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Update on Plan for Live-streaming Parliamentary Sittings 1 Ms Tin Pei Ling asked the Minister for Communications and Information whether he can provide an update on the plan for live-streaming of Parliament proceedings and how this can be implemented in a way that mitigates concerns about its potential impact on the quality and tone of debates.
Update on Plan for Live-streaming Parliamentary Sittings Mr Speaker, Sir, may I begin by wishing you and all Members of this House a happy and healthy new year.
Update on Plan for Live-streaming Parliamentary Sittings Sir, the live-streaming of Parliamentary proceedings commences today. As we speak, this Sitting is being streamed real-time on MCI’s YouTube channel, which is accessible to all. There will be two live-streams: one with English interpretation of speeches made in vernacular languages, and one without. As with current practice, the full video of each live-stream will remain on MCI’s YouTube channel for a period of six months after the end of the Sitting.
Update on Plan for Live-streaming Parliamentary Sittings All currently available avenues to access Parliamentary proceedings remain. These includes attendance in-person from the Strangers’ Gallery, online video clips uploaded within hours of the Sitting and the written records of the Hansard which are also available online.
Update on Plan for Live-streaming Parliamentary Sittings These arrangements already give us the full benefits of transparency, accountability and accessibility. With live-streaming, members of the public will now also be able to watch proceedings in real time, without having to be physically present in Parliament. As I explained in September last year, the Government has agreed to this in view of the global and technological trends which have made online streaming more feasible and enabled legislatures around the world to live-stream their proceedings.
Update on Plan for Live-streaming Parliamentary Sittings Even as we seek deeper engagement of our citizens through the live-streaming of Parliamentary proceedings, we must preserve the integrity and dignity of Parliament as a forum for serious debate on national issues.
Update on Plan for Live-streaming Parliamentary Sittings The Member has asked how concerns over the potential impact of live-streaming on the quality and tone of parliamentary debates can be mitigated. Ultimately, it rests with all Members of this House, present and future, who must uphold the highest standards of conduct and decorum, as we engage in the cut and thrust of parliamentary debate.
Update on Plan for Live-streaming Parliamentary Sittings Mr Louis Ng.
Update on Plan for Live-streaming Parliamentary Sittings Thank you, Sir. Just one supplementary question. Could I just check whether there will be sign language available for the live-stream, as well?
Update on Plan for Live-streaming Parliamentary Sittings Mr Speaker, I thank the Member for his question. At this point, we do not have the provisions for sign language. However, the English stream on YouTube will have auto-captioning available. In other words, that which has the translations of the vernacular as well. So, that will be our starting position in terms of how we make it more accessible for those who may be hearing impaired.
Details of COVID-19 Vaccination Roll-out Plan and Concerns on Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccines 2 Dr Lim Wee Kiak asked the Minister for Health (a) what is the number of COVID-19 vaccines that have been secured for Singapore; (b) how will the vaccination programme be rolled out; (c) what is the earliest projected date to commence the programme; and (d) whether the vaccination be made mandatory for both Singaporeans and foreign residents.
Details of COVID-19 Vaccination Roll-out Plan and Concerns on Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccines 3 Mr Lim Biow Chuan asked the Minister for Health (a) what are the measures taken by the Ministry to ensure that any vaccines for COVID-19 are appropriate and safe for Singaporeans; and (b) whether the Ministry has assessed all potential side effects of the vaccine.
Details of COVID-19 Vaccination Roll-out Plan and Concerns on Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccines 4 Ms Foo Mee Har asked the Minister for Health (a) what are the details of the rollout plans for COVID-19 vaccination in Singapore; (b) how does the Ministry determine the safety and effectiveness of the various vaccines coming into the market; and (c) whether individuals who have been vaccinated will be given a "vaccination card" to facilitate identification that may be required from time to time.
