Hansard, 2006-03-02

Under the provisions of clause 2(d) of Article 46 of the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore, the following Members have been granted permission to be or to remain absent from sittings of Parliament (or any Committee of Parliament to which they have been appointed) for the periods stated: Name From (2006) To (2006) Mrs Lim Hwee Hua 07 Mar 07 Mar 09 Mar 10 Mar Dr Vivian Balakrishnan 13 Mar 17 Mar

ABDULLAH TARMUGI Speaker Parliament of Singapore

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

1. Mr Steve Chia Kiah Hong asked the Minister for Health (a) whether there has been an increase in flu infections over the last three months and if this is normal for this period of time; and (b) if so, whether this rise in flu infections is caused by any virus closely or remotely related to the H5N1 strain.

Mr Speaker, Sir, in Singapore, influenza viruses circulate all year round. But over two periods every year, there would normally be an increase in influenza incidence: April to July and November to January. They roughly correspond to the southern winter and northern winter respectively.

Influenza A is the predominant circulating influenza virus here. In the last three months, its incidence peaked in the first week of January 2006, when 5.7% of all patients who presented with Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI) tested positive for Influenza A. This rate of 5.7% is, in fact, lower than the corresponding figure of 17.9% in 2004 or 7.0% in 2005.

So far, H3N2 - this is the Hong Kong flu that caused an epidemic in 1968 - and H1N1, the infamous Spanish flu which caused a major problem for the world in 1918, have been the influenza virus subtypes in circulation. To date, H5N1 has not been identified in Singapore, whether among humans or birds.

Sir, anecdotal evidence from many people I talked to tells me that this is a very strong virus, and people are suffering very badly from the cough. It seems that this is something different. Is there a special medicine for this? Or is it something that normal medicine is able to cure the flu?

Sir, I wonder where did Mr Chia get his anecdotes from because, fortunately, there is no H5N1 yet in Singapore. He may have friends in Indonesia or Vietnam, but most of them who got it have died. The symptoms are the usual flu and severe pneumonia with many complications. The fatality rate is high. I think the recorded cases in about seven countries is more than 100. The fatality rate is more than half.

So this is a serious problem. Fortunately, for human beings, the problem remains one that largely affects the animals. There is now a world pandemic. We see it in Germany, Turkey, Africa, among the birds. It remains among the birds. The risk is that one day, the virus will mutate and become much more infectious - spreading from human to human. And that is why all of us have to quickly gear up and we have been doing so, like any other country.

Sir, today's Straits Times has an article advising the shut-down of businesses and Government in the event of a pandemic when the virus is able to transfer to humans. Is the Government prepared for such a contingency to shut-down the whole Government, all systems and all companies in the event of such a pandemic? Are we prepared for this? What are the likely consequences of such a shut-down?

Sir, preparations take the form of the Flu Pandemic Preparedness Plan which, by now, practically all countries would have it. We have been refining our Plan for a couple of years now, and it is fully published in the website. Like all plans, you can never be fully prepared, because while the risk now is H5N1, when it happens, will it actually be H5N1 or some other virus? Nature has a way to surprise. But there are certain generic principles which we can follow to gear up as much as we can. And we will continue to refine our plan. We have, in fact, discussed it in this House not too many months ago in response to some Members' query.

My own assessment is this. I think our own domestic preparation plan is as good as one can get. But in the last few months, we have devoted our energy to work upstream, on the preventive aspects. And it is possible to prevent it. The world has a window to prevent this disaster from happening, but it requires cooperation from many countries, especially those with large agricultural sectors. That is why we work with our neighbours. In fact, Members would have read and I have spoken about it in this House that we are doing a major project helping Indonesia, working not just between our two countries but involving America and many other countries. In fact, they are right now in town to discuss this pilot project, and I am meeting them tonight.

Last supplementary question, Mr Chia.

Sir, now that a lot of poultry are affected in many other countries, should citizens make a conscious effort to avoid chickens and ducks in the meantime?

Sir, although I eat very little meat, I continue to occasionally eat Kentucky fried chickens. This H5N1 reminds me of the SARS virus. While it is fearsome when it spreads, it is easily killed outside of a host. At a temperature of 60 degrees, I think, the virus is killed. Therefore, if the chicken is properly cooked, eggs are properly boiled, the risk is almost zero. Therefore, when Singaporeans travel overseas, just stay away from chicken farms and wet markets where slaughtering continues. When we stopped the slaughtering of poultry in wet markets 15 years ago, there was a lot of unhappiness coming from housewives. But what an important contribution it has made to our public health. It has reduced significantly this risk.

Sir, the Minister indicated that at a temperature of 60 degrees or so, it will be very safe. Many eateries are still serving half-boiled eggs. I wonder whether it is good for us to issue an advisory for Singaporeans to avoid half-boiled eggs.

Sir, I personally do not think that is necessary because our AVA is very vigilant. Last fortnight when a case cropped up in Malaysia - kampong chickens were infected with H5N1 - they moved at a fast speed to reduce the risk. For the past two years, they have been inspecting farms in Malaysia and making sure that the chicken farms which export to us are properly bio-secured. The risk therefore is very low, as we only import chickens from these areas. In Singapore, a large proportion of our eggs are locally supplied, and AVA has made sure that our farms in Singapore are properly bio-secured. Unless you start smuggling eggs from I do not know where, I think it is quite safe to continue eating your boiled eggs.

The following Question stood in the name of Mr Leong Horn Kee -

2. To ask the Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts in view of the announcement made by the Government to provide ultra high-speed broadband and wireless Internet connections for the whole of Singapore, whether his Ministry will consider issuing in future an individual email account for every student, working adult and active Singaporean interested in Internet usage so as to facilitate the conveyance of school materials, business communications, Government information and notices among people.

Question No. 2, Sir.

Mr Speaker, Sir, Singapore already has one of the highest Internet access and infocomm savvy population in the world. The Infocomm Development Authority's latest Annual Survey of Infocomm Usage in Households and by Individuals shows that 66% of households enjoy Internet access. Over three-quarters of companies made use of the Internet. Singaporeans are Internet-savvy and sophisticated in our Internet usage with 61% of Singapore's resident population aged 15 years and above using the Internet regularly. Email is the top Internet application used. About 94% surveyed said that they used email. This means that a high percentage of our people already have an existing email account. Of these accounts, some may be personal paid accounts offered by access service providers such as SingNet or Pacific Internet, personal free accounts obtained from providers such as Google and Yahoo, or accounts issued by MINDEF, schools and their employers. In fact, many Singaporeans have more than one email account.

Does the Government need to compete against existing service providers in issuing and maintaining email accounts for every Singaporean? To do so, the Government will need to expend additional resources in hardware, software and manpower.

The case supporting the potential benefit from such free email accounts is not strong. From focus group discussions conducted by IDA, individuals have generally expressed their preference to use their existing personal email accounts rather than a new Government-issued email account. This could be because many people already have a problem managing multiple accounts for both personal use and their work.

Process-wise, we cannot assume that every Singaporean will diligently access the Government issued email accounts to maintain direct communications with the Government agencies, such as the IRAS or CPF. This means that the Government will still need to continue with its current efforts to communicate with Singaporeans through a variety of media and also private communication channels. Hence, while email communication may be instantaneous and technically efficient, in practice, taking such an approach may not significantly affect public communications between the Government and the people.

Nevertheless, Government will continue to evaluate the various ways through which we can communicate more effectively with Singaporeans, taking into consideration practicality, cost effectiveness and customers' usage patterns and preferences.

Sir, a supplementary question for the Minister regarding the ultra high-speed broadband service. What is the estimated speed that we are looking at and at what cost? Also, will consumers be tied down with two to three years' contract with the service providers once the system is up, like what we are experiencing now? Consumers are all tied down? Are we expected to be tied down?

Mr Speaker, Sir, with regard to the next generation infocomm infrastructure, which the Prime Minister announced in his Budget Statement, I seek the Member's patience. As the Prime Minister has said, the details will be announced during the Committee of Supply.

On his other point about consumers being tied down to the various packages, I do not think that is an accurate reflection. Today, there are many different packages being offered by Internet service providers. The consumers have a wide range of choices. It is really up to them to choose a package that they feel is appropriate or suitable for their needs. Today, we have dial-up packages that go for as low as only $5.20 per month. And for broadband, we have packages that are as low as $19.90 per month, with limits to the data that can be accessed or downloaded. There are also daily plans going for as low as below $3 a day. In fact, the consumers do have a range of choices. Each comes with its own terms and conditions. So the Member cannot say that consumers are tied down. Having decided

to adopt a particular plan, you go along with the conditions that you have agreed to. But it is not as if all service providers (or ISPs) are providing only fixed plans, minimum three or five years. There is a whole range of options available to Internet users and it is really up to them to choose the plan that is most appropriate to their requirements and needs.

Last question for you, Mr Chia.

Thank you, Sir. My experience and research tell me that that is not the case. We are all tied down, depending on the terms of contract for the services. If you do not accept the terms of contract by the service provider, you have to pay a very high price. That is why I terminated my Singnet account because they refused to give me a monthly contract but a minimum contract of one year, which I disagreed. So we are being tied down. That is something that I want to clarify with the Minister.

Mr Speaker, Sir, the Member's personal experience does not nullify my point, which is that there is a whole range of service packages available. It is up to you to choose. If you want a daily package, some companies will offer you a daily package. If you want a monthly package, they will do so. If you want a monthly package for one year, two or three years, they will offer it to you. So it is up to you to decide which one you want.

End of Question time.

Order read for consideration in Committee of Supply [2nd Allotted Day].

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

Head P - Ministry of Home Affairs (cont.)

Resumption of Debate on Question [1st March, 2006],

"That the total sum to be allocated for Head P of the Estimates be reduced by $100." - [Ms Indranee Rajah].

Question again proposed.

Checkpoints

Sir, I have two points to make. One is on the checkpoint and the other one is on traffic jams at that checkpoint.

Sir, there is a need to tighten the security at Woodlands Checkpoint. Recently, there were two murderers who escaped from Singapore to Malaysia by just slipping through the Woodlands Checkpoint. I wonder if a terrorist can do the same after letting off a bomb in Singapore.

The second point is on the traffic jams at the Woodlands Checkpoint. Sir, I had complained of this last year and I believe the Minister promised to deploy more manpower there. Anyone, having travelled through the Checkpoint, will notice that the jams are still there. They are very crowded especially during peak hours. But I notice that during the peak hours, many of the check-in booths were left vacant and empty. I wonder whether they can be manned with manpower.

Handling the Young

Sir, recently the Police announced that it would check on teenagers who are found loitering on the streets after 11.00 pm. The aim of this move, according to the Police, is to reduce the incidence of crime amongst young people. I think the aim is a good one but somehow this has caused some unease amongst the people who are affected, namely, the young people, and they are unhappy about the Police playing the role of nanny. Many of them resent the notion of being stopped by the Police and being checked on although, as we know, the Police have a right to check on everyone, young and old.

As a parent, I too would be concerned if my own children were to be wandering aimlessly on the streets late at night. But I think that young people have a point when they start to think that the Police action will amount to an infringement on their personal freedom. The police announcement conjures up notions of Gestapo-like checks on young people and sweeping them off the streets after 11.00 pm, and I attribute this misunderstanding on the part of young people to poor communication by the Police of what is basically a good intention. It was only when the Police clarified some days later that it was never intended to be what was obviously a misconception that perceptions changed. But I think the Police would have to go beyond merely placating young people by words now. It would have to show by its action that it will be discerning in its search and queries so that its image is not damaged in the eyes of young people.

A clear communication of good intentions is a must, especially when we are dealing with young people. It brings to my mind the recent incident when the Police warned a group of schoolgirls about selling T-shirts with elephants printed on them at a fund-raising event and wearing them en masse. My first reaction on hearing about this was that this was something unbelievable. What is wrong with selling white T-shirts with elephants on them, just because they were seen to be symbolising the unhappiness over the delay in opening Buangkok Station? After all, other organisations also have their members wearing white and white, no doubt without elephants. Sir, it took no less than the Minister himself - and I am glad he did it quickly - to say that the Police action was wrong. And as my colleague, Mr Charles Chong, pointed out, it was just a no brainer on the part of the Police. If not for this clarification being made quickly, I think the Police might have just lost some credibility.

Sir, society is loosening up. Young people nowadays behave differently from those of my generation. It is just a loosening up of society that we are all going through. What adults may view as loitering on the part of the young, the young consider that they are merely, what they say, hanging out or chilling out with their friends. It is probably a harmless activity, and we must therefore adopt a balanced approach. Where they have done wrong, we have to take necessary steps, and the best way is preventive action through education, and that is the job of parents and teachers. Tell them that crime does not pay. But a knee-jerk approach in handling the problem may in the end cause more harm than good. Sir, I think what we need to do is to show young people that the law is with them, not against them.

Curfew on Youths

Sir, in the past, the Police used to organise Boys' Club. I think that is a very good thing rather than putting a curfew on the youths of today. The Boys' Club, I think, is more meaningful. They can keep the boys away from the streets and also keep them away from doing mischief. The Boys' Club can teach these boys social skills. I think this Boys' Club should be revived rather than to impose curfew on the youths, which, I believe, is counter-productive.

Mr Wee Siew Kim is not here. Mr Loh Meng See.

Foreign Workers

Sir, on the subject of foreign workers, I wish to ask the Ministry of Home Affairs to exercise restraint in the issue of liquor licence to provision shop outlets operating 24 hours and even coffeeshops in housing estates. I would also like to ask MHA to provide a channel for the grassroots organisations and the community to be able to raise objections to the issue of liquor licence in the housing estates.

Sir, in my constituency in the Beach Road area, the problem has worsened with foreign workers congregating there, and residents are very unhappy because of their excessive drinking, getting into fights, making lots of noise and disturbing the peace. They also urinate and litter, posing health concerns to our people. And what is developing is that the locals are also taking up to the drinking habit, especially with the cheap liquor available. Two years ago, we were able to persuade the Liquor Licensing Board to stop the renewal of the liquor licence but they have since revived it and allowed it to continue. I believe the social cost far outweighs the liberal attitude that we adopt in making alcohol, especially the cheap ones, available. The young and the locals are beginning to get hooked in the drinking habit.

Sir, we will not want to have a situation whereby alcohol is purchased and people are drinking in the streets, five-foot-ways and common areas. In fact, this is something that is not the desired situation that we want. People can enjoy their drinks in the privacy of their homes and in places that are not in common areas. And I think this is a trend that we want to stop.

Sir, yesterday, most of the MPs had spoken. And among those who were not here yesterday, an opportunity for them to speak was given this morning. From the English press reports, I notice that the emphasis seems to be on crime, KPIs and related issues concerning the Police. I want to deal with this first, although it is not the most important subject today that we have to deal with, particularly looking at the security situation that we face. But I want to get this subject over with so that I can explain to Members how to look at this issue of crime, KPIs and related issues from the proper perspective. I will then spend a bit of time talking about the more important subject, which is security, terrorism, counter-terrorism and how to prepare ourselves in the event of such a bomb explosion happening in Singapore. My Senior Minister of State and Senior Parliamentary Secretary will then answer specifically some of the other issues raised by Members.

Sir, a number of MPs have asked about the crime situation. While crime remains an area of the Ministry's work, let us not lose focus on the seriousness of the terrorism situation that we continue to face. That said, let me now get into the details of this overall crime situation.

Yes, there has been an increase in crime rate by 19.9%, almost 20%, from 30,620 cases in 2004 to 36,700 cases in 2005. And I do feel that this increase is alarming. But if we were to examine the types of crime which have seen an increase, we will note that many of these crimes need not have happened, had the victims been more careful and vigilant. Many crimes were opportunistic in nature and could have been prevented if the victims were more responsible in taking care of their belongings.

The bulk of the increase in crime rate can be attributed to minor theft and related offences, such as theft in dwelling and other theft. Handphone crime featured prominently in the increases for several offences, most notably robbery, snatch theft and other theft.

Mr Ahmad Khalis has rightly pointed out that there has been a significant increase in cheating and related offences, housebreaking and snatch theft. The increase in cheating and related offences is due in part to a rise in cases of criminal breach of trust. Many of these involved handphones. A typical example is that of a culprit who fails to return the victim's handphone after borrowing it. They will say, “May I borrow your phone?�?, and they will walk away, or run.

12.30 pm

On housebreaking, there was an increase of some 230 cases, from 1,240 in 2004 to 1,470 cases in 2005.

There was also an increase of 48 house-breaking involving culprits who gained entry through unsecured windows or doors. There was no sign of tampering of the premises. This suggests that the residents themselves had failed to secure their premises before they left their homes or before they went to sleep. Such crimes can be avoided if they take care to ensure their homes are well secured. Home-owners can prevent such crimes by installing alarm system to deter housebreakers and when it sounds, even if they are not at home, the neighbours can be alerted and I am sure would-be house-breakers would take precaution and run away. In 2005, there were 23 serial house-breakers arrested for a total of 257 cases, compared to 28 serial house-breakers arrested for 208 cases in 2004.

Mr Khalis asked if there are special efforts to rehabilitate such serial offenders. While Prison does not have special rehabilitation programmes for serial house-breakers, it will customise the rehabilitation programmes based on the individual and his level of needs and the risk of offending. The programmes address the offenders' criminal thinking that causes offending behaviours and also help to impart pro-social life skills to them.

As for snatch theft, where a person's belonging is forcibly snatched away from him, cases involving handphones have increased from 160 in 2004 to 280 in 2005. These 280 cases accounted for 45% of the snatch theft cases in 2005. Of particular concern are cases that target the handphones of young victims, which have increased from 50 cases to 93 cases in 2005. Robbery and theft cases involving handphones remain a key area of concern for the Police. The number of such cases increased significantly by 42% to 4,830 cases in 2005. This is due to the higher mobile phone penetration rate in Singapore, thereby giving to a larger pool of potential victims. Do you know how many handphone subscribers there are in Singapore? 4.3 million. So we must look at roughly 5,000 cases in the perspective of almost 4.3 million handphone subscribers in Singapore.

Similarly, just looking back at the years of the 1950s, I am sure we will find bicycle thefts were high because those were the days we travelled on a bicycle. But today, possibly bicycle thefts are not of the same significance compared to handphones. In the 1950s, it would be zero handphone theft because no handphone was available.

Sir, on KPIs, the increase in theft and related offences, especially in relation to handphones, is one of the reasons for the increase in the number of seizable offences, as reflected in the KPIs of MHA in the Budget book. Another key reason for this increase is more intensive Police enforcement against drink driving, which reflects the Home Team's commitment to keep our roads safe.

Now, I will address Mr Low Thia Khiang's and Mr Charles Chong's query about the Ministry's KPI indicators specifically. May I say that, except for an increase in the crime trend, the Home Team has met, if not exceeded, most of its key performance targets for FY 2004, and is expected to do as well for 2005 despite heightened security demands and limited resources.

As regards the targets set for the indicators, I should point out that, among the targets for key performance indicators mentioned by Mr Low, two of them were actually revised upwards, not downwards, in 2004. For the "percentage of urgent cases responded to within 15 minutes", the target was revised from 85% to 87%, while the target of "percentage of non-urgent cases responded to within 30 minutes" was raised from 85% to 90%. The upward adjustment was due in part to the sustained period of good performance. While the actual performances on these two indicators from FY03 to FY05 had declined as reflected in the Budget book, they had actually exceeded the performance targets that we set. The targets then set were much lower than 90%. It was adjusted to 90% in 2004 and 2005.

Despite heightened security demands, we have kept these two targets constant since FY04, and we have thus projected at 87% and 90% respectively for FY06. In addition, the target for "percentage of 999 calls answered within 10 seconds" has remained constant and was not adjusted downwards. It remains at a stringent 90% between FY03 and FY05. Although the actual performance for this target actually declined slightly from 99% in FY03 to 97.4% in FY05, which was just a 1.6% point difference, it still exceeded the target set at 90%. So, if you read the data carefully, we are comparing the actual performance in FY03/04 and the target performance in FY05. The target performance actually was just at 90%. We have far exceeded that target and reached 99% and 97.5%. For FY05, it is 90%, and it may hit more than 90%. We will wait for the final figure. I think MPs have therefore misunderstood in their reading of the MHA's KPIs. Notwithstanding this, we will continue to do our best to improve the performance vis-a-vis the targets we have set.

Mr Low also asked if there has been a compromise on our neighbourhood security due to the focus on counter-terrorism and the hosting of high profile international events, like the International Monetary Fund and World Bank meetings. Let me assure Members that we will continue to pay close attention to neighbourhood community policing and security. The Home Team has been able to manage its limited resources effectively so that we can balance the different competing demands while maintaining a high level of operational readiness and effectiveness.

While the headcount policy does impose some constraints on the Police - the Government has a headcount policy which we are also affected - we have been able to manage it quite well. In fact, we are able to manage the increase in demand because of the corporatisation of CISCO. The CISCO was corporatised with effect from last year which means that the spare headcount there could be added on to the MHA headcount. As such, we have kept the manpower resources in the Police relatively stable, at about 8,000 regular Police officers. If we include the National Service and the non-uniformed component because we also have civilian posts in the Police, the Police's strength has actually increased from 35,500 in 2001 to 37,200 in 2005.

Ultimately, what matters is not just having a ubiquitous and pervasive Police presence but the effectiveness of the policing strategy. This is translated into the sense of security that people feel when they walk around Singapore. Safety and security are very valued dimensions in the quality of life in Singapore. In the first nationwide Safety and Security Survey conducted in October 2004, 83% of the respondents felt safe in the neighbourhood they lived in and 70% did not see crime as a problem. Foreigners have consistently provided feedback. They are amazed at how safe they feel when walking on the streets of Singapore in the wee hours of the morning. And they find this all the more impressive because they do not see an overwhelming Police presence. I have met people coming from America who asked me, "How is it we don't see the Police even though Singapore is called a police state by their newspapers?" I have friends coming from Hong Kong who asked me, "How is it that Singapore's crime rate is so low and yet we don't see the Police officers?" That is something quite remarkable because our people play their role and people feel safe, and the Police is effective.

Let me now turn to the gun-related incidents that Ms Indranee Rajah referred to, and Mr Chiam also touched on it. From the data that we have had for the past five years on firearm offences, it appears that the recent gun-related incidents are isolated incidents. Between 2001 and 2005, there were only two cases of firearm offences, one in 2002 and the other in 2003.

While we need not be overly concerned about the violent crimes involving firearms becoming a serious problem in Singapore, we will continue nevertheless to be vigilant and maintain our tough and zero-tolerance stance towards firearm offences. This is backed by the Arms Offences Act, which prescribes heavy punishment, including the death penalty, for offenders convicted of trafficking in arms and committing or attempting to commit scheduled offences with arms.

