Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1698831244347.pdf (Singapore)
THIRTEENTH PARLIAMENT OF SINGAPORE FIRST SESSION ORDER PAPER TUESDAY, 4 JULY 2017 No.

48 11.00 am 1 QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWER* *1.


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.

*2.
*2.

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.

*3.
*3.

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.

*4.
*4.

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.

*5.
*5.

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.

No.

48 4 JULY 2017 2 *6.


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.

*7.
*7.

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.

*8.
*8.

Mr Png Eng Huat: To ask the Minister for National Development in respect of the Home Improvement Programme (HIP) (a) what is the average time taken between polling to awarding a contract and to starting work; and (b) which precincts are experiencing the longest delay in implementing HIP to date since the programme started and how long has been the delay.

*9.
Mr Gan Thiam Poh: To ask the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources (a) what is the current number of vacant hawker stalls managed by NEA; (b) what are the latest average, lowest and highest successful tender prices for NEA hawker stalls in the last three years; and (c) whether NEA can consider allocating hawker stalls based on the prevailing rental rate in a particular hawker centre/market managed by NEA to families receiving financial assistance and retrenched persons who are prepared to run their own business.
*10.

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.

*11.
*11.

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.

No.

48 4 JULY 2017 3 *12.


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.

*13.
*13.

Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry (Trade) what processes are used to consult local SMEs and obtain their feedback prior to negotiating bilateral and multilateral trade agreements.

*14.
*14.

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.

*15.
*15.

Mr Png Eng Huat: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) what are the findings of the meeting between LTA and dealers over the motorcycle COE price spikes; (b) whether any study has been done on the impact of the tiered Additional Registration Fee for motorcycles on COE prices since its announcement; and (c) whether there are any measures to ensure motorcycle ownership remains affordable for the working class.

*16.
*16.

Mr Png Eng Huat: To ask the Prime Minister for the public sector corruption cases registered for investigation by CPIB in 2016 (a) what is the total amount of money involved; (b) what are the top three ministries from which these cases originated; (c) out of the 92 cases brought forward from the previous years, how many are more than two years; and (d) what is the breakdown on the number of such cases alerted by internal staff and external sources respectively.

*17.
*17.

Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Prime Minister (a) how many of the official websites of Ministries and statutory boards meet the WCAG 2.0 or other international standards for website accessibility by persons with disabilities (PWDs); and (b) what steps will be taken to ensure that Government websites are accessible to PWDs to the fullest extent possible.

*18.
*18.

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.

No.

48 4 JULY 2017 4 *19.


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 postnatal depression; (c) whether there are programmes to educate husbands and extended family members about the symptoms of pre- natal and post-natal depression; and (d) whether these efforts are part of the National Mental Health Blueprint.
*20.

Dr Lim Wee Kiak: To ask the Minister for Communications and Information whether there has been progress in reducing mobile roaming charges across ASEAN to promote business and tourism.

*21.
*21.

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.

*22.
*22.

Dr Intan Azura Mokhtar: To ask the Minister for Finance whether sufficient tobacco taxes have been imposed on loose tobacco leaves and cigarette paper sold in many shops in Singapore.

*23.
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.
*24.

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.

*25.
*25.

Mr Christopher de Souza: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development how does the Ministry protect women who suffer from domestic abuse or emotional violence and work with NGOs to help rehabilitate these vulnerable persons so as to encourage them to gradually reintegrate into society, school and work.

No.

48 4 JULY 2017 5 *26.


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.

*27.
*27.

Mr Zaqy Mohamad: To ask the Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills) in light of our universities attaining high global rankings (a) whether employers from industries have found our graduates to be more industry ready; and (b) whether the level of satisfaction among students on the quality of teaching have also improved over the past five years.

*28.
*28.

Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for Health (a) how many pioneers currently receive payouts under the Pioneer Generation Disability Assistance Scheme; (b) what has been the number of applications each year since the scheme was introduced; (c) what percentage has been successful each year; (d) what has been the number of uncompleted applications each year; and (e) whether the Ministry assesses that the scheme has been effective in addressing the needs of pioneers with disabilities.

*29.
*29.

Dr Intan Azura Mokhtar: To ask the Minister for Health (a) whether sufficient awareness campaigns are carried out to educate the public on the risks of smoking unfiltered tobacco leaves and that the purchase of such tobacco products is the same as buying cigarettes; and (b) whether there is sufficient enforcement to ensure that shops selling such products must also abide by the same laws governing the sale of cigarettes to those below 21 years old.

