Hansard, 1987-03-16

PERMISSION TO MEMBER TO BE ABSENT Under the provisions of clause 2(d) of Article 46 of the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore, the following Member has been granted permission to be or to remain absent from sittings of Parliament (or any Committee of Parliament to which he has been appointed) for the period stated:- Maj Fong Sip Chee (Kampong Chai Chee) - from 16th March to 5th April, 1987. YEOH GHIM SENG Speaker Parliament of Singapore

MAIN AND DEVELOPMENT ESTIMATES - (Announcement by Mr Speaker) In accordance with the provisions of paragraph (7) of Standing Order 87 and paragraph (5) of Standing Order 88, I have fixed the times for the conclusion of consideration of the heads of expenditure in the Main and Development Estimates of Expenditure for FY 1987/88 in the Committee of Supply. In the allocation of times, I have taken into consideration the extension of one extra hour on each day allotted for the Committee of Supply. These times have been notified to hon. Members and will appear in the Official Report. (Cols. 339 - 342) Committee of Supply - MAIN AND DEVELOPMENT ESTIMATES OF EXPENDITURE FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR 1ST APRIL, 1987 TO 31ST MARCH, 1988 (Cols. 339 - 342)

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) asked the Minister for National Development what acreage of land has been successfully tendered out for non-pollutive farming activities in Punggol due to the phasing out of small pig farms; how much land is still available; and when these parcels of land will be tendered out.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) Mr Speaker, Sir, I am answering on behalf of my Minister. Sir, a total of some 22 hectares of land have been vacated by small pig farmers in Punggol. Of this, 9 hectares are earmarked for HDB's development. Out of the remaining 13 hectares of land, 3 hectares have been tendered out for non-pollutive farming on a three-year tenancy agreement. The rest of the land will be tendered out over the next six months.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) Mr Speaker, Sir, could the Minister of State for National Development indicate as to how the rest of the land will be tendered out for non-pollutive farming, taking into consideration that much land has already been acquired and is now lying idle?

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) Mr Speaker, Sir, in my answer I touched on lands that were affected by the phasing out of small pig farmers in Punggol. The total land that is available in Punggol is much more than what is given in my answer. Our exercise on the use of these vacant land takes in land that were vacated prior to the phasing out of pig farming, and also land that were used for non-pig farming activities. We have included these land in various exercises for tenders on short-term leases to non-pollutive farmers. As a whole, we have tendered out about 25 hectares of other land which are available for non-pollutive pig farming. Various types of farming are being encouraged for these land and they include vegetable and food crop cultivation, orchid and ornamental flower cultivation, aquarium fish breeding, dog breeding and dog training, and turf production.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) In that case, Sir, could the Hon. Minister of State indicate how his Ministry will expedite and probably increase the tenure of lease so as to encourage the optimal use of such lands?

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) Mr Speaker, Sir, the land are being tendered out on short-term leases, three year-leases. I would agree with the Member for Punggol that if we could, we should extend the lease to make it more attractive. However, the pace of development in Singapore is such that it is very difficult at this point of time to envisage longer leases. In fact, out of the land that has been vacated by the small pig farmers, 9 hectares have already been set aside for early development by HDB and only 3 hectares have been taken up by farmers. It would be very difficult at this point of time to give a commitment that there will be longer leases for such land as development of this land is expected to take place shortly. At the present point of time we can only envisage a three-year lease.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) Supplementary question.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) Are you speaking on behalf of Punggol? The question raised is on Punggol.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) No. Supplementary question, please, Mr Speaker.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) All right.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) I want to ask the Minister of State a question in regard to pieces of land that are about to be tendered out and have been tendered out, and if I could stretch the question on Punggol to other parts of Singapore. These pieces of land were in the first place acquired from existing farmers. Existing farmers were driven out, Government acquired the land and then they were parcelled and then tendered out. Is that the correct position?