On the question of loan sharks, which both Dr Tan Boon Wan and Mr Charles Chong mentioned, this is another crime which has an impact on the overall law and order situation in Singapore. Unlicensed moneylending or loan-sharking is a problem perceived by people to be serious. But let me put this in perspective again. Dr Tan Boon Wan asked what is the situation now after the amendments in the Moneylenders Act, which came into force this year. So far, seven people have been charged under the new Moneylenders Act for unlicensed moneylending with two of them also facing additional charges of harassment. Since last year, Police has conducted many operations and, since January this year, Police has conducted three successful operations which led to the arrest of 36 people. Cash amounting to almost $170,000 was seized together with notebooks, desktop computers and mobile phones. These operations have been made possible because the Police has centralised and beefed up its intelligence and enforcement resources under the Anti-Unlicensed Moneylending Taskforce at the Criminal Investigation Department to tackle this scourge.

Sir, the process of taking down an unlicensed moneylending syndicate, or any criminal syndicate for that matter, for example, drug trafficking, requires detailed and lengthy investigations and intelligence gathering. So it will take some time before we can see the full effect of the enhanced efforts to tackle this problem. I say we are making good progress and the overall assessment is that the enhanced penalties under the Moneylenders Act, the use of the Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) Act, our policy of cancelling passports of convicted or detained higher-tier loan sharks as well as the more intensive enforcement actions by the Police are beginning to have an impact on the ground. Police is also working with the relevant agencies, such as the Law Ministry, the Housing and Development Board and the MAS, to deal with the problem comprehensively. We will continue to put pressure on the loan sharks to make it more difficult for them to operate in Singapore.

Dr Tan also asked about the case of a woman who suffered a miscarriage after confronting a loan shark. At this stage, we are not able to reveal any details on this case because investigations are still going on. But I wish to assure the House that the Police takes a stern view of unlicensed moneylending activities and will not let up on its efforts to bring to justice the culprit of this case and for other cases.

Sir, my Ministry will continue to monitor the crime trends, adjust our crime-fighting strategies and make legislative amendments, if necessary, to enhance deterrence. One of the strategies that the Police will continue to pursue is a strong partnership with the community in preventing crime. The recent partnership with the community went back a long way, and I want to thank the people for their contributions in this community policing.

Police will work with grassroots organisations to promote a greater sense of vigilance in our neighbourhood. In particular, grassroots volunteers,

such as those on the Citizens-on-Patrol (COP) scheme, would be encouraged to pay particular attention to HDB void decks and other common areas during their patrols. Police will also leverage on the Neighbourhood Watch Zone (NWZ) scheme to rope in more residents to help look out for one another and to inform Police of suspicious persons loitering in their neighbourhood.

12.45 pm

The SMS Crime Alert Services is another new initiative by the Police. Under the scheme, Police will send SMS messages to alert community leaders, Neighbourhood Watch Zone volunteers and business associations on salient crime trends. This has been tried out on a pilot basis since August last year, and the Police will consider extending the SMS alert service to the wider community later this year.

The Police is also working with the town councils to install CCTVs in common areas in HDB estates, such as the ground lift landings in void decks, as a crime prevention measure as well as to deter littering and other kinds of localised problems.

In view of the high incidence of crimes involving handphones, the Police is also implementing measures to disrupt the disposal of stolen handphones. Since June 2005, where there are reasons to do so, the Police has checked the International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) number of the handphones of persons who were stopped by the Police. In April 2006, a website will be set up to enable the public to check if a used handphone they intend to buy has been reported stolen. So, all they need to do is to look up the website, check the IMEI number and they will know whether the phone has been reported as lost.

The Police will step up its public education efforts through a poster advertisement campaign to remind the public to be alert against handphones and other crimes.

Sir, while the crime rate has gone up in 2005, I would say that the overall law and order situation remains well under control. Singapore remains one of the safest cities in the world. The Home Team will continue to work closely with the community to ensure that Singapore remains a safe and secure best home for all. This is because keeping Singapore safe and secure is not just the responsibility of the Ministry of Home Affairs alone. Indeed, public-assisted arrests accounted for 42% of the arrests of criminals involving outraging of modesty, housebreaking, robbery, motor vehicle theft, snatch theft, murder and rape in 2005. I think very few countries in the world could achieve this rate of public-assisted arrests.

Every Singaporean has a part to play, whether it is in making sure that his handphone is not carelessly left around or his home is improperly secured. Every Singaporean can help beat crime by being vigilant and then alerting the Police of any suspicious activity in the neighbourhood.

To summarise, Sir, crime remains a key aspect of the Ministry's focus. This, however, should not and must not detract us from our fight to keep the terrorists out of Singapore and to put in place measures to deal with a terrorist incident, if one ever happens. Sir, low crime does not mean no crime.

Let me now turn to what I consider to be a more important subject, which is homeland security and our measures to deal with the aftermath of a bomb blast, should it happen. Ms Indranee Rajah and Mr Ravindran asked about the latest assessment of the terrorist threat in the region and in Singapore. Mr Ravindran has also asked about the state of cooperation between our intelligence agencies and the Police and their foreign counterparts.

Sir, terrorism remains a serious threat. It is very much alive and it is going to be around for a very long time. Although the efforts of the governments in the region have seen significant successes, extremist terrorism has shown itself to be highly resilient and adaptive. The Al Qaeda is weakened operationally, but its violent ideology continues to infect new groups in the world. In this region, Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) has been weakened and the members are on the run. Its key operatives, such as Hambali, the JI's key point man in Asia of the Al Qaeda, have been arrested, and the JI bomb-maker, Azahari Husin, was killed by the Indonesians in an operation on 9th November 2005. Others, such as Nordin Mohd Top, Dulmatin, Umar Patek and Zulkarnaen, to name just a few, are still active. They are recruiting new suicide bomb-makers and are transferring their terrorist know-how, including bomb-making, to militant groups in Indonesia and Mindanao. So, even if all these leaders are captured or killed, new ones will take their place, not unlike the many-headed hydra snake of the marshes of Lerna in the Greek mythology.

This is because the terrorist training camps, which continue to produce new leaders and operatives for the groups in the region, are still operating, for example, in Mindanao. In fact, in November 2005, the Indonesian authorities discovered an abandoned jungle training camp in Maluku. The instructors at this camp were apparently the graduates of the terrorist academies in Afghanistan and the Philippines. This camp is believed to have provided training on bomb-making and weapons-handling.

The level of cooperation between our Police and the intelligence services with their foreign counterparts, especially those in the region, has grown in strength since 2001. Shared intelligence led to the detection and arrests of several Singaporean JI fugitives, including Arifin Ali in Thailand and, more recently, Mas Selamat in Indonesia. Both of them are now in ISA detention in Singapore.

Besides the sharing of intelligence, the Police and intelligence services also share training and learn from each other's best practices and experience. One of the benefits we have derived from such close relations has been the access that we were given to the different sites where a terrorist incident has happened. Our police officers, for example, were able to go to London immediately after the incident in July last year and learn directly from their London Metropolitan Police counterparts who were handling the investigations. Such timely and first-hand exposure was invaluable to our post-blast investigators. One of our officers was actually part of the team that went into the London Underground where the bomb blast happened.

Ms Indranee Rajah asked if there is a potential danger from home-grown terrorists. The danger is in fact real and it already exists. Nearly all the JI members in detention with us today are Singaporeans. I think all, except one. Many had been involved in various activities to support or prepare for a terrorist attack inside Singapore. Had they succeeded in their plans, we would have had our homegrown terrorists long before the Londoners had. For example, Mas Selamat had planned to hijack and crash an aircraft into the Singapore Changi Airport. Other JI members had been targeting other critical infrastructure and soft targets. The consequences, if they had succeeded, would be very severe.

Sir, although we have disrupted the JI cells in Singapore, we recognise that working with the Muslim community to rehabilitate the detainees and to counter the radical JI ideology are key to fighting this problem. We are not alone in this view. The Zaobao and Today articles on Nasir Abas yesterday is a case in point. Mr Abas was a JI member who confessed that he had trained some of the worst terrorists in our region, including the suicide bombers who mounted the Bali bombing in October 2002. Today, Abas is helping to spread the word in the region that terrorism is wrong and not part of the true teachings of Islam.

We believe that we have broken the JI operations inside Singapore, and the active terrorist threat to Singapore is likely to come from outside our borders. However, we must be mindful that every society has its impressionable and misguided elements and they are therefore vulnerable. All it takes is a handful of such weaker, misguided elements within our society to be indoctrinated by terrorists or extremists with radical ideology to become sympathisers or terrorist elements. Such persons, whether acting on their own or, more likely, in collaboration with militants in the region, will pose a deadly threat to Singapore. This is the reason why several of our Muslim religious leaders have been active in reaching out through forums on subjects like jihad to counter the distortions of extremist teachings. They help to innoculate our people from the influence of terrorist ideology and to raise the level of community vigilance against extremist teachers.

Ms Indranee Rajah and Mr Ahmad Khalis have asked what we have learnt from the terrorist attacks in London, Madrid and Bali and from the recent exercise NorthStar V. Mr Ahmad Khalis also wanted to know the status of readiness of our forces to deal with an incident.

Sir, we have learnt at least two key lessons from the terror attacks in London, Madrid and Bali.

Firstly, it pays to be prepared, and emergency exercises are the best way to get ourselves prepared and operationally-ready to face terror attacks.

Secondly, it was clear that a terrorist attack, especially one which involves homegrown elements, could potentially damage communal relations and social cohesion. I will elaborate later on the Community Engagement Programme which will seek to address this second point. We conducted Exercise NorthStar V on 8th January 2006 to test not only our own emergency response systems but also to sensitise our public and to involve them. Our review of the exercise results gives us confidence that our forces are well prepared. Mr Ian Johnston, the Chief Constable of the British Transport Police, who was an observer at the exercise, commended the high state of readiness of our agencies.

Sir, we will continue to hold regular exercises to keep our emergency responders on their toes. Not all of these exercises need to be on the same scale as Exercise NorthStar V. But we will be exploring ways to have exercises which will involve the public as well as other stakeholders and partners, as we did in NorthStar V.

Sir, several Members have raised issues about our border security. Mr Steve Chia and Mr Charles Chong have expressed concerns on the checkpoint clearance, so has Mr Chiam.

Sir, our land checkpoints are among the busiest in the world. 104 million people and 46 million vehicles passed through the two checkpoints last year. Very few countries have such a high volume of people and vehicular movements. ICA has taken various measures to facilitate and expedite clearance. This includes, for example, the use of pre-registered cards for bus travellers. So, if you are a frequent bus traveller, you can get a pre-registered card. You can then use the automated clearance stations. In the pipeline are efforts to provide the same do-it-yourself (DIY) clearance facilities for bus travellers who are Singaporeans. They can use, for example, their Singapore passports for self-clearance at an automatic immigration clearance station. We will be setting this up soon.

During peak periods, ICA will get more personnel to perform extra shift duties. However, checkpoint officers are trained professionals. They need to be specially skilled in order to do their job well, and the pool of such people is limited. There is, therefore, a limit as to how many more officers we can add during peak times or to recall during peak periods like Christmas eve. Hence, some congestion will be inevitable during festive periods and peak hours. Nevertheless, ICA is exploring various options to enhance a pool of trained part-time staff who can be called upon to help to supplement the manpower resources during such peak periods.

Mr Charles Chong suggested setting a key performance indicator to measure the clearance of travellers and vehicles at our land checkpoints. Sir, I do not think it is appropriate to compare the land checkpoints with the air and sea checkpoints, because the two are totally different systems and the traffic volumes and the patterns of travel are completely different.

The traffic patterns at the land checkpoints are much less predictable compared to the airport and sea checkpoints where there are scheduled arrivals and departures. Nevertheless, let me assure the House that the ICA constantly monitors the flow of travellers and vehicles at the land checkpoints and will take the necessary measures to improve clearance efficiency as much as possible. However, we must also be realistic. Given the volume of traffic at the land checkpoints, we must accept that, even with all the counters manned, there will be some delays, especially when there is a bottleneck

from the surge in traffic numbers occurring at the same time.

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Secondly, whatever ICA does, it must not compromise the current level of security, a concern that takes priority over convenience. This concern was rightly expressed by Ms Indranee yesterday and Mr Chiam earlier on. Our borders remain the frontline of our defence against terrorism and although we know that there is no such thing as a 100% protection, we must do whatever we can to make it difficult for the would-be troublemakers and terrorists.

Ms Rajah and Mr Chiam also expressed concern that the perpetrators of crime and terrorism could slip through our checkpoints undetected. Ms Rajah has also asked for the measures that we have in place to prevent the smuggling of arms and explosives.

Sir, whatever we do, criminals will continue to test our security measures. While many will fail, a small number may succeed. We must learn from the situations where there may have been lapses, and take corrective action. For example, following the escape of Took Leng How through the Woodlands Checkpoint in 2004, Police and ICA jointly reviewed the security systems and put in place additional measures to prevent this from happening again.

To ensure that the checks at the checkpoints remain robust, ICA and Police regularly carry out surprise intrusion tests to assess the security performance of our checkpoints. We also employ a variety of latest inspection technology at our checkpoints, such as gamma ray and radiographic scanners, to prevent smuggling of illicit and prohibited goods in a non-intrusive and expeditious manner. In addition, we are working closely with the industry to tighten regulatory controls over commercially available chemicals that could be used to manufacture improvised bombs, explosives and devices.

As for the recent murder of Lim Hock Soon, the nightclub boss, Police is currently investigating the case. Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspects left Singapore before they could be identified and be linked to the murder. For now, we should let the Police carry out its investigations and not make any further speculation.

Ultimately, Sir, intelligence and information provided by the public are key to preventing the smuggling of firearms and explosives into Singapore. In this regard, members of the public can play their part by being vigilant. They should alert Police or ICA officers if they see any person acting suspiciously or trying to slip in or out of our checkpoints. This will further enhance our security coverage.

Let me now turn to the subject raised by Ms Eunice Olsen concerning the security measures taken at marinas, particularly with regard to pleasure crafts. Travellers on pleasure crafts leaving or arriving Singapore ports are required to proceed to either the gazetted immigration anchorages or the gazetted marinas for immigration clearance. I thank Ms Olsen for her feedback, which I take seriously.

We are reviewing our maritime security measures and practices, including the subject of immigration clearance for such vessels. To enhance security, we presently have a system which tracks closely all vessels, including pleasure crafts, coming into our ports. For smaller vessels below 300 gross tonnage, such as pleasure crafts, we have started to install transponders to allow us to track them within our port limits. Every vessel, large or small, pleasure or not, coming into our territorial waters will be monitored.

The ICA will also require agents or operators at the gazetted marinas to submit pleasure craft's arrival or departure advice, together with the passenger and crew lists for pre-screening of the persons on board. This added requirement by the ICA has ensured that all passengers on board the pleasure craft are thoroughly screened prior to landing and to facilitate detection of unauthorised persons on board on arrival at the marinas.

In addition, the Police Coast Guard patrols keep a close watch at sea and conduct selective checks of vessels based on intelligence and profiling. These checks include face-to-face checks of passengers and physical checks of the vessels. Such checks are important as they prevent the off-loading of illegal immigrants or other undesirable elements within our territorial waters and before the crafts proceed to the gazetted immigration checkpoints. The surprise checks have yielded good results in tightening security. For instance, ICA's Anti-Smuggling Teams have picked up about 120 smuggling cases in 2005. And just last week, we detected a pleasure craft with two crew members who failed to seek immigration departure clearance when it left for fishing activities the day before. Shortly past midnight this morning, the ICA Anti-Smuggling Team detected a vessel carrying about 8,000 cartons of cigarettes and 40 kilogrammes of shag tobacco. A person wanted by CNB and Police was also arrested on board the vessel. Cases like these bear testimony that our stepped-up security efforts have been effective and fruitful in the detection of contraband items and undesirable persons.

On Mr Ong Kian Min's suggestion to introduce smart chips in our NRIC to tighten security for commercial premises, I think there is no need to have the smart chip capability in our NRIC. We have studied this issue before and we think that right now, the technology is such that it is expensive. And in terms of the investment, the money spent, it is not worth the benefit derived from it. We will continue to monitor the development of this technology before we decide whether to use smart chip for NRIC or not. There must also be some uses for the NRIC. The NRIC is not such a "dumb" device, as Mr Ong said. In the NRIC, you will find a magnetic strip. All the building owners need to do is to install the barcode reader and just swipe it through and the building owner or the guard will be able to easily record the particulars of the NRIC holder. All that is already in the NRIC. Building owners need to put in some money to ensure that the buildings are safer.

The points raised by Mr Ong regarding the way the guards conduct their security checks are valid. In fact, the guard that just let go of a person who signs himself in as superman, or as superwoman, ought to be sacked, as it means that he was not doing his job.

We are going to engage building owners. In fact, we have started working with the building owners through the Security Watch Group Scheme. Today, more than 500 buildings are already in the Security Watch Group Scheme. They are improving their standards and the training of the unarmed guard industry. So all guards require training before they can take on the job. In fact, since last year, any person setting up a security guard agency will need to have trained security guards who must have the NSRS qualifications.

Mr Ahmad Khalis asked whether the businesses are prepared for a terrorist attack. Sir, this is the direction we are taking by developing the Security Watch Group Scheme to involve the businesses in security and emergency preparedness. Such businesses or the tenants of a building should also know how to deal with suspicious persons and packages and respond to an incident in the building. Through the Corporate First Responder Scheme, pre-identified tenants will be given access to the cordoned area to execute business continuity recovery plans in the event of a bomb blast incident. This is important because, apart from saving lives, we must also be ready to bring life back to normal. We are progressively rolling out the scheme to all members of the Security Watch Group. Ultimately, building owners and their tenants must take greater ownership of their own security because the cost to them is much higher if a terrorist attack takes place, as compared to the cost of implementing security measures and hiring better guards.

Sir, now on community engagement. What we have done so far are the hard measures that the Government can take or has taken to prevent a terrorist attack. I have said before that the Government would do its very best to harden Singapore against terrorist attacks. I have also said before that our Government agencies will prepare themselves to the utmost in order to deal with a terrorist attack, particularly in the recovery situation, when a bomb blast happens. But what I have also said before is: are our people equally prepared? I think right now, we still have work to do. Our people themselves must deal with such a situation should they arise. The most significant issue that we have to deal with is the possible rising of communal tensions and the fray in our social cohesion. That is the part which our people should think very carefully about because in the event of a bomb blast, how will they respond to such a situation if they are not prepared? That is an effort which we will be embarking on in the next one year or so.

It is the people that defeat terrorists and terrorism, not Government alone because they are the ones on the ground. They are the ones who know their neighbours, they are the ones who should know what goes on as well. They are the ones who must recover from an attack and not be cowed by it. They must rise above the situation and get back to life as normal and be psychologically resilient. For our multi-racial society, that is particularly important because any incident may fray communal tension and that is a key lesson we learn in other countries, when they have a bomb attack, for example, in London.

Mdm Ho Geok Choo and Mr Ahmad Khalis have asked about the Community Engagement Programme. Ms Indranee Rajah and Mr Ravindran have also asked about how our community leaders and the members of the public should react to a terrorist incident. I am glad they asked because it gives me a chance to say a bit more.

Mdm Ho is correct to point out that the key concern is, even if we have a community engagement, can it be sustained? That is the reason why I said that it is not just the Government that works at it. It must come from the people and they must sustain it and we will help them to sustain it. We will build on the current programmes such that they do not start afresh all of a sudden. There are already many structures, organisations, may efforts ongoing. And, in fact, we started this way back since the 1964 riots.

But we need to constantly review, update and improve on them. New people take on leadership positions. New people need to know one another. And that is the kind of network that we need to build amongst our leaders in the various organisations. I am not just talking about grassroots organisations, because community organisations are more than just grassroots organisations that the PA runs. It involves all sectors of our people, whether they are unionists, employers, clan leaders, chambers of commerce or even in schools, for example, there is a big network of organisations and people that we must tap on. The question is how to link these various centres of leadership together such that they know one another so well that they can pick up a phone, see the person and talk to the person and say, "Let us do this and calm the ground, should a bomb happen." And many of our community organisations like the voluntary welfare organisations, the ethnic-based organisations, the religious organisations, they too play a very important role in this.

So it is not just the Government's role and I would prefer that such an engagement programme comes from the bottom. They give us ideas, we help them piece together, we help them connect. Then, we will run sessions, courses, seminars, forums, to ensure that we keep updated and keep current on the terrorist threat issue. It is only when they own it that they will feel that they have a responsibility to carry it through. If it is dictated from the top and by the Government, they will say, "Let me wait for the Government to tell me what to do." So I would like to reach that situation where the people exercise initiative. Of course, we will work with them to make sure that they do.

In a terrorist incident, should it happen, the people must first know what to do. They are the people on the ground. Let us, say, a bomb blast happens. If they all leave the scene, that leaves the scene quite free for the security forces to move in and investigate. But there could be situations where they can help. For example, when somebody is injured, that somebody needs help to be brought up, whether it is in an MRT station, bus or in any place, he needs to be moved away from the scene

of the blast to avoid further danger. So members of the public who are there ought to help. We have seen this in other countries. And, in the case of London, for example, it is the first responder, not the government, their police or ambulances, but the people who were there in the same tunnel were the ones who helped one another. So, I am very happy to see that, indeed, we do have such people on the ground. As when they see an incident, whether it is a traffic accident, we have people coming forward and help, and that is the kind of spirit that we want our people to have.

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Mdm Ho talks about getting women involved. Of course, we cannot forget the other half of our population. We have, I think, 51% women in our population, slightly surpassing the men in terms of numbers. They have a very important role to play. And as for the suggestion that all women should learn first aid skill, yes, I encourage that. We will try to facilitate that. In fact, the SCDF does run courses on first aid. I am very happy to read recently when the newspaper reported that a very young lady, 17 years old, Ms Esther Tan, who responded to a man gasping for air. She went to give him CPR before the ambulance arrived. I think that is a remarkable act and I hope more people will take up such life-saving skills.

It is not just the SCDF who can run such first-aid courses. We have many other organisations. The Red Cross can do so too. So do St John's. They too can play their roles in helping to educate the people on first aid and CPR.

Recently, I attended a women's Seminar on Terrorism and Emergency Preparedness. Ms Indranee invited me because this seminar was led by our group of women MPs and 400 other women leaders also attended it. The participants were given hands-on training on first aid and fire-fighting. I hope more of them will come and join us and we will try to do our best to accommodate their training needs.

So the long and short of community engagement is that we need time to work on it. I hope we had done this two years ago. In fact, we had done it 40 years ago but I hope that we had carried on improving on it. It is not too late, but let us start now. I would hope that our people and leaders in the various positions would take an active interest in this.

Sir, given the long-term terrorist threat that we face, the fall-out from a terrorist attack on our social cohesion as a multi-ethnic society can be very significant. Therefore, the Community Engagement Programme aims to ensure that communal relations in Singapore can withstand the strain of a terrorist attack. What we do today would increase and strengthen the network of trust and bond for the community, which will determine how quickly we, as a society, recover from such an attack. The Government will work closely with the community to coordinate, facilitate and provide support. The Government will also expand and deepen the network of community partners engaged under this programme.

I would like to seek a clarification from the Minister.

Let Prof. Ho speak first.

