Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1698848016832.pdf (Singapore)
FOURTEENTH PARLIAMENT OF SINGAPORE ___________________ FIRST SESSION ___________________ ORDER PAPER TUESDAY, 5 JULY 2022 No.

64 1.30 pm 1 QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWER* *1.

Mr Seah Kian Peng: To ask the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth what changes are in store for the public and sporting community following the takeover of the Singapore Sports Hub by Sport Singapore.

*2.
*2.

Mr Ang Wei Neng: To ask the Minister for Health in the light of the recent rise of COVID-19 infections in Singapore, especially with the increase in the Omicron subvariants infection in the community, what steps will the Ministry take to (i) reduce the infection rate and (ii) encourage seniors to take their second COVID-19 booster shot.

*3.
*3.

Mr Yip Hon Weng: To ask the Minister for Health (a) whether our healthcare settings are adequately equipped to handle the next COVID-19 wave expected in July or August 2022; and (b) whether the Ministry can provide an update on the re-design of COVID-19 community treatment facilities.

*4.
*4.

Mr Seah Kian Peng: To ask the Minister for Defence (a) whether the Ministry intends to hold a national dialogue on expectations of national athletes serving their National Service (NS); and (b) whether there will be a review of the policy regarding such athletes and their NS obligations.

*5.
*5.

Mr Leong Mun Wai: To ask the Minister for Defence (a) whether the Government will relax the eligibility criteria for National Service (NS) deferment for young male Singaporeans who have the potential to accomplish significant successes in the sports and arts fields; and (b) whether the Government will consider deferring National Service for young male Singaporeans who have the potential to accomplish significant successes in fields other than sports and arts.

No.

64 5 JULY 2022 2 *6.
Dr Tan Wu Meng: To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) since January 2021, how many food and goods delivery platform workers have died from accidents in the course of their work; (b) whether the Ministry will mandate delivery platforms to report non-fatal job-related injuries and near-misses involving platform workers; and (c) whether the Ministry will consider tracking the compensation and support provided to families of delivery platform workers who have died or suffered serious injuries during work.

*7.
*7.

Dr Tan Wu Meng: To ask the Minister for Manpower whether the Ministry will consider requiring delivery platform firms to provide baseline compensation commensurate with the Work Injury Compensation Act, especially when a delivery worker has been seriously injured or died on the job.

*8.
Dr Lim Wee Kiak: To ask the Minister for Health regarding exceptional cases where patients urgently require drugs that are not within the HSA’s approved list (a) how can the Ministry assist these patients who require non- standard treatment options to qualify for claims under the current health insurance policy; (b) whether the Ministry will consider setting up a national body where medical experts can be swiftly mobilised to consider and approve these requests; and (c) how often does the list of approved drugs gets updated to keep pace with medical advances.
*9.

Mr Yip Hon Weng: To ask the Minister for Health (a) how many cancer patients will be affected by the new policy that limits insurance coverage for outpatient cancer drug treatments; (b) what is the recourse for patients who do not respond to these drugs; and (c) how often will the list of drugs be reviewed to ensure that it stays abreast with medical developments especially new and rare cancers.

*10.
*10.

Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) whether there are adequate safeguards in place when the police interview young suspects; and (b) whether the Ministry can provide an update on the review of the Appropriate Adult Scheme for Young Suspects (AAYS).

*11.
Dr Lim Wee Kiak: To ask the Minister for Health with regard to the unprecedented spread of the Monkeypox virus (a) what measures are in place to detect the disease at Singapore’s borders; (b) should the Monkeypox virus spread to Singapore, what other measures will be activated, in addition to contact tracing and quarantine; and (c) as some symptoms of the Monkeypox virus infection are similar to those of COVID-19 and dengue infections, whether guidelines will be provided to doctors and the public on how to stay vigilant for symptoms of this disease.
*12.