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) Mr Speaker, Sir, some of the land which are presently being tendered out for use on short-term leases are indeed lands that were previously used for farming. But these were farms which had caused pollution, for example, pig farms, and they could not be allowed to continue because of the pollution problem. As such, the farmers had to give up farming on these land and the land were reverted to the State. Since there is no immediate use for these land in terms of other developments, my Ministry has decided that we should, in the interim, allow those who are interested to use these lands for non-pollutive farming.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) Is the Minister of State saying that all the pieces of land that were acquired and subsequently parcelled out for tenders for farming again were all pollutive in nature and that was why they were acquired?

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) Sir, the lands that were acquired in Punggol were all lands which were used for pig farming before. There were also other lands which, as I have mentioned, were already vacant; they were not being used and these were acquired by the Government.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) Perhaps the Minister of State does not understand the thrust of my question. My question is basically this. These pieces of land that have been tendered out and about to be tendered out, were they originally taken compulsorily from existing farmers? Is that the position? The farmers were already there; you take their land and then you tender out at a higher price. Is that the position?

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) Mr Speaker, Sir, I have to repeat my answer. Not all the land were acquired from existing farmers. Some of the land were. As for those land which were already occupied by farmers, these were the farmers who were practising pollutive farming, for instance, pig farming, and therefore the Government had to acquire these farmlands and put it to other uses which would not cause problems of pollution.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) One more question. In regard to Punggol, if I am not wrong, the Government has, in fact, already asked those pig farmers in Punggol to install expensive devices to make pig farming non-pollutive. Is that not the position? The farmers have put in as much as a million dollars in capital to install them. And he says that they are pollutive.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) Mr Speaker, Sir, the question of pig farming has been debated in this House in 1984/1985. The decision to phase out pig farming in Punggol was taken in 1984.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) Just answer the question. You say that they were pollutive.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) Some of the pig farmers in Punggol have installed pollution treatment equipment. But these are necessary so long as they want to continue to farm, and those that have installed such expensive treatment equipment are still there at the present moment.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) But they were asked to leave, were they not?

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) None of them has been asked as of now to leave now. They are still there, farming. They know that the prospect of pig farming in Singapore is limited and that in the future they will have to be phased out.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) Question 2, Sir.

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) May I ask the Minister that if that is the position ---?

ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS - LAND FOR NON-POLLUTIVE FARMING IN PUNGGOL - (Particulars) Question No. 2 has been asked.

HDB RENTAL FLATS IN BO WEN CONSTITUENCY - (Retention of) asked the Minister for National Development whether adequate Housing and Development Board rental flats will be retained in Bo Wen Consti- tuency to meet the needs of those who, because of economic or other difficulties, cannot take advantage of HDB's relocation exercise.

HDB RENTAL FLATS IN BO WEN CONSTITUENCY - (Retention of) Mr Speaker, Sir, in Bo Wen Constituency, a total of 961 rental flats will be affected by the relocation exercise. 50% of the tenants are expected to purchase flats. Those who cannot afford to purchase will be given transfers to alternative rental flats in blocks not affected by relocation. In Bo Wen Constituency, 268 rental flats are to be retained under the present plan. If the vacancies are insufficient to cater to the affected tenants who want rental flats, they will be offered vacant flats in adjacent constituencies or nearby estates.

CAPITAL GRANT FOR AIDED SCHOOLS asked the Minister for Education whether the amount of capital grant for aided schools will be increased to 90 per cent.

CAPITAL GRANT FOR AIDED SCHOOLS Mr Speaker, Sir, I am replying on behalf of my Minister. The Ministry of Education has submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Finance on possible revisions to the capital grant assistance scheme for good aided schools. The proposal is being considered by the Ministry of Finance.

CAPITAL GRANT FOR AIDED SCHOOLS Mr Speaker, Sir, since the Hon. Minister of State has indicated that his Ministry is taking up this matter with the Ministry of Finance, does he not realize that, with greater improvements in standards of education, it does require more funds? And in this respect, Sir, how does the Ministry propose to convince the Ministry of Finance of the desperate and inevitable need of the aided schools to try and get more funds and therefore they should be more generous and accede to their request for more grants in aid?

