: To ask the Minister for Transport whether any other action can be taken to reduce the breakdown of MRT train services.

Er Dr Lee Bee Wah: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) what are the qualifying criteria or conditions for a covered linkway to be built from the gates of a private condominium to the nearest bus stop; and (b) in the last three years, how many such covered linkways has the Ministry funded.

Mr Ang Hin Kee: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) what is the number of applications for the Private Hire Car Driver’s Vocational Licence (PDVL) that the LTA has received to date; (b) how many of these applicants failed the security and background checks; and (c) how many of these applicants are already providing private hire car services under the former regulations and what are the main reasons for their failure to obtain the PDVL under the new regulations.

Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) what measures will be implemented to increase security at MRT stations around and near venues which host big events such as the National Stadium, have heavy pedestrian traffic or are near vital facilities such as Changi Airport; and (b) whether baggage scanners will be introduced at all MRT stations.

Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) how does the Ministry assess motorists’ visibility of pedestrians at pedestrian crossings that are partially covered by shrubs and bushes; and (b) whether the Ministry has a standardised framework for assessment and subsequent pruning schedules for the safety of pedestrians.

Mr Ang Hin Kee: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) how does the Ministry check for traffic signs that are partially covered by vegetation such as tree branches and shrubs along roads and expressways; and (b) what are the measures in place to ensure that these signs are visible to motorists and that pruning takes place regularly.

Mr Zaqy Mohamad: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) whether the Ministry plans to align measures to manage indiscriminate parking and use of bicycles owned by bike-sharing companies across agencies so that there is a consistent framework that can be implemented in areas managed by HDB, URA and Town Councils; and (b) what are some of the concerns and feedback from the public and operators for some of the measures being considered.

Mr Ang Wei Neng: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) what is the policy of the Government on regulating dockless bicycle-sharing schemes; (b) since January 2017, what is the number of complaints received on the improper usage of dockless bicycles including indiscriminate parking and vandalism; and (c) what is the number of dockless bicycles confiscated by the authorities and, of which, how many have been returned to the bicycle sharing firms.

Mr Ang Hin Kee: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) whether he can provide a progress update on the national electric vehicle (EV) car-sharing scheme that is scheduled for roll-out in mid-2017; and (b) what has been the take-up rate of the EV car-sharing scheme and the construction status of the EV stations and charging points in the selected HDB towns.

Mr Zaqy Mohamad: To ask the Minister for Transport in view of increased residents in Keat Hong Pride and Keat Hong Crest, whether LTA will consider having bus service 983 routed through Keat Hong Close and, if not, what are the reasons or barriers.

Mr Sitoh Yih Pin: To ask the Minister for Transport in view of high noise levels facing residential homes close to and/or facing the Central Expressway, whether the Ministry has plans to add additional noise mitigation measures or sound barriers on these stretches of the Central Expressway.

Mr Sitoh Yih Pin: To ask the Minister for Transport whether LTA can consider including Sennett Estate in its Walk2Ride programme and build sheltered linkways from the estate to surrounding transport nodes such as MRT stations and bus stops.

Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Transport in view of the number of fires in vehicles due to electrical and overheating causes (a) how can the Ministry ensure that the quality of work performed in our local car workshops meet the minimum standards for safety; and (b) how can the Ministry ensure the roadworthiness and safety of foreign vehicles entering Singapore as well as local vehicles which have had repairs and modification works done outside of Singapore.

[/toggle] [toggle title=”Minister for National Development”]

Mr Dennis Tan Lip Fong: To ask the Minister for National Development in respect of HDB’s Home Improvement Programme (HIP) (a) whether HDB publishes the names of HIP contractors who have been penalised due to service or quality lapses; and (b) between 2012 and 2016, how many contractors have been awarded contracts for further HIP projects after being penalised for service or quality lapses for earlier HIP projects.

Mr Gan Thiam Poh: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) what is the average cost of building a multi storey car park and surface car park respectively; (b) what is the monthly maintenance charge for a car park; and (c) what is the average subsidy for each car park if the monthly parking charge is insufficient to cover the replacement and maintenance cost.