Sir, first let me respond to Ms Indranee Rajah's and Mr Charles Chong's queries on child sex tourism and the Penal Code review.

Ms Rajah expressed the concern regarding the sexual exploitation of minors. Sir, I share her concerns. We have and will continue to prosecute offenders with the full extent of the law. We are also exploring other ways to enhance protection of minors who, because they lack maturity, are especially vulnerable to exploitation. The Inter-Agency Committee on review of sexual offences, which I chair, has been studying this issue.

First, let me address the problem of young persons engaging in prostitution. While prostitution is not an offence in Singapore, young persons should be protected from providing sexual services. Being more easily influenced, their consent can be impaired. As such, they are more vulnerable to being trafficked, controlled and exploited by pimps and traffickers who prey on them and live off their earnings. The existing legal age of consent for sexual activities is 16 years. Although there is no evidence to suggest that there is a problem of significant numbers of 16 and 17 year olds engaging in prostitution in Singapore, there should be a higher age of protection for commercial sexual activities. As such, Sir, we intend to make it an offence for any person to purchase sexual services from another person who is under 18 years of age. Other countries, such as the UK and New Zealand have adopted a similar approach. This move is part of the wider approach we are adopting to protect young persons against engaging in commercial sexual activities and possible exploitation and not specifically in response to the possible sexual victimisation of the young via the Internet which Ms Indranee had touched on.

Sir, next, I would deal with the issue of child sex tourism. Sir, child sex tourists take advantage of the inability or unwillingness of the host country to prosecute them. I think, Ms Indranee Rajah, in fact, gave a picture of who these people may be, who may look innocuous on the outside but terrible inside. Meanwhile, very often, prosecution at home is constrained by the lack of jurisdiction as most countries do not extend extra-territorial jurisdiction over sexual offences. Presently, Singaporeans who have sex with minors in other countries cannot be prosecuted in Singapore as our courts do not have jurisdiction over them. Members had earlier urged the Government to stop our nationals from preying on minors in other countries by denying them a safe haven through enacting legislation with extra-territorial effect. Sir, we have taken note of these views and have factored them into our review. The Inter-Agency Committee has studied laws governing sex with minors overseas in other countries. Countries that have extended jurisdiction overseas include Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand, UK and the US.

Sir, while we do not condone sexual exploitation of minors in other countries by our nationals, we also recognise that if extra-territorial jurisdiction is introduced, it would be challenging to investigate and prosecute cases involving offences committed by Singaporeans in other countries. Ms Rajah mentioned some of these obstacles yesterday in this House, such as language barriers and the different local conditions, making it difficult to trace and interview foreign witnesses and to gather evidence. The Singapore Police has no powers of investigation overseas and would have to rely principally on the cooperation of its foreign counterparts. Sir, I have explained these difficulties in Parliament, taking the opportunity also to urge host countries to do their part to toughen their laws and enforce them vigorously. At the same time, I said that we will continue to study the issue and monitor developments in other countries.

Our point was that efforts in this regard must be a collaborative one. Enacting extra-territorial laws by itself is no panacea. Sir, I am happy to note that what we said in Parliament, our exchanges galvanised action on several fronts. But still, despite the constraints and difficulties, we recognise that having sex with minors anywhere is, indeed, deplorable. Hence, the Government has decided to amend our laws to extend extra-territorial jurisdiction over our nationals who sexually exploit minors overseas. I agree with Ms Rajah that by doing so we send a strong signal that we are against this appalling act and, hopefully, it will also act as a deterrent.

The measures against child sex tourism will be introduced as part of the legislative changes that we will make once we have completed the review of the Penal Code, a pet topic of Mr Charles Chong who has asked once again for an update. Sir, this review has taken a long time. It has been prolonged because, I am sure Mr Chong understands, the Penal Code with more than 500 sections is a very important piece of legislation and we want to be as thorough as possible in reviewing it. After all, this is the first comprehensive, holistic review of the Penal Code that we have undertaken for a long time. Moreover, the review has stretched out because, as we went along, new issues surfaced. For example, the impact of technology such as the Internet and mobile phones which have become an integral part of the lifestyle in Singapore and which is increasingly employed by criminals to perpetrate their criminal activities, has delayed our progress somewhat. But, let me assure Mr Chong that we will indeed be completing our review soon. Thereafter, as I have said, we intend to carry out a public consultation exercise at which time Mr Chong and other members of the public, including the Law Society, would be welcome to give their comments.

Sir, let me now move on to the topic of youth crime and our recently announced initiative to keep our youths safe, which Mr Tan Soo Khoon had alluded to in his speech. Last year, nearly 4,600 youths were arrested - actually it is a drop of some 8% from the year before. Youth crime statistics for rioting, shop and other thefts, actually fell 16% and 3% respectively, last year compared to the year before. Hence, let me assure Mr Fong that our youth gang situation is under control. I am happy to assure him that his hypothesis that there may be a "staggering number" of youth gang members in Singapore, does not accord with reality. But I have said many times before that every youth crime is one crime too many. Moreover the drop of 8% is only for one year. Before that, for two to three years, the number of youths arrested actually was rising, so it is not time to bring out the beer, not the time to celebrate yet. Beer is something that Mr Loh Meng See has talked about just now. So we will not drink beer here. Nevertheless, although the youth crime situation has improved, from 2004 to 2005, youths continue to be involved in shop thefts and other thefts and also rioting ,and youths are also victims of offences, such as snatch theft, robbery, rioting and outraging of modesty, where the numbers have increased. This is a phenomenon that bears study. The increase in the number of youth victims of snatch theft and robbery can be mainly attributed to more youths being targeted for handphones.

Mr Fong has suggested inculcating in students an understanding of the consequences of committing crime. That is a good point. Indeed, let me assure Mr Fong that we have been doing this through the Inter-Ministry Committee on Youth Crime (IMYC) which I chair. So, for example, 2004, IMYC launched the Prison Visit Education Programme for Schools (PVEPS), a joint project involving the Police, MOE and the Prisons Department. Under this programme, at risk youths in schools are sent to the prisoners' living environment, taste the food that the prisoners eat and also get locked up in the prison cell for a while. They also witness a mock caning, all of which, I am sure, has a sobering experience. Mr Fong suggests that we extend this to all students. Let me say that this will certainly stretch the Prison's resources. I do not think there is a need for us to do that. It is a focused approach where resources are maximised and it will dilute our message if we let all the students undergo this.

Also in 2004, IMYC commissioned a series of road shows in schools. This was something special because we made it a point to make the road shows interactive, engaging the students. So that is our approach, something that Mr Tan also mentioned, that with youths we cannot have a talk down approach, we should engage them, we should ensure that they understand what adults like us are doing. And that specifically was how the road shows were rolled out two years ago and continue to be rolled out - interactive, participative, engaging them.

In March this year, the Police and the NPCC also piloted the NPCC Police Youth Ambassador Programme, where NPCC cadets will be equipped with crime prevention and problem solving skills. With these skills the cadets will help to impart crime prevention messages to their peers and assist the schools in addressing youth-related issues. Thirty-two secondary schools would be participating in the pilot phase.

I am happy to report that there are also other partners involved. For example, the Law Society has been holding its Law Awareness Project through talks, the launching of a newsletter and also a website. They inject their expertise by informing youths and young people about the consequences of their crime, and that is Mr Fong's point, not just the legal consequences but the social and personal consequences of what they do. And, indeed, the Singapore Association of Women Lawyers actually published a very good useful "Teens and the Law" handbook which talks directly to the students. My point is that we are all doing our part to help our youths realise their full potential and to also extend helping hands to those at risk and who may fall into trouble. But Mr Tan has rightly mentioned that parents are a pivotal group and this is what the recent initiative was actually meant to do - to partner parents, to let them know that we are partners with them and, through this measure, through the knowledge of information given to them, that they could be more effective as a parent.

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Let me first say that Police already conducts checks on youths found congregating in public areas after 11.00 pm, basically to prevent them from getting into trouble, either as victims or perpetrators of crime. Last year, during the school holidays, some 15,000 checks were conducted. So, it is nothing new in terms of conducting these checks. Over this period of time, Police has already developed some expertise. It is not intimidating or talking down to youths in a heavy handed manner. It is what Police calls, "engaging them in conversation" - basically, to ask them what they are doing, and also to alert them of the dangers that they face. They may be very well meaning and law abiding. But, sometimes, even females, being in a very quiet place at 2.00-3.00 am, and especially in a crime-prone area, I think that is the least Police can do.

Sir, what Police is now doing is really a logical step up - scaling up of what they have been doing - which is to inform parents, not in every case, in those situations that I have mentioned, that their child has been found in this area. This is just to inform them, and leave the rest to parents. If they know about it, that is fine. If they know about it and want to do a bit more by talking to the child, that is fine. If they do not know about it, I think it is good for parents to know. And, indeed, the letter that goes out will be signed by the CO of the NPC indicating the time, date, the details of the check and also a telephone number that the parents can call if they want to get more information from the Police. So it is really a partnership that I think will help us manage youth crime better.

Could it have been better publicised? This news came out when Police gave a briefing on the crime statistics. It was not a press release as such. But in the process of discussing the youth situation and what more can be done, the Police informed the media about this measure. I think the presentation by the media may have, in a way, caused some people to think that it was a ban or curfew. It was never intended to be a ban or curfew, and that is why the Police had to clarify.

Sir, let me just reiterate here that parents out there - all of us are parents - I think we can do more. Indeed, this is what the MCYS has been doing for many years, reaching out to parents through school talks, camps and so forth. Really, this new measure is just another plank in our package of measures that should help us to tackle this problem better.

Mr Chiam See Tong says why not reinstate the Boys' Clubs. Mr Chiam made this call in 1997 and I responded to him - to explain to him that there was no need for the Boys' Clubs, because the clubs had outlived their usefulness. They had been replaced by the People's Association's T-Net Club. Over these years, more T-Net Clubs have emerged and reaching out to a larger group of youths, and a bigger spread of youths and promoting the things that Mr Chiam talked about - social values, self-esteem, social skills and also keeping them away from danger zones.

Sir, I think this is the way to go. And do not forget, since 1997, in fact, new youth organisations have emerged. MCYS has been working with many of these organisations and the partners of MCYS, which include police officers on the ground who will then interact with these youth organisations in a very natural and complementary way to ensure that our youths are healthily engaged. There is really no need to reinstate the Boys' Clubs.

Mr Fong asked about our efforts in helping ex-offenders reintegrate into society so as to prevent them from being dragged into a vicious cycle of criminalisation. Mr Fong asked about the recidivism rate. First, let me say, at the outset, that MHA is committed to assisting ex-offenders reintegrate back into society. Working closely with community partners again, our reintegration efforts begin from the time the offenders serve their sentence in prison and continue after their release.

During incarceration, offenders acquire useful skills through employment and workshops. Currently, 26 firms operate different industries in prisons employing more than 2,000 offenders. Offenders also enhance their employability and educational qualifications through literacy and vocational courses. In the year 2005, more than 4,000 offenders were trained in areas such as landscaping, cleaning, IT skills and food preparation.

Upon release, an ex-offender who requests for aftercare support will be given counselling and assistance by the Community Action for the Rehabilitation of Ex-Offenders (CARE) network, again comprising key partners like SCORE, SANA and so forth. At the same time, SCORE assists in the job placement of offenders as well as ex-offenders - with offenders being placed under various work release schemes.

Last year, SCORE offered employment assistance to almost 3,000 offenders and ex-offenders. To further enhance the assistance provided, SCORE launched an online drop portal in September last year. Thus far, 443 employees have registered and 343 job vacancies have been posted online. In total, 1,473 employers are registered with SCORE's job bank - up from 1,381 the year before.

Sir, let me now give a brief update on the amendment we made last year to the Registration of Criminals Act where, by now, ex-offenders with spent records can declare in the job application forms that they do not have any criminal record. Since the scheme came into effect last year in October, about 114,000 ex-offenders have had their criminal records rendered spent. An estimated 6,000 ex-offenders will benefit annually from this scheme. As promised, when I moved the amendment Bill, MHA subsequently engaged the business community to get their support for this major initiative. We conducted a study to determine employers' attitude towards the hiring of ex-offenders and held a workshop with employers to discuss the findings. Leading by example, as announced earlier by Minister Teo Chee Hean, the Government has decided to amend its application forms. So that will help ex-offenders with spent records. Basically, we have now taken the lead. Some employers have done it. I take this opportunity to urge more employers to come on board and to also take that step.

On our part, MHA, as a Ministry, has also been working on an e-portal to allow those who think they may benefit from the scheme to verify whether they have a criminal record that has been rendered as spent. And this system will come into operation within the next one or two months.

Sir, we all know that Government's efforts alone are not enough. Employers, families and society at large must all play a part to change mindsets about ex-offenders. For those determined to change for the better, we must extend helping hands, recognising it is the CARE network that launched the Yellow Ribbon project in the year 2004 - another ground-breaking initiative. This project has grown from strength to strength. For example, a Yellow Ribbon fare was held in the prison complex for the first time last year. 238 pre-release offenders took part in the job fare and 175 were offered jobs on the same day. I am particularly pleased that the Yellow Ribbon project has galvanised community action. I know of several groups, including employers and tertiary institution students, who have been inspired by the message behind the Yellow Ribbon to unlock the second prison, and they have come on board. I think that is wonderful. In particular, I want to thank the 125 new employers who offered jobs to ex-offenders last year. Because I have said in Parliament before that getting new employers to come on board is one key strategy that we must pursue more vigorously in the future.

Mr Fong asked about the recidivism rate. I am happy to share that all these efforts have resulted in lower recidivism rates which have declined steadily over the past few years. In 1998, the recidivism rate peaked at 44.4%. In other words, for every 100 released prisoners, about 50 returned to crime within two years. But, today, the recidivism rate for the 2003 cohort - two-year span - has improved to 24.9%, the lowest rate thus far.

Sir, in my remaining time, let me now deal with the other topics raised by Members. First, Mr Fong talked about the question of emergency vehicles - how we can educate Singaporeans to give way to these vehicles. I agree that public education is important, and we must get the maximum cooperation from our motoring public. This is why the importance of doing so is covered in the basic theory of driving handbook, the advanced theory of driving handbook as well as the riding theory handbook. As part of the training syllabus, the three driving schools, as well as private driving instructors, are also required to teach all learner drivers about the requirement to give way to an emergency vehicle. In addition, questions regarding this rule are included in the driving and riding theory tests, which all motorists are required to pass before they are allowed to obtain the licence.

Apart from educating learner drivers, Traffic Police also constantly reminds motorists of their obligation to give way to emergency vehicles through road safety talks, especially those targeted at private companies and Government agencies which own large fleets of vehicles, such as Chevron Texaco and SAF. So it is a targeted approach. 68 such road safety talks were conducted in 2005, reaching to a total of about 10,000 drivers and riders. I thank Mr Fong for highlighting this point. This is one area that Singaporeans can do more about, and let us all continue to press home this message.

Mr Ahmad Khalis would like to know whether the fire situation is improving and what more can be done through public education efforts. Fire incidents have been declining over the past 10 years, from a high of over 6,700 fires in 1997 to 4,600 fires in 2003, down 30%. In 2004, the number of fire incidents increased by 8% to some 4,916 fires; and last year, there was a marginal increase of 3% to 5,039 fires. Last year, indeed, the marginal increase was attributed mainly to vegetation fires which, I am sure Mr Khalis remembers, besieged us for a while in the beginning part of the year. But residential and non-residential related fires actually fell by 5% and 7% respectively last year, compared to the year before.

Sir, the fire situation has improved. And, again, like in the other areas that MHA is involved in, basically, it is because of a complementary partnership approach. Here, it is spearheaded by the National Fire Prevention Council which works with many agencies on the ground. I think many Members would know of these agencies, such as the Civil Defence Executive Committees (CDEC) and Community Emergency Response Teams (CERTs). For example, last year, in particular, home fire safety visits were conducted under the programme launched earlier on in August 2003. CDEC members and CD volunteers went house to house to promote fire safety tips and help residents identify potential fire hazards in their homes and, specifically, to address rubbish chute fires, which is something of concern, not because they are dangerous but because of the numbers. More than one-third of residential fires were rubbish chute fires. The SCDF and NFPC rolled out a public education programme in three housing blocks with high incidence of such fires. Here again, SCDF and CDEC members visited homes specifically to educate and to encourage them to desist from this act.

What is the SCDF's target for making Singapore households emergency trained? The target set by SCDF is to train at least one member per household in civil defence skills - first aid and other essential knowledge - to survive an emergency. The Minister has already said some of these programmes which have been launched by the SCDF, both in conjunction with the terrorism outreach as well as all the efforts throughout the year. And, indeed, the lady, Esther Tan, a 17-year-old girl, actually had picked up her CPR skills in one of the courses conducted by the SCDF. We never know when her skills can come in handy. I think her case, hopefully, will inspire more Singaporeans to learn basic skills.

The SCDF is also targeting the young as part of its effort to have more Singaporeans emergency trained. Last year, SCDF and MOE initiated the National Civil Defence Corps in 12 secondary schools spearheaded by Mr Charles Chong. The aim is to impart civil defence skills amongst our youths to nurture and develop them into resilient and responsible citizens. This has been well received and we intend now to have more schools come on board. Since then, SCDF and MOE have introduced the uniformed group to seven more schools this year.

Let me now answer Dr Maliki's two points. He makes the first point about Subutex abuse and the second point about foreign spouses of Singaporeans who are here. First, Subutex is, let me say, a prescription drug registered by the Health Sciences Authority for the treatment of opiate dependence. It is regulated by the Ministry of Health under the Medicines Act and Poisons Act. Since the abuse of Subutex first came to CNB's attention in late 2003, CNB has been working with MOH to explore possible measures to tackle the problem. Last year, in November, MOH issued a set of clinical practice guidelines on the treatment of opiate dependence to doctors. For example, doctors who wish to prescribe Subutex must undergo an 8-hour training course on opiate withdrawal and replacement therapy conducted by the Community Addictions Management Programme (CAMP) at the IMH. At the same time, MOH has also set up a Central Addiction Registry for Drugs (CARDs), an online registry which allows the central monitoring

of all Subutex prescriptions to patients. Doctors who prescribe Subutex are required to register their prescriptions in CARDS. So in this way, doctors can monitor whether their patients are doctor-hopping.

Notwithstanding these control measures implemented by MOH, CNB is keeping a close watch on the situation. The number of Subutex tablets seized monthly has increased from a high of more than 500 tablets in July last year to 180 tablets in December last year. The number of public complaints and information received by CNB on Subutex abuse has also come down to 19 in December from a high of 31 in November last year.

Dr Maliki has asked whether Subutex will be classified as a controlled drug under the MDA. Given that MOH's control measures were implemented recently in November last year, I think we should allow some time for the measures to take effect and then we can assess. But let me assure Dr Maliki that CNB remains vigilant and we will not hesitate to make Subutex a controlled drug, if the need arises.

Dr Maliki's second topic is on immigration and he has asked about the impact of our policies on immigration facilities for foreign spouses of Singapore and how we can better educate Singaporeans on the requirements. First, let me assure Dr Maliki that our policies on long term immigration facilities take into account the preservation of family unity. We are mindful of the need to manage this carefully, as the proportion of marriages involving a Singaporean and a foreign spouse has increased from about 21% in the year 2003 to almost 30% last year.

But the Member well knows that marriage to a Singaporean does not automatically guarantee that the foreign spouse would be granted long-term immigration facilities. However, even in cases where the foreign spouse is not eligible for Permanent Residence, we would still consider granting the foreign spouse a Long Term Social Visit Pass to enable him or her to remain in Singapore.

So essentially, we need to ensure that foreigners given PR status do not become a burden to the State. Basically, citizens and Permanent Residents sponsoring their foreign spouses or children of PR would need to show that they are able to support them financially. Nevertheless, as I have said earlier, ICA adopts a sensitive and calibrated approach. And based on ICA's records, the approval rates for PR and Long Term Social Visit Pass applications for foreign spouses have been relatively stable for the past three years, at 60% for PR cases and 85% for Long Term Social Visit Pass cases. So where appropriate, ICA now also has been providing applicants with the reasons for rejection, to help them understand what they can do to improve their eligibility when they re-apply.

Sir, in short, ICA's guidelines governing the grant of long-term immigration facilities to foreign spouses are sufficiently compassionate to allow deserving spouses to stay in Singapore. We will be keeping in mind the importance of sustaining their marriage and supporting family cohesion.

Now, let me take Mr Loh Meng See's topic which is my last topic before my colleague, Mr Maidin, covers other aspects on the training and the professionalism of the Police Force. Mr Loh Meng See's query is whether liquor licences are being issued too liberally, especially to provision shops and coffeeshops. First, let me assure Mr Loh that Police takes a very careful approach in this because every application is assessed by Police. So it is not a liberal approach. Police takes into consideration factors, such as the location of the store and background of the applicant. Since 1999, our figures showed only a very gradual increase of about 2.5% per year for all liquor licences. So let me assure Mr Loh that there is no liberal policy when it comes to issuing liquor licences.

Moreover, the issuance of a liquor licence is subject to conditions relating to the sale of the liquor. Perhaps, for example, in HDB estates where neighbourhood provision shops and coffeeshops are located, sale of liquor is prohibited beyond midnight, or in some cases, 1.00 am. A licensee is also prohibited from supplying intoxicating drinks to any drunken person or contribute to situations of drunkenness and disorderly conduct, such as brawls on the premises. And to ensure full compliance with licensing conditions, Police will keenly conduct checks on licensees. So licensees who breach these conditions may have their licences suspended or revoked. So the licences are issued with conditions and checks are carried out.

Mr Loh asked if we can consider for Police or the Liquor Licensing Board to consult the grassroots leaders who can raise objections before an application is approved. If we do that, my guess is that most grassroots leaders would say, no. Because it is a facility where they want accessibility, but not near enough because it causes problems for residents. When that happens, then Police and the Liquor Licensing Board will be in a dilemma. Then, it would be difficult for this aspect of Singapore life to function properly. I think we should leave things as they are. I accept the point that there must be dialogue and consultation should problems arise. Because after all, the grassroots leaders know the situation and their help is invaluable in tackling problems that arise. And I concede the point that in Mr Loh's ward, because of the congregation of the foreign workers, he has the problems of noise, maybe some brawls and perhaps blocking a passageway. And Mr Loh himself will know that, over the years, Police has been working very closely with the grassroots leaders under the CSSP project that harks back four to five years, to ensure that the foreign workers who are enjoying their day of rest, particularly on weekends, will not cause undue and excessive problems with residents. So measures have been taken.

Sir, this is an approach that we must continue to press on. But I would encourage Mr Loh to continue to work with the Police and, indeed, let me know what other measures Police can take to help him manage this problem better.

Mr Maidin, you have 18 minutes 4 seconds left.

Sir, I will now respond to some of the questions raised by Members concerning their Neighbourhood Police Centre (MPC) system, Home Team training and professionalism raised by Dr Maliki, Mr Ravindran and Mdm Ho Geok Choo yesterday.