CAPITAL GRANT FOR AIDED SCHOOLS Mr Speaker, Sir, I agree with the Member for Punggol that as a result of a higher standard of school buildings, in the past few years the cost of school buildings has gone up and, indeed, we have made this case to the Ministry of Finance in support of our proposal. I suggest to the Member for Punggol that he might want to raise this question with the Minister for Finance at the next occasion.

CAPITAL GRANT FOR AIDED SCHOOLS Mr Speaker, Sir, the Minister of State can be assured that I will take this matter up, but first of all, would not his Ministry exert or rather convince the Hon. Minister for Finance of the desperate and inevitable need of these mission schools that in order to have higher standard of educational facilities,such capital grants should be forthcoming?

CAPITAL GRANT FOR AIDED SCHOOLS Mr Speaker, Sir, we are doing all we can.

SINGLE SESSION SCHOOLS - (Progress of implementation) asked the Minister for Education what progress has been made so far in the implementation of single session schools for secondary education.

SINGLE SESSION SCHOOLS - (Progress of implementation) Mr Speaker, Sir, in January 1986 a pilot project was initiated in 20 schools to study in detail how the Single Session System could benefit the pupils and the operational difficulties that might be encountered. The results of the pilot project were reported in the Schools Council Meeting on 10 January this year. It is clear that the single session system will result in major benefits for schools, such as more time and opportunity for remedial work, ECA and other things. The Ministry has therefore decided to implement the single session in all schools beginning with the secondary schools. The implementation of the single session system will be done in phases.

SINGLE SESSION SCHOOLS - (Progress of implementation) Does the Minister of State not think that it is more important to have small classes first rather than to have single session schools with big classes? What is the position?

SINGLE SESSION SCHOOLS - (Progress of implementation) Mr Speaker, Sir, a number of things were raised in discussions with principals and parents at the recent forums conducted by the Minister for Education. I think the Member for Potong Pasir should wait until the Minister has the opportunity to tell the House the response of the Ministry to the various points, including class sizes.

SINGLE SESSION SCHOOLS - (Progress of implementation) Sir, I think this question of smaller classes in our schools today is a genuine pressing problem. I am not bringing up this question just for the sake of bringing it up. It is a pressing problem and I brought this matter up more than once in this House. But nothing concrete has been done. Perhaps the Minister could give some kind of a commitment, whether or not some concret steps have been taken to reduce the number of pupils, say, to 30 for a start.

SINGLE SESSION SCHOOLS - (Progress of implementation) I suggest that he wait until Thursday or Friday when the Minister for Education will make his statement on these matters.

MRT FARE STRUCTURES asked the Minister for Communications and Information whether the Mass Rapid Transit Corporation, in determining the fare structures, will consider (i) a one-fare sytem which will allow interchangeability in the mode of travel from bus to MRT train or vice versa to destination at fares affordable to commuters and (ii) concessional fares for senior citizens and the underprivileged.

MRT FARE STRUCTURES Mr Speaker, Sir, with your permission, I shall be making a Ministerial Statement on the progress of the MRT. May I request the Member for Changi to ask his questions after the statement?

MURDER AND ROBBERY - (Figures involving foreigners) asked the Minister for Home Affairs (a) what was the number of murders and firearm robberies committed from January 1986 up to the latest available date and how many of them were committed by foreigners; and (b) what measures are being taken to ensure that criminals from foreign countries will not enter Singapore.

MURDER AND ROBBERY - (Figures involving foreigners) Mr Speaker, Sir, I am answering on behalf of my Minister. Sir, the number of murders committed during the period January 1986 to 4th March 1987 was 73. 40 cases were solved to date, and of these, 12 cases were committed by foreigners. The number of firearm robberies reported during the period January 1986 to 3rd March 1987 was 19. Of these, 4 cases have been solved and only 1 case was committed by foreigners. The various enforcement agencies like the Police and the Central Narcotics Bureau work very closely with each other and the Immigration Department to identify and prevent foreign criminals from entering Singapore. Identities of notorious criminals are established through investigations or through the exchange of information with enforcement agencies of other countries. Such criminals are barred from entering Singapore. In addition, foreigners convicted of serious criminal offences in Singapore are repatriated and prohibited from re-entry after their release from prison. Our tough laws and effective Police enforcement also act as deterrents.

