Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1698846509023.pdf (Singapore)
THIRTEENTH PARLIAMENT OF SINGAPORE FIRST SESSION ORDER PAPER TUESDAY, 6 FEBRUARY 2018 No.

59 10.00 am QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWER* *1.

Mr Chong Kee Hiong: To ask the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources whether the Ministry will consider building more smoking rooms in all buildings with public access so as to contain secondhand smoke.

*2.
*2.

Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources whether the Ministry will consider implementing restrictions against smokers who smoke whilst on the move, such as walking or cycling, as they leave behind residual secondhand smoke.

*3.

Mr Kwek Hian Chuan Henry: To ask the Minister for Finance what are the efforts to review cost-efficiency of our large-scale infrastructure projects.

*4.
*4.

Ms Sun Xueling: To ask the Minister for Finance what are the specific measures in place to ensure that costs are judiciously managed in the construction of large infrastructure projects such as Changi Terminal 5, Tuas Mega Port and the Jurong Lake District.

*5.
*5.

Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills) in respect ofthe percentage of polytechnic and ITE graduates securing permanent, full-time employment within a year of their graduation (a) what has been the statistical trend over the past 10 years; and (b) what are the reasons behind the trend.

*6.
Mr Sak.tiandi Supaat: To ask the Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills) (a) what is the current percentage of full-time ITE students being able to secure internships and part-time jobs to add value to their training throughout their course; (b) how does ITE's Career Services Centre help place ITE students in internships; (c) what measures are in place to expand internship opportunities for ITE students; and (d) how many ITE graduates - eventually work in the industries that they have been trained for.
No.

59 *7.

*8.

*9.

*10.

*11.

6 FEBRUARY 2018 2 Mr Patrick Tay Teck Guan: To ask the Prime Minister with the advent and drive towards the use of artificial intelligence and autonomous machines, whether new laws and regulations will be promulgated or existing ones reviewed to ensure we address the issues of ethics, morality, provision of kill switches as well as liability.
Dr Tan Wu Meng: To ask the Prime Minister what policy principles and legal frameworks are being developed to update Singapore's governance and laws to address the issues arising from autonomous algorithms and devices .. Mr Zainal Sapari: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) (a) why there is inconsistency in the approach adopted in finding an appropriate school name for merging schools depending on whether they are primary, secondary or junior colleges; (b) whether the respective schools' stakeholders, including alumni, staff, parents and pupils, are engaged in the process of naming the merged .
schools; and (c) whether the Ministry is willing to reconsider the names of merged schools to manage ground sensitivities.

Miss Cheryl Chan Wei Ling: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) to what extent are the textbooks and curriculums in primary and secondary schools adjusted to align with our goal of de-emphasising the outcome focus on academic scores and emphasising more broad-based learning.
Miss Cheryl Chan Wei Ling: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) whether he can provide an update on the progress of the SCDF emergency preparedness exercise and roll-out of SGSecure in condominiums and private estates; and (b) whether there are plans to place Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) at public spaces in private estates.

*12.
*12.

Mr Pritam Singh: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) what is the implementation status of police's Pol Cam 2.0 project across Singapore; (b) what specific abnormalities can the system detect; (c) what information and analytics does the system collect on a routine and on-demand or ad-hoc basis; (d) what privacy concerns does the Ministry have with regard to the system; and (e) how have these concerns been mitigated.

*13.
*13.

Mr Kwek Hian Chuan Henry: To ask the Minister for National Development whether the Ministry will consider working with Airbnb to come up with a meaningful way of regulating private homes from being rented out by balancing the interests of homeowners and neighbours, given that is an important part of the travel experience especially for the millennials.

No.

59 6 FEBRUARY 2018 3 *14.


Er Dr Lee Bee Wah: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) whether the Ministry will consider putting a minimum number of years before a development project can qualify for an en bloc collective sale; (b) how many developments that are less than 30 years old have undergone en bloc sales in the past three years; and (c) whether the Ministry considers this to be a waste of resources.

*15.
*15.

Er Dr Lee Bee Wah: To ask the Minister for Transport with regard to feedback on motor dealers stockpiling motorcycle COBs to resell at a higher premium (a) what is the progress of LTA's investigation into this issue; (b) what is the Ministry doing to address this issue; and (c) whether the Ministry will shorten the validity period of these COBs to curb their speculation.

*16.
*16.

Ms Sun Xueling: To ask the Minister for Transport with the launch of the Punggol Digital District, (a) what are the road and rail transportation network improvements which will coincide with the development of the Punggol Digital District to ensure good connectivity for residents of the North East as well as commuters to the Punggol Digital District; and (b) whether the Cross Island MRT Line will be built in time for the build-up of the Punggol Digital District.

*17.
*17.

Miss Cheng Li Hui: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development regarding the Community Kin Service (a) what safeguards and measures are in place to ensure that seniors' funds do not get misappropriated by social workers; (b) how will the Ministry deal with cases of misappropriation; and (c) whether the Office of the Public Guardian will be able to recommend follow-up actions should misappropriations be suspected or discovered.