Details of COVID-19 Vaccination Roll-out Plan and Concerns on Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccines 5 Ms Sylvia Lim asked the Minister for Health (a) what criteria are used by the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) to assess COVID-19 vaccinations before approval for public use; and (b) what benchmarks for efficacy are used.
Details of COVID-19 Vaccination Roll-out Plan and Concerns on Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccines 6 Miss Cheng Li Hui asked the Minister for Health regarding the COVID-19 vaccines (a) what are the potential side effects associated with the vaccines; (b) whether the extent and probability of side effects occurring are significantly different from existing flu vaccines; (c) what are the plans to deal with the severe side effects that can arise due to the administration of the vaccines; and (d) what recourse do Singaporeans have should they experience severe side effects.
Details of COVID-19 Vaccination Roll-out Plan and Concerns on Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccines 7 Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis asked the Minister for Health (a) what is the number of COVID-19 vaccine submissions that are in each phase of evaluation by HSA; (b) what is the number of doses of each type of COVID-19 vaccine that has been secured for Singapore; (c) what is the delivery timeline for these vaccines; and (d) whether individuals will be given autonomy to decide on the type of vaccine they will receive when more than one vaccine has been approved.
Details of COVID-19 Vaccination Roll-out Plan and Concerns on Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccines 8 Ms He Ting Ru asked the Minister for Health what are the measures to assuage ground concerns about the safety of the COVID-19 vaccines.
Details of COVID-19 Vaccination Roll-out Plan and Concerns on Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccines 9 Dr Tan Wu Meng asked the Minister for Health in view of certain COVID-19 infections having "high genetic similarity" of virus despite dissimilar countries of origin among persons who served Stay-Home Notice (SHN) at Mandarin Orchard Singapore, whether the Ministry will consider establishing capability for scaled-up rapid whole-genome sequencing (WGS) of virus from clinical samples including nose swabs, so as to complement existing WGS from cultured COVID-19 virus.
Details of COVID-19 Vaccination Roll-out Plan and Concerns on Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccines 10 Mr Alex Yam asked the Minister for Communications and Information (a) whether any research is being done on public attitudes towards vaccination against COVID-19; and (b) how will the public communications strategy be formulated to engage residents across all demographics.
Details of COVID-19 Vaccination Roll-out Plan and Concerns on Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccines 11 Mr Leong Mun Wai asked the Minister for Health considering that there is little change between Phase Two and Phase Three of the re-opening, what is the current strategy to progressively reopen Singapore until our borders are opened to foreign visitors.
Details of COVID-19 Vaccination Roll-out Plan and Concerns on Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccines 12 Mr Murali Pillai asked the Minister for Health what measures will be put in place in Singapore to deal with the new variant of the COVID-19 virus that is reported to be spreading rapidly in the UK and parts of Europe.
Details of COVID-19 Vaccination Roll-out Plan and Concerns on Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccines 13 Mr Lim Biow Chuan asked the Prime Minister (a) what is the reason for the delay in supplying the TraceTogether tokens to all residents by 14 December 2020; and (b) what is the new timeline for all residents to collect the TraceTogether tokens.
Details of COVID-19 Vaccination Roll-out Plan and Concerns on Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccines 14 Mr Dennis Tan Lip Fong asked the Minister for Health (a) whether there will be a need to separate blood collected from donors who have and have not received COVID-19 vaccinations; and (b) if so, whether all necessary measures will be put in place ahead of the vaccine being introduced for use in Singapore.
Details of COVID-19 Vaccination Roll-out Plan and Concerns on Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccines Mr Speaker, as Minister Lawrence Wong and I will be making a Ministerial Statement in a short while, may I have your permission to take Question Nos 2 to 14 in our Ministerial Statement instead, so that we can provide the proper context to the replies?
Details of COVID-19 Vaccination Roll-out Plan and Concerns on Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccines Please do. Mr Christopher de Souza.
Legal Provisions and Safeguards in Using TraceTogether Data 15 Mr Christopher de Souza asked the Minister for Home Affairs whether TraceTogether data will be used for criminal investigations and, if so, what are the legal provisions and safeguards in using such data.