Dr Lim Wee Kiak: To ask the Minister for Health whether there is information on which demographic is more vulnerable to critical illnesses caused by the Monkeypox virus.

No.

64 5 JULY 2022 3 *13.


Ms Ng Ling Ling: To ask the Minister for Health in light of emerging communicable diseases such as monkeypox and tuberculosis (a) how is the Ministry planning to step up preventive measures to control the spread of such infectious diseases within the population; and (b) whether the Ministry will consider encouraging limited vaccination for the more vulnerable groups such as frontline staff and elderly residents.

*14.
*14.

Dr Wan Rizal: To ask the Minister for Health (a) whether the Ministry can provide an update on the prevalence of monkeypox; and (b) what are the Ministry’s plans to (i) mitigate the spread of the virus and (ii) educate the community on its risk factors and prevention.

*15.
*15.

Ms Nadia Ahmad Samdin: To ask the Minister for Health with regard to the recommended strategy by the Interagency Taskforce on Mental Health and Well-being (a) whether the Government will consider elderly mental health as a separate pillar given the increasing proportion and vulnerability of the demographic; and (b) what outcomes and indicators are being set for the work of the Taskforce.

*16.
*16.

Dr Wan Rizal: To ask the Minister for Health whether the Ministry can provide an update on the Interagency Taskforce on Mental Health and Well- being, especially on its plans to improve mental health literacy among citizens and create an inclusive society for persons with mental health conditions.

*17.
*17.

Ms Tin Pei Ling: To ask the Minister for Health (a) what recourse is available for caregivers of elderly care recipients when the latter exhibit self- harm or aggressive behaviours which require emergency interventions; (b) whether the restructured hospitals, including the Institute of Mental Health, are equipped to handle these cases; and (c) how can geriatricians and social service agencies play a role in such case management.

*18.
*18.

Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry whether the Government will consider setting up a cooperative to supply petrol to help moderate the costs of fuel.

*19.

Mr Don Wee: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry whether the Ministry will regulate petrol and diesel pump prices in view of their escalating prices amid record profits for oil companies.

*20.
*20.

Mr Gan Thiam Poh: To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) whether there are any commissioned studies to assess whether the CPF Basic Retirement Sum sufficiently provides for the minimum retirement adequacy of seniors and to provide a decent quality of life; (b) whether the Government is considering the need to define specific adequacy goals to meet seniors’ needs; and (c) whether there are any long-term plans, in terms of policies, to achieve our desired outcomes for our seniors.

No.
No.

64 5 JULY 2022 4 *21.

Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis: To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) how is the 3.5% annual increase in the CPF Basic Retirement Sum (BRS) for each cohort turning aged 55 years from 2023 to 2027 determined; (b) what are the factors that have contributed to the raised annual increase from 3% to 3.5%; and (c) what are the long-term inflation assumptions used in the BRS annual increments.

*22.
*22.

Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) whether there are household density considerations associated with the location of commercial and coffee shop spaces within HDB developments; and (b) if so, what are these conditions for (i) mature and (ii) new housing developments.

*23.
*23.

Mr Sharael Taha: To ask the Minister for National Development with the trend of increased transacted prices of coffee shops (a) what measures will be put in place to ensure that the high transaction cost for coffee shops is not passed on to consumers; and (b) how will the Government ensure that the neighbourhood coffee shops continue to provide affordable food to residents.

*24.
Mr Shawn Huang Wei Zhong: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) whether the Ministry tracks (i) the transacted prices of suburban coffeeshops against the prices of HDB flats and the median income of individuals staying within the same area and (ii) the average rental price per square foot of stalls in suburban coffeeshops against the median price of a cup of coffee sold in these coffeeshops; (b) if so, what is the data for the past 20 years; and (c) what are the measures taken to ensure affordability of food and drinks sold in suburban coffeeshops.
*25.

Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng: To ask the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment whether the Government will ban the installation and display of LED wreaths, lanterns, balloon arches and similar items at funerals.

*26.

