Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1698080870653.pdf (Singapore)
FOURTEENTH PARLIAMENT OF SINGAPORE (SECOND SESSION) ORDER PAPER TUESDAY, 3 OCTOBER 2023 No.

113 11.30 am 1 *1.

*2.

*3.

*4.

*5.

*6.

*7.

*8.

*9.

QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWER* Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs how is the MAS working with the relevant agencies to prevent movable assets like gemstones, jewellery and luxury watches from being used to launder money in Singapore.
Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs regarding the estimated value of about one billion dollars in assets seized in the recent case of money laundering activities (a) what are the measures to ensure that the restrictions under the relevant rules, such as the Precious Stones and Precious Metals (Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing) Act 2019, are not circumvented; and (b) whether there will be tighter controls through importers, retailers and our checkpoints over movable assets like gemstones, jewellery and luxury watches into Singapore.
Mr Murali Pillai: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs whether the 10 foreigners who have been charged by the Police on 16 August 2023 for money-laundering activities in relation to the S$1 billion cash and assets seized are being or will be investigated for running any organised crime syndicate in or from Singapore and, if so, what facts have been established thus far in this regard.
Mr Murali Pillai: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) whether there is a reporting requirement on landlords to lodge Suspicious Transaction Reports against their tenants if they have reasonable grounds to suspect that their tenants have access to ill-gotten wealth or gains; and (b) if so, whether the landlords of the private properties where foreign nationals holding passports of convenience were found to be residing when arrested by the Singapore Police on 15 August 2023 for suspected money-laundering related activities will be scrutinised for compliance with this requirement.
Mr Murali Pillai: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) whether any additional steps will be taken to protect the real estate market in Singapore from being targeted by money launderers; and (b) if so, what are they.

Mr Gan Thiam Poh: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs whether the Police will initiate investigations and arrest any person who is on the wanted list for criminal offences in another country but not listed under the wanted list of the International Criminal Police Organisation (Interpol).
Mr Don Wee: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs whether MAS shares information obtained from suspicious financial transactions with banks, the Immigration Checkpoint Authority of Singapore, and the Ministry of Manpower.

Mr Don Wee: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs whether information obtained from Suspicious Transaction Reports is shared with banks, the Immigration Checkpoint Authority of Singapore, and the Ministry of Manpower.
Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs in cases where seized assets are ordered by the court to be forfeited to the state, how are such assets used or liquidated for the benefit of the public or the Consolidated Fund.

No.

113 3 OCTOBER 2023 2 *10.


Mr Don Wee: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) whether ACRA pays attention or conduct surveillance on (i) foreign directors (ii) beneficial owners and (iii) local directors appearing to be nominee directors, where such appointment can be an indication of the misuse of legal entity; and (b) whether there is any public-private partnership between ACRA, CAD or MAS and the banks to share intelligence on emerging risks such as alerts or placement on undesirable lists.

*11.
Mr Saktiandi Supaat: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) how many business entities are currently registered with ACRA as ‘dormant’ or any other status that indicates that they are not trading; (b) what is the number of such companies for each of the last 10 years; (c) how often does ACRA check on the reason why such companies remain registered despite being inactive; and (d) whether there is a need to step up active enforcement so that Singapore-registered companies are not misused for money laundering or illegal activities.
*12.

Mr Derrick Goh: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) how Singapore compares to other global financial centres in terms of preventing and detecting anti-money laundering activities; and (b) whether the roll-out of the Collaborative Sharing of Money Laundering/Terrorism Financing (ML/TF) Information and Cases (COSMIC) digital platform will be accelerated and also extended to other industries to detect such illicit transactions across local industries beyond financial institutions.

*13.
*13.

Mr Yip Hon Weng: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) whether deferring public transport fare increments to future years remains sustainable, given the anticipated continued rise in cost of living in Singapore; (b) whether the Ministry has mandated any measures to be taken by public transport operators to streamline processes and reduce expenses in order to mitigate rising costs; and (c) if so, what are these measures.

*14.
*14.

Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis: To ask the Minister for Transport whether the Public Transport Council plans to expunge the 15.6% fare increase deferred for future Fare Review Exercises (FREs) after a 7.0% increase having been granted in 2023.

*15.
*15.