MURDER AND ROBBERY - (Figures involving foreigners) Sir, how many of these foreign criminals mentioned by the Minister of State are also work permit holders?

MURDER AND ROBBERY - (Figures involving foreigners) Mr Speaker, Sir, out of the 19 foreigners who were involved in murder cases in 1986, 9 of them were on work permits.

NEIGHBOURHOOD POLICE POST IN JALAN KAYU asked the Minister for Home Affairs when a neighbourhood police post or posts will be provided in Jalan Kayu Constituency.

NEIGHBOURHOOD POLICE POST IN JALAN KAYU Sir, the two neighbourhood police posts in Jalan Kayu Constituency are scheduled for 1989. However, the Police will try to have them ready by 1988.

NEIGHBOURHOOD POLICE POST IN JALAN KAYU Supplementary questions, Sir. (1) How many constituencies already have neighbourhood police posts? (2) Are there already any constituencies with more than one neighbourhood police post? (3) If so, how many? (4) Since the original schedule for building NPPs was drawn up, has the original order of establishment been changed? (5) On what basis was this original schedule drawn up?

NEIGHBOURHOOD POLICE POST IN JALAN KAYU Mr Speaker, Sir, the neighbourhood police post scheme was designed to achieve a target of 91 posts throughout all the constituencies in Singapore. I believe, as of now, more than 50 have been implemented. The Member wants to know how many constituencies have more than one neighbourhood police post. As at present, there are two constituencies which have more than one neighbourhood police post. But the final plan envisages 12 constituencies to have more than one neighbourhood police post. Presently, the two constituencies which have more than one neighbourhoold police post are Thomson and Serangoon Garden Constituencies. Sir, the Member's next question is whether the schedule for implementation of neighbourhood police posts has been changed. The original schedule which was drawn up in 1983 has over the years been reviewed to meet with the changes in development which have taken place in between. For instance, the emphasis on the development of certain new towns which were not formulated prior to 1983. The Member wants to know the basis for this order of implementation. In formulating the neighbourhood police post scheme, the Police had to take into consideration several factors. This includes the rate and the locality of public housing developments. Priority has to be given to constituencies which have established major public housing estates. For constituencies which have new town development, the construction of NPPs will be incorporated into the new town as it is being built. This is because the early establishment of NPPs in a new town will help to foster a closer relationship between the Police and the residents. And it is also from Police experience that during the early days of a new town's development, it is vital to enhance the sense of security among the new residents. The other factor which has to be considered is whether constituencies without intensive public housing estates should take precedence in the schedule of implementation. Generally, the Police felt that these constituencies without the high density public housing development should be accorded lower priority. This is because private residential estates, unlike the high-rise public housing estates, can be adequately covered by bicycle and divisional police car patrols. Lastly but not least, the Police have also to consider the availability of trained manpower in order to staff the neighbourhood police posts. Each neighbourhood police post requires a minimum of about 20 trained officers. And these are not just officers who are trained in the normal police work but officers who have received extra training by way of better inter-personal relationships to be able to deal with the public who come to the NPPs. Given the manpower constraint within the Police Force, we can only manage to establish about 14-15 neighbourhood police posts per year and the implementation will therefore have to be phased out accordingly.

NEIGHBOURHOOD POLICE POST IN JALAN KAYU Sir, given the manpower constraint, if certain new things come up, eg, during the Committee of Supply, will the Minister of State reconsider the order of the queue? Because we do understand that you cannot set up all the NPPs at once but I am just talking about the order of the queue.

NEIGHBOURHOOD POLICE POST IN JALAN KAYU Mr Speaker, Sir, as I have said earlier on, the Police are always reviewing the schedule of implementation for the NPPs and will take into consideration any new factor which the Member for Jalan Kayu is able to bring up.