Mr Lim Biow Chuan: To ask the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment whether the Government will regulate the supply of LED wreaths at funeral wakes to ensure that the supplier is responsible for ensuring that the LED wreaths are safe for use with separate power supply.
*27.

Dr Wan Rizal: To ask the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth whether the Ministry can provide an update on the Youth Mental Well-being Network, especially on its plans to expand to a broader network to tackle mental health issues across a broader range of population segments.

*28.
*28.

Mr Edward Chia Bing Hui: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry in view of the feedback on the manpower crunch in the hospitality and food and beverage sectors, what is the Ministry’s assessment on (i) the impact to customer satisfaction or service standards and (ii) the overall impact on our reputation as a business and travel destination.

No.

64 5 JULY 2022 5 *29.


Mr Alex Yam Ziming: To ask the Minister for Defence (a) whether the recent Shangri-La Dialogue has achieved its objectives; (b) how will the geo- political tensions that remain between the United States and China affect Singapore; and (c) whether the forum continues to remain useful and relevant for participating countries.

*30.
*30.

Dr Tan Wu Meng: To ask the Minister for Education regarding the Ministry’s proposed expansion of the POSB Smart Buddy programme for students across all primary schools by 2025 (a) whether studies have been conducted on the short- and long-term impact of early exposure of children to e-payment transactions in children (i) with existing experience with physical currency such as coins and (ii) without prior experience of physical currency; and (b) if so, what are the results of these studies.

*31.
*31.

Ms Foo Mee Har: To ask the Minister for National Development in light of the high transaction prices of coffee shops in suburban areas with corresponding hikes in stall rentals, how will the Government ensure that stallholders and coffee shops in the neighbourhoods are able to continue to provide affordable food and beverage to residents.

*32.
*32.

Mr Patrick Tay Teck Guan: To ask the Minister for Education whether the Ministry will consider prohibiting those who had committed or convicted of sexual offences and violent crimes from practising as an educator, tuition teacher or enrichment teacher.

*33.
Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) what is the number of companies that have sought to implement Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) enhancing technologies; (b) what proportion of these companies have received state financial assistance or support; (c) of those receiving such support, what percentage of the total cost for implementation of the WSH technologies is defrayed by such support; and (d) whether there is a correlation between companies that have adopted these technologies and a reduced number of workplace injuries and fatalities.
*34.

Mr Patrick Tay Teck Guan: To ask the Minister for Education (a) which of the recommendations on the development of Singapore's higher education landscape made by the International Academic Advisory Panel will be adopted; (b) how will the adopted recommendations be implemented; and (c) when will the adopted recommendations be implemented.

*35.
*35.

Mr Yip Hon Weng: To ask the Minister for Health in view of the current shortage of nurses and allied health workers in acute and step-down facilities as well as plans to double eldercare facilities by 2025, what are the Ministry’s plans to ramp up the supply of staff for the new eldercare facilities.

No.

64 5 JULY 2022 6 *36.


Mr Kwek Hian Chuan Henry: To ask the Minister for National Development whether HDB can increase the communal space allocation per dwelling unit for new HDB BTOs so as to have more communal spaces in void decks and built-up spaces on level two for communal functions and services provided to residents by social organisations such as childcare services, assisted living services and senior activity centres.

*37.
*37.

Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Health whether the Ministry will consider permitting senior citizens to use MediSave to pay for anti-glaucoma medication.

*38.
Mr Murali Pillai: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) to date, how many special needs children are on the waitlist for placement in an early intervention (EI) centre for the Early Intervention Programme for Infants and Children (EIPIC) despite being older than the respective ages for the programmes they are supposed to be enrolled; (b) what is the average waiting time for these children from the point when they attained the age appropriate for enrolment; and (c) what steps are being taken to ensure that these children are enrolled on time when they reach the respective ages for the special programmes tailored for them at the EI centres.
*39.

Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Health (a) how does the number of tuberculosis cases in the first half of this year compare with the previous two years; (b) what are the age groups most affected by tuberculosis; and (c) what measures are currently in place to reduce the spread of tuberculosis.

*40.
*40.

Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis: To ask the Prime Minister (a) what is the current proportion of public officers who are in job roles which are conducive for hybrid work and will be allowed to telecommute; and (b) for such officers, what is the average number of days a week that they will be allowed to work from home as against telecommuting.

*41.
*41.

Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for Health (a) whether there has been a reduction in the number of fitness activities each Residents Network cluster can register; and (b) if so, what is the Ministry's rationale for doing so, given its efforts to promote exercise among targeted demographic groups.

*42.
*42.

Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) whether the Government has plans to offer Voluntary Early Redevelopment Scheme (VERS) to any precincts before the year 2039; and (b) what is the voting threshold that needs to be achieved for a precinct to be selected for VERS.

*43.
*43.

Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Minister for National Development what will be the terms of offer, including the compensation quantum, rehousing options and other benefits, to be provided to lessees of HDB flats selected for the Voluntary Early Redevelopment Scheme.

No.

64 5 JULY 2022 7 *44.


Ms He Ting Ru: To ask the Minister for Health (a) whether the Dengvaxia vaccine is recommended and routinely offered to recovered dengue patients who fit the eligibility criteria; (b) whether the Ministry tracks the number of Dengvaxia vaccinations administered; and (c) whether the Ministry can provide an update on the development of potential dengue vaccines or drugs that may become viable for public consumption.

*45.
*45.

Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim: To ask the Minister for Health whether the existing form on Request to be Exempted from COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement has inadvertently precluded the possibility of doctors issuing a blanket exemption from vaccinations for medical reasons.

*46.
*46.

Mr Saktiandi Supaat: To ask the Prime Minister in light of rising property rental rates and interest rates (a) what are the available debt management assistance options to Singaporeans including those offered by Credit Counselling Singapore; (b) what are the current respective take-up rates of the various options; and (c) whether the Government intends to do more to encourage Singaporeans to seek such assistance and intervention, for example by de-stigmatising its use.

*47.
*47.

Mr Kwek Hian Chuan Henry: To ask the Prime Minister whether MAS can encourage banks to help retired seniors who are above 65 years old refinance their housing loans to adjust to the changing mortgage rates as many seniors are turned down by the financial institutions for such refinancing despite having the financial means to support their repayment of loans.

*48.
*48.

Mr Gan Thiam Poh: To ask the Prime Minister in view of rising interest rates and the current inflationary environment, whether the prevailing total debt servicing ratio is sufficient to prevent and minimise systemic risk to both financial institutions and borrowers.

*49.
*49.

Ms He Ting Ru: To ask the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth since the launch of the Safe Sport Unified Code (the Code) in November 2021 (a) how many incidents of misconduct under the Code have been received under the Safe Sport Programme; (b) how many of these incidents have been referred for formal resolution; and (c) what is the breakdown of the number of incidents which fall into each of the three categories of cases referred for formal resolution.

*50.
*50.

Mr Lim Biow Chuan: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs whether the Government will review its criteria for the issue of permanent residence in order to attract skilled workers like nurses and skilled technicians to supplement the workforce in Singapore.

No.

64 5 JULY 2022 8 *51.


Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs whether there is any regulation or safeguard to preserve the dignity or sanctity of sacred religious texts or symbols from being misused for commercial purpose or on any part of costume or attire, furnishing, decoration or receptacle.

*52.
Mr Leong Mun Wai: To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) what are the similarities and differences in the underlying rationale for firms with less than 10 employees being exempted from the Fair Consideration Framework (FCF) and for firms with less than 25 employees being exempted from the fundamental criteria 3 and 4 of the Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS) scheme; (b) whether one scheme is more lenient than the other; and (c) how do these exemptions contribute towards strengthening the Singaporean core in our workforce.
*53.