Ms Mariam Jaafar: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) what is the mean and median monthly spend on public transport in the past 12 months by (i) persons with disabilities (PWDs) and (ii) seniors who use public transport; and (b) whether the Ministry will consider introducing hybrid monthly concession passes for PWDs and seniors to be made available in different denominations for light, moderate and heavy users.

*16.
*16.

Ms Mariam Jaafar: To ask the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment in light of the continued rise in food prices at hawker centres (a) what proportion of meals sold at a hawker stall are budget meals; and (b) whether there has been feedback from hawkers that the budget meals are increasingly difficult to sustain.

*17.
*17.

Ms Mariam Jaafar: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry (a) how many cases have been referred to the Committee Against Profiteering per quarter since it was reconvened on 16 March 2022; (b) how many cases have been found to constitute profiteering; (c) what penalties have been imposed following investigation, beyond asking the businesses involved to be transparent on their pricing and communication; and (d) how many repeat complaints have been received.

*18.
*18.

Ms Yeo Wan Ling: To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) since the implementation of the Progressive Wage (PW) Mark accreditation, recognising companies that pay progressive wages to lower-wage workers, how has the uptake of the PW Mark accreditation been; and (b) whether the Ministry tracks if more service buyers have chosen to do business exclusively with companies accredited with the PW Mark.

No.

113 3 OCTOBER 2023 3 *19.
Mr Yip Hon Weng: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) whether the Government is considering a redefinition of what constitutes basic needs given its evolving understanding which extends beyond traditional necessities like housing and food; (b) if so, will this redefinition take into consideration the need to foster a sense of belonging and living dignity in Singapore; and (c) whether the Government will look into addressing the income inequality gap and relative deprivation, recognising that raising the wage floor may be inadequate to foster this sense of belonging.
*20.

Ms He Ting Ru: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) in each of the last five years, how many requests have been received to waive the additional levy (AL) payable by vehicle owners who transfer their vehicles between the fourth and sixth month from the date of registration; (b) how many requests for waiver have been granted; and (c) what are the main reasons for such waivers to be granted.

*21.
*21.

Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim: To ask the Minister for Transport whether the Ministry has assessed the effectiveness of the imposition of an additional levy on cars sold between the fourth and sixth month of ownership in discouraging COE speculation.

*22.
*22.

Ms Poh Li San: To ask the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth (a) whether the use of Mr Lee Kuan Yew's image on a local company’s commemorative packet drinks contravene the guidelines set out on the use of the name and image of founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew; and (b) if so, whether the Ministry has the authority to demand that distribution of such commercial products be withdrawn.

*23.
*23.

Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Education how many students have been referred to the Health Sciences Authority for vaping in the last five years.

*24.
*24.

Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) whether an update can be provided on the revised approach to prioritise inspections of occupied HDB rental flats; and (b) what is the annual schedule and budget allotted under the revised approach for proactive regular maintenance of these flats beyond the repairs requested by tenants.

*25.
Ms Carrie Tan: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) whether the Ministry keeps track of how many adult persons with special needs or persons with disability are financially dependent on their parents who have retired; (b) what are the current programmes and schemes available to help adult persons with special needs or disabilities to secure their own livelihood for their financial self- sufficiency, in particular those who are high functioning; and (c) what is the success rate of these programmes and schemes.
*26.
Dr Tan Wu Meng: To ask the Minister for Health (a) since 2022, how many inpatient hospice patients have sought ElderShield claims; (b) of these, how many claims have been approved; (c) what is the median time taken from application to the commencement of payout; (d) how many have been approved through (i) severe disability assessor review by a visiting assessor and (ii) resident assessment forms submitted by the inpatient hospices, respectively; and (d) whether the claims of patients with severely limited life expectancy in inpatient hospices can be expedited.
*27.

Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang: To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) for each year in the past five years, what is the average amount of time granted to migrant workers who are on a work permit going through a Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management case to find a new employer; and (b) what is the current average number of workers who apply for an extension of the initial period granted.

*28.
*28.

Mr Leong Mun Wai: To ask the Minister for Transport whether he can consider providing additional support to existing owners of commercial vehicles who require these vehicles to continue their trade in light of high COE Category C prices.

No.

113 3 OCTOBER 2023 4 *29.


Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng: To ask the Minister for Education (a) what is the expected impact of the recent announcement by the Ministry to allow an increase in the pricing cap of school bus fares of up to 13 per cent; and (b) how can families of affected students, especially those with higher special education needs, be assisted.

*30.
*30.

Dr Tan Wu Meng: To ask the Minister for Health (a) whether data is available since 2021 on how many cases have been raised to the authorities involving disputes on whether a hospital has provided inaccurate or outdated information at the material time on whether a patient qualifies for on-panel benefits when claiming for hospitalisation expenses under an Integrated Shield Plan; and (b) what avenues for redress and dispute resolution are available for affected individuals.

*31.
*31.

Mr Leong Mun Wai: To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) how many Singaporeans and Permanent Residents with disabilities are currently employed; (b) what percentage of Singaporeans and Permanent Residents with disabilities are employed as (i) Professionals, Managers, Executives and Technicians (PMETs) and (ii) non-PMETs respectively.

*32.
*32.

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) whether there are updates to the safeguards that have been put in place to ensure the safety of children who are on foster care but subsequently return to their homes of origin; and (b) what is the period in which the Ministry will continue to check on their wellbeing.

*33.
*33.

Mr Saktiandi Supaat: To ask the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment (a) what is the average duration between the time a mosquito breeding site is found and a fine is issued; (b) whether there have been instances where fines were found to have been issued to the wrong households upon appeal; and (c) if so, how many of such cases were there in the past three years.

*34.
*34.

Mr Desmond Choo: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) what has been the progress in reducing the carbon footprint of Singapore's sea ports; and (b) what is the seaports’ long-term plan to manage their carbon footprint without affecting their business competitiveness.

*35.
Dr Lim Wee Kiak: To ask the Minister for Health with regard to the Mobile Inpatient Care at Home programme (a) how will the Government ensure that patients who are enrolled have access to the necessary equipment for remote monitoring and care at home; (b) what measures are in place to provide technological literacy and support to patients and caregivers to utilise the remote monitoring technology; (c) how is the compliance with treatment plans and medications being monitored; and (d) whether there are plans to expand this programme to cover more hospitals and conditions.
*36.

Mr Desmond Choo: To ask the Prime Minister (a) how has the Monetary Authority of Singapore used artificial intelligence (AI) in its supervision of financial institutions; (b) whether this has resulted in positive outcomes; and (c) what is the long-term role of AI in its regulatory framework.

*37.
*37.

Mr Saktiandi Supaat: To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) whether attainment of the Basic Retirement Sum remains a relevant indicator for basic retirement adequacy; and (b) what is the strategy to enhance and protect the retirement adequacy of Singaporeans who are presently aged (i) 65 years and above (ii) between 50 and 64 years (iii) between 35 and 49 years and (iv) 34 years and below respectively.

*38.
*38.

Mr Liang Eng Hwa: To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) what is the current number of Singaporeans who are aged 55 years old and have not been able to attain the Basic Retirement Sum, with a breakdown according to their gender; and (b) of which, how many will receive a monthly CPF LIFE payout of (i) less than $1,000 and (ii) zero amount, respectively.

No.

113 3 OCTOBER 2023 5 *39.


Mr Vikram Nair: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) how many disputes has HDB been made aware of between co-tenants under the Joint Singles Scheme over the last three years; and (b) whether HDB will consider allocating the share of rental each co-tenant has to pay under the terms of the lease, rather than holding them jointly and severally liable for the entire amount.

*40.
*40.

Ms Carrie Tan: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) whether there are plans to attract and train more manpower for the special needs care and education sector and, if so, what are they; (b) whether the Ministry is aware of plans by SG Enable to provide community training on caring for people with special needs or are neurodiverse and, if so, what are they.

*41.
*41.

Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Transport what measures are in place to ensure that the sale of pre-owned or second-hand power assisted bicycles are in compliance with LTA’s regulations.

*42.

Mr Darryl David: To ask the Minister for Education (a) in the last five years, how many suicide and attempted suicide cases have been reported in schools and institutions; and (b) whether certain schools and institutions present a higher number of reported suicide cases than others.

*43.
*43.

Ms He Ting Ru: To ask the Minister for Manpower whether the Government intends to ratify the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No.