Dr Tan Wu Meng: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) whether HDB design planning considers factors that affect the long-term cost of building exterior upkeep, including (i) accessibility of building features such as beams and ledges where high-rise litter may accumulate (ii) the number of such features in any given HDB block; and (b) whether such features have been incorporated for cosmetic versus structural integrity considerations.

Mr Chong Kee Hiong: To ask the Minister for National Development in view of the problems faced by some subcontractors in the construction of Changi Airport Terminal 4 in collecting payment for work done and in order to minimise recurrences of similar incidents in future government projects, what measures are taken to ensure (i) the stringent evaluation of tenders and subsequent awards and (ii) the fair treatment and protection of subcontractors.

Mr Zainal Sapari: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) what is the number of complaints that HDB has received in 2016 from BTO owners in Punggol with regard to workmanship defects in their flats after the one-year defect liability period; (b) whether HDB makes an assessment on each feedback to determine whether it is a latent defect that has caused problems after the liability period; and (c) whether all new BTO flat owners have a six year latent defect liability period similar to those of private developments.

Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for National Development whether the Ministry will consider charging rentals under HDB’s Public Rental Scheme based on per capita income instead of the household income.

Mr Zainal Sapari: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) over the last two years, what has been the number of complaints made by residents on HDB homes that have been legally rented out by homeowners; and (b) whether HDB can consider disallowing these units from being rented out when the landlords are unable to address the issues complained of.

Mr Gan Thiam Poh: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) in the past five years, how many appeals have been received by HDB on waiver of accrued interest on the resale levy of HDB flats; (b) whether HDB will assist second-time buyers of HDB flats with the large amounts of accrued interest on the resale levy; and (c) what is the assistance rendered by HDB to these appellants.

Mr Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) in the past five years, how many cases of drowning involving recreational users at public beaches have been reported; (b) what are the measures in place to ensure the safety of recreational users at public beaches; (c) how does the Ministry determine the number and distribution of rescue floats at beaches; (d) how many lifeguards are actively on duty along public beaches at any given time; and (e) what is the rationale for not having permanent beach patrols and lifeguards at public beaches.

Mr Gan Thiam Poh: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) how many current HDB dwellers concurrently own one and more than one private property respectively with a breakdown into residential and commercial private properties; (b) of these HDB dwellers, how many of them are servicing both the HDB housing loan and private bank loans; and (c) whether the Ministry will consider allowing only those who have completed paying the HDB housing loan fully to invest in private residential properties.

Ms Foo Mee Har: To ask the Minister for National Development whether there should be a cap on the number of times a lower floor flat is obliged to share the cost of repair for water leakage from the upper floor flat within a specific time period.

Ms Foo Mee Har: To ask the Minister for National Development whether the Ministry will consider setting aside special Community Improvement Projects Committee (CIPC) funds to support the construction of bicycle sheds and double-tier bicycle racks to support the increasing number of bicycles at HDB estates.

Mr Sitoh Yih Pin: To ask the Minister for National Development whether the conversion of two or more landed properties for student accommodation with related services by a single operator should be classified as non-residential use akin to the running of a student hostel and, if so, whether URA will consider regulating such business activities within private estates in view of the inconveniences caused to other residents.

Mr Lim Biow Chuan: To ask the Minister for National Development whether HDB will allow owners of private property to purchase HDB’s two-room flexi flats strictly for owner occupation and without the need to dispose of their private property.

Ms Sylvia Lim: To ask the Minister for National Development whether and, if so, when the Government will be calling for proposals for new projects under the Estate Upgrading Programme for private estates.

[/toggle] [toggle title=”Minister for Health”]

Miss Cheryl Chan Wei Ling: To ask the Minister for Health whether he can provide an update on the review of the Medisave withdrawal limit of $400 per year for (i) patients with chronic illnesses and (ii) those who require long-term special medication that are not subsidised.

Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang: To ask the Minister for Health for each year in the past three years what is the Assisted Reproductive Technology success rate for public and private centres respectively for couples (i) under 30 years old (ii) between 30 years old and 35 years old (iii) between 36 years old and 40 years old and (iv) above 40 years old.

Assoc Prof Daniel Goh Pei Siong: To ask the Minister for Health (a) among women who have recently given birth, what is the percentage who develop post-natal depression; (b) what subsidised resources are available to women who are diagnosed with post-natal depression; and (c) whether the Ministry will make available free post-partum mental health screening and follow-up care for all Singaporean women regardless of where they have given birth.

Ms Rahayu Mahzam: To ask the Minister for Health (a) what are the measures put in place in the hospitals to identify and diagnose pre-natal and post-natal depression; (b) whether all hospitals are required to screen women for pre-natal and post-natal depression; (c) whether there are programmes to educate husbands and extended family members about the symptoms of prenatal and post-natal depression; and (d) whether these efforts are part of the National Mental Health Blueprint.

Miss Cheryl Chan Wei Ling: To ask the Minister for Health (a) what is the reason for collecting a fee at the polyclinic when patients receive their health screening results during the post-screening consultation; and (b) why does the practice differ from that of general practitioner clinics.

Dr Tan Wu Meng: To ask the Minister for Health regarding the National Dental Centre Singapore (NDCS) incident of instruments used on patients despite not completing the full sterilisation process (a) whether the Ministry has ascertained how the incident occurred and the chronology and decision making process within NDCS when the incident was discovered; (b) whether the affected instruments could have been recalled faster; and (c) what lessons can be drawn from the incident.

Mr Saktiandi Supaat: To ask the Minister for Health (a) whether the Government can explore the provision of insurance coverage for mental illnesses; and (b) what financial support is available for mental health patients when they are unable to work for a prolonged period of time.

Er Dr Lee Bee Wah: To ask the Minister for Health whether there is an interministerial committee looking at the different ways to educate smokers on smoking hazards.

Ms K Thanaletchimi: To ask the Minister for Health (a) whether there have been any studies conducted or commissioned to study the stress levels of healthcare workers, especially nurses, allied health professionals and doctors; (b) if so, whether the Ministry is able to share those findings and plans to work with the public healthcare institutions to mitigate the stress effects; and (c) if no study has been conducted, whether the Ministry will consider commissioning such a study as part of workplace safety and health and worklife balance considerations.

Mr Seah Kian Peng: To ask the Minister for Health what is the outcome of the tele-pharmacy project first piloted in 1997 and whether such services including that of allowing medical consultations by video can help to lower costs and improve convenience to the public.

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: To ask the Minister for Health whether the Ministry will consider higher penalties for such false and misleading claims in advertisements of health products and services so as to protect the interest of consumers.

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: To ask the Minister for Health whether the Ministry will consider compulsory pre-market approval or licensing of health supplements before they can be imported and sold in Singapore.

Assoc Prof Daniel Goh Pei Siong: To ask the Minister for Health (a) whether dental health among pre-primary children has improved in the last 10 years; (b) whether HPB’s oral care programmes for pre-primary children have been implemented for all early childhood education centres; and (c) whether the Ministry will make available free or subsidised initial dental check-ups for preprimary children.

Mr Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap: To ask the Minister for Health in each year from 2013, what is the average waiting time at the Accident and Emergency Department of each of our public hospitals for (i) emergency but non-life-threatening cases and (ii) admission to the hospital.

Mr Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap: To ask the Minister for Health in each year since 2013, what is the average waiting time for new appointments at Specialist Outpatient Clinics at the public hospitals.

Mr Dennis Tan Lip Fong: To ask the Minister for Health (a) what is the cause of the lapse leading to use of the partially sterilised instruments on patients at the National Dental Centre (NDC) in June 2017; (b) what are the procedural weaknesses in the NDC’s process for ensuring that instruments are fully sterilised before use; and (c) what measures have been taken to ensure that similar lapses do not occur again.