Firstly, Sir, Dr Maliki raised some questions about the NPC system and the level of Police presence on the ground. Sir, the transition from the Neighbourhood Police Post (NPP) system to the NPC system started back in 1997 when the first NPC was established and was completed in 2001. It was a strategic move by the Police to evolve and keep pace with the changes in the operating environment, and to improve the system of community policing.

Currently, there is a nationwide network of about 32 NPCs supported by 65 Neighbourhood Police Posts (NPPs). Under the NPC system, the NPPs still retain an operational role and have not been completely replaced. Overall, the number of service points has not changed significantly under the two systems. There were 98 fixed service points under the previous system compared to 97 fixed service points today, comprising NPCs and NPPs.

The operating hours of the existing NPPs have been shortened to allow for the redeployment of more officers for patrol duties during periods of lull activity at NPPs, in other words, more officers are being released to do patrol work. This means their presence is more visible in the neighbourhood, rather than reduced.

Dr Maliki has also asked about the number of personnel assigned to police our housing estates under the NPP and NPC systems. Sir, prior to the implementation of the NPC system, a total of 2,210 officers would patrol the total land area of Singapore. Under the current system, this number increased to 2,761 officers, or an increase of more than 500 officers, or about 25%. This works out to a ratio of about one officer serving 1,580 residents as opposed to 1,700 in 1997. This was achieved, although our population has increased from around $3.8 million to $4.35 million last year. The increase in the number of officers is achieved through the optimisation of our police resources, including better utilisation of our full-time Police NSmen to complement the regulars in frontline duties. The number of Police cars on patrol at any one time has more than doubled from 45 to 96, giving an average of three for each of the 32 NPCs. Furthermore, in addition to the frontline NPC officers, we now also have strategic reserve forces from Special Operations Command and Key Installation Command, making regular patrols in designated areas to project greater Police visibility.

Sir, it might however be recognised that effective policing is not determined solely by the number of police posts or police officers on the ground. The public, as explained earlier, has a crucial role to play as well. The cornerstone of our NPC system is the focus on developing community leadership and responsibility for the safety and security of the neighbourhoods. In particular, the Community Safety and Security Programme (CSSP) and the Neighbourhood Watch Zones serve as useful platforms for the Home Team to connect with the grassroots leaders and residents to tackle local safety and security issues.

Dr Maliki also asked about the key performance indicators (KPIs) of our NPCs. Sir, the performance of the NPCs is measured under various KPIs, such as crime rates, response time and community engagement, which should reflect the corresponding emphasis on the NPC system. We monitor these KPIs closely and there have been improvements in several areas.

For CSSP, for example, the number has gradually increased over the years from around 492 in 1999 to 695 last year. And since the implementation of the NPC, we see more members of the public coming forward to assist the Police in apprehending criminals. This percentage of public assistance, as mentioned by the Minister earlier, reached 42% last year. It was about 30% in 1996.

Sir, on the question of how the crime rate has changed since the switch from the NPP system, let me say that this is not a very meaningful comparison as the crime rate is influenced by many different factors, social economic factors and all, and it would not be correct to attribute changes in the crime rate solely to our move to the NPC system.

Sir, Mr Ravindran and Mdm Ho have requested for an update on the training of Police officers. I am happy to inform the House that beyond enhancing its operational capabilities, Police has continued to place strong emphasis on the training of its officers to ensure that they are equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to cope with today's policing environment.

Over and above the basic training, special groups of officers are provided with advanced training in skills that are becoming increasingly critical for tackling the latest crime and terrorism challenges. This includes computer forensic skills for investigating cyber-crimes and post-blast investigations skills for dealing with terrorist bomb attacks. With the migration of the Police Academy to the new Home Team Academy early this year, the training of our Police officers will be supported by even better facilities, including a Training Village, where a realistic scenario based training will be conducted. Police officers will also be able to attend various

advanced developmental courses there. While we cannot substitute for experience, we believe that enhancements to training content and training methodology, coupled with the wider use of tools, such as After Action Review, will enable our police officers to discharge their duties effectively. In addition, the Home Team will explore how we can tap on the experiences of suitable retired officers, such as re-employing them as instructors in the Home Team Academy, so that their experiences will not be lost. Mr Ravindran mentioned that if an officer dies today after 30 years of service, all his experiences will be lost. If we compare one-to-one, maybe we will get worried, because someone with such vast experiences will retire and a new rookie will come in, without experience and almost "blur". But in reality, that is not true. If someone with 30 years' experience retires today, there is another guy with maybe 29, 28 or 25 years of experience. In other words, the full force of the police team has people with varied experience. We will try to tap the experiences of those who have left. I must mention that the new Home Team Academy also has what we call the Knowledge Depository Branch. They will help young officers to get to know better on what has happened, what we have gone through. This institutional memory will be passed on to the newer officers.

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Sir, Mdm Ho also suggested that police officers today should receive special training to deal with youths. Dealing with youths is not something entirely new for our officers. The police has various procedures in place to assist our officers to engage the young ones. These procedures have been designed so that we will not alienate our youths but, in fact, to reflect the authority and, where possible, befriend them, because the police officers are there to assist them in whatever ways to look after the young and protect them from possible crime. There are instructions on how police officers handle different categories of people, such as the young or those in the category of being a suspect or non-suspect. They will know how to handle these cases.

Sir, we will also take up Mdm Ho's suggestion to extend such training to officers in other Home Team departments who have to interact with youths. Indeed, one of the reasons for setting up the Home Team Academy is for the Home Team departments to share their core expertise with one another.

I am also pleased to inform Mdm Ho that we will be launching a Behavioural Sciences Programme, which would be spearheaded by the Police Psychological Services Division. The programme will develop the knowledge and skills of our Home Team officers in the specialised area of behavioural sciences. Tie-ups or collaborations with external institutions of higher learning and research institutes will certainly be something that we will explore.

Mdm Ho also noted that the law enforcement officers today have to strike a balance between protecting the wider interests of society and that of the individual. Indeed, the police is very mindful of the need to manage this delicate balance. I would like to assure Members that the police will continue to improve the training of our officers so that it remains a professional outfit that is capable of meeting evolving challenges in crime and terrorism.

Sir, in conclusion, I would like to state that the Home Team will continue to strive for excellence in upholding our mission to provide a safe and secure best home for all Singaporeans.

We have some time left under this Head. I will allow clarifications but no speeches. Mr Low.

Sir, listening to the Deputy Prime Minister's reply, I wonder what is the message that DPM wishes to send to the police. Is he saying that counter-terrorism is the focus now and not crime-busting? DPM seems to attribute the increased crime rate to victims being careless. I would like to seek clarification from him that is this the new philosophy of the police in dealing with crime rates. Is he saying, for example, that if a person is being robbed, it is because the person is careless, that he or she walks into the path of the robber? Or if the pocket is being picked, is he saying that the person is careless because his pocket is not deep enough?

Sir, the last clarification I have is on crime rate. The fact is that the crime rate has been going up. But DPM, based on his macro-assessment, says that it is not really a problem because generally we are still a very safe society. What is the correlation between crime statistics and social safety? Can he clarify that, because I am a bit "blur" with that?

Sir, Mr Low is seldom "blur". I do not know whether he is "blur" here because he wants to blur the situation. On the message I am sending, am I telling our police officers that busting crime is no more important but put all their time on to counter terrorism? I did not say that. What I am saying is that the focus of the MPs' speeches, and as reported in the English press, seems to be that crime is the most important thing of what MHA does.

MHA has many roles. Dealing with crime is one of it. And dealing with that is not just the MHA's role. It is also the role of the public. Here, I am glad to say that 42% of the arrests of various types I mentioned were helped by the members of the public. I say again here that no country in the world has achieved this. When I mentioned this to police forces overseas, they said they wished they had the same situation. When I mentioned this to some people in some of our neighbouring countries, they said that they just encountered the opposite. When they see a crime, they would rather run away. So, our public is willing to confront a criminal, as can be seen in the case of the recent gun robber who went to an NTUC Fairprice outlet. At the carpark, a naval officer went around and assisted the security guard, who happened to be a retired police officer, in overcoming the suspect.

So let us not under-play the issue of crime-busting. In fact, clearance rate by the police has been maintained at a very high level. In other words, when a crime is committed, the police managed to clear many of these crimes.

Has there been a new philosophy where the police say, "Well, it is your problem, not ours, so please do not create the problem for yourself."? There is no new philosophy. I have always said here that dealing with crime is not just a police responsibility. Everyone has a responsibility to prevent the crime from happening. For example, we have read of stories, we have seen Crime Watch programmes. Why do people lose handphones in hawker centres? They have such great confidence in the safety of Singapore that when they go to the hawker centre, some of them will leave their handphones on the table to reserve the seats. Then, merrily, they trot along to the hawker stall to queue for the food. Can you imagine, if we were to ensure that such crimes do not happen and we need police presence, how many more police officers do we need? Should we be putting police officers as security guards and standing watch at hawker centres for such people? Surely not.

If a person has a home and he has valuables in his home, I would advise strongly that he installs an alarm system and turn it on at the right time when he leaves home. No point installing it and not turning it on. We have a spate of such incidents in the 1990s where some homeowners had their homes burgled when they did have an alarm system but they did not turn it on. So is it only a police problem that they did not turn on their alarm system? Surely not. It must be that of the homeowner. So, whatever it is, we are not advising them to walk into a robber. Nobody knows when a person is going to turn into a robber, unless they have the prescience to know that.

So let us not try to "blur" the situation. I did not say that crime is no longer a problem. I said low crime does not mean no crime and that the crime situation is under control. The targets that the police has set have been met. In many years, they have over-achieved. That is the situation.

On counter-terrorism, let me not under-state this. I think it bears repeating that counter-terrorism is the most important issue facing us today. If we have would-be terrorists slipping through our checkpoints, because, as some people prefer, to facilitate checks and make it easier for people to come through our Woodlands Checkpoint, like Mr Steve Chia has suggested, I think we will have a bomb or maybe guns in Singapore too. Do we want that? I think let us be more cautious about that, be stricter in our immigration and checkpoint measures, prevent such people from coming in or such guns from being smuggled in or, worse still, explosives from coming in, and we will be able to sleep better at night.

Mr Chairman, Sir, I would like to ask the Minister of State with regard to the liquor licence whether there could be an imposition of a time limit for the sale of such liquors in the hawker centres or food centres. Also, with regard to the attire of the serving girls, they are normally mini-skirt attired, and I think that is part of the reason why it is also contributing to many of these foreigners coming to the hawker centre and actually spending their nights there and drinking into the wee hours of the morning.

Sir, depending on the location of the outlets, eg, in HDB estates, the sale of liquor is prohibited beyond midnight or, in some cases, to 1.00 am. So there are limitations and conditions.

As to how the girls who are serving are dressed, it all depends on what your own sense of taste is because, if you are in those places where you are drinking beer, you are with people I think who can accept the dress. Of course, if the dress is indecent or obscene, then the police can take note of it. But if it is a short skirt or a bustline that may not be as high as some women would like it to be, it is subjective. I think those who want to go to frequent these places must know that this is the setting.

Sir, I would like to ask about the security for our commercial buildings and shopping centres. I would like to ask whether the police advises or guides the management on the appropriate level and practice of security checks in and around the building. The reason I ask this is that a businessman friend of mine from Taiwan told me just earlier this week that when he visited one of our regional shopping malls - I think it is Kovan, but I will have to check with him - and took photographs of the shops inside the building, he was approached by a uniformed security guard and told to stop. He was even asked to go into the security office as the guards wanted to go through the pictures that he had taken on his digital camera. He also noticed that the dustbins within the shopping mall had all been removed. So I would like to ask whether this is the position recommended by the police or is it something the building management has taken upon itself and, secondly, whether the private security guards have the power or authority to stop innocent people from taking photographs in public.

Sir, Mr Ong has raised a point which is valid. Indeed, building security is a responsibility of building owners. In fact, the tenants in these buildings can and should also play a role, because we cannot expect the police to be guarding that property. A building is a private property. It is owned by a commercial organisation for business purposes. Therefore, the security of that building must belong to that of the building owner and the management.

The police has indeed worked with the management of these buildings to tighten up security and help them with measures. In fact, we give advice. We go around Orchard Road and many other places in the key parts of Singapore where we have a lot of members of the public accessing them, to advise them on what sort of security measures that need to be taken on the outside as well as the inside of the building. The fact that a guard in a regional mall stopped that person from taking photographs shows that he is doing his job. He is doing his duty. If somebody is taking a picture of his building, surely he can ask, "What are you doing?" This is especially so when that person is inside the building,

then, all the more he has the right to see to say, "Let me see what you are taking." Maybe he is taking something else that should not be taken. I am glad that the guard is vigilant enough to stop that person.

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Sometimes, it is not just the guard who should stop that person. Even members of the public will call the Police hotline and say that they notice so and so, travelling in this car, taking pictures of this particular building and they give us the car number, and the Police will follow up too. We have taxi-drivers calling up the Police that they have ferried a passenger who asked them to get from a certain place to another and asked them to stop en route to the Embassy of a particular country or a particular key installation and took pictures. These are very useful tips from the public. We never know that such a tip can be very useful in preventing a terrorist incident.

A point of clarification, Sir. I thank the Minister for taking my feedback seriously on this matter and I commend the Police Coast Guard for their efforts. Sir, I understand that there are transponders that are going to be installed on the boats so as to detect the location and that the Police Coast Guard does selective checks. But I feel that in this area, if we can do more, we should do more.

I would like to ask if the Minister can look into the implementation of thorough procedural checks at all marinas so that every vessel that comes into berth at the marina would be subjected to the security checks. This would not only serve to reinforce the Police Coast Guard's efforts but it would also make sure that nobody skips past us, so as to enhance our national security.

I would like to ask the Minister if these thorough checks are conducted, whether they fall on the responsibility of the ICA or the marina, and if they do fall on the responsibility of the marina, whether or not the ICA and the Police Coast Guard can work closely with the marina.

Sir, indeed, the Home Team department works very closely with the marinas. In fact, we are doing a review of all these places where people can come in by boat, pleasure craft or whatever it is, into our shoreline. A marina is like a building. It is no different from, let us say, Tanglin Mall or Ngee Ann City, except that this particular building is near the sea where, instead of people coming by car, they come by boat. So the security of the marina is also the responsibility of the marina owners and the operators. What the ICA and the Police can do and will do is to give them advice on how to step up such security screening measures. That is what the Police will be working with the marinas on.

Sir, I wish to seek clarifications on two points. Firstly, on the extent of the involvement of businesses during Exercise Northstar V, I reckon that their involvement was rather minimal because it was held on a very early Sunday morning. If this is so, I would like to ask the Minister what other efforts would be made to increase their involvement in future exercises.

The second clarification relates to serial house-breakers. I would like to ask the Minister what is his Ministry's definition of a serial house-breaker and how many of them actually commit repeat offences after serving sentence for a similar offence in the past.

Sir, on the last part of his question about how many of the serial house-breakers went back to serial house-breaking, I do not have the data. On what constitutes a serial house-breaker, when a person has done more than one, two or three times - I do not know the precise number - if there is a string of such offences, we will classify him as a serial house-breaker.

On the involvement of businesses in dealing with security and counter-terrorism measures, yes, we do involve them. When it comes to exercises, of course, we also want to rope them in. But at that hour when we had Exercise Northstar V, not many shops would be open at 6.30 in the morning. But there would be those that opened at 9 o'clock or 10 o'clock when the exercise was at its tail-end. They were already briefed prior to the incident and they knew what to do. Of course, we want to involve them more and particularly, when we are going to have exercises, maybe not at 6.30 in the morning, then we will need to get these businesses and their tenants more involved in the planning as well as in the preparation for these exercises.

Chairman: Are there any more clarifications? If not, Ms Rajah, are you withdrawing your amendment?

Sir, I would like to thank the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs, the Senior Minister of State for Law and the Senior Parliamentary Secretary. I should also clarify to the Senior Minister of State for Law that it is normally the necklines that go up and down, and not the bustlines. With that, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment.

Thank you for that clarification.

Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.

The sum of $1,988,936,750 for Head P ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates.

The sum of $427,021,700 for Head P ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates.

Order. I propose to take the break now.

Thereupon Mr Speaker left the Chair of the Committee and took the Chair of the House.

Order. I suspend the Sitting and will take the Chair again at 2.45 pm.

Sitting accordingly suspended

at 2.22 pm until 2.45 pm.

Sitting resumed at 2.45 pm

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

Debate in Committee of Supply resumed.

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

Head F - Parliament. Mr Steve Chia.

First Reading of Bills

Sir, I beg to move,

That the total sum to be allocated for Head F of the Estimates be reduced by $100.

Sir, the current Parliament's practice is for the Minister to introduce a Bill, or Bills, or its amendments at the First Reading. He will then speak and explain his reasoning for the proposed Bill or amendments at the Second Reading, followed by comments from MPs before summing up to reply to any questions raised by the MPs.

Sometimes, and often enough, Members, the press and the general public cannot grasp the essence of the proposed Bills presented and the important key features and highlight of the Bills and/or the amendments would be lost in the text. This is especially so if it comes in a thick stack of papers and is very technical in nature, which some Bills are. This past practice handicaps comprehensive debate and the gathering of effective feedback for the Minister and his Ministry.

Recent Bills passed by Parliament, after the Second and Third Readings, without comprehensive debate nor feedback caused several controversies and unhappiness with the general public. One such Bill was the transfer of assets from the reserves to the statutory board without going through the President. The MOF had to come out and explain many times over several papers after the Bill was passed. Yet, the public is still unsatisfied about the clarification.

Another was the appointment of a CEO for MUIS by the Minister for Muslim Affairs. There were a lot of unhappiness and allegations that this Bill was bulldozed through by the Minister without much debate and consultation with the community and no opportunity for them to provide effective feedback before the Bill was passed into law.

Sir, my proposal is to amend the Standing Orders so that the Minister will speak and address the House upon the presentation of the Bill at the First Reading. This will allow Members, the media and the public to pick up the important points that the Minister wants to highlight. Public comments and effective feedback can then be sought by Members and the media before the Bill is read again at the Second Reading. This suggestion is just like what the Finance Minister had been doing with the Budget Speech all along, giving time for his ideas to be digested and feedback sought before it is debated. Such a practice will encourage more effective and focused debate at its Second Reading and not allowed the Bills to be constantly passed through without any Backbenchers speaking on it, just like what we have been saying of late.

More importantly, Sir, members of the public would not be caught by surprise when some of the controversial Bills are passed through without their better understanding and Members of Parliament are accused of sleeping through the Bill and debate. I hope Mr Speaker will agree and institute this new practice for the good of our Parliament and everyone here as soon as possible.

Mr Speaker, Sir, Mr Steve Chia has asked that the Ministers should speak at the First Reading of the Bill and his reason for asking for this to be done is that he can better understand why the Bill is introduced when it is read the first time.

Sir, currently the objective of every Bill is stated at the end of the Bill. There is an Explanatory Statement in the Bill and this statement states the purpose of each section or amendment and whether public monies will be spent as a result of the Bill. So Members do have a good idea as to why the Bill is introduced at its First Reading.

In some cases, like the Casino Control Bill, for example, information is also set out in the Bill, giving the legislative origins or the history of the provisions. For Bills which have a significant public impact and, I think, this is what Mr Steve Chia was referring to when he said that there is not enough time being given, the public consultation exercise is usually conducted on the intended provisions of the Bill and this is undertaken by the Ministry in charge before it is introduced in the House. I can cite some recent examples. We had the Parks and Trees Bill and the Competition Bill in 2004, the Workplace Safety and Health Bill, the Biological Agents and Toxins Bill and the Deposit Insurance Bill in 2005. In fact, I recall that most of the MAS' Bills which are, by nature, very technical, are given a round of public consultation before they are introduced.

This consultation process generates the publicity and the awareness of the proposed legislation and its policy directives. In some instances, the Ministries concerned also put up a statement to give more details of the Bill before the Second Reading. So, from this, one can see that sufficient information is already provided on the purposes and scope of the Bill at the First Reading. What Members should do is to look at the details of the Bill, do their homework, study the Bill carefully, research the matters brought up in the Bill so that they can be well prepared when they finally come to Parliament to speak after they hear the Minister's Second Reading.

Sufficient time is also given to Members to examine the Bill in detail before its Second Reading. Why? Because the Standing Orders stipulate that there must be at least seven clear days after the Bill is gazetted before its Second Reading. Usually, in our case, because Parliament sits on average every month, there is, in fact, much more than the seven clear days that is stipulated in the Standing Orders. At the Second Reading, the Minister would make his speech to elaborate on the Bill, then the debate follows and Members can make their views known and question the Minister on specific aspects of the Bill.

Sir, the current practice has served us well. It is also the practice in the British House of Commons and other Commonwealth Parliaments in Canada, Malaysia, India, Sri Lanka, to name a few. There is no need to change this practice.

Clarification, Sir. The current Bill has served us well in the past, but apparently it has not served well because there have been complaints that Bills are passed through without any debate in Parliament, as two of the examples I quoted were not effectively debated. So what is the problem with us changing the practice so that we can actually make Parliament even more effective and the Bills are even more publicised by the media and more feedback can be gathered before it has been passed into law? If it is a good practice, we should change it.

Mr Mah, you have got one minute.

Sir, this is the first time that I have heard that there are people complaining that we do not debate Bills thoroughly in Parliament. As I explained, before the Bill is read the first time, or when it is presented to Parliament, and before it is gazetted, there are explanatory notes being given. In fact, in the case of the Casino Control Bill, which is a very complicated Bill and, as Mr Steve Chia noted just now, it is actually a huge stack, the Ministry in charge, the Ministry of Home Affairs, actually provided a lot of explanatory notes, provisions, explaining why the various clauses are drafted as such. It is during this time that public feedback and consultation are sought, and Members can actually go through these notes and make reference to them to prepare for debate on the Bill. So it is not correct to say that there is no time given or there is not enough information given as to the contents of the Bill.

I think what the Member is probably commenting on is that the Bills that are put to Parliament are actually passed and not that there is not enough debate. In fact, most of the Bills, controversial Bills particularly, see extensive debate in this House, not just from Members of the Opposition and the Non-Constituency MPs, but also from the PAP Members of this House. So I dare say that if the PAP Members can take the trouble and the effort to do their homework and come up with very cogent, relevant and useful points for the Minister to consider, I do not see why other Members cannot do the same.

Mr Chia, are you withdrawing the amendment? It is guillotine time already. For this amendment it is ten minutes only.

Although I disagree with the Minister, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment.

Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.

The sum of $25,532,770 for Head F ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates.

The sum of $1,827,100 for Head F ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates.

Head W - Ministry of Transport. Mr Ong Kian Min.

Land Transport

Sir, I beg to move,

That the total sum to be allocated for Head W of the Estimates be reduced by $100.

Sir, 2005 was another excellent year for Singapore's transport sector. On the land transport front, the Land Transport Authority continued with its mission to develop Singapore's land transport infrastructure. The Punggol LRT east loop and Sengkang LRT west loop were opened on 29th January 2005, boosting our rail network by 8%. Construction on the Circle Line is well underway, while plans for the downtown extension and the Boon Lay extension have been announced.