111) which commits states to pursuing a national policy to ensure equality of opportunity and treatment in respect of employment and occupation, with a view to eliminating any discrimination, and which has been ratified by more than 90% of ILO member states, as of January 2023.

*44.
*44.

Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis: To ask the Minister for Transport in each year over the last 10 years including year-to-date, what is the breakdown in new car registrations by (i) private cars (ii) company cars (iii) private hire cars and (iv) others.

*45.
*45.

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) what are the underlying reasons for the 60% increase in road traffic fatalities for the first half of 2023; and (b) what are the Ministry’s plans to reduce road traffic fatalities henceforth.

*46.
*46.

Ms Ng Ling Ling: To ask the Minister for Health (a) what is the national prevalence rate for chronic kidney disease in the last three years; (b) what proportion of patients have been compliant with their follow-up treatment; and (c) how does the Ministry plan to reduce this disease burden on our population.

*47.
Ms He Ting Ru: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) in the past five years, of the HDB BTO projects with carparks that are segregated from commercial parts of the project, what percentage of such projects have had their carparks maintained by HDB while the residential blocks are maintained by the Town Council; and (b) when transferring maintenance responsibilities, whether joint site inspections between HDB and the Town Council, and the endorsement of the necessary handover forms in accordance with the terms of the maintenance agreement, are required.
*48.
Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) what is the justification behind HDB's decision to cease charging haulage fees for clearing renovation debris in new housing developments after 2012; (b) whether this has reduced renovation debris dumped at new development sites; (c) what has HDB done to prevent the build-up of bulky refuse and renovation debris dumped at carparks or empty spaces under HDB’s maintenance in newly completed BTO projects such as Rivervale Shores; and (d) what corrective measures will HDB take when build-up of refuse and debris occur.
No.

113 3 OCTOBER 2023 6 *49.

Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis: To ask the Minister for National Development what are the reasons for the lack of preventive measures to prevent and address the build-up of bulky refuse and renovation debris in or around August 2023 at the Rivervale Shores HDB BTO project carpark, which is under the responsibility and management of HDB.

*50.
*50.

Ms See Jinli Jean: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry whether the Ministry will consider setting up a dedicated, low-cost dispute resolution platform to facilitate the resolution of leasing disputes between vehicle leasing firms and vocational drivers or riders who are concerned about unfair vehicle leasing terms being invoked against them.

*51.
*51.

Mr Liang Eng Hwa: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance (a) what is the cumulative impact of the series of price increases on households and small businesses; (b) whether there is a risk of triggering an inflationary spiral; (c) whether the Government’s support measures so far are adequate to mitigate the cumulative impact; and (d) what further fiscal measures can be introduced to assist households and small businesses.

*52.
*52.

Mr Leong Mun Wai: To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) since 2018, how many companies have been found to have made false salary declarations in respect of work pass applications or renewals; and (b) of these companies, how many are (i) manpower supply companies and (ii) companies with less than 25 employees.

*53.

Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Transport what are the procedures for retaining and disembarking passengers when planes have technical problems on the tarmac of Changi Airport.
*54.

Mr Sitoh Yih Pin: To ask the Minister for National Development what are the measures in place to monitor and regulate errant housing contractors who dispose of debris and refuse indiscriminately in new HDB BTO projects such as those in the Bidadari estate.

*55.
Mr Yip Hon Weng: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance in light of the recommendations by the Minimum Income Standards Report 2023 (a) how frequently does the Government conduct reviews to ensure that payouts for various support schemes remain adequate in light of current inflationary rates; (b) whether the Government practises "indexing" to align the payouts with inflationary trends; and (c) whether the Government will consider updating the payouts for the Silver Support Scheme as these have not been adjusted between 2020 and 2022 despite high inflation.
*56.

Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) what are the current education and outreach efforts to promote adherence to usage of lanes in shared-use paths; and (b) whether LTA has considered painting consistent colours on cycling and pedestrian lanes islandwide to demarcate these lanes clearly.

*57.
*57.

Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Minister for Education (a) whether the Ministry has assessed the effect of removing mid-year examinations on primary and secondary school students’ well-being and if the pressure on students is being shifted to end-of-year examinations; and (b) whether the Ministry is working with schools to re-balance the emphasis on examinations and tests with alternative forms of assessment.