[/toggle] [toggle title=”Minister for Home Affairs”]

Dr Chia Shi-Lu: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs with regard to alcohol abuse (a) what are the number of related crimes and incidences of public disturbances in the last three years; and (b) whether the Government will consider restricting the sale of alcohol to Government-run stores as like in the Nordic countries.

Dr Chia Shi-Lu: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs whether the Traffic Police will consider introducing cognitive or further tests for drivers who are seeking to renew their driving licences when they are over 75 years old.

Mr Ang Hin Kee: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) whether the Ministry will organise compulsory training on counter-terrorism for event organisers, emcees and hosts so that they will be equipped with the knowhow to deter and prevent terror attacks; and (b) whether the Ministry will stipulate that evacuation routes and dispersal instructions be made known by the organisers at the start of large-scale events.

Miss Cheng Li Hui: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) what further measures does the Ministry have in place to boost the security of our public buildings, particularly the schools, against the growing threat of terrorist attacks; (b) how can the risk of self-radicalisation be minimised among our students and school staff; and (c) whether there will be more resources committed to raise racial harmony in the community.

Mr Christopher de Souza: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs in light of the detention of the first female Singaporean for radicalism (a) how can the Home Team enhance its efforts to work with communities in Singapore to reduce the likelihood of Singaporeans becoming radicalised; and (b) whether the government-community partnership can be further strengthened to increase our readiness to stay united should an attack happen on our shores.

Mr Christopher de Souza: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs whether he can give an assessment of the terrorism threat posed by radicalised foreigners in Singapore and what measures are being taken to counter the threat.

Mr Ang Wei Neng: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs in light of the recent terrorist attacks in Europe and Asia over the last few months, (a) whether the current SGSecure initiatives are sufficient; and (b) whether there are new initiatives to counter copycats of lone-wolf attacks.

Mr Darryl David: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs what measures and precautions can be taken to safeguard public areas that have significant congregations of people from the possibility of a terrorist attack using a vehicle.

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs in light of recent terrorist attacks whereby rental vehicles have been used, whether the Ministry will consider (i) tightening checks on the identity of persons renting vehicles (ii) establishing information-sharing with vehicle rental companies and (iii) educating employees of vehicle rental companies on identifying suspicious persons renting vehicles so as to minimise the risk of potential terrorist attacks in Singapore.

Ms Sylvia Lim: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) what preliminary lessons can be learned from the fire tragedy at Grenfell Tower in London that occurred on 14 June 2017; and (b) what measures have been or will be put in place to reduce the risk of a rapid and lethal fire in high-rise buildings in Singapore, particularly those built in the 1970s and 1980s.

Mr Lim Biow Chuan: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs whether the Government will prosecute hirers of rental bicycles who damage, dismantle or dispose of bicycles illegally or convert them for their own use.

Mr Yee Chia Hsing: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) how many traffic summons have been issued for non-compliance of yellow box rules over the past three years; and (b) whether the Traffic Police can consider the use of traffic cameras to ensure compliance at busy junctions.

 

[/toggle] [toggle title=”Minister for Communications and Information”]

Mr Yee Chia Hsing: To ask the Minister for Communications and Information whether the Ministry monitors the incidence of complaints from mobile phone users against Premium Rate Services (PRS) providers and whether action is taken to bar or blacklist errant PRS providers.

[/toggle] [toggle title=”Minister for Finance”]

Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang: To ask the Minister for Finance whether the Ministry will consider releasing a draft Budget Statement for public consultation one month before the delivery of the Budget Statement in Parliament.

Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang: To ask the Minister for Finance whether the 2 percent cut in the budget caps for all Ministries and agencies from FY2017 onwards will result in hiring freezes or headcount reductions in the public service.

Ms Sylvia Lim: To ask the Minister for Finance in respect of the revenue earned from leases of Government land, what is the cut-off lease duration (in months or years) that is used to distinguish between revenue that is classified as operating revenue and revenue that is classified as a capital receipt under Sales of Land.

Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang: To ask the Minister for Finance (a) for each year in the past three years, how much unpaid income tax from deceased persons is owed to IRAS; (b) how much of such unpaid income tax does it recover; and (c) whether the Ministry will consider writing off such unpaid taxes below a certain amount.

Mr Png Eng Huat: To ask the Minister for Finance what is the benchmark set by the Government’s investment mandate for the annualised 20-year real rate of return for GIC and Temasek Holdings.

Mr Png Eng Huat: To ask the Minister for Finance what is the impact of GIC’s reduced stake in UBS on the performance of the Government’s investment portfolio in terms of annualised rate of return for five-year and ten year time periods respectively and how much is the realised loss of the UBS divestment.

Mr Liang Eng Hwa: To ask the Minister for Finance (a) what are the scope and terms of reference of the Future Economy Council; (b) how does the new Council intend to work and coordinate with the other economic agencies and efforts to tackle challenges of the future economy; and (c) what are the desired outcomes set for the Council.

Assoc Prof Fatimah Lateef: To ask the Minister for Finance whether the Ministry can provide an update on the situation of illicit cigarette and tobacco smuggling in Singapore especially in the last three to five years.

[/toggle] [toggle title=”Minister for Education”]

Dr Tan Wu Meng: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) over the past three years (a) how many civil lawsuits have been initiated against school principals and teachers in their official educator capacity; (b) what proportion has been initiated by students or parents/or students’ next-of-kin; (c) what are the reasons cited for such lawsuits; and (d) whether the Ministry provides (i) legal aid coverage and/or (ii) professional liability insurance for educators who may face such lawsuits arising from their official duties.

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) (a) how can technology subjects be incorporated into the current syllabus of our education system so as to have a future-ready education system; and (b) whether the Ministry will consider making basic coding skills compulsory for secondary school students.

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) whether the Ministry will consider encouraging more schools to start classes later following the recent sleep studies conducted by the Duke-NUS Medical School and Nanyang Girls’ High School.

Dr Chia Shi-Lu: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) whether the Ministry will consider starting schools at 8.30 am or later in consideration of the biological changes in the sleep cycles of teenagers and the long term health benefits, as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics and local health institutions.

Ms K Thanaletchimi: To ask the Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills) (a) how many polytechnic students dropped out of their course over the last five years; (b) whether the polytechnics provide a second chance for these dropouts to either take on other diploma programmes which they are more passionate about or resume the course which they have stopped and, if so, whether there have been any success cases; and (c) whether the polytechnics will allow more opportunities for those dropouts who are keen to continue their polytechnic studies.

Ms Chia Yong Yong: To ask the Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills) whether the Government monitors the training providers market to ascertain and blacklist those who profiteer from the SkillsFuture programme by substantially marking up their course fees and, if so, what is the number of those identified and how many have been blacklisted.

Mr Patrick Tay Teck Guan: To ask the Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills) given the Government’s push for Singaporeans to re-skill and re-train, whether those who have already obtained a degree from a local university will be able to pursue a second degree in our local university, in a field of study that may be more relevant and in demand in view of disruption and skill obsolescence.

Dr Lim Wee Kiak: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) (a) in the past two years, how many students have been identified by counsellors or teachers to be vulnerable to extremist propaganda; (b) what action has been taken to help these students; and (c) whether there are plans to reach out to students to forewarn them of the pitfalls of online radicalism.

Mr Darryl David: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) what steps are taken by schools and tertiary institutions to counsel their students with regard to the taking of pharmaceutical products containing modafinil or methylphenidate which are perceived as “performance-enhancement” substances.

Mr Cedric Foo Chee Keng: To ask the Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills) whether our institutions of higher learning can offer more courses in modular form that are relevant to the future economy such as subjects in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM), coding, robotics, cyber security, and data analytics.

Mr Seah Kian Peng: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) whether junior college mergers will continue beyond 2018 in light of falling birth rates.