Legal Provisions and Safeguards in Using TraceTogether Data Mr Speaker, the Singapore Police Force is empowered under the Criminal Procedure Code or CPC to obtain any data, including TraceTogether or TT data, for criminal investigations.
Legal Provisions and Safeguards in Using TraceTogether Data The Government is the custodian of the TT data submitted by individuals, and stringent measures are in place to safeguard this personal data. Examples of these measures include only allowing authorised officers to access the data, using such data only for authorised purposes and storing the data on a secured data platform. Under the Public Sector (Governance) Act, public officers who recklessly or knowingly disclose the data without authorisation or misuse the data may be liable to a fine of up to $5,000 or imprisonment of up to two years, or both.
Legal Provisions and Safeguards in Using TraceTogether Data Mr Christopher de Souza.
Legal Provisions and Safeguards in Using TraceTogether Data Sir, I thank the Minister of State for his response. In an investigation, there are suspects and there are witnesses. So, in the event that the TraceTogether information is used of a witness, would there be a possibility of deletion of this information, by virtue of its private nature, if the investigation does not yield anything or the investigation comes to a close? I am wanting to draw a distinction between the suspect and a witness.
Legal Provisions and Safeguards in Using TraceTogether Data Data will only be taken from the individual. In a criminal case where there is a suspect and a witness, we will extract the data from the witness. However, for individuals who are suspects or are under investigation, the data will not be extracted from them, for the purpose of security.
Legal Provisions and Safeguards in Using TraceTogether Data Mr Gerald Giam.
Legal Provisions and Safeguards in Using TraceTogether Data Sir, we all know that effective contact tracing is key to containing the spread of COVID-19 and that the more people use TraceTogether, the better. We should always be looking for ways to remove the impediments to voluntary adoption of the TraceTogether app. So, if people suspect that their TraceTogether data is being used for anything other than for contact tracing, would this not lead to a lower than expected adoption rate?
Legal Provisions and Safeguards in Using TraceTogether Data And I am sure that the Minister of State is aware that users can prevent the app from being used, for example exchanging proximity information, even if they have it installed. So, my question is, now that the Government has said that they might actually use the TraceTogether data for Police investigations, does this not violate the TraceTogether privacy statement, which says that any data shared with MOH will only be used solely for contact tracing of persons possibly exposed to COVID-19?
Legal Provisions and Safeguards in Using TraceTogether Data I thank the Member for the question. TraceTogether is conceived and implemented for the purpose of contact tracing and for fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.
Legal Provisions and Safeguards in Using TraceTogether Data We do not preclude the use of TraceTogether data in circumstances where citizens' safety and security are or have been affected. This applies to all other data as well. Authorised police officers may invoke the Criminal Procedural Code, as I had mentioned earlier, to obtain this data for the purpose of criminal investigation and for the purpose of protecting the safety and security of our citizens.
Legal Provisions and Safeguards in Using TraceTogether Data But otherwise, TraceTogether data is indeed to be used only for contact tracing and for the purpose of fighting the COVID-19 situation.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project 16 Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis asked the Minister for Transport what has been the total amount of expenditure incurred to date by Singapore on the High Speed Rail project and what are the terms specified in the bilateral agreement in relation to compensation claims upon termination of the agreement by either party.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Singapore has incurred more than S$270 million for the Kuala Lumpur – Singapore High Speed Rail, or HSR Project. Some of these costs, such as for consultancy services, design of infrastructure and manpower to deliver the HSR Project, are abortive costs if the HSR Project does not proceed.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project To date, Singapore has already received about S$15 million from Malaysia, arising from Malaysia’s request to suspend the construction of the HSR Project back in 2018 and up to May 2020. Subsequent to that, at the request of Malaysia, the HSR Project was further suspended until 31 December 2020. Malaysia has now decided not to proceed with the HSR Project. According to the terms of the Parties' agreement, Malaysia is obliged to pay termination compensation to Singapore. This will include various abortive costs but not land acquisition costs since the value of the land can be recovered.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project The compensation amount for the termination and schedule for payment are specified in our agreement. In addition, there is a small component of miscellaneous abortive costs for the suspension of the Project requested by Malaysia that Singapore is currently verifying, before we send to Malaysia.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Due to Singapore’s confidentiality obligations under the HSR Bilateral Agreement, we are unable to reveal the exact terms in relation to the compensation for the termination of the HSR Project.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project We look forward to continue to build good relations and work closely with Malaysia to improve connectivity in other ways, and in many other fields, for the mutual benefit of the people of both countries.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Mr Louis Chua.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project I thank the Minister for his response to the question. I have got two supplementary questions. The first is, now that we know that the high speed rail has officially been cancelled, if the Minister can share with the Members of the House what were some of the substantive points of differences that cannot be breached that led to the cancellation?
