Parliament Highlights - 15 Oct 2012

More protection for personal data

But consumers will have to wait till early 2014 for Do-Not-Call registry

By Irene Tham, The Straits Times, 16 Oct 2012

SINGAPORE'S new Data Protection Bill was passed in Parliament yesterday but there are a few more steps before consumers can finally say goodbye to unsolicited marketing calls.

The Bill by the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts protects personal information from being stolen or indiscriminately collected and used for marketing purposes.

Currently, there is no overarching consumer privacy law in Singapore, only specific regulations in three areas - banking, telecommunications and health care.

A key part of the newly passed Bill is the national Do-Not-Call (DNC) registry, which will allow people to opt out of receiving intrusive marketing messages.

Consumers will be able to opt out of telemarketing calls, faxes as well as text and multimedia messages - including those sent via smartphone apps like WhatsApp and Viber - to their Singapore phone number.

But the registry could be launched only by early 2014, Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts Yaacob Ibrahim revealed in Parliament yesterday.

A personal data protection commission will have to be created during the lead-up to the registry's launch. The commission will be given the power to investigate complaints and fine offending parties, with the maximum penalty set at a hefty $1 million.

Once consumers have listed their numbers in the registry, service providers such as banks or spas will not be allowed to call them for telemarketing purposes - unless consumers had given their explicit consent before.

Marketing companies must check against the DNC registry before calling consumers. In the first six months that the DNC registry comes into effect, marketers must check against it once every 60 days. This will be reduced to every 30 days thereafter.

Broadcast messages from smartphone apps are excluded as users are able to turn off the push messaging service on their phones.

The Bill has gone through three rounds of public consultation since September last year. It is set to become law early next year, with enforcement slated to begin 18 months later, to give companies time to adjust.

A public consultation will be launched by March next year before sector-specific guidelines are finalised.

The Bill was actively debated yesterday, with wide-ranging questions and suggestions from 15 MPs.

Some MPs said the Bill's provisions should also apply to public agencies, while others raised concerns over the cost of compliance for companies, especially small and medium-sized enterprises.

On why the Bill does not cover the public sector, Dr Yaacob said: "It already has its own set of data protection rules that all public officers must comply with. These rules are guided broadly by the same principles under the Bill."

As for the cost of compliance, it was a key consideration in drafting the Bill.

"We have sought to mitigate compliance costs for businesses where possible. Several requirements have been adjusted," he said.

For instance, companies that are acting on the instructions of data gatherers, say, banks, are considered "data intermediaries", which will not be held accountable for the collection of personal data - only the safeguarding and retention of the data.

The Data Protection Bill at a glance
IT IS a new law that aims to protect personal information from being collected indiscriminately and used for marketing purposes.

For instance, companies must reveal how they plan to use consumers' contact details at the point of collection. They must also get consumers' explicit consent before they can call or text them to market products or services.

The rules apply to all companies - even overseas ones - if they collect, process and use data on consumers here. The Government will bank on bilateral agreements and ties with overseas regulators for cross-border enforcement.

Key exceptions include personal data cited in court documents and photographs of people taken for personal use and published online.

Other exclusions include personal information collected for news reporting, medical emergencies, national security, research, artistic and literary purposes. Government agencies and statutory boards are excluded from the law as they are governed by internal rules, most of which have not been made public.

Data law: Worries over a range of issues
By Rachel Chang, The Straits Times, 16 Oct 2012

MEMBERS of Parliament are concerned that government agencies are exempted from a new law that requires organisations to protect the personal data of individuals.

They also worry that businesses will face substantial costs in complying with the law, which requires them to seek consent from an individual to collect, use or disclose his personal data.

The Personal Data Protection Bill was passed by the House yesterday but only after 15 MPs rose to speak on a range of issues concerning it.

Workers' Party's Mr Chen Show Mao (Aljunied GRC) was the most forceful in objecting to the exemption of government agencies from the legislation.

Nominated MP Tan Su Shan also raised this concern and questioned the way NRIC numbers have become "a required field in forms".