*18.
*18.

Mr Gan Thiam Poh: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) how many applications have been received for HDB season parking for disabled car park lots since this scheme was implemented; (b) of these, how many applications are unsuccessful; and (c) what are the reasons for the unsuccessful applications.

*19.
*19.

Er Dr Lee Bee Wah: To ask the Minister for Communications and Information since the introduction of the Personal Data Protection Act (a) how many complaints have been received against illegal moneylenders who make unsolicited telephone calls, or send unsolicited fax, SMS messages and e mails; and (b) what is the procedure to lodge complaints against these unsolicited communications.

*20.
*20.

Dr Tan Wu Meng: To ask the Minister for Communications and Information what measures are being taken to ensure Singapore is well-positioned to be a global centre for data housing and the provision of value-add services for data.

No.

59 6 FEBRUARY 2018 4 *21.


Mr Saktiandi Supaat: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) how is the trend among foreign students applying for permanent residency in the last 10 years; (b) what is the percentage of success; and (c) how many stayed on and continued to work in Singapore and subsequently take on citizenship.

*22.
*22.

Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) how widespread is the forging of Singapore passports; (b) how many fake Singapore passports have been detected by foreign governments at their checkpoints; and (c) how many fake foreign passports have been detected by the Singapore Immigration and Checkpoints Authority.

*23.
*23.

Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang: To ask the Minister for National Development how does HDB determine what qualifies as over~crowding in HDB flats and whether Minimum Space Standards, or similar objective criteria, can be published to improve transparency.

*24.
*24.

Mr Pritam Singh: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) how many cases of spalling concrete happening after the defects liability period has the HDB received for flats that have undergone the Home Improvement Programme (HIP); and (b) whether the HDB will consider additional support or subsidies for flat owners in such cases as flats age and the integrity of structural materials such as ceiling reinforcement bars deteriorate.

*25.
*25.

Asst Prof Mahdev Mohan: To ask the Prime Minister in light of reports that Singapore banks have provided loans to multiple coal power projects totalling more than US$2 billion over the last five years (a) whether these investments have any impact on the Government's proposed measures to reduce carbon emissions including that of a carbon tax; and (b) whether the banks will be required or encouraged to make public pledges to restrict lending to such projects.

*26.
*26.

Ms Sun Xueling: To ask the Prime Minister (a) what are the manpower gaps in quantum computing, big data and artificial intelligence; (b) whether upskilling of professionals in the local financial sector will be sufficient to provide the talent needed for these fields; and (c) whether there are plans to bring in foreign skilled professionals to complement our local professionals.

*27.
Mr Dennis Tan Lip Fong: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) what are the current educational programmes on the safe and considerate use of bicycles, electric bicycles and powered mobility devices (PMDs) available in all pre~ schools, schools, tertiary, and other educational institutions; (b) whether such programmes are compulsory in all schools and institutions; and (c) whether the Government intends to expand the coverage of such programmes to help create a safe and considerate culture for the use of these devices.
'1 ·• I I .

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1 .

1 ' No.

59 6 FEBRUARY 2018 5 *28.

Mr Zainal Sapari: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) whether measures taken to manage the indiscriminate parking arising from the shared bicycle schemes have produced effective results; and (b) under what specific situation will LTA consider stronger regulatory measures to avoid the situation faced by other countries where the shared bicycles have been a public liability in causing disamenities.

*29.
*29.

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Cbye: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) whether LTA is aware of any company policy among the public bus operators which penalises the bus captain for using the emergency brakes; (b) how many bus captains have been penalised by their employers for using the emergency brakes in the past year; and (c) what is the rationale for such a penalty.

*30.
*30.

Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) whether the Ministry will consider introducing compulsory CPR training to all secondary schools so as to grow the pool of certified first-aiders in the community.

*31.
*31.

Dr Tan Wu Meng: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) (a) what proportion of schools currently use· smartphone applications (apps) or proprietary online software platforms to communicate with parents of students; and (b) in such schools, what is being done to ensure inclusiveness with regard to parents who may not have smartphones or computer access.

*32.
Mr Chong Kee Hiong: To ask the Minister for National Development regarding water, electrical, gas and e-communication facilities at residential blocks (a) whether there have been cases of tampering or sabotage of such facilities in the last three years; (b) what measures does the Ministry have to prevent the tampering of meters situated on the outside of houses; (c) whether the security features for these facilities can be enhanced; and (d) when will internal smart meters that send readings to utilities service providers be installed in all residences.
*33.

Mr Ang Hin Kee: To ask the Minister for National Development beyond verbal persuasion, what are the interventions available to the Ministry and channels accessible to members of public to tum to in instances where owners of landed properties find difficulties to seek cooperation oftheir neighbours to conduct works involving any adjoining party walls or fence.

*34.
*34.

Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry (Trade) (a) how will the substantial emissions from the new coal gasification plant on Jurong Island align with our climate change commitments and our declaration .

of Year of Climate Action; and (b) how does the Government decide on business opportunities versus environmental concerns and international commitments.