Mr Kwek Hian Chuan Henry: To ask the Minister for National Development whether the Ministry can allocate more foreign manpower quota for Town Councils (TCs) so that TCs can better meet the cleanliness expectations of Singaporeans.

*54.

Ms Ng Ling Ling: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry in view of some countries’ export bans on food items, whether the Ministry has a threshold for cost increases for such items before considering intervention measures to stabilise the prices of these items.
*55.

Mr Lim Biow Chuan: To ask the Minister for National Development whether an even higher priority of four chances can be given to applicants of HDB BTO flats when they apply for flats near to their parents.

*56.
*56.

Mr Saktiandi Supaat: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry whether the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore has received complaints or feedback that drip pricing, where the advertised price does not contain additional fees to be added in a sale/purchase, is eroding the business of physical merchants in favour of online ones.

*57.
*57.

Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim: To ask the Minister for National Development given the long lead times between application and receipt of HDB BTO flats, whether HDB has considered allowing existing HDB flat owners whose HDB flats are still within the minimum occupation period to apply for a new BTO flat so as to facilitate advance planning.

*58.
*58.

Mr Edward Chia Bing Hui: To ask the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment with regard to the Smart Water Meter Programme (a) whether there are similar plans for the programme to be implemented for electric metering; and (b) what are the ways to expedite the rollout of the programme to assist residents to save on their utility bills and to provide greater insights for residents to reduce consumption in support of the SG Green Plan.

No.

64 5 JULY 2022 9 *59.


Mr Edward Chia Bing Hui: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry how does the Committee Against Profiteering evaluate the legitimacy of prices set by businesses, the process, and the details which businesses need to submit.

*60.
*60.

Ms He Ting Ru: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry (a) whether the Ministry has completed its review of measures to ensure that the circumstances leading to the unauthorised clearance of the Kranji forest do not recur; (b) if so, what is the outcome of the review; and (c) what is the current status of the Sungei Kadut Eco-District project.

*61.
*61.

Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) what is the rationale for increasing ERP charges in May and June; (b) what is the impact of these higher ERP charges in terms of traffic congestion; (c) what is the effect of the higher ERP charges on the Consumer Price Index (CPI); and (d) whether any further increases to ERP charges this year can be halted in view of high petrol prices and general inflation.

*62.
*62.

Mr Murali Pillai: To ask the Minister for Law whether the Ministry will consider the feasibility of amending the Wills Act 1838 to provide for, in the event of a divorce or annulment of marriage, the revocation of an appointment of the former spouse as an executor or beneficiary under a will that was executed by a testator during the subsistence of the marriage.

*63.
*63.

Mr Ang Wei Neng: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) how much has the passenger traffic at Changi Airport recovered in the first half of the year, particularly during the June school holidays, as compared to the pre-COVID- 19 period; (b) what is the progress on beefing up manpower requirements in the aviation sector in response to the higher air traffic volume; and (c) whether the Ministry has plans to deal with potential major flight delays and cancellations.

*64.
*64.

Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) whether the Ministry has data on the average passenger load on trunk and feeder bus services during peak hours (i) from 1 January to 28 March 2022 (ii) from 29 March to 25 April 2022 and (iii) from 26 April to date; (b) if so, what are they; and (c) what is the threshold before additional buses will be added on a route to reduce overcrowding.

*65.
*65.

Mr Saktiandi Supaat: To ask the Minister for Communications and Information (a) how significant is the technology industry to the Singapore economy, by number of jobs or otherwise; and (b) whether and how the Government expects the wave of global layoffs in major technology companies to impact Singapore and Singaporeans.

No.

64 5 JULY 2022 10 *66.


Ms Foo Mee Har: To ask the Prime Minister (a) whether service standards by Government agencies have been affected when civil servants work from home; and (b) whether this has been verified by tracking residents' feedback on service quality rendered by Government agencies.

*67.
*67.