During 2005, the road network was also expanded by more than 100-lane kilometres. In addition, adjustments have been made to several land transport policies, regulations and schemes and the outcomes have been positive. As part of the Government's commitment to foster a more inclusive society, I am happy to note that wheelchair-accessible buses have been introduced in Singapore.

Sir, I will now go into details on some issues regarding our land transport system. Our total vehicle population has grown by 44% from 509,000 vehicles on our roads in 1989 to 735,000 that we had last year. This steady vehicle population growth over time, accompanied by lower ARF and COE prices, has enabled many more people to own cars. I would like to ask whether this vehicle growth rate is sustainable over the long term and what is the allowable rate of increase going forward. In connection with the new growth rate, will there be an increase or reduction in the COE quota for 2006?

Sir, although there are now more vehicles on our roads, we can still be proud of a well-managed and generally congestion-free road system. With ERP, we manage well under normal circumstances. But, if for some special ad-hoc reasons and occasions, many more drivers decide to descend or converge in a particular area, a massive jam or gridlock can occur. We cannot really control how many cars come for a particular occasion and we cannot impose ERP on short notice. One example is the Investiture ceremony last year, where for the first time the ceremony was delayed. Most of the special events can be predicted, for example, Kreta Ayer, Chinatown, during Chinese New Year, Orchard Road during light-up and other major events and festivities. But some can happen without warning. I would like to ask the Ministry of Transport and the Land Transport Authority to work closely with other agencies like the Traffic Police to foresee and cope with such situations effectively.

Statistics and key performance indicators of the Ministry of Transport. A desired outcome of the Ministry of Transport is to have a quality integrated and efficient land transport system. One of the key performance indicators (KPI) is the percentage of expressways and arterial roads which are congestion-free during peak periods. By congestion-free, it means expressways where traffic can move at a speed above 45 kph and arterial roads with speed above 20 kph. I observe that using this KPI, the percentage of expressways with speed above 45 kph has dropped from 99.2% in FY2003 to 97.9% in FY2004, to only at least 95% in the revised FY2005.

I am puzzled by this steady decline over the last few years, especially since during those years the ERP was implemented and rolled out along many stretches of expressways to ease and smooth out traffic flow.

On the other hand, the percentage of arterial roads above 20 kph has increased marginally, from 94.7% in FY2003 to 95.5% in FY2004, and it is hoped to maintain at at least 95% in the revised FY2005. I would have thought that congestion along arterial roads worsened as motorists avoided the ERP along the expressways, and used other roads instead. Could the Minister clarify and explain these figures?

Sir, I would think that these figures and statistics, which I have just quoted, would sound rather academic and meaningless to the man-in-the-street. What do these figures translate to or reflect in the actual situation he is facing day to day? To the average motorist, these figures are meaningless because, to him, the actual traffic situation that affects him every day is more important. At least, 95% of expressways above 45 kph may sound very impressive on paper, but the motorist would be most unhappy if he were to be caught in the remaining 5% of expressways every day.

Sir, next, managing traffic jams. I think it would be most meaningful to motorists if we introduce a code for the different levels of congestion. We need not be too specific or exact as in the system which informs us of the number of minutes required to arrive at a certain point along the expressway. I would like to propose, for example, "green" can mean that the expressway traffic is smooth flowing and moving at above 45 kph; "yellow" means slow moving traffic at between 30-45 kph; "red" means crawling traffic at between 20-30 kph; and "black" means drivers are stuck in the traffic, at standstill, and most of them have black faces! This will be easier to interpret and give the drivers a clearer mental image of the situation than mere speeds expressed numerically in kph.

Sir, on our early warning displays, I observe that, at present, the early warning LED displays along the expressways do not tell us much about the actual traffic situation. "Accident on Lane 1 after Kallang" or "Jam after Kallang" does not give motorists a sense of how bad the jam is. It does not tell you how long is the tail-back. How long would the driver need to take to pass through that section? I only know that if it says "Massive Jam", I better give it due respect and avoid that section at all costs. I would like to suggest that the severity of the traffic jam be represented by similar colour codes. So motorists can see at a glance and be better informed of the situation, so as to decide whether to join the jam or to take an alternative route.

Sir, on "clean" vehicles, I would like to ask about the amount of incentives granted to encourage the use of "clean" vehicles. Hybrid vehicles are still more expensive to buy and the cost benefits still do not add up. It is also a question of infrastructure and demand - chicken and egg. Take compressed natural gas, for example. One major complaint is the lack of convenient refuelling stations. But private companies would not want to take such a big risk to invest large sums of money to build the infrastructure and the network of refuelling stations unless the demand can be assured. And without convenient refuelling stations, few motorists will be prepared to own and use a compressed natural gas vehicle.

Sir, I would like to declare that I am a director of SBS Transit. One of our policies for the mass public transport system is to avoid duplication of services. Hence, in areas served by the MRT, bus routes are carefully planned to minimise duplication of the MRT routes. This policy has reduced the number of point-to-point bus services. In spite of the predictability, speed and comfort of the MRT services, a significant segment of commuters still prefer point-to-point services. They do not like the inter-modal transfers for a number of reasons. Some dislike the additional waiting times; others find transfers confusing and inconvenient. Singaporeans want choice. I think the time is ripe to give them greater choice by allowing competition between our MRT and buses. The MRT system is now quite mature, except for the Circle Line, with a well-established commuter base. Competition would drive our operators to provide better services and add flexibility and robustness to our system. The ultimate winners will be the Singapore public.

Public Transport System

Sir, adverse feedback has been received from the public about the quality of our bus service. The dissatisfaction centres around unreliability of service, long waiting time and overcrowding. This may stem from commuters' rising expectations. I would like to ask how this adverse feedback can be addressed, whether any new requirements or standards are to be imposed and whether their compliance would lead to an increase in cost of operation, leading to increase in fares.

Sir, in imposing any new service standards, I would like the authorities to be mindful of the fact that while operators can ensure that the buses leave the bus interchange according to the schedule, unreliability, long waiting time and overcrowding further down the route could also be due to unpredictable traffic conditions along the way. Traffic congestion along the route can cause uncertain arrival and bunching. I think complaining against the bus operators would not solve the problem, because traffic condition is beyond their control. Also, penalising the operators is not the solution. I would like to ask what measures will be taken to enable our buses to ply their routes with more certainty.

Sir, next, on public transport concessionary fares for the lower-income group. When there is a downturn, the transport operators, NTUC and other organisations may volunteer to come up with a few million dollars to start a transport fund for that period. I think we should have a more permanent Government-supported transport fund to give those from the lower-income group the mobility and ability to travel further, whether for work or leisure. For example, why should a low-income resident from my constituency, Tampines, be prevented from taking up a job in Tuas just because, for him, the transport cost of getting to and back from his workplace would be prohibitive in relation to his income.

Sir, as a poor student in London, season passes allowed me to travel to college and visit places of interest that I would otherwise not been able to. There were London Transport season tickets, Brit Rail passes, Inter Rail, EU Rail and in the US, Greyhound bus passes, etc. Our public transport operators are not issuing season tickets because they say that would result in them collecting less revenue. They dictate that commuters pay on a per trip basis.

Sir, there are only two public transport operators here. If SBS and SMRT do not offer, then commuters have no choice but to pay for every trip. I think the Government should step in to provide for the lower-income group to give them more mobility to get to their place of work and earn a living to provide for their families.

A season ticket can also serve as a cap on their transport expenses, help them in their budgeting and allow them to take their families out of the neighbourhood to visit other places of interest.

Sir, my next point relates to Tuas Industrial Estate. We still have thousands who are structurally unemployed. There are jobs available for them in Tuas. There are companies there that cannot find workers to fill vacancies. The present situation which has existed for many years is unsatisfactory. We have spent millions of dollars developing that industrial estate. We should not allow poor accessibility and inadequate bus services to prevent us from realising its full potential. We need to adopt more creative solutions to tackle the present shortcomings.

I observe that there are not many pedestrians walking along the roads in Tuas. This is understandable. The roads there are dusty and unsheltered from the elements, and workers spend most of their time working within the compound of the factories. Unlike the CBD and Orchard Road, factory workers there do not have to come out of their factories to visit other factories for meetings. Even for lunch, workers do not venture far on foot. Many of the factories have their own canteens or food is brought there for the workers.

Sir, it does not make sense to subject the public transport operators to the universal service obligation that they must and can only ply approved routes and pick up and drop off passengers at designated bus stops.

Tuas needs a rethink and a different system. We should carve Tuas industrial estate out, exempt it from the universal service obligation and try something different. For example, how about adopting some variation of the mini-bus service that one finds in Hong Kong? These mini-buses can wait at MRT stations and, when a sufficient number of passengers have boarded, make shorter loops into minor roads in the industrial estate. Instead of only being allowed to stop at designated bus stops, they could be allowed to stop, drop off or pick up passengers at the factory gates. Instead of being required to run most hours of the day, they should have the flexibility to adjust their operating hours according to the passenger demand.

Companies could also be encouraged to band together with other factories in the vicinity to organise these mini-buses to pick up their workers at specified times and to take them back to the MRT station.

Sir, the business of moving people rests on two main factors: it must be safe and reliable, and affordable and accessible. Our public transport has travelled a long distance from the early days of the Hock Lee and STC bus companies. Then, safety and reliability of services were a great challenge. Today, we have moved beyond that phase and we would like the Ministry to review and set out performance standards for our public transport at present and in the future.

We need to assess the performance standards of our public transport system. Every time when there is a fare increase, the main attention is on whether the transport company is financially able to absorb the increase in the operating costs. Many users are not looking at other performance standards. For example, are our transport system operating efficiently and what is the utilisation rate of our public transport system? All these will work its way out into the fares eventually. The people do not know how well our public transport companies are performing. Are we maximising our infrastructure which the Government has built and provided over the years? The people need to know what are the benchmarks for our public transport system.

Sir, these are the related questions. What is the utilisation rate of our public bus system and MRT system as compared to other cities in the world? How many people have we served in our peak hours? Have we reached our maximum capacity, or must we do more to encourage our people to use the public transport system so as to lower the fares, as in the case of the North East Line? What are our fares as compared to, say, Asian cities like Hong Kong and Taipei? How are our public transport companies' financial performance as compared to other transport companies in similar cities, given that the Government gives them the monopoly to run the public transport system with the provision of first-class infrastructure by the Government? And what other public transport performance benchmarks that other cities are using to ensure that the standard of their public transport system is performing satisfactorily?

Sir, I would like the Ministry of Transport to look into the following areas of concern on the ground:

When we decided to privatise our public transport system, the belief was that in doing so, it would give the operators greater flexibility to offer the best at the most competitive prices. Unfortunately, they are privatised. Routinely, these companies put up proposals to the Public Transport Council for fare revisions. It is almost a cyclical motion that every other year, they will be knocking on the door to ask for fare revisions. Knowing that oil prices will remain on the high side, these companies should look at how to meet these challenges and not taking the easier route of increasing fares.

Take the example of our Government using our reserves for our people over the five years to offset some of their expenses. Why can we not use some of the reserves of the bus companies to reduce the fares for our people as well?

The other area I am very concerned with is our vehicle population which is on the rise. We are increasing our vehicle population at 3% a year. Even in our main arterial roads, like the CTE and the PIE, there is a lot of congestion, especially at the Braddell Road exit. Although we are building a lot of underpasses as well as flyovers, we are still facing a lot of congestion. Can the Ministry look into this as well?

3.15 pm

Sir, in Singapore, three out of every four public transport passengers use the buses. Close to three million trips are made on buses every day. The top three complaints are long waiting time, slow travel time and crowdedness. The main culprit is adverse road traffic condition. More than 70% of the time

it prevents buses from travelling on schedule. Less than half a percent of all buses leaves their terminals, deviates from their schedules by more than 10 minutes, but by three quarters into their journeys, almost 20% of these buses suffer a deviation of more than 10 minutes.

In the last five years, our bus lanes had been reduced from 120 kms in year 2000 to 113 kms today, and bus speeds had fallen by 10% from 19.3 kms an hour to 17.5 kms an hour. We must give more road priority to buses since they are used by the vast majority of Singaporeans. Can I ask the Minister what measures are there to improve travelling conditions for buses?

Bus Fares

Sir, I have only one point to make and that is to ask whether the Minister is agreeable to recommend to the transport company to reduce the one flat rate for feeder bus services and the LRT. I understand that the feeder service is now charging 80 cents per passenger and for a transfer passenger, it is 65 cents. In the case of the LRT, it is 90 cents flat. This is unfair for people who want to catch only one stage of the travel, especially for workers who have got two or three children and they wish to travel only one stage. If the fare could be reduced, say, for the LRT from 90 cents to 60 cents, for a worker with three children, he can save as much as $1 per day. This certainly will be a great help to him. I wonder if the Minister is agreeable.

Wheelchair-accessible Buses

(In Mandarin): Sir, in order to look after the handicapped people, the Ministry of Transport has announced that all buses will be fitted with wheelchair ramps to enable wheelchair-bound commuters to board and alight from the buses. When this news was first released, these people were very happy and appreciative. However, when the details were announced, they had the following worries:

Firstly, at present, there are 3,500 buses and the bus company needs 17 years before they could complete the fitting of wheelchair ramps to all the buses, and they are going to be manually, and not mechanically, operated. So, whenever they board or alight from the buses, the bus drivers will have to get down from the bus to help them, and the whole process will take three minutes. During the peak period, this would cause delay to other commuters and traffic jam. I hope that the Ministry of Transport will consider asking the bus company to fit the buses with automatic or mechanically-operated ramps so as to improve efficiency.

Secondly, during the long period of 17 years, some buses may be fitted with this facility and others may not. On some routes, there will be buses with this facility, while some will not. This would cause confusion and inconvenience to the handicapped people. Since the Government is allocating $21 million to help the bus companies make the buses wheelchair accessible, may I suggest that, during the interim period, some 10% or $2 million be set aside to enable voluntary welfare organisations for the handicapped to purchase a number of mini-buses to transport the handicapped people, and taxi drivers who transport handicapped people be granted some form of concessions, until such time when all the buses are fitted with wheelchair ramps. I hope the bus companies will accelerate the process of fitting these wheelchair ramps. This should be completed in seven years, not 17 years.

School Buses

I move this amendment to ask the Minister what is the Ministry's stand on seat belts to be made compulsory for primary and kindergarten buses. I heard over the radio that the Ministry is reviewing the case. There are two issues here, question of cost and question of safety. I think safety has a higher weightage over cost. So I am wondering when the Ministry is going to review. There are only two issues, very straightforward, and the Ministry should quickly make a decision for our parents who are now very concerned. Recently, Members must have read in the papers about a school bus which overturned. Fortunately, no students were injured. But this has created a lot of awareness among parents on the importance of seat belts in buses, especially for kindergarten children. So I am hoping that the Ministry will quickly come up with some answers and do not just keep the parents waiting for a reply.

Certificate of Entitlement

Sir, since its implementation in 1990, the Vehicle Quota System (VQS) was reviewed only once when Mr Mah Bow Tan, the then Minister, appointed the VQS Review Committee in November 1998. The Committee was chaired by Mr Chay Wai Chuen, with Dr Michael Lim as Deputy Chairman. The other Members were Mr Goh Chee Wee, Dr Tan Cheng Bock, Prof. Toh See Kiat, Mr Yeo Guat Kwang and Mr Ong Ah Heng, all very eminent Members of this House. The Committee submitted its report in March 1999. The report recommended that the merger of the then four car categories into two, namely, Category A and Category B, a recommendation accepted by the Government.

In coming to that conclusion, the Committee recognised that, from the transport point of view, there should only be one quota category for all vehicles, in particular for cars. However, since the Committee was concerned that those who can afford bigger luxury cars will outbid the smaller car buyers, it proposed that the merger of car categories be done gradually. Thus, the recommendation of the Committee back in 1999 was supposed to be an intermediary step. Apparently, the Committee felt that ultimately, there should be only one car category while recommending that the Open Category be maintained. In my view, the Committee's recommendations are sound.

Sir, since 1999, we have experienced several business cycles. LTA has adjusted the number of quotas for the vehicles. The demand for cars has also changed with time. In fact, over the past 12 months, the quota premiums of the two categories, Category A and Category B, tracked each other very closely. With the price of oil hovering around US$60 with a little chance of coming down, the desirability of gas guzzlers has dropped while the demand for fuel efficient cars has increased, so much so that, in fact, over the past year, Category B premiums are often-times lower than that of Category A. In extreme cases, it was $4,398 lower in January 2005, and in December 2005, it was $3,080 lower.

Sir, the concern that luxury car buyers would squeeze out the smaller car buyers seems to be misplaced. In fact, it turned out to be the other way round that the big car buyers are now being protected by the quota system. If anything, the segregation of the Vehicle Quota System builds in distortion in the allocation of car quotas as buyers adjust to the changing driving habits, fuel costs as well as awareness of global warming. Therefore, the VQS, as implemented today, does not encourage Singaporeans to buy smaller cars which are more fuel efficient and more environmentally friendly.

Sir, I urge the Minister to constitute another review committee to see whether it can merge the two categories into one.

Sir, let me thank Members who have spoken on my Ministry's budget. I thank them for their views. Let me now proceed to answer the points that were raised. Mr Ong asked about the outcome of the vehicle growth rate review. Since the introduction of the VQS in 1990, our vehicle population growth rate, as Mr Ong stated, has been set at 3% a year. The rate was last reviewed in 1999, when we decided that it should be maintained at 3%. My Ministry has completed its latest review, and we have agreed and decided to retain the vehicle growth rate also at 3%, but only for the next three years. In reviewing the growth rate, we took into consideration our ability to further expand the road network, the traffic conditions on our roads, the extent of road charging, the planned development of public transport infrastructure and the need to allow more people to fulfil their aspirations to own cars.

Sir, the vehicle population grew by 44% from 1989 to 2005, a period of 16 years, while the road network only expanded by 17%. Although the roads are fairly free flowing today, Members will agree that the traffic has definitely become heavier over the years. We have controlled congestion through the use of ERP, coupled with road expansion and improvement works. This has resulted in better utilisation of the overall road network capacity.

Sir, however, our road expansion will slow down in the years ahead as we become more built-up, especially in the city areas. We envisage that, at the most, our roads will increase by another 8% over the next 15 years, half the rate of the previous 15 years. Having weighed the various considerations, we have decided to maintain the vehicle growth rate at 3% for three more years. We will monitor the impact on traffic conditions closely and we will review the rate again in 2008. But I would urge Members to realise that in view of our land constraints, it is not possible to maintain the 3% growth rate indefinitely.

Sir, Mr Ong asked what is the COE quota for the coming year. I am pleased to inform him that the total COE quota for 2006 is 131,127. This quota is just marginally lower than the original quota announced for quota year 2005, which was 132,581. The reduction is due mainly to a lower number of adjustment to COEs introduced for this year.

Mr Ong also expressed concern that the KPIs for expressways seem to be declining. Let me explain. The KPI is an average figure derived from both the morning and evening peaks. Therefore, his observation that the KPI for expressways has dropped is correct. This is because the ERP system is managing the morning peak traffic very well. However, the traffic situation during the evening peak has been deteriorating. I am sure many motorists, including Members here, would have also experienced this. The percentage of expressways with speed above 45 kph in the morning peak was 100% in FY03 and 99.1% the following year. On the other hand, the percentage for the evening peak period has fallen from 98.8% in FY03 to 96.8% in FY04. This is quite a big drop. Overall, this has led to the average KPI declining. So without the ERP on most expressways during the evening peak, we can expect the average KPI to further decline in line with the growth of our vehicle population. That is why on 1st August 2005, we implemented the ERP along the north bound CTE during the weekday evenings, from 6.00 pm to 8.00 pm. Since the introduction of the evening ERP, traffic speeds along the north bound CTE have definitely improved. LTA will therefore be studying how to improve the expressway speeds during the evening peak.

Sir, Mr Ong also commented that while 95% of the expressways are above 45 kph, the other 5% are below the threshold and a motorist would be unhappy if he is caught in the 5% of the expressway every day. I would like to explain that the traffic speeds are measured during the peak hours over the entire stretch of all our expressways. Even for the stretch within the 5%, the traffic speed is only marginally below the optimium speed range, ie, from 40 kph to 44 kph. Otherwise, the ERP would have been increased. Since the average motorist's journey would go beyond the affected stretch, he will be driving along stretches which are quite

free-flowing and he will hit certain stretches that are congested. And since 95% of the roads are quite free-flowing, that 5% would only constitute a small part of his entire journey.

3.30 pm

Mr Ong suggested colour-coding roads according to their travel speeds to better manage traffic jams. Sir, the colour-coding of roads according to different levels of congestion is already being done in the form of an interactive map on the one.motoring website. The different colours represent the different speeds the road will be operating at that point in time. Therefore, we would encourage motorists to consult the map before they start their journey. But for motorists along the road, LTA currently makes use of the electronic signs above the expressways to convey information on the on-going traffic conditions along the expressways and some major roads. I agree with Mr Ong that the messages could be more informative and helpful, especially in giving motorists an estimate of the time it will take them to clear the traffic congestion. I will ask LTA to follow up on Mr Ong's suggestion.

Sir, Mr Ong may also like to know that LTA is working with interested service providers to make traffic information available to motorists on a personalised basis, ie, the driver can find out exactly what to expect while he is driving, about the traffic conditions on the roads that he is going to be travelling on. Whether such a service will eventually be available will depend on the demand and, hence, its viability. This is because the service provider will have to make some investments and will therefore have to charge for such personalised information.

Mr Ong also asked how LTA and the Traffic Police manage public events. When there is a major public event that is being planned, the current procedure requires the organisers to consult the relevant agencies, ie, LTA, Traffic Police and others, to identify the impact on road users and to implement the appropriate mitigation measures to minimise the impact. This would include traffic control plans at key road junctions and advance publicity of the event so that the participants and the general public are aware of the event and the potential traffic impact. Motorists are also advised to use alternative routes. I think Members would have noticed in recent months that there have been a lot of advisory messages on our signboards. I can assure Mr Ong that LTA will continue to work closely with the Traffic Police and event organisers to manage public events so that they do not congest the island too much.

Sir, on green vehicles, Mr Ong has observed that the hybrid cars are still more expensive than conventional petrol-driven ones, and they are not that convenient to use because of lack of fuel points. As Members are aware, the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources (MEWR) has been enhancing the incentives for green vehicles. From 1st January this year, buyers of new hybrid cars can now enjoy a tax rebate equivalent to 40% of the car's open market value, an increase from 20% previously. This further narrows the cost differential between the green cars and the conventional ones. With the enhanced rebates, the annualised total cost of some green vehicles is similar to, if not lower than, those of conventional cars. But even though their upfront prices may be a little bit higher, green vehicle owners enjoy savings in fuel costs. Green vehicles tend to be more expensive than conventional ones as they do not enjoy huge economies of scale at the present moment. But I think this is likely to change in the years ahead.