No.

59 6 FEBRUARY 2018 6 *35.


Mr Ganesh Rajaram: To ask the Minister for Communications and Information (a) whether he can provide an update on the securing of broadcast rights for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics; (b) whether the rights have been secured and, if not, why, given that the event is just over two years away; and (c) whether there is a danger of Singaporeans missing out on watching the Games.

*36.
*36.

Mr Dennis Tan Lip Fong: To ask the Minister for Law whether the CPIB will conduct a thorough investigation of the business affairs of Keppel Offshore and Marine Ltd (KOM) to ascertain whether, besides the arrangements KOM had entered into with Zwi Skomicki for the provision of bribes to secure contracts in Brazil, KOM had also, during the same period, entered into any arrangements with any company or agent to provide bribes to secure its other contracts elsewhere in the world.

*37.
*37.

Mr Ganesh Rajaram: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs whether he can provide an update on the arrests and subsequent investigation into the possible misuse of funds at National Football League club Tiong Bahru Football Club.

*38.
*38.

Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs whether the Ministry will (i) conduct a review of the sufficiency of the Fire Code and effectiveness of fire safety measures following the HDB fire in Toa Payoh on 10 January 2018 and (ii) consider including in the Fire Code additional requirements such as the installation of central fire alarm systems and the provision of fire extinguishers at every HDB block.

*39.
*39.

Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for Education (Schools) whether there are any Ministry rules, directives or operating principles that prohibit primary or secondary schools from inviting Members of Parliament (MPs) from any party, or Nominated MPs, as speakers at events.

*40.
*40.

Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) for each year over the past five years, how many instances have occurred of MRT or LRT trains (i) undergoing irregular and sudden acceleration and (ii) train doors closing without warning; and (b) whether there is any mechanism for collating data on such incidents if they are not reported by commuters.

* Members may postpone their Questions to a later sitting day if their Questions are not reached by the end of Question Time.
The postponement forms are available at the Chamber entrances.

Members must submit their notices to the Clerk within one hour after the end of Question Time.

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

No.

59 6 FEBRUARY 2018 7 ORDERS OF THE DAY AND NOTICE OF MOTION (Those marked • are Orders of the Day) •1.

•2.

Public Utilities (Amendment) Bill [Bill No.

4/2018] - Environment and Water Resources)- Second Reading.
(Minister for the Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) (Amendment) Bill [Bill No.

5/2018] - (Minister for Home Affairs) - Second Reading.

3.
3.

Mr Kwek Hian Chuan Henry (Nee Soon) Miss Cheng Li Hui (Tampines) Dr Lily Neo (Jalan Besar) Ms Joan Pereira (Tanjong Pagar) Ms Rahayu Mahzam (Jurong) Ms Tin Pei Ling (MacPherson): SUPPORT FOR SENIOR CITIZENS: That this House recognises that seniors are a gift to our society, contributing to a wise and resilient Singapore, and calls on the Government to continue strengthening support for seniors to age with dignity and spearhead community efforts to create a society where they can thrive.
2 4 QUESTIONS FOR WRITTEN ANSWER 1.

2.

3.

Mr Gan Thiam Poh: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) whether there will be an underground connection between Marina Bay MRT Station and Downtown MRT station; and (b) if not, whether LTA can consider building a permanent covered linkway connecting both stations on the road surface level.
Mr Gan Thiam Poh: To ask the Minister for Transport whether there is a plan to enhance existing bus stops to include a high cover of 4.5 metres and above that extends into the bus bay so as to provide a covered shelter for boarding and alighting of passengers.
Mr Desmond Choo: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) what is the profile of persons caught for offences related to their personal mobility devices (PMD); and (b) what are the efforts to reach out to the elderly PMD users who may not be aware of the PMD regulations.

No.

59 6 FEBRUARY 2018 8 4.

5.

6.

7.

8.


Mr Desmond Cboo: To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) over the last five years, how many Singaporeans continued to work beyond 62 years old and 67 years old respectively; and (b) what are the respective profiles of Singaporeans who are employed beyond 67 years of age and their jobs.
Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) in the last three years, how many identity cards have been reported lost annually; (b) what is the trend over the last decade; (c) how many requests have there been for waiver of the replacement fee; and (d) whether the Ministry will implement a procedure where applicants who appeal for a waiver of the replacement fee can have their qualifying status verified through a central co-ordination point Mr Gan Thiam Poh: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry (Industry) (a) how many MNCs have withdrawn their investment from Singapore in the past eight years; (b) what are the reasons for their withdrawal and the industries they come from; and (c) how many MNCs have increased their · investment in Singapore during the same period and what are the industries they are mainly in.
Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for National Development whether he can provide for an update on the Ministry's plan to review the Design, Build and Sell Scheme (DBSS) for HDB flats.
Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources (a) what is the cause of the water pipe leak at Somerset Road on 16 January 2018; (b) when was the pipe last checked as part ofPUB's routine maintenance; and (c) what is the impact of continuous heavy rainfall on the underground soil where this water pipe is laid.