Mr Leong Mun Wai: To ask the Minister for Defence of the males who have become Singapore citizens by registration since 2000 (a) what is the percentage of those who are not required to serve national service; and (b) what do they do to fulfil their obligation to share in the defence burden of our country.

*68.
*68.

Miss Cheryl Chan Wei Ling: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) whether residents, particularly seniors, affected by HDB's Selective En-bloc Development Scheme in Ang Mo Kio are disadvantaged by the number of flat options available in their preferred location for retirement; and (b) whether there will be sufficient BTO flats allocated with completion dates earlier than 2028 for their selection.
* Members may postpone their Questions to a later sitting day if their Questions are not reached by the end of Question Time (QT).

For such Questions, Members may email to parl_cop@parl.gov.sg in advance a postponement notice that will be effected after QT.

Members must submit their notices to the Clerk within one hour after the end of QT (SO 22(3)).

Questions will be given a written answer if no such notices are received by the Clerk within the stipulated time.

ORDER OF THE DAY 1.
ORDER OF THE DAY 1.

Stamp Duties (Amendment) Bill [Bill No.

13/2022] – (Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance) – Second Reading.

MEMORANDUM Matter proposed to be raised on the Motion for the Adjournment (SO 2(8)(b)).

Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim (Sengkang) : Tackling the Macro Picture in Rising Cost of Living Challenges.

No.

64 5 JULY 2022 11 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.
QUESTIONS FOR WRITTEN ANSWER Dr Tan Wu Meng: To ask the Prime Minister (a) how does MAS assess Singaporeans’ exposure to unsecured consumer credit and other forms of lending which may take place outside the purview of financial institutions regulated by MAS; (b) whether MAS studies scenarios in which the total debt servicing ratio may underestimate household exposure; and (c) whether stress test simulations are conducted to assess household vulnerability, especially for households with limited means and, if so, what are the findings.
Dr Tan Wu Meng: To ask the Prime Minister (a) how many banks regulated by MAS have recently experienced interruption of digital banking services and for how long; (b) how many customers are affected; (c) whether MAS has assessed the dependencies of financial institutions on third-party cloud computing networks, including the provision of digital banking services; and (d) what lessons have been drawn from the interruption of service.
Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Prime Minister for each of the past five years (a) what is the mean, median and range of total annual remuneration of the MX 9 (Superscale) grade in the Civil Service; and (b) of the total annual remuneration paid to MX9 officers, what is the average breakdown between the base salary and each component of bonuses paid.
Ms Hazel Poa: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance (a) how much of the official foreign reserves have been transferred to GIC to date; and (b) how much additional reserves has MAS accumulated since the Monetary Authority of Singapore (Amendment) Act came into operation on 21 February 2022.
Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim: To ask the Minister for Defence (a) what is the proportion of non-officer versus officer-level (including Warrant Officers) personnel supported by the Career Transition Resource Centre in assisting their transition from a career in the armed forces; and (b) whether the SAF maintains successful placement statistics for non-officer versus officer-level retirees.
Mr Christopher de Souza: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs whether the Ministry can provide an update on what is the current percentage of uncovered drug operations and transactions that are conducted via encrypted chat applications.

Mr Christopher de Souza: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs what measures are in place to prevent drug cocktails, such as ‘Happy Water’, which are disguised as food products from being trafficked and smuggled into Singapore.

No.

64 5 JULY 2022 12 8.

9.

10.

11.

12.


13.

14.

15.