Firstly, more people are becoming more environmentally-conscious. Coupled with high oil prices, more motorists are therefore likely to go green. As a result, car manufacturers are responding with a greater choice of hybrid and other green vehicles. We are hopeful that more environmentally-conscious Singaporeans will also find green vehicles more attractive in time to come, especially if fuel prices remain high. My Ministry will continue to work with MEWR to continue to monitor the developments in the green vehicle market and to review the policies on a regular basis.

Sir, Mr Wee Siew Kim asked for more competition between the different modes of transport in the public transport sector. Now I know why he was so interested, being on the Board of SBST. Yes, I think it will help SBST if there is more competition. Definitely. But I think we have to look at it on a national basis. We have, as a nation, invested a lot of money on our MRT lines, and we owe it to the people from whom the funds came from that we optimise the use of our MRT system. That is why we have regulated the PTOs to ensure that there is minimal duplication of services along the parts of Singapore where the MRT line runs. But it does not mean that everything is cast in stone. There are some places where the MRT lines are already operating near to maximum capacity. At those places where the MRT lines are already quite fully utilised, I think there is scope for us to introduce bus services to complement the MRT services, and I will ask LTA to examine that.

Sir, Mr Ong Kian Min asked about the priority measures to smoothen bus travel, and I think Mr Wee also asked about that, ie, the congestion on the road does not allow the buses to keep to their schedule. So what are we doing to help smoothen the bus travel? All bus systems in heavily built-up cities face the same problem of variable arrival times at the bus stops and bunching of buses due to congestion. Therefore, our experience in Singapore is not unusual or unique. To improve the general traffic flow, LTA will continue to carry out road improvement works, such as road widening where space is available, and improvements to the junctions and traffic light timings, etc. It will also work with PTOs on various traffic schemes to improve the reliability of bus services. The most common and effective one, which Mr Wee also mentioned, is the provision of the dedicated bus lanes along heavily-used roads during peak periods. Another measure is the "B" traffic light signals which ensure that buses are given priority at suitable traffic light junctions. These "B" signals go green before the rest of the usual traffic light, and therefore the buses are able to move off before the rest of the traffic. This allows the buses a head start, to weave through the different traffic lanes, especially if they have to cross the road to make a turn later on.

Sir, as an example of the new approach that LTA has taken, LTA conducted a trial for a full-day bus lane along Orchard Road recently. This helped to improve bus speeds by 15% from an average of 13 kph to 15 kph. As a result of the positive results, we will be implementing full-day bus lanes permanently along Orchard Road. LTA will look into the feasibility of extending this to other roads. LTA will also be deploying traffic wardens to ensure that bus lanes are kept clear during operational hours, complementing the Traffic Police's efforts of enforcement against illegal parking in the bus lanes.

Sir, Mr Ong talked about his happy experience in London as a student when he was able to use the heavily subsidised concessionary passes. I would not join Mr Ong in extolling the virtues of the London system. This is because the low concessionary fares enjoyed by Mr Ong was a result of heavy government subsidies. The financial subsidies to cover operational deficits in London continue today, but it is under better control because the operation of buses and the maintenance of trains have been contracted out to private operators who undertake to manage the system more efficiently. But they are still running at a big loss and, therefore, have to be subsidised.

Let me give an example. Last year, the subsidy for the London bus operations alone amounted to S$1.65 billion and the subsidy for the London Underground system amounted to S$2.25 billion. These are huge figures. But they were even much higher before. In Singapore, the Government is committed to helping low-income earners. This is well reflected in the Prime Minister's announcement in his Budget Statement of the $2.6 billion Progress Package. As Members know, we also have a host of financial support measures for low-income earners. In addition, MCYS adopts a many-helping-hands approach by partnering VWOs and community organisations, such as the CDCs, in reaching out to identify those genuinely in need of help and reaching out to help them. This system of general assistance focused on the low-income earners is a better way, instead of giving out subsidies to the entire population or by targeting subsidies at particular services. This allows recipients' discretion on how to use their financial assistance; it also prevents distortion of consumption patterns and avoids misallocation of resources. To take Mr Ong's example, I think it is better for us to provide financial assistance to his lower-income worker living in Tampines and let him decide whether to spend it on additional transport costs by taking a job in Tuas on the other side of the island, or to use the money on worthwhile things, such as a computer for his children.

This way, we neither distort his travel patterns nor his needs. But when special circumstances require additional help to be given, we are ready and able to rally such support. For example, when transport fares were increased last year and the economic outlook at that time was still uncertain, the transport operators, together with the community organisations and the unions, were able to provide additional financial support targeted at the lower-income groups. But this should be one-off measures to tide the lower-income earners over a difficult period and should not be relied on as a systemic or on-going measure.

Sir, Mr Ong lamented about the reluctance of the PTOs to widen the use of travel concessions and season tickets. These are granted by the PTOs to various groups of individuals, such as pre-school children, students and senior citizens, to help lower their cost of travelling. These concessions remain the prerogative of the PTOs, and they are actually cross-subsidised by the majority of full-fare-paying commuters. The PTOs have, therefore, been very prudent about extending the travel concessions beyond the present groups, as it would ultimately result in other commuters paying higher fares.

Sir, Mr Ong also talked about Tuas. First, let me assure Mr Ong that Tuas today is already adequately served by public transport. There are now four public services serving Tuas with a total fleet of 41 buses, and they link Tuas Industrial Estate to Boon Lay MRT Station and the Boon Lay Bus Interchange which are located together. SBS has planned its bus schedules to match the ridership, which is concentrated during the morning and evening peaks, with very low demand during the off-peak period. PTC has periodically checked and found that the bus services to Tuas are quite adequate. By 2009, the public transport to Tuas will further improve when we have completed the Boon Lay Extension. This will extend the East-West MRT line westward into the Jurong estate into the Joo Koon Circle area. There will be a new MRT station and bus interchange there. Workers will find it a lot more convenient and accessible when the facility is ready.

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Sir, Mr Ong suggested that we

carve Tuas Industrial Estate out of the Universal Service Obligation (USO) and allow other players to come in to provide mini-bus services. We have actually considered this before. Our conclusion is that this is not likely to lead to better service level at today's fares. This is because the bus ridership pattern is very peakish in Tuas, like in most industrial estates, and the travel time also coincides with travel time elsewhere, ie, whoever operates there cannot be using free capacity freed up because the buses are lying idle, and therefore be able to offer a low-cost service.

Sir, without the USO, the bus operators will only ply during the peak hours, with very little coverage during the off-peak hours, in fact, little or even no coverage. Also, the bus operators operating mini-buses may not be able to enjoy the same economies of scale as SBS and SMRT do. So, in short, the workers in Tuas may be worse off than today, as there will be no guarantee that fares will be the same or lower than the current level, and the service may not be available throughout the day.

Sir, I must admit that the employers in Tuas do face a bigger transport challenge and, therefore, the workers there face a bigger transport challenge than many other places in Jurong. For example, the travel time for bus commuters can be very long, in view of the sheer physical size of Tuas. Let me give an example. The four bus services that ply Tuas Industrial Estate take between 50 minutes to more than one hour just to go from the Boon Lay Bus Interchange to the end point of their service in Tuas, that means, that one-way trip can take almost an hour or more. This makes it less attractive for our workers to work there and, therefore, employers there have had to compensate them in some other ways for this inconvenience. Some employers pay a higher salary. Others offer a dedicated company bus shuttle for their employees because these shuttle services are faster, they are more direct and flexible, and can be customised to cater to their special work arrangements, like their shift hours.

Sir, at the end of the day, the employment market in Singapore is an open and competitive one. Workers who are structurally unemployed will need to be re-trained for the jobs that are available, whether these are in Tuas or elsewhere in Singapore. And employers will need a competitive remuneration package if they wish to attract the right worker, in keeping with the demands of the job, their workplace, and the skills required. This applies definitely to employers in Tuas too.

Sir, let me now move on to the points made by Mdm Cynthia Phua. She asked about the quality of service, whether we are setting QoS standards which are relevant to the commuters. The existing QoS standards, which were first developed in 1994, have been evolving in tandem with the service demand and the increasing expectations of commuters. To this end, PTC recently reviewed the existing standards, and they have come up with a new set. The revised set is now being refined by the PTOs for implementation later this year. The existing bus standards used to measure averages over a period of time, usually on a per week or per month basis. This does not really reflect the everyday experience very well. The new QoS standards will be more sensitive to individual incidents of, for example, overloading and long waiting times, and will better reflect the experience of commuters. One of the things you can measure, for example, will be how the individual bus services comply with the scheduled headways. At the moment, we lump them altogether, so it all looks very good. But there could be a few services that are actually having a very poor compliance. This will allow PTC now to identify exactly where are the problem areas.

Mdm Cynthia Phua also asked whether we benchmark. Sir, yes, we do benchmark the operators regularly to ensure that they offer a quality service that is convenient, efficient and affordable to Singaporeans. Sir, let me explain how they have measured up.

First, we do opinion surveys. The opinion surveys showed that the vast majority of the public is satisfied with our public transport system. That is the silent majority. The survey showed that more than 80% of the public respondents agreed that Singapore's overall land transport system provides adequate choices, and is well-integrated and efficient. In addition, our system is also rated very highly by foreigners when compared to Hong Kong, London, New York, Paris and Tokyo, which have very good and well-developed public transport systems.

Besides the surveys, LTA also carries out benchmarking, which I have mentioned, and let me go into this. The four areas of benchmarking are: firstly, system utilisation, which measures how well the assets are used to generate revenue, without compromising on service quality and safety; secondly, fares, which give an indication of cost to the commuters and affordability; thirdly, productivity, which refers to how efficiently the resources are being used; and fourthly, financial performance, which in our case is important because, unlike most other cities, we do not subsidise operating cost of the operators.

Sir, when compared with 10 rail and 10 bus operators from cities in Asia, Europe and North America, our two operators, SMRT and SBS, came up amongst the top in each of these four areas. For example, SMRT's rail system was consistently ranked the top three in the KPIs. For buses, the KPIs showed that SMRT Bus and SBS Transit came in either first or second in the KPIs. In terms of fares, which are normalised using the purchasing power parity or gross national income per capita for comparability, Singapore's public transport fares are amongst the lowest.

Sir, our strong ratings are an affirmation of the quality of our public transport system and the operators. But I think our challenge is not what happens today, but how do we keep pace with the rising commuters' expectations. My Ministry, together with the PTC, would therefore continue to engage the key stakeholders to ensure that we continue to have a public system that serves the needs of most Singaporeans and that remains affordable.

Sir, Mdm Cynthia Phua also asked how do we make sure that the PTOs do not just ask for fare revisions but use their reserves to reduce fares. Sir, let me clarify that, as the KPIs have shown, our system is among the most cost-effective and most affordable. This is well borne out by the past fare adjustments. Let me give her some data. If you look over the past 18 years, wages have gone up by an average of 182%. Our fares have gone up by only 17% for the buses and only by 33% for the MRT. That is because we deliberately kept the MRT fares very low for the first couple of years when the MRT started.

So I can say that the bus operators have done our commuters a world of good, by keeping their operations very efficient and by keeping the fare increases very low. So are they having an overly high rate of return? The answer is no. Actually, their rate of return has been very modest. I do not have the figures here but the rate of return is in the region of about 4%-6%, which, I think, for an operation with such an heavy capital investment, these are quite modest figures, as I am sure, Mdm Phua, being from the private sector, would appreciate.

Mdm Phua asked about traffic congestion along Braddell Road. I would advise her to communicate with LTA and we will look into it.

Sir, now, let me move on to Mr Chiam's questions. He has asked for the feeder service fares to be reduced. He quoted a fare of 90 cents for the LRT and 80 cents for the trunk service. Actually, the feeder fare is exactly the same as the fare for the trunk bus services. That means that for the feeder fares and the LRT fares, for people with the ez-link cashcard, the fare is 64 cents today, not 80 cents or 90 cents, as quoted by Mr Chiam. But if they pay by cash, the cash fare is 90 cents, and this is the same for both feeder services as well as for the trunk services. The cash fares are higher. For those who do a transfer, they enjoy a 25-cent rebate, that means those who take the feeder bus, they pay 64 cents, but when they transfer, they get a 25-cent rebate from that 64 cents. So, in actual fact, they pay only 39 cents. So the fares are already very low. And the advantage for those on the feeder services is that it is a flat rate. So even though they may travel a longer distance than the first bus fare band, they do not have to pay additional fare, like what those passengers on the trunk service have to pay. I think they are already treated very well, and they are paying a lot lower than what Mr Chiam had feared.

Sir, Mr Ang Mong Seng talked about wheelchair-accessible buses. Sir, let me assure Mr Ang that the pace of introduction of the new wheelchair-accessible buses is already very rapid. There is no way that we can change all the buses today, because it would be very wasteful. To try and retrofit the ramps on existing buses would also be very costly. What we are doing is we are going to fit the new buses as they come in with the ramps. The figures show that about 40% of the entire bus fleet will be replaced by those with ramps in the next five years. This works out to about 1,500

buses. We will be introducing 1,500 buses with ramps over the next five years.

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Sir, LTA is working with the bus operators and the relevant VWOs to ensure that we have an effective deployment or plan for the limited number of WABs for the initial years. We will also enlist the help of the VWOs to publicise the bus services where these buses are being deployed. Every WAB will have a special wheelchair label prominently displayed at the front of the bus for easy identification so that the wheelchair-bound riders would know which bus to get on to.

Mr Yeo, you have to give enough time for the other replies.

Dr Tan Cheng Bock asked for seat belts to be required on school buses. Sir, if Dr Tan had been here a few days ago, he would have been able to take part as this was raised and debated. Sir, let me assure Dr Tan that LTA is reviewing this and we will have the decision in due course. We will definitely and carefully balance the need for safety versus the cost impact.

Sir, Dr Wang Kai Yuen felt that the current segmentation of categories A and B distorts the allocation of car quotas and it is timely now to amalgamate them into one. Sir, I think the rationale for the current segmentation is still relevant today. The conversion of the COE prices for the two categories in recent years means that actually there is no great benefit to merging them now. There may be a variation of a few hundred dollars, usually. The times when the gap was so big, I think, are very rare. This is because it is hard for us to predict the future preferences for car sizes. For example, consumer preferences may change as fuel prices move up or down, or as big cars become more fuel-efficient, driven by the high fuel prices. More importantly, if the economy booms again, on a sustained basis, the demand for bigger cars may grow. As such, I think preserving the separate categories will safeguard the interest of smaller car buyers and there is, therefore, no immediate need to merge them. But let me assure Dr Wang that my Ministry will continue to monitor the trend and take his views into serious consideration should the recent trends of lower category B prices persist over the long term.

International Maritime Centre

Sir, on sea transport. We achieved good port and maritime growth in the year 2005, setting new records in areas like shipping tonnage, container and cargo throughput and bunker sales. Efforts to grow Singapore as an IMC have also gained momentum. I am especially pleased to note MOT's and MPA's continued efforts in reviewing and fine-tuning existing incentive schemes and introducing new ones, where appropriate, so as to be responsive to industry needs. For instance, as Prime Minister and Minister for Finance announced in the Budget Speech last week, the Government will be introducing a Maritime Finance Incentive Scheme to encourage the development of ship financing activities in Singapore. As for the Approved International Shipping (AIS) scheme, the maximum incentive period for qualifying companies will be increased to 30 years from 20 years previously.

I would like to ask the Minister for an update of the performance of our port and maritime services cluster. Sir, in promoting and providing incentives for new activities in this cluster, I hope we will not neglect the traditional players and the small and medium enterprises in our maritime sector.

I remember some years back seeing the loading and unloading of cargoes at the wharf of the port at Tanjong Pagar. Movements of cargoes involved a lot of manual labour and most of Singapore's early migrants found employment opportunities there. Many shipping lines from all over the world called at the port and the economics evolved around it. However, when it came to complex shipping laws and ship financing, as well as insurance, London was the ideal choice for shipowners and those working in the maritime industry. To develop Singapore's international maritime status, the Singapore Maritime Foundation was set up on 5th March 2004. This was established with the assistance of the MPA, with funding from the Government. The SMF is a public-private partnership set up to serve as a forum for the Singapore maritime industry players to exchange ideas, proposals and projects, which the MPA would then follow up with the relevant Government agencies to bring these ideas to fruition. In short, the SMF will serve as Singapore's maritime ambassador, partnering MPA, in promoting Singapore.

I would like to ask the Minister on the result of these initiatives, in particular the following: who are the new shipowners and operators that we have attracted to Singapore since 2004? What are the milestone achievements of the Singapore Maritime Foundation so far and how will the IMC help to strengthen the economic growth of Singapore and place the country firmly on the shipping map of the world?

Sir, Singapore is known as among one of the biggest and busiest ports in the world. We succeeded in becoming among the best by not only exploiting our geographical location, building our strength from an entrepot trade by plugging ourselves into the world economy and using every opportunity presented to us to make ourselves relevant to the world, but also in applying modern technologies and the latest management philosophies.

We are now in the process of enhancing our standing by making Singapore an important international maritime centre. To achieve this, we used a three-pronged strategy. First, we have to attract a core group of shipowners, operators and managers, to base their operations in Singapore. Second, we need to develop the breadth and depth of maritime ancillary services. Third, we have to enhance the operating environment for the maritime business through conducive and responsive regulatory and fiscal policies.

However, as in other business enablers and service providers, our objective can only be achieved if we are able to convince the shipowners that, apart from the conveniences offered, they stand to benefit financially by coming to Singapore. This means that Singapore must also offer financial incentives, develop our manpower capacity and market our services world-wide. In this connection, I would like to ask the Minister the following questions.

First, to what extent has MOT succeeded in creating the conducive fiscal environment so that more shipping and insurance companies and more shipowners will use Singapore as their base? Second, our approach to manpower development to meet the projected growth in this sector seems to be based more on the demand side. We work hard in stimulating growth for this sector and then work towards providing the manpower needed either by bringing in talent and expertise from abroad or training them locally. The problem with this approach is that it may put our people at a disadvantage as there is always a time lag between the increase in demand and our ability to provide the local manpower. As we may take some time to train our people, an increase in demand for workers in this industry will encourage companies to opt to headhunting or hiring ready-made talent and expertise from abroad, thus depriving our locals from benefiting from it.

May I ask the Minister what plan his Ministry has in ensuring that the setting up of the International Maritime Centre would also provide Singaporeans with a fair share of the employment opportunities? What lesson can we learn from other more successful ports in the world in providing the manpower requirements for their IMC and in marketing our services?

Mr Wee Siew Kim, you have two cuts. Take them together. Total of two minutes.

Sir, three years ago, MOT announced a plan to develop Singapore into an international maritime centre. Financial incentives were announced. I have heard good things about the Approved International Shipping Scheme. I hope the Minister could describe the progress and contributions made so far to our local economy.

There was also a slew of initiatives that accompanied the IMC development. One was the move to attract shipowners to register their ships in Singapore. Another was the development of locally trained talent. I have heard that we face an increasingly difficult task attracting our young men and women to a sea-faring career. Have we made progress on these two fronts? Also, we should make it more attractive for shipowners to build and finance ships in Singapore. It benefits both our financial services as well as our shipyards. Can the Minister also share his thoughts on this?

Lastly, what does the development of the IMC mean in terms of port competitiveness, job creation, GDP growth and to Singapore's stature?

Port Capacity

Sir, it is commendable that the Singapore port achieved a new record for container throughput, shipping tonnage and bunker sales in 2005. As a sign of our confidence, and the bold steps that we are prepared to take in order to secure our place as the premier port of the world, Singapore will increase its total capacity to about 50 million TEUs by around the year 2018 when all the berths at the Pasir Panjang Terminal are operational. This is about double today's capacity. The spin-offs to the economy are well-known. Just several years ago, we were rocked by the departures of Maersk and Evergreen. 2005's performance certainly provides relief that we have not only recovered but actually pulled way ahead. However, there should never be a moment of complacency as so much is reliant upon our port doing well and growing. Can I ask what new strategies and additional measures are being implemented to ensure that we stay ahead of our competition and can the Minister give us an outlook of the challenges and opportunities ---

Mr Wee, your time is up.

Sea Ports

Sir, in August 2000, the Port of Tanjong Pelapas enticed away from the Port of Singapore Authority, Maersk Sealand, which was once Singapore's largest operators. In 2002, Evergreen Marine Corporation, then the world's second largest shipping company after Maersk, shifted its operation from PSA to PTP. These moves are not the only threats to our ports as there are others in the region as well as Hong Kong which are ready to replace PSA as the premier port.

During a tour around PSA last year, I saw the hive of activities at the container port. I was impressed with the improvements done to enlarge the port handling capacity and improvements made to the efficiency of the port operation. I was thus not surprised that for the first month of 2006, PSA overtook Hong Kong as the No. 1 container port in the world. As competition remains high, our port must continue to be sensitive to the needs of shippers so that it will work as a partner with them to serve their customers whose cargoes need to be delivered safely and timely.

Could the Minister inform the House whether PSA has repositioned itself further to attract more shipping lines to Singapore and what are the measures taken so far? Has the unsuccessful venture to purchase P&O ports affected PSA's ability to expand its operation world-wide?

Mr Chairman, Sir, I would like to thank the many MPs for their questions and suggestions on our maritime and port sectors. I will now provide an update on our performance as well as what the Ministry is doing to remain competitive.

First, let me begin with the Port, which is an essential pillar of our International Maritime Centre (IMC).

Sir, Mr Andy Gan asked about PSA's performance. The departures of Maersk in 2000, and Evergreen in 2002 were, indeed, lessons well learnt. Since then, PSA has enhanced its competitive position by continually restructuring cost, raising productivity and, most importantly, responding proactively to its customers' needs. Their efforts have resulted in tangible achievements.

Between 2001 and 2005, PSA's throughput increased by some 40% and PSA has just reported a healthy profit of over S$1.2 billion for the financial year 2005. The Singapore port operations, which contributed the majority of the group's profit, registered a strong increase of 21%.

Sir, we have retained our position as the world's busiest port by vessel tonnage, with total tonnage rising 10% to 1.15 billion gross tonnes. Singapore is also the top bunkering port with bunker sales growing 8% to reach 25.5 million tonnes, double that of our nearest rival. And, notably, Singapore overtook Hong Kong to regain the position as the world's busiest container port, having lost the lead since 1998. The Singapore port itself handled 23.2 million TEUs of containers in 2005. Our throughput growth of almost 9% compares well with the 2% recorded by Hong Kong, 4% by the Port of Tanjong Pelapas and 6% by Port Klang.

If world trade continues to boom and fuel container shipping growth of about 6% per year, we estimate that throughput will probably double in about 12 years' time. For planning purposes, we have therefore made preparations for our ports to have the capacity to handle 50 million TEUs by 2018.

Sir, despite our favourable market position, we cannot take our customers nor our good performance for granted. Regional ports are competing hard to increase their share of the container transhipment business. It is therefore critical that the Marine and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and our port operators work hard to remain competitive. To ensure this, we have adopted three main strategies.