*58.
*58.

Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance as the Official Foreign Reserves (OFR) managed by MAS currently stand at 70% of GDP and the Reserves Management Government Securities held by MAS can bring the OFR to 106% of GDP, whether it is still necessary to avoid publishing the total assets under the management of GIC so as to defend the Singapore dollar against speculative attacks.

No.

113 3 OCTOBER 2023 7 *59.


Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: To ask the Minister for Health (a) over the past five years, what is the annual percentage of women who suffer from postnatal post‐traumatic stress disorder (PTSD); and (b) how are doctors and nurses in public hospitals taught to recognise the signs of post-natal PTSD.

*60.
*60.

Dr Tan Wu Meng: To ask the Minister for Manpower whether the Ministry will study if the concessionary migrant domestic worker levy can be extended to persons with serious life-limiting medical conditions or a deteriorating health situation even if the applicant does not fulfil the age criteria for the concession.

*61.
Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) how many young persons in homes under the Ministry’s statutory care have been placed in solitary confinement in each of the past 10 years; (b) what is the age of the youngest person in solitary confinement; (c) what is the average period of solitary confinement; and (d) whether the Ministry has studied the effect of solitary confinement on young persons for any detrimental impact on their neurodevelopment and well-being.
*62.

Mr Desmond Choo: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry how have recent geopolitical tensions affecting global and regional manufacturing and trade flows impacted Singapore's economy.

*63.
*63.

Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) whether the Ministry has studied what are the safety precautions and restrictions practised by other countries and jurisdictions that allow for passengers to be ferried in the rear deck of goods vehicles travelling on roads; and (b) if so, what are these safety precautions and restrictions and whether they can be applied in Singapore.

*64.
*64.

Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang: To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) whether the Ministry has data on the current percentage of workers living in dormitories who have a mattress to sleep on; and (b) if the information is not available, whether the Ministry can conduct a survey to get some baseline data.

*65.
*65.

Ms Carrie Tan: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development whether there can be a budget allocated to further subsidise the early childhood sector's manpower costs in order to raise salaries and uplift the quality of talent and care to children under the National Population and Talent Division's mandate.

*66.
*66.

Mr Ang Wei Neng: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) how many e-bike models have been approved to date and of these how many are additional new models that have been approved since January 2023; (b) in the past three years, how many e-bikes have been registered; (c) how many e-bikes are detected to be illegal; (d) how many riders are caught for not riding at approved places; and (e) how many accidents have been recorded.
* 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.

MINISTERIAL STATEMENTS 1.

2.

3.


Second Minister for Home Affairs: Minister of State for Trade and Industry (on behalf of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance): Second Minister for Finance and National Development: Singapore's Anti-Money Laundering Regime.

No.

113 3 OCTOBER 2023 8 AT THE COMMENCEMENT OF PUBLIC BUSINESS Introduction of Government Bills 1.

Minister for Law: Legal Profession (Amendment) Bill.

2.
2.

Minister for Trade and Industry: Economic Expansion Incentives (Relief from Income Tax) (Amendment) Bill.

(President's recommendation signified).

3.

Minister for Manpower: Central Provident Fund (Amendment) Bill.

ORDERS OF THE DAY 1.

2.

3.

Income Tax (Amendment) Bill [Bill No.

30/2023] – (Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance) – Second Reading.

Free Trade Zones (Amendment) Bill [Bill No.

29/2023] – (Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance) – Second Reading.
Societies (Amendment) Bill [Bill No.

31/2023] – (Minister for Home Affairs) – Second Reading.

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

Dr Syed Harun Alhabsyi (Nominated Member) : Strengthening Accessibility to Mental Healthcare.

QUESTIONS FOR WRITTEN ANSWER 1.

2.

3.

4.


Mr Don Wee: To ask the Prime Minister whether MAS requires SGX to have measures to detect ownership movements of foreign shares to foreigners who have securities accounts in Singapore and the encashment of the securities shortly after the shares are transferred to securities firms in Singapore.
Ms He Ting Ru: To ask the Prime Minister (a) how many postal ballots from overseas voters have been received after the deadline of 11 September 2023; (b) how many late arriving ballots have been postmarked before 1 September 2023; and (c) whether the ELD will consider having ballots delivered to appropriate embassies and consulates before being couriered back to Singapore for counting to reduce delivery time variances.
Ms Hazel Poa: To ask the Prime Minister what is the upper limit and lower limit of salaries for civil servants who are suspended on reduced pay.