Mr Patrick Tay Teck Guan: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) whether the Ministry has plans to further reduce the number of primary, secondary and junior colleges in view of a smaller student population as compared to when the schools were first started or built.

Mr Dennis Tan Lip Fong: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) in respect of the merger of schools and junior colleges (a) what are the criteria used to decide on how the respective schools or colleges will merge with their respective counterparts; (b) what are the criteria used to decide on which school or junior college should give up the use of their name or existing premises after the merger; and (c) whether all the affected schools and junior colleges have been consulted prior to the decision by the Ministry.

Mr Desmond Choo: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) in view of the smaller enrollment of students in the longer term (a) how can our teaching staff be prepared for school mergers; and (b) how can training be provided to give them more redeployment options.

Mr Pritam Singh: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) why the Ministry did not consider shelving the establishment of the new Eunoia Junior College and convert one or more junior colleges out of the four that are to be discontinued to offer the same educational programme planned for Eunoia Junior College.

Mr Zaqy Mohamad: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) (a) whether the reduced supply of junior college (JC) places following the merger of JCs will result in higher aggregate scores for JC admission; and (b) whether the Ministry was expecting an increase in admissions when Eunoia Junior College was set up.

Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) (a) what is the junior college (JC) enrolment size that is deemed to constitute minimum “critical mass”; (b) what is the expected percentage of total JC places with a cut-off point at or over 10, post-merger of the JCs; and (c) why did the Ministry reject the option of retaining the four JCs slated for the merger and reducing class size with some programmes operated on a cluster basis with JCs or Institutes, as necessary.

Mr Christopher de Souza: To ask the Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills) in light of the recommendations by the Committee on the Future Economy, what further steps will be taken to retrain workers to ensure they have the requisite skills to secure jobs in the next 10 years.

Er Dr Lee Bee Wah: To ask the Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills) (a) in the past three years, what is the trend of students entering polytechnics versus junior colleges; (b) what percentage of polytechnic graduates has gained admission to local universities; and (c) whether there are plans to make more university places available for polytechnic students.

Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) whether the Ministry will consider (i) offering the new O-level computing subject in all secondary schools and (ii) introducing this subject earlier in the secondary school curriculum at Secondary 1 or 2.

Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills) for each of the years from 2011 to 2016, what proportion of students at each local autonomous university are Singapore citizens, permanent residents and foreigners respectively, with a breakdown of undergraduate and postgraduate student population in each case.

Mr Christopher de Souza: To ask the Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills) what is being done to ensure that our students will be relevant to the future economy when they graduate

[/toggle] [toggle title=”Minister for Law”]

Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for Law whether the Government will allow older residents at Lorong 3 Geylang whose home leases will expire in less than five years to extend their lease or provide rehousing assistance to this group of residents.

 

[/toggle] [toggle title=”Minister for Manpower”]

Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang: To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) what is the number of suicides of migrant workers for each year in the past three years; and (b) what measures are there for early detection of mental illnesses amongst migrant workers.

Mr Dennis Tan Lip Fong: To ask the Minister for Manpower for employees who are required to use bicycles or personal mobility devices (PMDs) in the course of their work, how does the Ministry ensure that (i) they are adequately instructed by their employers on the road traffic rules and safe use of bicycles or PMDs (ii) employers have a system of monitoring their employees on such compliance and (iii) employers provide adequate insurance for their employees in respect of injury, death and third party claims arising from any accidents while using bicycles or PMDs in the course of work.

Ms K Thanaletchimi: To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) whether there are cases of Singaporean workers who meet the eligibility criteria for the Workfare Income Supplement (WIS) payouts but who have been omitted from such payouts; (b) if so, who and where should these workers make their appeals to; and (c) if there are such omissions, how can the Ministry ensure that WIS payouts reach all eligible workers.

Assoc Prof Daniel Goh Pei Siong: To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) what is the reason for the 69% increase in CPF arrears due to late payment from 2014 to 2016; (b) what penalties have been imposed on employers for late payment of CPF contributions; and (c) whether the education and deterrence components of CPF Board’s approach to ensure timely payment of CPF contributions need to be enhanced.