Ms Hazel Poa: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry (a) whether the Ministry tracks rental cost as a percentage of total business cost for businesses in Singapore; and (b) if so, what is this percentage for each year from 2000 to 2021.
Mr Saktiandi Supaat: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry in light of the prevalent increases in prices of food and private hire transport fares (a) what measures have the Government considered to ensure that such prices do not drift persistently higher, in addition to the oversight by the Committee Against Profiteering (CAP); and (b) whether the CAP will establish guidelines for businesses in order to ensure that the price increases do not harden and remain high even when global pressures ease.
Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis: To ask the Minister for Transport what are the timeline and milestones towards achieving (i) island-wide full operational deployment of autonomous vehicles (AVs) (ii) the implementation of associated infrastructure across Singapore and (iii) the introduction of regulations and laws governing the use of AVs.
Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) whether the Ministry has data on the total number of buses operated or maintained by public transport operators; (b) of these, how many are currently stored at bus depots; (c) what is the average age of these buses that are stored at bus depots; and (d) why are these buses not being deployed for bus operations.
Mr Shawn Huang Wei Zhong: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) what are the lessons learnt from the compressed natural gas scheme for vehicles in Singapore; (b) whether the Ministry has any future plans for vehicles to use hydrogen fuel cell technology; and (c) whether the Ministry will consider using hydrogen fuel cell vehicles for public transport.
Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment whether the Ministry will consider waiving the cremation fees for individuals on public assistance who passed away and have no family members or friends to attend to their matters upon their death.
Mr Christopher de Souza: To ask the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment (a) whether Singapore’s water supply and infrastructure continues to be adequate; and (b) what further plans are there to build water resilience and security, including reducing industrial water consumption and increasing the efficiency of used water treatment.
Mr Yip Hon Weng: To ask the Minister for Education (a) how many schools currently practice their autonomy to adopt a later school start time, after 7.30 am; and (b) how does the Ministry encourage or facilitate schools to practise their autonomy to adopt a later school start time.

No.

64 5 JULY 2022 13 16.

17.

18.

19.

20.

21.

22.

23.


Mr Christopher de Souza: To ask the Minister for Education whether the Ministry will consider giving greater pay incentives to school counsellors across primary, secondary and tertiary institutions in order to attract sufficient counsellors of the highest quality and ensure low student-to-counsellor ratios.
Ms He Ting Ru: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development in relation to the soft launch of the FoodConnect directory and database (a) how many households are currently signed up to it; (b) how many community groups are currently registered with the database; and (c) how is the success of the initiative to be measured.
Mr Shawn Huang Wei Zhong: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) what is the median income for persons with disabilities (PWD) over the last 10 years; (b) what is the employment rate of PWDs over the last 10 years; and (c) what is the progress rate of the Ministry’s programmes that are focused on accessibility of training and employment opportunities for PWDs.
Ms He Ting Ru: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development in each of the last three years, in relation to infant care and child care respectively (a) how many children have received subsidies; (b) what is the percentage of those who have received (i) non-working mother subsidies (ii) working applicant basic subsidies and (iii) working applicant additional subsidies; and (c) of those receiving additional subsidies, what is the median amount for the additional subsidies for each category.
Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development and Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs what are the steps taken by MUIS independently or together with local agencies or international bodies to ensure that MUIS halal certificate holders procure from international suppliers that are compliant with MUIS’ halal standards.
Mr Yip Hon Weng: To ask the Minister for Health (a) whether personal reminders will be sent to those eligible for their second COVID-19 booster shot; and (b) for those who have contracted COVID-19 recently, what is the advisory with regard to them getting their second booster shot.
Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim: To ask the Minister for Health what is the justification for an allowance to be provided under a Quarantine Order (QO), but not under an Isolation Order (IO), which requires comparable stoppage of work.
Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim: To ask the Minister for Health given the increasing cost of living and other expenses, whether the Ministry will consider raising the MediSave withdrawal limit for outpatient care treatment for the period of one calendar year, especially for patients with complex chronic conditions.

No.

64 5 JULY 2022 14 24.

25.

26.

27.

28.

29.

30.

31.


Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Minister for Health whether the Ministry has plans to involve traditional Chinese medicine practitioners in the basic healthcare system under the Healthier SG initiative, particularly for the management of chronic diseases for the elderly.
Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis: To ask the Minister for National Development with regard to HDB BTO projects launched in the last 10 years, what is the 25th percentile, median, average and 75th percentile of waiting times over the last 10 years based on the actual wait times for completed projects and the estimated wait times for projects that are still under construction.
Mr Murali Pillai: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) whether he can give an assessment of the steps taken by the Government to professionalise blue-collar trades in the construction industry for Singaporeans to ensure that there is a core number of Singaporeans in these trades who are adequately skilled, highly productive and earn meaningful wages; and (b) what further steps have been identified to attract Singaporeans to take up these trades.
Ms Hazel Poa: To ask the Minister for National Development regarding the coffeeshop located at Blk 201 Tampines Street 21 that recently transacted at $41.68 million (a) in which year did HDB sell the coffeeshop; and (b) at what price did HDB sell it for.
Mr Murali Pillai: To ask the Minister for National Development as a consequence of HDB’s decision to rent out new eating houses instead of selling them, whether the Government will introduce rent control legislation for the benefit of stallholders in eating houses at mature estates that continue to be the subject of sale transactions.
Mr Shawn Huang Wei Zhong: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) what is the 10-year trend of median household income per capita for families staying in a 4-room HDB flat as compared to (i) the median price of a 4-room HDB BTO flat and (ii) the median price of a resale HDB flat; and (b) whether the Ministry has considered any long-term plans to ensure affordability of both HDB BTO and HDB resale flats.
Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis: To ask the Minister for National Development what are the quantitative and qualitative considerations in determining changes to the monthly household income ceiling for purchasing HDB flats and Executive Condominiums, particularly as they relate to (i) incomes and (ii) prevailing housing prices, if applicable.
Mr Sharael Taha: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) how many people are currently on the waitlist of approved applicants for HDB rental flats; (b) what percentage of these approved applicants are divorced males; and (c) what is the breakdown of this percentage by age group.

No.

64 32.

33.

34.

35.

36.
5 JULY 2022 15 Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) what are the criteria for development works to require a heritage impact assessment (HIA); (b) whether the Bukit Brown Cemetery will qualify under the criteria; (c) whether one of the criteria will include a reasonable number of not-for- profit organisations or members of the public deeming the site to be of heritage value; (d) for sites where a HIA is deemed unnecessary by URA and NHB, whether the Government will commit to publishing findings from heritage studies that have been conducted.
Mr Christopher de Souza: To ask the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth (a) what is the direction for the Singapore Sports Hub under SportSG; and (b) how does SportSG intend to continue to make it a world-class venue for sporting events while also making it accessible to the community.

Mr Leong Mun Wai: To ask the Minister for Manpower in each of the past five years, how many PMET jobs are done by work permit holders.
Mr Leong Mun Wai: To ask the Minister for Manpower what is the current respective number of S Pass holders who earn a gross monthly salary of (i) less than $1,500 (ii) $1,500 to less than $2,000 (iii) $2,000 to less than $2,500 (iv) $2,500 to less than $3,000 (v) $3,000 to less than $4,000 (vi) $4,000 to $5,000 and (vii) more than $5,000.
Mr Saktiandi Supaat: To ask the Minister for Manpower with reference to the study conducted by the NUS Social Service Research Centre that found a generally low awareness of workers' rights under Singapore employment laws (a) whether the Government has conducted a similar study; and (b) if so, what are the Government’s findings; and (c) whether the Government is considering other more effective ways, in addition to awareness campaigns, to ensure that workers' rights under Singapore employment laws are adequately safeguarded.
2022 S.L 622 PAPERS PRESENTED Date Presented Animals and Birds (Care and Use of Animals for Scientific Purposes) (Amendment) Rules 2022 ..... 4 July 2022 S.L 623 Criminal Procedure (Amendment No.

2) Rules 2022 ..... 4 July 2022 No.

64 5 JULY 2022 16 PAPERS PRESENTED - continued 2022 Date Presented S. 238 Singapore Labour Foundation Annual Report 2021 ..... 4 July 2022