Ms Hazel Poa: To ask the Prime Minister (a) since 2000, how many civil servants have been suspended on (i) full pay (ii) less than full pay but more than half pay (iii) half pay (iv) less than half pay but excluding those on no pay and (v) no pay; and (b) what is the basis of suspending on no pay.

No.

113 3 OCTOBER 2023 9 5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.


14.

15.

16.

Mr Desmond Choo: To ask the Prime Minister (a) with easier and increased access to overseas capital markets, how does the Singapore Exchange strengthen its competitiveness; and (b) what is the longer- term role of the Singapore Exchange in helping SMEs gain access to overseas capital markets.
Ms Hazel Poa: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance (a) whether the Government currently conducts a standardised training on procurement procedures for all officers across the Public Service; (b) if not, why not; (c) whether such standardised training will be able to prevent the recurrence of procurement-related lapses across the public sector.
Mr Murali Pillai: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance in light of the Government’s objective of transitioning Singapore into a climate-friendly nation through the Singapore Green Plan 2030, whether the duty of company directors set out in the Companies Act 1967 may be expanded to require directors to consider the impact of their company’s operations on the environment, as is done in the United Kingdom.
Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Minister for Defence (a) whether any Singapore delegation was sent to Myanmar to attend the ASEAN Air Chiefs Conference in Naypyidaw in September 2023; (b) if so, what is the rank or appointment of the most senior member of the Singapore delegation and the size of the delegation; and (c) what is the rationale behind the decision to send a video message from the Chief of Air Force for the event.
Mr Don Wee: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs whether the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority checks all hand-carried and checked baggage of travellers who arrive via private jets.

Mr Murali Pillai: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs what steps have been or are being put in place to prevent money launderers from purchasing luxury cars in Singapore to launder money.
Mr Desmond Choo: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) how has the Singapore Police Force incorporated artificial intelligence (AI) into its enforcement work; (b) whether this has led to improved outcomes; and (c) what is the future role of AI in policing.

Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs how many current prison inmates are Singaporeans aged 21 and above, are serving a sentence of 12 months or less, and have not been sentenced to the death penalty.
Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) what measures are in place to ensure that the air conditioning systems on the MRT trains are regularly maintained at a high standard; and (b) what is being done to prevent future refrigerant gas leaks and other air conditioning malfunction on the trains.
Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) whether the Government has data on the profitability of each public transport operator for each of the last three years; and (b) if so, what are their respective generated returns on invested capital.
Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) over the past five years, how many incidents have there been of flights departing from Singapore having to offload passenger baggage due to poor weather conditions; and (b) whether these incidents happen predominantly to budget airlines.
Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim: To ask the Minister for Transport in light of the future NS3A Brickland MRT station, what are the plans to increase transport connectivity, whether through feeder bus services or other means, for the residents in the Keat Hong and Brickland areas of Chua Chu Kang GRC.

No.

113 3 OCTOBER 2023 10 17.

18.

19.

20.

21.

22.

23.

24.

25.

26.


Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis: To ask the Minister for Transport (a) what are the considerations contemplated on the extensions of the (i) Electric Vehicle Early Adoption Incentive and (ii) Additional Registration Fee floor that will be effected from 1 January 2024; and (b) what are the considerations taken into account for the adjustments of the Vehicular Emissions scheme rebates that will take effect from 1 January 2024.
Ms Hazel Poa: To ask the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment (a) why did it take eight to 10 months after food poisoning incidents to downgrade the Food Hygiene ratings of food outlets in Nanyang Girls School and the Shangri-La Hotel; and (b) what is the usual range and median for such time intervals.
Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang: To ask the Minister for Education what is the percentage of schools and tertiary education institutions that currently have (i) a lactation room and (ii) a suitable room for nursing mothers to use, respectively.

Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development whether the Ministry is able to release the results, suitably anonymised if necessary, of the survey of preschool operators administered in the middle of 2022.
Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development and Minister- in-charge of Muslim Affairs to prevent the forgery or falsification of halal certificates issued by MUIS, whether the Ministry will consider setting up a system similar to the Authentic Court Order portal which verifies and authenticate all court orders issued by a Singapore court, so that anyone may verify the authenticity of a halal certificate immediately.
Mr Leong Mun Wai: To ask the Minister for Health (a) whether all patients in non-air-conditioned Class B2 and C wards in public hospitals can request for spot cooling; (b) whether the Ministry has temperature guidelines for such wards; (c) if not, why; and (d) what is the estimated annual cost of providing air- conditioning for all Class B2 and C wards in public hospitals.
Mr Yip Hon Weng: To ask the Minister for Health (a) whether the Ministry has data on how many youths are currently seeking counselling and mental health support after succumbing to scams; (b) as many young victims do not actively seek help, what is the potential size of this problem; (c) what support is available to help youths to open up about their problems; and (d) whether there are any collaborative efforts with the Ministry of Home Affairs to address the intertwined problems of scams and mental health distress.
Mr Yip Hon Weng: To ask the Minister for Health (a) whether loneliness among older adults is being recognised as a public health challenge in Singapore; (b) how does the Ministry intend to foster a national conversation on loneliness and encourage an environment where older adults feel comfortable seeking support for loneliness; and (c) how does the Ministry ensure that relationships and loneliness are considered in policy-making and delivery by organisations across society, to support and amplify the impact of organisations that are connecting people.
Miss Rachel Ong: To ask the Minister for Health (a) in each year from 2010 to 2022, what is the number of (i) medical doctors and (ii) specialists leaving public medical institutions for private practice; (b) what are the contributing factors, by proportion, to the movement of medical doctors from the public to private sector; (c) what measures are being taken to retain medical doctors in the public healthcare sector; and (d) whether a study on the effectiveness of these measures has been done.
Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim: To ask the Minister for National Development whether the Ministry has considered providing incentives, such as discounted rental, for coffeeshop operators who manage to replace their sole halal food stall with another halal vendor after the original vendor ceased operation during the tenancy period.

No.

113 3 OCTOBER 2023 11 27.

28.

29.

30.

31.

32.

33.


Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang: To ask the Minister for National Development for each year in the past five years, how many and what percentage of (i) offices and business parks of 10,000 sqm or more in gross floor area and (ii) mixed developments with non-residential component of above 10,000 sqm in gross floor area, had not complied with the provision on lactation rooms under BCA's Code on Accessibility in the Built Environment 2019, respectively.
Mr Christopher de Souza: To ask the Minister for Communications and Information with reference to the Wood Morning Singapore exhibition by a local toy company depicting children's cartoon characters and toys in what may be considered an inappropriate manner (a) whether a licence is required before such an exhibition can be held; (b) if so, whether a licence was issued for the said exhibition; and (c) if a licence was issued, why.
Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: To ask the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth (a) what mental health support is provided to Team Singapore athletes after they have retired from competitive sports; and (b) whether such support is extended to retired eSports athletes.
Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Manpower in view of increasing retrenchment numbers in recent months, particularly in the financial services and the information and communications sectors, how will the Ministry assist affected employees, especially the younger workers and those with low savings or heavy family financial commitments.
Mr Leong Mun Wai: To ask the Minister for Manpower in respect of scams siphoning out funds from CPF accounts (a) whether the CPF Board has a reimbursement framework or provides any assistance to such scam victims; (b) why has the CPF website not implemented security measures commonly implemented by banks, such as transaction limits and kill switches; and (c) whether the CPF Board will consider implementing security measures such as proactive screening and delays for high-risk transactions and allowing members to freeze online transactions.
Ms He Ting Ru: To ask the Minister for Manpower whether any action has been taken against employers who make accusations against migrant domestic workers that do not result in charges or who make false accusations, including being barred from hiring migrant domestic workers in the future.
Ms Hazel Poa: To ask the Minister for Manpower whether the Ministry will consider adopting the recent recommendations by the Humanitarian Organization for Migration Economics to (i) allow migrant domestic workers (MDWs) who are assisting in investigations or given stern warnings, to work (ii) provide live-out options for MDWs and (iii) allow MDWs to change employers with notice and, if not, why not.