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project And in relation to compensation, I note earlier in July 2018 that former Transport Minister Mr Khaw Boon Wan said that the total cost incurred back then was exceeding $250 million which is expected to exceed $300 million by the end of 2018. So, in relation to the expenditure already incurred, if Minister could share the details on what is the difference and whether or not we will be able to recover the full amount of the expenditure, excluding land acquisition costs, as the Minister had mentioned, and if so, when should we expect some form of conclusion on this?
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Let me answer the Member's second question first. Then-Minister Khaw Boon Wan did mention the figure of S$250 million. He also mentioned that costs continue to be incurred and, therefore, it may reach S$300 million or so later.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Today, our expenditure is roughly S$270 million, less than what he had indicated earlier, because when the Project was suspended and we agreed to the suspension, we wound down the contracts and we maintained activity at a low level, which is why we did not incur as much as it was indicated earlier.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Will we be able to claim the full amount? The amount to be compensated, as I have mentioned, and the schedule for payment, these are specified in the agreements. So, it is a fixed amount specified in the agreements. Unfortunately, due to confidentiality obligations, I cannot disclose the amount. But we have started the process of compensation.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project As for the first question, it is an important one – the substantive point of difference. Let me go back a little bit.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Singapore and Malaysia signed the HSR Bilateral Agreement – we call it HSR BA – in 2016. And that is after three years of negotiations to implement the HSR Project. Subsequently, both Parties signed two supplementary agreements relating to the suspension of the construction of the HSR Project. Both suspensions were at Malaysia's requests. So, the first supplementary agreement was signed in 2018, to suspend the construction of the HSR Project. The second, in 2020, extended the suspension period to 31 December 2020, with the explicit understanding that it would be the final extension. By then, it would have been extended by two and a half years.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project I will refer to the HSR BA, subsequently amended by the supplementary agreements, generically as the "HSR Agreements" as a short form. So, the HSR Agreements are legally binding international agreements. Parties come to the table as equals, discuss the various terms, such as how to structure and implement the cross-border HSR Project, and the rights and obligations placed on both Parties. As Members know, this process involves understanding each other's concerns, addressing them, striking compromises and finding mutually acceptable common ground.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Singapore was fully committed to carry out our obligations under the HSR BA. But Malaysia felt that circumstances had changed, including due to COVID-19, and proposed several changes to the HSR Project.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Be clear about this, which is, Singapore was not obligated to agree to any of such changes because we had signed an agreement in 2016 already. But, notwithstanding, we considered them in good faith. But we were unable to agree to one particularly significant change proposed by Malaysia. This involved the removal of the Assets Company – in short form, we call it "AssetsCo" – which is the systems supplier and network operator of the HSR service between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur (KL).