*30.
*30.

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.

*31.
*31.

Er Dr Lee Bee Wah: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) whether the Ministry will consider reviewing the penalties for causing public nuisance and introduce heftier punishments for those who victimise vulnerable persons such as seniors, children and disabled persons; and (b) whether the Ministry will raise the fines for public nuisance offences and include community service as part of the punishment.

No.

48 4 JULY 2017 6 *32.


Mr Gan Thiam Poh: To ask the Minister for National Development what is the status of the feasibility study on lift pilot trials to provide lift access to blocks in Bedok.

*33.

Mr Gan Thiam Poh: To ask the Minister for National Development when will the Lift Upgrading Programme be carried out for the rest of the HDB flats in Sengkang South.

*34.
*34.

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.

*35.
*35.

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.

*36.
*36.

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.

*37.
*37.

Miss Cheryl Chan Wei Ling: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) to what extent will the new rule of affixing private hire car (PHC) decals on private chauffeured cars protect consumers' interest; (b) whether the PHC companies should be the responsible party of providing all registered drivers and their car details to LTA; and (c) whether there are other enforceable alternatives to protect consumers besides a permanently affixed car decal.

*38.
*38.

Er Dr Lee Bee Wah: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs whether there are plans to work with schools to make emergency preparedness, including basic first aid skills, mandatory for students, with the goal of CPR/AED certification at secondary school level.

No.

48 4 JULY 2017 7 *39.


Mr Zaqy Mohamad: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) what are the Ministry's plans to implement bollards or enhanced barriers especially in town centres and areas with heavy human traffic to prevent terrorist incidents of vehicles ploughing into pedestrian areas; and (b) whether the Ministry will consider funding Town Councils to implement such barriers or bollards in high-risk areas within housing estates.

*40.
*40.

Miss Cheryl Chan Wei Ling: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) whether the child booster seat sufficiently serves as a safety measure in private hire cars for children below six years old; and (b) how does the rule differ in this aspect between cars used for personal usage as compared to those on private hire service.

*41.
*41.

Dr Intan Azura Mokhtar: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs whether our auxiliary police force has a process in place for proper and comprehensive background checks to screen potential and current auxiliary police officers for activities that may compromise their integrity as auxiliary police officers.

* 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.

ORDERS OF THE DAY 1.

38 OXLEY ROAD: Resumption of Debate on Question (3 July 2017), “That the 2 Ministerial Statements on 38 Oxley Road be considered by Parliament.”.

– (Prime Minister).

2.

Monetary Authority of Singapore (Amendment) Bill [Bill No.

25/2017] – (Prime Minister) – Second Reading.

3.


Home Team Corps Bill [Bill No.

26/2017] – (Minister for Education (Schools)) – Second Reading.

No.

48 4 JULY 2017 8 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.


QUESTIONS FOR WRITTEN ANSWER Mr Gan Thiam Poh: To ask the Prime Minister (a) in the past six years, how many policy holders have allowed their life insurance policies/saving plans to lapse due to non-payment of premiums; and (b) whether the Ministry will require all insurance agents and agencies to inform their customers that they can sell their life insurance and saving plans in the secondary market.
Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) to date, how many rental bicycle users have been fined for illegal parking; and (b) whether LTA has encountered any problems from rental bicycle companies in obtaining details of errant users.
Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for National Development in respect of residents on the HDB Public Rental Scheme who have sold a HDB flat before (a) for how long is the fact of this sale considered in deciding on appeals for lower rentals due to fluctuations in income and economic circumstances; and (b) whether the share of sale proceeds which divorcees receive is taken into consideration in deciding such appeals.
Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources (a) in each year from 2011 to 2016, how many applications have been received from Singaporeans to sell tissue packs under the Street Hawking Scheme; (b) how many of these applications have been successful; and (c) what are the main reasons for rejecting the applications.
Er Dr Lee Bee Wah: To ask the Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills) what measures are in place to ensure quality internship opportunities are available to all students at vocational institutions.

PAPERS PRESENTED 2017 S. 219 Date Presented Annual Report Corporation Enterprise for 2016 of Singapore of Rehabilitative ..... 30 June 2017 S.L.

301 Rules of Court (Amendment No.

2) Rules 2017 ..... 3 July 2017