Mr Gan Thiam Poh: To ask the Minister for Manpower whether the CPF Board will review the minimum lease period left for residential properties that a CPF member can apply for withdrawal of CPF monies to finance the purchase or repayment of financing for such properties.

Mr Patrick Tay Teck Guan: To ask the Minister for Manpower as at 2017, what is the breakdown for Singaporeans and permanent residents who are professionals, managers and executives in Singapore in terms of the 25th, 50th, 60th, 70th, 75th and 80th percentile of the (i) basic monthly salary (including and excluding employer CPF contributions) and (ii) gross monthly salary (including and excluding employer CPF contributions).

Ms Sylvia Lim: To ask the Minister for Manpower in the last five years, how many employment passes and S-Passes have been issued to persons who have previously given up Singapore citizenship.

Mr Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap: To ask the Minister for Manpower in each of the years from 2014 to date, how many employment passes and SPasses have been issued to applicants with certificates from degree mills or unaccredited schools.

Mr Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap: To ask the Minister for Manpower whether the Ministry will review the CPF Education Scheme to allow it to be used for part-time diploma or degree courses at approved educational institutions.

Mr Chen Show Mao: To ask the Minister for Manpower what was the real and nominal wage growth for Singaporeans in each income decile for each of the last 10 years.

[/toggle] [toggle title=”Minister for Social and Family Development”]

Ms Sun Xueling: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development how can the Government better support the work of the Diversity Action Committee which looks at enabling women leadership and increasing the representation of women directors on boards of Singapore companies.

Dr Lim Wee Kiak: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development in light of reports that single unmarried mothers have to adopt their biological children to “normalise” a family nucleus (a) how many cases have been handled in the past five years; (b) how many of such cases have been rejected; and (c) whether the Ministry will review its policy to help the children of these mothers to enjoy the same rights as that of a married couple.

Mr Kok Heng Leun: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development whether the Child Development Account dollar-for-dollar matching benefit can be extended to children of unwed parents born from 1 January 2005 to help support these families’ efforts to care for their children and reduce the disadvantages that their children may face from birth.

Mr Seah Kian Peng: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development with regard to the Social Service Office (SSO) (a) whether there are plans to set up more of such offices and, if so, where will these be located; (b) whether the results have met the Ministry’s expectations and objectives; and (c) whether the operating procedures including operating hours are the same throughout all SSOs.

Dr Lim Wee Kiak: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) what is the trend over the past five years on Singaporean men and women marrying foreigners; (b) what is the impact of this on the future of Singaporean society; and (c) whether any in-depth study has been done on the implications of such marriages.

Assoc Prof Daniel Goh Pei Siong: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) from 2011 to 2016, what is the number of cases of homeless persons who choose to remain homeless instead of going to a shelter; and (b) what is the procedure for handling persons who choose to remain homeless.

[/toggle] [toggle title=”Minister for Trade and Industry”]

Mr Ang Wei Neng: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry (Industry) (a) apart from insurance companies, how many companies in Singapore are currently operating using the multi-level marketing (MLM) model; (b) whether the current laws and regulations governing MLM are sufficient; and (c) how many complaints have been received on the practice of MLM in the past five years.

Mr Saktiandi Supaat: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry (Industry) (a) what is the estimated amount of energy that we will be using in the next 10 years; (b) whether our energy efficiency will be adequate to meet our future needs; (c) what measures does the Ministry have to ensure or improve energy efficiency; and (d) whether there are plans to engage in new energy sources.

Mr Zaqy Mohamad: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry (Industry) (a) what are the Ministry’s plans to help local businesses exploit opportunities in the various One Belt One Road projects across Asia; and (b) what is the addressable market for local companies and what are the Ministry’s targets in helping local firms engage in related Government-to-Government initiatives.