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Let me explain why. As the HSR is a cross-border service, it must be a single train system operating between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. Because neither country has the expertise and experience in operating an HSR, we agreed, under the HSR BA, to appoint a best-in-class industry player through an open and transparent international tender to assume the role of the AssetsCo. Once appointed, the AssetsCo would supply the train system, operate the network, ensure that appropriate priority is given to cross-border HSR service vis-a-vis Malaysia's domestic service, and AssetsCo would be accountable to both countries, that is, Singapore and Malaysia.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project To Singapore, AssetsCo is the centrepiece of the HSR Project. It is necessary to ensure that the interests of both countries are protected. This will minimise the possibility of future disagreements and disputes over the long duration of the Project, lasting decades. Singapore, therefore, informed Malaysia that the removal of the AssetsCo constituted a fundamental departure from the HSR BA and could not be accepted.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Malaysia has since decided to allow the HSR BA to be terminated. In these circumstances, it has to compensate Singapore, in accordance with the HSR Agreements. Now that the HSR BA has been terminated, Singapore is willing to discuss any new proposal on a KL-Singapore HSR from Malaysia in good faith, but starting from a clean slate.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Mr Saktiandi Supaat.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Mr Speaker, I thank the Minister for the answer to Mr Louis Chua's question earlier.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project First of all, I would like to thank the MOT team for putting in a lot of good work done that led to an agreement after four years of negotiations. But, alas, Malaysia proposed changes to the agreement and it did not go through. But following up on the Minister's answer just now, also for the sake of transparency, can the Minister share why another extension of the bilateral agreement would not have been possible and whether a further extension would have allowed some room for further discussions to be made to reach an agreement?
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Another question is whether Singapore is open to HSR-like projects in the future.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Thank you. As I have mentioned in my earlier clarifications, at the request of Malaysia, we suspended the Project for two years up to May 2020. And then, there was a second request from Malaysia to extend it until 31 December 2020, that is, another six months, which we were not obligated to agree, but we agreed to it. So, there were two extensions, at the Malaysians' requests and we agreed to it in good faith and in the spirit of good bilateral relations. But we cannot extend indefinitely and, so, for the second extension to 31 December 2020, both sides agreed that it shall be the final extension, and it is part of the agreements. So, I think there will have to be a finality to the suspension and extension of the Project. Having said that, there is a fundamental difference which I have explained earlier with regard to the removal of the AssetsCo.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Whether we are open to future discussions, of course, we are. But it should be on a clean slate, after we have settled the current HSR BA.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Mr Ang Wei Neng.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Thank you, Speaker. I thank the Minister for the comprehensive reply. I have two supplementary questions.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project First, is there any impact of the cancellation of HSR on the Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS)?
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Second, what would be the impact of the HSR cancellation on the development of the Jurong Regional Centre? Although I have moved from Jurong GRC to West Coast GRC, but many of the West Coast GRC divisions are very close to the Jurong Regional Centre. I hope the Minister can give a good reply.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Thank you. The short answer to the first question is no. RTS is progressing well so far. The Johor Bahru side has broken ground; on our side, we will break ground soon and we hope the Project and the service can commence in 2026 as scheduled.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project As for Jurong Regional Centre, let me assure the House that MND had started planning to transform Jurong as early as 2008. So, the Jurong Lake District is part of a broader effort to develop urban centres outside of our CBD and our city centre. The plans for Jurong Lake District, or JLD were, therefore, developed well before Malaysia proposed the current HSR Project in 2012. It was only much later, in 2015, that we decided to locate the Singapore terminus of the HSR in Jurong. The termination of the HSR Project, therefore, does not affect the overall impetus and vision for JLD, although some details may need to be adjusted along the way. When completed, this will be the largest commercial and regional centre outside of our city centre, bringing many jobs, business and recreation opportunities for Singaporeans and Singapore companies.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project The land parcels that the Government has acquired are still needed to realise these plans. For example, the Jurong Country Club site will provide for new mixed-use developments and community facilities. The Raffles Country Club site is also still needed for the Cross Island Line's western depot and the Integrated Train Testing Centre. We will be able to realise the full potential of the land to benefit Singaporeans.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Mr Melvin Yong.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Thank you, Mr Speaker. I thank the Minister for his reply. I have two supplementary questions.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Prior to COVID-19, the Singapore-Kuala Lumpur air route was one of the busiest in the world, with more than four million passengers flying this route every year. The HSR Project was meant to shorten the travel time between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur from about five hours by air to just 90 minutes, and provide greater access to both cities.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project My first question is, what is the impact of the HSR's cancellation on the attractiveness of Singapore as the region's premier air hub and on the SIA Group as a whole?