First, we must continually build on and improve our port infrastructure to meet the needs of shipping lines. As mentioned, we are doubling capacity by 2018. Besides reclaiming more port land at Pasir Panjang Terminal over the next few years, we are also looking at a number of options to raise capacity beyond the expansion of Pasir Panjang Terminal to meet the longer term growth needs of our ports.

Second, we need to ensure that we maintain our edge in operational efficiency, connectivity, as well as cost. For instance, Singapore has launched an integrated platform called the TradeXchange that will provide a single common access to existing trade systems, such as

TradeNet, Marinet, PortNet, from October next year.

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Third, our terminal operators must continue to keep in close touch with their customers and remain responsive to their needs. For example, more shipping lines are now keen to co-invest in dedicated terminals to gain assurance of capacity. Our port operators must allow for this. PSA has already entered into joint ventures with major shipping companies like COSCO and the Mediterranean Shipping Company to operate dedicated terminals.

Mr Andy Gan also asked about the impact of the purchase by Dubai Ports World of P&O ports on PSA's internationalisation efforts.

Sir, P&O operates some 29 ports around the world with a strong presence in South Asia, Australia and the US. Acquisition of P&O would have helped PSA expand overseas in new markets amid growing competition in the industry.

However, as the bidding for P&O intensified, PSA, after careful consideration, decided that it would not be to its interest to make a higher counter-bid for P&O. There are still many opportunities in the global marketplace of ports. I am sure PSA will continue to be on the lookout for attractive projects to increase its international footprint.

On the Government's part, we will continue to closely monitor key industry trends, such as consolidation and vertical integration in the global port and shipping sectors. And where necessary, we will adjust and adapt quickly and flexibly to maintain our port's competitiveness.

Sir, let me now move on to the International Maritime Centre (IMC) itself. Mr Ong Kian Min, Mr Andy Gan and Mr Yatiman Yusof have asked about the progress of the IMC, and I am pleased to report that we have made some noteworthy progress.

Sir, shipowners and operators are the cornerstone of an IMC and they are the primary generators of demand for other maritime ancillary services, such as ship management, shipbroking, marine insurance, finance and legal services. Our fiscal incentive schemes, such as the Singapore Registry of Ships (SRS) and the Approved International Shipping Enterprise (AIS), are therefore designed to encourage a core group of shipowners and operators to set up here in Singapore, and both schemes have had some measure of success.

The Singapore Registry of Ships is now the fifth largest merchant fleet in the world with more than 3,200 vessels totalling 33 million gross tonnes flying the well-respected quality Singapore flag. This is an improvement from our seventh position and an increase of more than 40% since 2002.

Under the AIS, we have a stable of 68 international shipping groups. In 2005 itself, we registered a strong 50% increase with reputable global players like Norgas Carriers, Teekay Shipping and J Lauritzen joining our cluster. With more reputable names in our maritime fold, our cluster has increased in prominence. AIS companies have committed to generate business spending in excess of $2.5 billion annually.

It is therefore fitting that the Minister for Finance should announce in this year's Budget that the AIS scheme will be extended by a third 10-year term, bringing the maximum incentive period for qualifying shipping companies to a total of 30 years. This extension will provide shipowners and operators with greater certainty to develop their business in Singapore for the long term.

The surge in the Registry tonnage as well as the rise in the number of AIS participants can only mean multiplying effects for the maritime ancillary services. These are, however, uneven across the different ancillary services. Sir, there are some services which are sticky and more resistant to relocation to Singapore, which include financial, insurance and legal services. Nonetheless, the Government will continue to direct more efforts at attracting such services here by working closely with industry partners to identify gaps which we can fill.

Mr Wee Siew Kim asked about the promotion of ship financing structures. Singapore's growth as a base for shipping companies has also spurred the growth of ship financing activities here. We have already a number of major foreign ship finance banks, but with the slew of new buildings, especially from Asia-based shipowners and an already well developed financial sector in Singapore, there is clearly an opportunity for us to do more and aspire to be Asia's ship financing hub.

The new Maritime Finance Incentive (MFI) will target alternative ship financing structures such as shipping funds and shipping trusts. It provides tax exemption for ship investment vehicles and a 10% concessionary tax rate for ship investment managers. This incentive can bring ship ownership and investment beyond the traditional shipowners to institutional investors and even the investing public. Beyond just adding to the growth of our economy and, in particular, the financial sector, the MFI will make Singapore a more comprehensive one-stop location for all the stakeholders.

Since the Budget Speech announcement, I am glad to inform the House that we have received positive feedback and strong industry interest in this scheme.

Mr Yatiman Yusof also asked about manpower development. Indeed, this is an integral part of our IMC strategy. In 2002, the MPA had set aside $50 million over five years under the Maritime Cluster Fund to give maritime training a boost. To date, we have spent about $24 million on various manpower development programmes and tie-ups with universities and institutions. I would like to assure Mr Yatiman that these are opportunities open to both Singaporeans and foreigners.

Also, our position as a leading port and maritime centre can only be sustained if we build up capabilities in the area of commercial and technical research. To this end, MPA and NUS have set up the Centre for Maritime Studies to focus on research on maritime business issues in June last year. Maritime R&D received a further boost with the launch of the NOL Fellowship Fund to fund research in key transportation and logistics issues.

Sir, Mr Ong Kian Min raised a question on how our local shipping SMEs will fit into the plan to develop Singapore as an IMC. I wish to assure Mr Ong that both SMEs and global shipping groups are very important complementary components of our IMC strategy. SMEs in fact make up the majority of companies in the maritime services sector performing critical functions in areas such as ship agency and crewing, bunkering and ship chandling, just to name a few.

As the IMC in Singapore grows, SMEs will also benefit from the larger market and expertise brought in by international shipping groups. Singapore shipping SMEs are therefore well placed to grow into world-beating companies. One such example is Pacific International Lines (PIL).

Indeed, as we strive to develop as a world-class maritime centre, our aspirations must be greater than just being fast followers of others, but leaders in research, industry development and public-private collaboration and partnership. In this regard, the Singapore Maritime Foundation plays an extremely important role in terms of facilitating networking amongst different sub-sectors, profiling the industry as well as leadership in marketing and promotion efforts overseas.

We have the advantage, Sir, of being along a major maritime trade route between India and China, and in the heart of South East Asia with a first-class hub port and a growing and vibrant maritime community. Singapore is well known for being a predictable, efficient and quality business environment. These are qualities which appeal to the maritime business, given the capital intensive requirements and the long term and cyclical nature of the industry where players seek to minimise sovereign risk arising from the changes in tax or regulatory policies. Singapore would be well placed to be the maritime hub of Asia.

Air Transport

Sir, on air transport, I am pleased that, notwithstanding Changi Airport's record performance last year, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore continues to be proactive in anchoring airlines at Changi through various incentives. These include generous financial incentives for airlines, a dedicated Budget Terminal and upgrading of our existing passenger terminals, just to name a few. All these moves put us in good stead to capitalise on the rise of China and India, the growing trend of budget travel in the region and ASEAN's progressive move towards open skies.

Against this backdrop of liberal civil aviation policy and open skies, many Singaporeans are extremely disappointed, to say the least, by the Australian government's decision to defer Singapore Airlines' entry to the Pacific route. I would like to ask the Minister whether we had been misled by the Australian government officials during the negotiations on our Free Trade Agreement, the Air Services Agreement or otherwise and had given away too much. Secondly, had we gone out of our way to accommodate the Australian airline, Qantas, by granting it all the necessary operating freedoms in Singapore? Thirdly, what other ammunition or leverage do we have to force an opening of the Pacific route in the near future?

Sir, regardless of Australia's decision, I believe we should continue to adopt a liberal aviation policy to grow Changi's hub position and not succumb to the temptation to engage in a tit-for-tat. To protect our national carrier in the way Australia has decided to do would work to our detriment rather than to the benefit of Singapore's economy in the long term.

Air Rights

Sir, in the Addendum to the President's Address in Parliament on 12th January 2005, the Ministry of Transport stated that it would push for freer skies and of special importance are the ASEAN countries, Australia and emerging markets like China and India. How are the plans progressing on exploring the possibility to negotiate for open skies agreement with these countries and others?

On Australia's rejection to allow SIA permission to fly beyond its eastern states to the United States of America, what is the Ministry of Transport's next move to overcome this set-back? This disappointing and inward-looking decision by Australia to block SIA from its Pacific route does not bode well for good business relationship between the two countries built up over years of goodwill and friendship. While Qantas and Jetstar have the right to fly to and beyond Singapore, this advantage accorded has obviously been ignored by Australia to the detriment of its bilateral relationship with us where fair play and free competition are the cornerstones of good economic relationship.

Singapore has given the fifth freedom rights freely while others seem to be guarding theirs jealously. Our generosity in offering the fifth freedom rights to Qantas has been taken for granted and unfairly taken advantage of, especially when half of Qantas' flights travel beyond our shores. It is noteworthy that Singapore is Australia's largest trade and investment partner in South East Asia. And in the year 2005, bilateral trade between the two countries was worth A$8 billion. Changi Airport's Terminal 3 refurbishment costing S$2 billion was designed by an Australian architect firm, Woodhead International. All these do not seem to matter when it comes to SIA seeking to fly and compete fairly along the routes from Australia.

Sir, I urge the Australian government to rethink its stand on blocking SIA from this route, as the flying public of both countries will benefit economically from having more choices of airlines and prospect of competitive fares.

Sir, I would appreciate the Minister's comments on these views.

Sir, I am very indignant, not at our Minister for Transport or our Government, but at the Australian government and their Minister for Transport for turning down Singapore Airlines' air rights to ply the trans-Pacific route between Australia and the US. The manner in which it was turned down was also very suspect. According to Australian Senator, Kerry O'Brien, who is the Labour's spokesman for transport, there was no transparency. It was a closed-door review and it was described by him as "shambles".

The reasons given were far from convincing. Truss, who is the Minister for Transport, for example, said that it would be better to allow their own budget airline, Virgin Blue, to come in, and that would increase competition. Sad to say, Virgin Blue, as the name suggests, is still untried when it comes to flying the trans-Pacific route. Truss himself said that the carrier might be ready to fly in 2007. At the moment, it lacks planes; it has absolutely no infrastructure and it was last reported in the Australian that it was going to come up with a concept plan for flying this route. Qantas probably prefers competition of this type.

4.30 pm

Sir, I am sure that many Members of this House

have expressed their indignation at something which is anti-competitive, unfriendly and certainly inconsistent with the principles of free trade. It is remarkable that in February 2003 we signed the FTA, but in February 2006, they gave the FTA a slap in the face. I would like to ask the Minister very quickly whether he could get the decision to be reviewed as quickly as possible.

Changi Airport

Sir, Changi Airport is thriving because of its efficiency, excellent connectivity and high standards of services by all service providers. However, competition is intensifying. Can I ask what are the hardware, infrastructure development and other improvement initiatives that will ensure the airport's competitiveness?

Having a vibrant aerospace service supporting industry is important. A growing pool of supporting maintenance companies would be beneficial as this would help to improve Changi's competitiveness as well as appeal to the carriers. Hence, may I ask the Minister if there is a multi-agency effort to ensure that there are adequate levels of incentives for companies to be set up as well as expand in Changi? While EDB and MTI are leading the charge in attracting more OEMs and service providers to Singapore, CAAS plays a role too. Here, there is a win-win possibility for Singapore-grown companies. They need a home market to cut their teeth and thrive and grow. Their commitment to Singapore is probably unquestioned and their presence reassuring. I would like to ask ----

Thank you, Mr Wee. Mr Yeo Cheow Tong, you have about eight minutes to answer all these questions.

First, let me thank Mr Ong Kian Min, Mr Andy Gan and Prof. Chin Tet Yung for their remarks on our attempts to get an open skies agreement (OSA) with Australia. Sir, I fully understand and appreciate their strong disappointment over Australia's decision to continue denying SIA the right to fly the trans-Pacific route.

Sir, as Members are aware, we have been holding talks with Australia on the OSA for the last 10 years. Despite the delays and postponements that took place during this extended period, we have reasons to be confident, especially over the past three years, that we would be able to achieve progress on this. At the same time, the Government has, in good faith, unconditionally facilitated and encouraged the growth of Qantas Airways and its associate in Singapore, Jetstar Asia, at Changi Airport.

Mr Ong and other Members have asked whether we have been misled by Australia. Let me explain the developments in our discussion with our Australian counterparts. On more than one occasion, there were clear indications by senior Australian leaders that both sides would work towards concluding an OSA. Our understanding was that the issue was largely one of working out an acceptable roadmap for the OSA to be phased in, taking into account the impact on Qantas. This was in fact agreed between the then Australian Deputy Prime Minister, John Anderson, and I when we met in Canberra in February last year. This was also widely reported in the mass media. We had, therefore, in good faith, expected the Australian government to honour its words and were hopeful that this issue would be resolved within a reasonable timeframe. However, this latest decision suggests that the Australian government has abandoned any commitment to work towards an OSA with Singapore.

Sir, Singapore and Australia share very similar strategic and economic outlooks. We cooperate extensively in many areas, including education, trade, defence and security. We signed a Free Trade Agreement in 2003 which has augmented our trade relations and people-to-people flows. It was also affirmed in the FTA the commitment of both countries to achieve an OSA within a reasonable timeframe.

Sir, the bilateral relationship is therefore a close and mutually beneficial one. We are confident that it will strengthen in the years ahead. However, the absence of an OSA means that the full potential of this partnership may not be realised.

Mr Ong has asked whether we have done the right thing in being helpful and generous to Qantas in Singapore, and what leverage remains for us. As some Members have observed, we have already granted Qantas substantial fifth freedom rights in Singapore and no longer have this as a bargaining chip. But what we have done is the right thing. We must not lose sight of our main goals, which are to grow the Singapore economy and our Changi aviation hub. This means placing national interest over the interest of any Singapore carriers. SIA has had to compete openly against all the foreign airlines that we have opened our doors to. This policy has forced SIA to constantly improve its service quality, product offering in order to stay ahead. In the process, its customers have benefited immensely, and so has SIA.

Sir, open competition is always in the consumers' interest. For instance, the entry of low-cost carriers and the competitive response of full-service carriers have reduced airfares and widened travel choices. This contributed to our record nine million visitor arrivals last year, a 7% growth. They generated close to $11 billion in tourism receipts. Had we adopted a protectionist stance, our economy would have lost out, fewer jobs would have been created and Singapore would not be the vibrant tourism and business hub it is today.

Sir, the Australian government has made its decision. It is a decision we have to respect. And we have to move on. We will continue to hold discussions with other partner countries to enhance our air links with them. In the meantime, we already have a reservoir of available air rights with many other countries that SIA and other Singapore carriers can make use of to achieve future growth.

Sir, Mr Gan and Mr Ong asked whether we are negotiating for more routes and air rights for SIA and our other carriers. Let me assure them that we are. For this year, we will be discussing with several countries, and with our ASEAN partners, on additional air rights. In addition, the ASEAN Transport Ministers at our last meeting agreed on a roadmap that includes the lifting of all restrictions on passenger flights between ASEAN capitals by 2008. We have asked our senior officials to study this further and to accelerate the milestones of the roadmap and extend the proposal to go beyond capital cities to other points within ASEAN. Our aim is to have an open skies in ASEAN to realise the full vision of the ASEAN Economic Community.

4.36 pm

Sir, Mr Wee asked about what we are doing to help the maintenance and repair and overhaul (MRO) industry in Singapore. As Mr Wee has observed, the promotion of such industries comes under MTI. But we do work with MTI and EDB very closely on developing the whole sector as an industry that we want to develop in Singapore. My Ministry performs a regulatory role and what we do is that we try to ensure that we have a conducive regulatory environment for the growth of this industry in Singapore. Let me tell him what we are doing in some areas.

Firstly, CAAS helps to open the overseas markets for the MROs by entering into agreements with other aviation authorities, to mutually recognise the work done by the MROs on foreign aircraft and aircraft components.

Secondly, CAAS has been working with SIA and our other MROs on the servicing of new aircraft types, including the Airbus 380 and the Boeing 787. This will further expand their potential customer base.

Finally, we will earmark additional airport land to support related activities such as airframe maintenance, business and general aviation, and small aircraft assembly. This will enable our aerospace industry to ride on the growing demand from low-cost carriers and the potential growth of business aviation in Asia.

Sir, on behalf of Members who have spoken on this Head, I would like to thank the Minister for Transport and the Minister of State for their comprehensive replies and clarifications. In view of their answers, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment.

Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.

The sum of $293,495,270 for Head W ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates.

The sum of $1,793,307,400 for Head W ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates.

Head N - Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Mr Ravindran.

Regional Outlook

Sir, I beg to move,

That the total sum to be allocated for Head N of the Estimates be reduced by $100.

Sir, Southeast Asia is on the strategic consideration of every major superpower. Because of vital sea routes, abundant natural resources and the rising political and economic importance of ASEAN, every great power wants to engage the region and Singapore. Sir, the hustling and bustling to bring Southeast Asia into their respective spheres of influence are ongoing and apparent. In the light of this competing interest and long-term ambitions of these big superpowers, I would like to ask the Minister (a) how he intends to position Singapore in the emerging regional geo-political architecture; (b) how the Government intends to engage the major powers to enhance the region as a region of peace, stability and economic prosperity.

In addition, I would like to ask the Minister for his assessment of the regional outlook in the short term and medium term, and the potential events that can derail the positive developments taking place in the region. There are also other countries and big powers that would like to engage Singapore. In particular, I would like to highlight the following countries. China and India will emerge as great superpowers in another 20 to 50 years. It will mean that there will be a greater flow of people, investments and greater engagement between these two countries and Singapore. We have already signed the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) with India and we are now in the process of negotiating one with China. I would like to ask the Minister how he intends to engage these two emerging giants of Asia and what steps will be taken to strengthen the already good relations.

Similarly, Sir, we enjoy good relations with the US and, last year, we signed the strategic framework agreement with the US. I would like to ask the Minister how we can go on to enhance our relationship and continue to engage the US in the region and with us.

Sir, the next region I would like to ask the Minister for an assessment is the Middle East. The Middle East has already entered our radar screen as a region of great economic importance and, as a region, we can engage as part of the future architecture of a vibrant and prosperous Asia. The Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) process was a good start and I would like to ask the Minister how he intends to take our relations with the Middle Eastern countries, particularly the Gulf countries, to the next level.

Sir, the EU continues to be a group of great importance to Singapore and the region. While as a region, relations could be better if not for the Myanmar issue, I would like to ask the Minister for an update on the state of relations between Singapore and the EU, and the same between ASEAN and EU.

Lastly, on Russia. Russia is a great power with a long history of presence and engagement in Asia. Recently, our Minister Mentor, Mr Lee, visited Russia and I think relations have now come up to a better level. Russia has a large land mass in Asia and has strategic and political interests in Asia. I would like to ask the Minister on how his Ministry intends to improve on these relations with Russia and what are the additional steps we intend to take to see that these relations grow to greater heights.

Sir, I would like to focus on the Asian region. I wonder if the Minister shares my observation that there is a general sense of optimism in Asia about the prospect for peace, stability and economic development in the region. Major regional powers like China and India are focusing on their economic development, giving greater opportunity for

growth for smaller countries in the region.

As a small city-state, Singapore is not in a position to determine the course of events and the nature of relationship between these countries. That is why we always have to watch closely the triangular relationship among the United States, China and Japan. In the middle of that triangle are the cross-straits relations between China and Taiwan. That is why the recent decision by Taiwan to "freeze" the National Reunification Council and China's angry reaction towards it are a cause for concern. This recent development seems like a replay of past tensions due to the issue of reunification of Taiwan. What is the Minister's assessment of the medium and long-term prospects for peace and stability in East Asia vis-a-vis the cross-straits relations? How will the triangular relations involving the US, China and Japan evolve? May I also take this opportunity to ask the Minister to give the House an update on our bilateral relations with the US, China and Japan?

Sir, it is widely acknowledged that the re-emergence of China and India will provide other countries new impetus for growth. It will also pose a challenge to others, particularly countries in Southeast Asia, as these two giants vie for influence, market and resources. How is the contest going to be played out and how is this going to affect Singapore?

India

Sir, the world has seen the rise of China and India. Many world leaders have flocked to visit these countries, and President George W Bush is currently in India. Singapore, however, has had a long history of engagement at a high level with both China and India. More recently, our leaders have been visiting countries in Europe and Russia. President S R Nathan, Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew and Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong have all recently visited India, while President Abdul Kalam of India has recently visited Singapore. We have recently concluded the CECA with India, and Minister Mentor Lee recently visited Russia last year.

What is the result of these visits? How have our relations with the countries of Europe, Russia and India improved as a result?

Dr Warren Lee, you may take the next cut.

Australia

Sir, like other Members of this House, we have noted that relations between Australia and Singapore are broad-based and go back many years. Our troops train in Australia, Qantas uses Changi International Airport as a major overseas hub, and our two peoples have strong ties of friendship and family.

Recently, however, many Singaporeans were shocked and saddened by the decision not to allow SIA access to the trans-Pacific route via Australia, coming so soon after our Singapore-Australia FTA. To some Singaporeans, it would appear that the Australian love of justice and fair play has been re-defined by self-interest and fear of competition, while their respect for the rule of law has been brought into question by their reactions to the conviction and treatment of drug traffickers in Singapore and Indonesia.

What is the Minister's assessment of our bilateral relations with Australia and how can we move forward from here?

ASEAN

Sir, ASEAN, as an organisation, looks like it is back on track. The last ASEAN Leaders Summit showed that the leadership shares a common vision and is committed to meeting the goals set henceforth.

Sir, every major power wants to engage ASEAN and be a partner in determining the evolving economic, political and strategic landscape of Asia. FTAs with India and China will certainly enhance ASEAN's economic relations with these two emerging economic powers of the region in future. In fact, President Bush has recently said that he will announce an enhanced strategic partnership with ASEAN during the upcoming APEC Heads of State meeting in Hanoi.

Sir, I would like to ask the Minister what are the steps ASEAN intends to take to engage all the regional and global superpowers, and to give us an update on what is the state of affairs within ASEAN.

Sir, in 1997, leaders of ASEAN charted the ASEAN Vision 2020 where they envisioned ASEAN as a concert of Southeast Asian nations, outward-looking, living in peace, stability and prosperity, bonded together in partnership in dynamic development and in the community of caring societies. This vision was further reinforced at the ASEAN Bali Summit in 2003 where three key pillars were laid out for ASEAN's move towards the ASEAN Vision 2020:

ASEAN Economic Community;

ASEAN Security Community; and

ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community.

Sir, but the recent political developments in Thailand, the Philippines and Myanmar have raised concerns on the future of ASEAN. Political instability and frequent changes in political leaders in various ASEAN countries have made it difficult for ASEAN to have a stable and sustainable leadership to spearhead or implement its plans. The ASEAN principles of non-interference in the domestic affairs of its member countries and consensus decision-making processes further reduce its effectiveness. Unless there is political will among ASEAN leaders to quickly develop an operating framework for the achievement of its vision, I am pessimistic that ASEAN's Vision 2020 will be realised.