Mr Cedric Foo Chee Keng: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry (Industry) if he can provide an update on pilot initiatives for logistics distribution within malls, federated locker systems and steps towards nationwide urban logistics connectivity.

Mr Saktiandi Supaat: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry (Trade) (a) whether the Ministry collates data on online retail sales for local and foreign e-commerce; (b) if so, what is the sales volume transacted by Singapore-based residents with foreign companies via e-commerce over the past three years; (c) how has this overseas e-commerce impacted on local businesses; and (d) what is the Ministry doing to help local e-commerce businesses to improve their sales.

Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry (Industry) (a) whether he can provide an update on the competitiveness and health of Singapore’s wafer fabrication and semiconductor industry cluster; and (b) what measures are being taken to maintain and enhance the competitiveness of wafer fabrication in Singapore versus other competing global locations for fabs.

 

[/toggle] [toggle title=”Minister for Defence”]

Mr Pritam Singh: To ask the Minister for Defence what measures have been undertaken to ensure the security of the medical records of SAF personnel in view of the integration via the internet of the SAF’s electronic medical records system (the Patient Care Enhancement System (PACES)) with the National Electronic Health Record system.

 

[/toggle] [toggle title=”Minister for Culture, Community and Youth”]

Assoc Prof Daniel Goh Pei Siong: To ask the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth (a) whether deeds of gifts executed with the NHB may be shared with third persons and, if so, under what circumstances may they be shared; and (b) whether the deed of gift of items from 38 Oxley Road had been protected by a confidentiality clause and, if so, why did NHB release the deed to the Prime Minister.

 

[/toggle] [toggle title=”Minister for the Environment and Water Resources”]

Mr Kok Heng Leun: To ask the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources after the closure of the Sungei Road flea market, how will the Ministry engage and monitor the mental health of the elderly vendors who are displaced after losing their stalls and livelihood.

Er Dr Lee Bee Wah: To ask the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources (a) whether the Government will reconsider its decision not to provide a replacement site for the Sungei Road Hawking Zone (SRHZ); and (b) whether an update can be provided on the help given to the vendors and whether any additional help will be given to vendors after the closure of the SRHZ.

Miss Cheng Li Hui: To ask the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources (a) what are the results of the tender called in August 2016 to study the life-cycle assessment and environmental impact of disposable food packaging; and (b) whether the quantity of disposable food packaging used has increased in the last three years.

Miss Cheryl Chan Wei Ling: To ask the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources (a) what is the rationale for NEA’s requirement for cleaning of the compactor at bin centres to be set at once a month; (b) whether this cleaning frequency is sufficient especially for bin centres near hawker centres; and (c) whether the Ministry is introducing technology to assist cleaning contractors in managing the hygiene of the bin centres.

Mr Darryl David: To ask the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources what safeguards does the NEA have to ensure that recycling companies contracted to remove and treat recyclable waste actually adhere to the proper recycling protocols and procedures.

Assoc Prof Fatimah Lateef: To ask the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources whether regulations for trade fairs and their licensing will be reviewed and updated.

Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang: To ask the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources (a) what measures and regulations are in place to prevent pest control companies from placing and using hazardous bait, such as poison, in such a way that the safety of other wildlife and vulnerable members of public could be harmed; and (b) whether the Ministry can enforce stronger rules to prevent the indiscriminate use of pest poisons.

 

[/toggle] [/accordion]
Subscribe
Notify of
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
You May Also Like

Parliamentary questions for 2 September 2019

The Singapore Parliament will sit at 12:30pm on Monday, 2 September 2019,…

Former national swimmer, NTUC vice-president among nine who made the cut as new S’pore NMPs

Former national swimmer Mark Chay Jung Jun and NTUC vice-president Abdul Samad…

Baey Yam Keng: Designated priority cabins for vulnerable commuters

The Government will pilot designated priority cabins for vulnerable commuters, which are…

MPs to pay $250 a year for permit to park at Parliament House

All Members of Parliament (MPs), including Non-Constituency and Nominated MPs will have…