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project My second question is, how many staff at SG HSR Pte Ltd have been impacted by the project's cancellation and how many have already been redeployed to other job roles? Will these be made permanent? And what are the manpower plans for the remaining staff that have yet to be redeployed?
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project I think the Member just now meant five hours by car, not five hours by air.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Yes, not by air.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project What is the impact of HSR termination by Malaysia on our aviation air hub? As I have mentioned earlier, there are some reasons given as to why the Project was terminated and the impact on air hub was cited in some media reports. But as mentioned, our main concern was the removal of the AssetsCo.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Having said that, Malaysia's new proposal to connect the HSR to Kuala Lumpur International Airport or KLIA means that HSR will share tracks with the express rail link to KLIA. The Express Rail Link is an existing train system, not an HSR, and runs at half the full speed of HSR. So, should we have proceeded, there would have been many technical issues to resolve. But having said that, the main concern for us was the removal of the AssetsCo.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Since the Member has asked about the impact on aviation, actually, without the HSR, the Singapore-KL aviation route will continue to ferry and transport many passengers, in fact, closer to five million than the four million number stated by the Member. But throughout this whole discussion, the status of our aviation hub due to the HSR Project has not been the key consideration. We knew that this Singapore-KL air corridor is the busiest in the world – 46 flights a day, almost five million passengers a year – a number that is almost equivalent to Singapore's residential population. But it is precisely because of this heavy air traffic between Singapore and KL that we believe that the HSR Project was viable, mutually beneficial and strategic for the long term. So, Singapore will always assess the cost benefit of such major infrastructure projects from a national and long-term perspective, and not just from the perspective of one company or one industry.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project As for the Member's second question about manpower, 80 staff are affected. Out of the 80, 70 or so have been redeployed to LTA and the other 10, we are looking them. We are confident we can redeploy all of them in LTA or within the larger transport eco-system. There are many important projects that are happening, and there will always be a need for good people, such as those 80 people working on the HSR Project.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project Mr Dennis Tan.
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project I thank the Minister for the response so far. I just have one question. What is the reasoning behind the Malaysian government's reason for the change on their position on the AssetsCo?
Expenses Incurred to-date by Singapore on High Speed Rail Project I thank the Member for the question, but I really cannot speak for the Malaysian government.
Probe into Error in Khoo Teck Puat Hospital's Laboratory Test for Cancer Patients 17 Dr Lim Wee Kiak asked the Minister for Health following the error in the Khoo Teck Puat Hospital laboratory test for cancer patients (a) how many patients suffered side effects arising from being given the wrong treatment; (b) how many were treated at private hospitals versus Government hospitals; and (c) what is the average cost of medication incurred by all these patients.
Probe into Error in Khoo Teck Puat Hospital's Laboratory Test for Cancer Patients 18 Ms Joan Pereira asked the Minister for Health with regard to the case of breast cancer patients at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital who may have received unnecessary treatment since 2012 due to inaccurate test results (a) what are the key revelations from the review of the process; (b) what measures have been implemented to prevent similar incidents; and (c) whether there have been cases of patients suffering from detrimental effects.
Probe into Error in Khoo Teck Puat Hospital's Laboratory Test for Cancer Patients 19 Dr Tan Wu Meng asked the Minister for Health with regard to cancers inaccurately classified HER2-positive by Khoo Teck Puat Hospital laboratory (a) how many patients (i) received unnecessary treatment and (ii) suffered significant or long-term side effects thereby; (b) what is the ensuing cost to affected patients; (c) what is being done to help these patients; and (d) what measures are taken to ensure fidelity of laboratory tests.