Sir, I wish to ask the Ministry the following questions:

What is the status of ASEAN's Vision 2020?

What is the action plan to achieve the vision, and which countries are spearheading the plans?

Are there plans to provide more opportunities for political leaders, parliamentarians, government officials and peoples of ASEAN to have more interactions and bonding?

Sir, in last year's Committee of Supply debate on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Minister said that Singapore's and ASEAN's strategy is to make Southeast Asia the fulcrum for a new architecture of peace and cooperation in Asia, ie, a new Asia, from an Asia long colonised by imperial powers to an Asia that has re-emerged and re-entered onto the world stage.

We have seen China and India at different stages and at different degrees re-emerging as regional economic powers, providing much needed new opportunities for economic growth for other countries, including those in Southeast Asia. The re-emerging powers create new tensions, as they vie for influence in the region. How is ASEAN, as a grouping, managing the challenges? Are the ASEAN+1 and ASEAN+3 mechanisms as well as the ASEAN Regional Forum sufficient for her to engage the regional powers and other countries outside Asia?

For ASEAN to attract the right kind of interest from regional powers and groupings, the 10 members must maintain a certain level of cohesion. May I ask for an update from the Minister on the state of solidarity among the 10 ASEAN members in the face of common problems and challenges from regional powers? Are bilateral problems between member countries in the way of ASEAN's common good? With a view to solving them, what are the major stumbling blocks towards the creation of ASEAN economic, social and security communities by 2020?

East Asia Summit

Sir, the East Asia Summit (EAS) was held successfully last year in Kuala Lumpur. However, there are mixed feelings about the success of the Summit among many political analysts. Sir, analyst Mohan Malik, in the Yale Global dated 20th December 2005, commented:

"Instead of creating a common bond, the first Summit may have intensified old strategic rivalries and forced smaller nations to choose sides."

Sir, on the eve of the Summit, China proposed dividing EAS members into core and secondary countries, and Chinese and Korean leaders refused to hold bilateral or trilateral talks with their Japanese counterparts. China's stance provides insights into Beijing's insecurities regarding the momentum for a broader East Asian Community, shifting power alignments within Asia.

Sir, at the Summit, it was decided that the ASEAN+3 (APT) group will be the vehicle for realising the dreams of forming the East Asian Community. While I am happy that ASEAN will be the hub of the EAS and the key driver within the APT, I wonder whether the non-APT partners will share the same enthusiasm and support for the EAS in the coming years.

Sir, China and many other diplomats have also suggested that anyone with interests in the Pacific, ie, Russia and perhaps the USA, could eventually take part in the EAS. Such a move would make the EAS indistinguishable from the ARF or APEC, and I would like to ask the Minister what is the impact of the EAS on the ARF and APEC.

Sir, in the absence of great power cooperation, ie, between the Chinese and the Japanese, the Koreans and Japan, and between China and India, it looks like the EAS will have difficulty taking off. If at all, EAS seems to have intensified old rivalries. If such rivalries continue, there is every risk that the community-building exercise would be fatally compromised. At best, the EAS may just emerge as another talk-shop like APEC or ARF, where leaders meet, declarations are made, but little community-building is achieved.

I would like to ask the Minister what is the roadmap for EAS and to address some of the concerns about the EAS.

Bilateral Relations with Neighbouring Countries

Mr Chairman, Sir, I wish to raise with the Minister for Foreign Affairs the state of our bilateral relations with our two nearest neighbours, ie, Malaysia and Indonesia.

With Malaysia, we have several outstanding issues. There is the package of items under negotiation. Notably, lately, the issue of the bridge to replace the Causeway was raised in the newspapers by the Malaysian press again. It was variously called the "crooked bridge", then the "scenic bridge", and then, famously, now called the "cynic bridge" by Dr Mahathir, former Prime Minister of Malaysia. But more seriously, Sir, there is also the current on-going international arbitration being conducted on our ownership of the Horsburgh Lighthouse.

I would like to ask the Minister to give us an update and assessment of the above outstanding issues with Malaysia. I would like to take this opportunity to state that whatever is the state of the physical bridge between Singapore and Malaysia, what is more important is the state of the mental bridge between the two countries. If there is no mental connect between the two countries, then however beautiful a physical bridge that we build will not be effective to link up the peoples from these two countries. This is a pity, as our two countries are so closely related by history, family ties and emotions, and there is so much that we can do and work together for the mutual benefit of our respective peoples.

If the bridge is to facilitate the movement of people and to enable more Singaporeans to visit Johor and other parts of Malaysia, then one important aspect I wish to remind the Malaysian and Johor state government is the state of security in Johor. If the safety and personal security in Johor is not improved, no matter how excellent or scenic a bridge we build, Singaporeans will be hesitant to visit Johor and spend time and money there. We read constantly about the spate of robberies, high-speed highway chases, car thefts, snatch thefts and other threats against the lives and safety of Singaporeans visiting Johor and other parts of Malaysia. If security is not improved in Malaysia, especially in Johor, Singaporeans will still be very wary of visiting Malaysia, irrespective of the bridge that we build.

As for Indonesia, our Minister Mentor, Mr Lee Kuan Yew, recently visited this country. Relations with Indonesia have improved over the years. It is a very large country with very important ties with us. More can be done by both countries to improve bilateral relations. Can the Minister tell us more about how our foreign relations with Indonesia as well as Malaysia can be improved?

Dr Ong Chit Chung, you may take both cuts together.

Mr Chairman, Sir, when Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi became the Prime Minister of Malaysia, there was much hope and hype in the media that relations between Singapore and Malaysia would improve significantly. There is, no doubt, Sir, that the atmosphere has definitely improved. There are many visits by leaders from both sides of the Causeway as well as many friendly golf games. But substantive issues in relations between Singapore and Malaysia remain unresolved.

A case in point is the "crooked bridge". Malaysia appears to be adamant and insistent on building the "crooked bridge" to replace the Causeway, or at least half the Causeway. MFA has confirmed that Singapore has sent a Third-Party Note on 27th January 2006 seeking clarification on the process of bilateral relations and negotiations and Malaysia's position on the half-bridge. May I ask if Malaysia has replied to this Third-Party Note? What is Singapore's position if

Malaysia insisted on building the half bridge without consulting Singapore or taking into the consideration the impact on Singapore?

5.00 pm

Sir, sometime ago, Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi said that in terms of Singapore-Malaysia relations, there were low-lying fruits which could be plucked easily. We need not be held back. May I ask the Minister what are these low-lying fruits and have any been plucked or any going to be plucked soon?

Thailand

Sir, the Thai Prime Minister, Mr Thaksin Shinawatra has dissolved Parliament and called a snap general election. Mr Thaksin, leader of the Thai Rak Thai Party, wants to go to the people for a new mandate. But some Opposition parties are boycotting the elections. There is a sense of drift in Thai politics and tension is high. The protest against Mr Thaksin escalated when Mr Thaksin's family sold his controlling stake in Shin Corp to Temasek Holdings. May I ask the Minister for his reading of the Thai situation and whether the anger and protest against Mr Thaksin will turn against Temasek Holdings or Singapore, and thereby affects Singapore-Thai relations?

In Muslim Southern Thailand, insurgency is rampant. Thousands have lost their lives. There are separatists, Muslim groups, working to carve a separatist Muslim state. Even Mr Thaksin himself declared some areas there to be the most dangerous place in Thailand. May I ask the Minister whether the situation in Southern Thailand will get worse and how it will affect Thai-Malaysia relations, and Singapore's interests in the long run?

Myanmar

After much pressure from ASEAN and the international community, Myanmar finally relinquished its turn to take the Chair of ASEAN in 2006. In explaining its decision, the Myanmar government said that it was its desire to focus its attention on national reconciliation and the democratisation process.

However, there is still tremendous doubt that Myanmar is serious about undertaking genuine democratic reforms. Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the National League for Democracy (NLD), who won the general elections in 1990 and has been denied its legitimate right to take power by the ruling military regime, has been in detention for the past few years. And, recently, it was announced that her detention will be further extended.

Although the Myanmar government has convened a national convention to draft a new Constitution to pave the way for the new elections, many observers point to the whole thing as a fuss because the NLD is not allowed to participate. In fact, speeches to be made at the Convention have to be cleared by the authorities and criticisms of the government will not be allowed.

Sir, the Myanmar government's sudden and ill-prepared move to a new capital, Pyinmana last month without informing anyone, its own people and its neighbours included, shows how secretive and isolated its rulers have become. The continued state of affairs in Myanmar constitutes a threat to ASEAN's safety and security and continues to undermine the credibility of the organisation. As an example, it has been reported that the government there spends only US$22,000 a year to fight an increasing HIV-AIDs epidemic. Can you imagine what it would be like if a bird flu pandemic were to break out over there and you get the government there, which is ineffectual and unwilling to cooperate with its neighbours?

Myanmar consistently becomes an obstacle in ASEAN's dealings with the rest of the international community. Many other countries had threatened to boycott ASEAN dialogue meetings if Myanmar had insisted on being the Chairman this year. As a parliamentarian, I too have encountered difficulties each time I meet my counterparts from other countries, especially those from Europe. Inevitably, a major part of the time of our discussions is spent dealing with questions about Myanmar, instead of on more substantive issues.

But what can be done now? I think ASEAN has to continue to hold Myanmar to the promise it has made to commence genuine political reforms which includes national integration of its diverse ethnic groups and the release of political prisoners. We have to up the ante. If there is no credible move by Myanmar, ASEAN must be prepared to consider alternatives. The first would be to get Myanmar to voluntarily take leave of absence from the organisation, which is of course a face-saving measure. Secondly, ASEAN should suspend its membership for an indefinite period of time. And, thirdly, which is the most severe move of all, terminate its membership.

ASEAN is drafting a charter and it can use this opportunity to define what it expects from its members. Myanmar has to be made to realise that its road to democracy must be a real one and it must bring about a better life for its people. We all look forward to its people obtaining their legitimate right to democracy and freedom, though I must add here that it should not necessarily be the kind we now see in some other Southeast Asian countries where democracy, unfortunately, has been taken to mean fluctuating between people demonstrating on the streets and the threat of military coups. I think that would just result in further political turmoils. What we all desire to see is a strong Myanmar that is politically stable, bringing happiness and prosperity to its people so that it can once again contribute meaningfully to ASEAN and hold its head up high in the international community.

The Middle East

Mr Chairman, Sir, the current focus of attention appears to be towards the awakening and growth of China and India, which is quite valid. However, I strongly believe that the Middle East is another economic block that we should devote some attention to develop better foreign relations as well as economic relations.

There are several Middle Eastern countries that are aiming to modernise. Many are blessed with oil, providing continuing future growth. Notably, these more progressive countries or states are Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Qatar and Bahrain as well as many others.

I believe there are several Middle Eastern countries with oil wealth looking towards making substantial investments around the world. The recent bid of US$6.8 billion or S$11 billion by Dubai Ports World for the British based, Peninsular and Oriental (P&O) Shipping Company, for ports in the US is an example. As we know, Dubai, in fact, out-bidded Singapore's PSA for P&O.

The Middle Eastern countries are keen to use their oil money to acquire businesses and assets in foreign countries. Today, we read in the Business Times about Dubai International Capital (DIC) planning to raise a total of US$15 billion to invest in international companies. I think it is ideal to encourage Middle Eastern countries to look East, actually, more precisely, Far East. Singapore could be an interesting investment locality for Middle Eastern countries. We have a large population of Muslims and, therefore, our lifestyle in Singapore can easily accommodate the needs of the Muslims from the Middle East, in terms of food, mosques for praying, housing and other needs. Moreover, Singapore can serve as their bridge to venture into other countries in the Southeast Asian region as well as towards China.

There have been many ministerial and business missions conducted by Singapore to various countries in the Middle East in the past few years. The MFA could work with MTI, IE Singapore and other Singapore business groups to promote investments and foster better foreign relations with certain countries in the Middle East. Therefore, I wish to hear from the Minister what are his Ministry's initiatives and foreign relations effort directed at the Middle East.

Sir, it has been two years since we engage countries in the Middle East intensely. Since then, there have been many high level contacts and our businessmen and companies have made in-road into various economic activities there.

The Middle East offers vast opportunities for our businessmen but the fact is that there is still a lot that we have yet to learn about the region. To engage and reach out to the new partners, like those in the Middle East, we need to develop friendship at all levels and know more about their language, culture and religion. We need to encourage Singaporeans to learn Arabic, travel there and feel the pulse of the society there and learn about how they do business.

I believe the interest in the new relationship is not one-sided. Countries in that region seem to want to engage and work with Singapore too. Can the Minister tell the House of this convergence of interest and how we can mutually benefit from closer relations with countries in the Middle East? What are the opportunities that are open to Singapore and what can Singapore offer to them?

Mr Chairman, Sir, allow me first to thank Members for their questions and comments on Singapore's foreign policy.

To answer Mr Ravindran and Mr Hawazi, compared to a year ago, the regional outlook for Singapore has become more favourable although there are problems. The prospect for continuing peace in East Asia in the short to medium term is good.

The most important relationship, the Sino-US relationship, is stable. Although there are contentious economic issues like China's huge trade surplus, the value of the RMB and the lack of intellectual property protection in China, both sides understand the need to keep the overall picture in view. China needs the US market; China values US investment; China also holds hundreds of billions of dollars in US financial instruments. And without China's cooperation, it is more difficult for the US to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and to fight the war against terrorism.

The US and China are now engaged in a strategic dialogue. They are cooperating on the problem of proliferation in North Korea and Iran. From a strategic competitor, the US now describes China as a "responsible stakeholder" in the global system. When US Deputy Secretary of State, Robert Zoellick hugged pandas in Chengdu recently, he was sending a signal of the way the US is seeing China.

The key issue in Sino-US relations is Taiwan, as pointed out by Mr Hawazi. Because President Bush has taken a clear position on One China, it is difficult for pro-independence forces in Taiwan to win support. It is important for the Taiwan issue to be handled properly because of the importance of good US-China relations to regional and indeed global stability. The recent move to cease the function of the National Unification Council and the application of its Guidelines is worrying. It goes against earlier undertakings and will cause cross-strait tensions to rise unnecessarily. In the interest of regional stability, we hope that this issue will be handled with wisdom and restraints by Taiwan, China and the US.

So long as US-China relations are managed well, the prospects for continuing peace and development in East Asia are good. In Kuala Lumpur last December, the first East Asia Summit (EAS) was convened. In addition to the 10 countries of ASEAN and the three countries of Northeast Asia, India, Australia and New Zealand were also included. As Mr Ravindran pointed out, the East Asia Summit is driven by ASEAN. We included India, Australia and New Zealand to make sure that ASEAN is at the centre and the group is clearly outward-oriented and inclusive. The first meeting went well. The Leaders of the 16 member countries have agreed to meet annually. It will take time for us to develop an agenda and we must now work hard to shape it and to do this in a way which does not cause the Americans or Europeans to think that we want to exclude them. There will be many issues to discuss which involve all of us because the entire continent is in ferment. Obvious issues would be maritime security, the war against terror, energy supplies and, of course, economic connectivity.

5.15 pm

The countries in the East Asia Summit make up half the world's population.

Mr Hawazi was right to point to the economic potential of this region to the global economy, which will have a combined GDP which is likely to be greater than that of the US or Europe in, let us say, 20 years' time. China and India are emerging as two new poles in the global economy. As they engage more with each other, politically and economically, we must make sure that ASEAN's interests are taken into account.

Mr Ravindran referred to an article written by Mr Malik. I read that article and I think that it is not quite objective in the way he has portrayed China's role in the EAS. Yes, he was right that China had a different view of it initially, but once China realised that ASEAN had its own consensus, they were quite prepared to go along, and I believe China will play a positive role in the EAS.

However, ASEAN can only play an active role in this entire process if we ourselves are united. I appreciate the points made by Mr Ravindran, Dr Teo Ho Pin and Mr Hawazi that ASEAN must get its act together. At the ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, the Leaders appointed an Eminent Persons Group (EPG) to recommend what steps we should take to integrate ASEAN economically, politically and socially beyond what we are already doing. The Chair is Mr Musa Hitam, former Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, and our own representative is Prof. Jayakumar.

We need political will to achieve the ASEAN 2020 Vision mentioned by Dr Teo and Mr Ravindran. It is not enough just to have meetings, which there are already too many in ASEAN. This year's Summit in Manila will be critical because the EPG will be presenting its recommendations to the Leaders. Once the Leaders agree on the main points, ministers and officials will draw up an ASEAN Charter which will then become the constitutional basis of our future development. Some hard decisions have to be made as to how we achieve consensus, whether we are always dragged back by the slowest amongst us, whether we are prepared to subject disputes to third party panels for resolution. I hope that some progress would be made by the time Singapore hosts the ASEAN Summit in 2007, which is the 40th Anniversary of ASEAN.

Myanmar might be a problem. As Mr Tan Soo Khoon lamented, the developments in that country are a cause for concern. To insulate ASEAN, the Myanmar government had agreed to give up the ASEAN Chair this year. That has been helpful. Because internal developments in Myanmar are sometimes a mystery to us, like the sudden bizarre decision to shift the seat of government from Yangon to Pyinmana, it has become more and more difficult for ASEAN to defend Myanmar at the UN and other international forums. Despite calls by ASEAN, and as Mr Tan Soo Khoon recounted, Aung San Suu Kyi remains, for a long time, under house arrest.

In Kuala Lumpur last December, the Myanmar Prime Minister agreed to receive Malaysia's Foreign Minister Syed Hamid as an ASEAN envoy on a fact-finding visit. Unfortunately, till today, no date has been set for his visit. When ASEAN Foreign Ministers meet in Bali in April, I expect some hard decisions to be made on ASEAN's approach towards Myanmar. If Myanmar needs time out to attend to its own domestic preoccupations, I think we should respect it but, at the same time, the rest of ASEAN should not be held back. But, should we, as Mr Tan suggested, expel Myanmar from ASEAN? Of course, Mr Tan put it politely in the form of options. Let us look at the strategic picture.

A long time ago, when Burma received its independence from Britain, it decided not to join the Indian Union. In fact, it was clear from the beginning that it was part of Southeast Asia. But it remains a buffer state between China and India. China has decided that whatever happens in Yangon, the back-gate to China would be wide open. And, because of that, India, in its own strategic calculations, has decided that it will keep its side-gate to Myanmar open. So, this month, President Abdul Kalam will visit Myanmar. Because these two gates are wide open, the Western embargo against Myanmar is not going to work. The country has fertile soil, rice is plentiful, the sea teems with fish. It is in our interest to ensure that we stay engaged with Myanmar, that our own gate to Myanmar is open. But what happens to that country is a source of concern. So, I think, let us just take a realistic approach. We are in no position to affect the course of internal developments. Whatever happens there, good or bad, it is for the Myanmar people to bear the consequences. But I think we will have to distance ourselves a bit if it is not possible for them to engage us in a way which enables us to defend them internationally.

As for the impact of recent political developments in the Philippines and Thailand on ASEAN, a point alluded to by Mr Tan and mentioned by Dr Ong Chit Chung, we have to wait and see. Although some Filipinos, including former President Fidel Ramos, have objected to the declaration of a State of Emergency in the Philippines, it is not for us to second guess President Arroyo's decision when she faces a rebellion by a segment of the Philippine Army. However, I do not expect any change to the Philippines hosting the ASEAN Summit and the EAS at the end of this year.

As for the protests against Prime Minister Thaksin in Bangkok, a concern raised by Dr Ong Chit Chung, we hope that fresh elections will bring some finality to the debate of the last few weeks. Has Singapore companies been affected? Not so far from the reports that I have read. When the leader of the Democratic Party, Mr Abhisit, was in Singapore a few weeks ago, he said that their actions against Prime Minister Thaksin were not directed against Singapore. So, on the whole, I would say that Singapore-Thai relations have not been adversely affected by the recent developments.

I share Dr Ong's concern about the situation in Southern Thailand. The Muslim problem in the southern provinces has deep roots and has to be managed with that history in mind. It has affected Thailand's relationship with Malaysia. This is not good for ASEAN. However, on the whole, while keeping our fingers crossed, we can be optimistic about the future of ASEAN and I do not quite share Dr Teo Ho Pin's pessimism. As a group, we are doing well economically. Investor confidence in Indonesia is gradually returning. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is determined to improve the business environment and we see progress in various part of the archipelago. In Aceh, the tsunami disaster has brought some good in the form of a peace agreement with GAM. If we look elsewhere, Vietnam is now the fastest growing economy in ASEAN. ASEAN countries have no choice but to draw closer in the face of China's and India's emergence as regional superpowers.

Because of Japan's complicated relationship with China, there is a strong desire on the part of Japanese businesses to adopt a China plus One strategy. What we want is to make sure that the plus One is ASEAN. ASEAN can provide an alternative manufacturing base for Japanese companies.

Singapore signed an economic agreement with Vietnam last year which will help Vietnam tap on Singapore's international connectivity until such time as Vietnam is able to establish its own. Keidanren is interested to make use of this agreement to help Japanese companies invest in Vietnam using Singapore as a complementary hub. I was cheered this morning to read that Intel has decided to invest in a US$300 million facility outside Ho Chi Minh City.

Let me now turn to bilateral relations with our immediate neighbours, Malaysia and Indonesia, and answer the questions raised by Mr Leong Horn Kee and Dr Ong Chit Chung.

Our relations with Malaysia are good. They rest on a bedrock of common history and common interest. We have only to see the way the two Police Forces have cooperated on the Tan Chor Jin case recently. Within a few hours they were on his trail and now he is being extradited back to Singapore. So there are many things going on, which can only go on because of very good relations between counterpart departments on both sides.

In January this year, the Agong made a state visit to Singapore - the first such visit after 18 years. Bilateral trade and investments have also picked up considerably on both sides of the Causeway. Yes, negotiations on the full bridge are still ongoing. The fourth round of negotiation has just ended on Monday. A fifth round of talks is tentatively scheduled for this month. These negotiations have made progress towards an appropriate balance of benefits for both sides. However, as negotiations are now in a delicate stage, it would not be useful for me to publicise the details. As for the low hanging fruits mentioned by Dr Ong Chit Chung, well, some are on our trees and some are on their trees and we have got to decide what is the correct balance fruits to be plucked, otherwise no fruits can be plucked.

As to earlier reports about moves to build a half-bridge on the Malaysia side, Wisma Putra has clarified to us in a TPN that Malaysia remained committed to negotiations for a full bridge and only soil studies are being conducted. We have explained to Malaysia the serious implications of a unilateral move by Malaysia to demolish its side of the causeway and replace it by a crooked bridge, however scenic.

On Pedra Branca, a question asked by Mr Leong Horn Kee, the case before the ICJ is expected to be heard in 2007. Both sides have already put in their written submissions.

As for security in Johore, a question raised by Mr Leong Horn Kee, I should just say that Johore leaders themselves are aware of this problem and have said publicly that they are giving it their full attention.