ANG MO KIO POLYCLINIC - (Upgrading of facilities) asked the Acting Minister for Health whether his Ministry has any plans to upgrade the facilities of Ang Mo Kio Polyclinic.

ANG MO KIO POLYCLINIC - (Upgrading of facilities) Mr Speaker, Sir, the Ang Mo Kio Polyclinic, commissioned five years ago, was built as a modern polyclinic. It is the Ministry's policy to regularly upgrade its facilities to meet the needs of the general public. As part of the upgrading of Ang Mo Kio Polyclinic, a computerized patient management system is being planned and will be installed by 1988 at the clinic. New equipment will also be acquired as and when necessary to meet the needs of the patients.

ANG MO KIO POLYCLINIC - (Upgrading of facilities) Sir, as the Polyclinic is being overused, what steps are being taken to cut down the waiting time at the Polyclinic?

ANG MO KIO POLYCLINIC - (Upgrading of facilities) Mr Speaker, Sir, part of the problem with the peak load is that many of the patients tend to arrive at the Polyclinic in the early hours of the morning between 8 and 9.30 am. What happens is that patients on their way to the market will drop in at the Polyclinic or bring along with them their children who are sick. This adds up to a tremendous peak load, which is very hard to overcome. What the Polyclinic staff do is to explain to the patients that they should try to come at all times of the day rather than to come all at the same time. However, recognizing that there is a problem with the queuing time, my Ministry is planning to send another doctor to the Ang Mo Kio Polyclinic later this year.

NOISE POLLUTION IN HDB ESTATES asked the Minister for National Development whether noise pollution is a serious problem in Housing and Development Board Estates and whether stricter rules will be introduced to control noise pollution.

NOISE POLLUTION IN HDB ESTATES Mr Speaker, Sir, in high-rise community living, it must be appreciated that a certain amount of noise is inevitable. In the case of HDB estates, the sources of noise are major roads and expressways, nearby construction sites, commercial premises, markets and hawker centres, and functions carried out in the void decks. Noise pollution from these sources can generally be controlled through various planning and management measures. However, excessive noise generated by residents themselves is harder to eliminate. The HDB will work closely with grassroots organizations such as RCs to advise and counsel residents against generating excessive noise. But residents themselves must be more considerate and cooperative with their neighbours. They must take simple measures to make high-rise living more pleasant such as restraining their dogs from barking and keeping the volume of their TV or radio sets low. The HDB will be glad to receive suggestions from residents and grassroots organizations on what kind of stricter rules can be formulated, how these can be enforced with minimum cost to themselves and the type of punitive measures that can be introduced.

NOISE POLLUTION IN HDB ESTATES Sir, with regard to noise disturbance from neighbours in the HDB estates, what further action is being taken by the HDB in those cases where the recalcitrant residents refuse to cooperate and take heed of friendly advice or warning letters from the HDB?

NOISE POLLUTION IN HDB ESTATES Sir, the present procedure is that when the HDB receives a complaint, they do go to the house complained against and they counsel the owner. They speak to him, and this is done many times. As far as I am aware, nobody has yet been evicted from his flat for making noise that bothers his neighbours. But as I said, this is a difficult problem because some of the problems are in blocks comprising purchased flats, and eviction, of course, is not a simple process. That is why I said that this is a community problem and we will be glad to discuss with community leaders and residents themselves what they think will be a fair method of dealing with this problem. The easiest thing, of course, will be to pass legislation that if there are more than three or four or X number of complaints against a particular family, the flat can be repossessed. But I do not think we should resort to such a simple administrative solution at this stage. We are always open to discussing with community organizations as to what more can be done in this respect.

NOISE POLLUTION IN HDB ESTATES End of Question Time. Ministerial Statement, Dr Yeo Ning Hong.

PROGRESS REPORT ON THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE MRT SYSTEM - (Statement by the Minister for Communications and Information) 11.30 am