Probe into Error in Khoo Teck Puat Hospital's Laboratory Test for Cancer Patients 20 Miss Cheryl Chan Wei Ling asked the Minister for Health with regard to the incident at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital where breast cancer patients received unnecessary treatment since 2012 (a) why did subsequent follow-up checks on the patients over the years not pick up any misdiagnosis from the earlier test; and (b) whether there are regular audits of hospitals and medical clinics on laboratory protocols to identify lapses.
Probe into Error in Khoo Teck Puat Hospital's Laboratory Test for Cancer Patients 21 Ms Hazel Poa asked the Minister for Health what are the reasons for the wrong test results for cancer patients at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital and what measures will be put in place to ensure that such errors do not occur again.
Probe into Error in Khoo Teck Puat Hospital's Laboratory Test for Cancer Patients Mr Speaker, Sir, may I have your permission to take Question Nos 17 to 21 together, please?
Probe into Error in Khoo Teck Puat Hospital's Laboratory Test for Cancer Patients Yes, please.
Probe into Error in Khoo Teck Puat Hospital's Laboratory Test for Cancer Patients Sir, on 19 November 2020, Khoo Teck Puat Hospital (KTPH) was informed by its laboratory that its immunohistochemistry (IHC) tests for Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2 (HER2) were producing higher-than-expected rates of positive results for breast cancer patients. Preliminary investigations by the laboratory suggested that some of the HER2 results may be inaccurate.
Probe into Error in Khoo Teck Puat Hospital's Laboratory Test for Cancer Patients Following the incident, MOH has been working closely with KTPH to ensure that affected patients are provided with adequate support. KTPH has sent the samples of all patients, who have been tested HER2 positive since 2012, when HER2 testing first started in KTPH, to external laboratories for re-testing to determine how many have received inaccurate results. Preliminary investigations by the KTPH laboratory suggest that the inaccurate results could be due to a suboptimal staining process. The KTPH laboratory has since stopped in-house testing of HER2. MOH has also issued an alert to our other public healthcare institutions to conduct a quick review of their laboratory-developed IHC tests to ensure that positivity rates are within the acceptable range. Thus far, we have not received any reports of similar risks from other healthcare institutions.
Probe into Error in Khoo Teck Puat Hospital's Laboratory Test for Cancer Patients KTPH's Department of Laboratory Medicine is subject to regular inspection by MOH as part of regulatory processes under the Private Hospitals and Medical Clinics (PHMC) Act to ensure that its laboratory facilities, systems and processes are in place to meet patient and personnel safety standards. In addition, the laboratory is accredited by the College of American Pathologists (CAP), where the last biennial inspections by peers were conducted in 2019.
Probe into Error in Khoo Teck Puat Hospital's Laboratory Test for Cancer Patients As at 23 December 2020, 200 patients have been reclassified from HER2 positive to HER2 negative. Of these, eight patients were treated at private hospitals and 192 patients at Government hospitals. Eight patients are still pending retests. Joint care teams have been formed, comprising KTPH surgeons, histopathologists and the treating oncologists, to review the individual care plans for these affected patients, based on the change in their HER2 status.
Probe into Error in Khoo Teck Puat Hospital's Laboratory Test for Cancer Patients KTPH and the treating oncologists are in the process of actively reaching out to these patients to conduct open disclosure and assess these patients for any potential side effects due to unnecessary treatment. The more common side effects include diarrhoea, chills and fatigue – these are usually short-lasting. About 3% to 4% of those who underwent HER2-directed treatment, for example, using Herceptin, may also experience heart problems. KTPH is also reviewing the bills of these affected patients. The portion of the bills which arose from the unnecessary treatment will be fully refunded. KTPH is also ready to provide any clinical and financial support to the affected patients including on-going or follow-on treatments, if any, which may be needed as a result of this over-treatment.