In introducing the Bill for debate, Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts Yaacob Ibrahim said government agencies are subject to their own set of rules on protecting personal data and these are sometimes more stringent than the new law.

But Mr Chen argued that having the public sector comply with the new law need not interfere with its own internal rules.

He said this internal set of rules is not made known to the public nor subject to parliamentary scrutiny.

For example, under the new law, an individual can complain to the Personal Data Protection Commission if his data had been misused and can ask to correct inaccuracies. He has no such options when dealing with a government agency, said Mr Chen.

This is all the more worrying as government agencies use personal data to make decisions which have "a direct impact on the lives of individuals," he added.

The substantial costs that companies, especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) will face, in order to comply with the new law, was raised by several MPs.

They included Mr Zaqy Mohamad (Chua Chu Kang GRC), Ms Low Yen Ling (Chua Chu Kang GRC), Ms Jessica Tan (East Coast GRC), Mr Patrick Tay (Nee Soon GRC) and Nominated MP Teo Siong Seng.

Ms Low said some SMEs are already under pressure "with the labour crunch and economic uncertainty", and have little spare resources to upgrade their data systems to comply with the new law's requirements.

The MPs asked for more government support for this group.

Ms Tan suggested lengthening the "sunrise" period of 18 months, that companies now have to comply with the new law, to two years for smaller companies.

Dr Yaacob replied that there are industry assistance schemes, like Spring's Innovation and Capability Voucher, which SMEs can tap on to defray costs.

MPs also wanted the law to be more stringent on several fronts.

Mr Desmond Lee (Jurong GRC) wanted to make it a must for organisations to notify the public if a data breach of their information has occurred, while Mr Tay asked for phone numbers in the Do-not-call registry to also be blocked from cold calls from property agents and the like.

Mr Gan Thiam Poh (Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC) suggested that the registry be an "opt-out" rather than "opt-in" one, as most people do not desire unsolicited calls, SMSes and faxes.

If individuals must register themselves to be protected, some vulnerable groups like the elderly would fall through the cracks and be "targeted" by telemarketers, he added.

Parliament passes amendments to Statutes Bill
Channel NewsAsia, 15 Oct 2012

Parliament has passed amendments to the Statutes Bill to allow for the current portfolios of two ministries - the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) and the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts (MICA) - to be re-distributed across three ministries.

In August, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced that the MCYS, which will be renamed the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF), will focus on family, social support and development.

MICA will also be renamed the Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI), and it will focus on public communications, the national and public libraries, and infocomm technology, media and design.

Finally, a new ministry, the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY), will be created to oversee matters concerning culture, community development, sports, youth, arts and national resilience, all of which now lie within the portfolios of the existing two ministries.

Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, Minister for MICA, said the redistribution of portfolios acknowledges the growing importance of social and community issues as Singapore enters a new phase of development.

He added that the new structures will enable a sharper focus and improved synergies across the relevant portfolios in these areas of work.

The restructuring will take effect on 1 November.

Stiffer penalties as drug arrests jump
Drug peddlers targeted; details of changes to death penalty spelt out
By Tham Yuen-C, The Straits Times, 16 Oct 2012

THE Government yesterday moved to change laws mandating the death penalty for murder and drug trafficking even as it lengthened sentences for drug peddlers to up to 30 years.

The proposed stiffer penalties come amid a worsening drug situation here which has seen more drugs seized and drug arrests jumping fourfold from seven years ago.

Hardest hit by the proposed changes will be repeat traffickers and those who push drugs to young people aged below 21.

Maximum sentences for those found guilty could go up to 30 years of jail time plus 15 strokes of the cane, depending on the types of drugs peddled.

Two new offences were also proposed, that will make it illegal to recruit the young into the drug trade, and to throw drug parties.

Those who organise such gatherings can be jailed up to 20 years and be given 10 strokes of the cane.

Last year, the number of young, first-time drug abusers arrested spiked 45 per cent to 260, compared to 163 the year before, sparking concerns that the younger set had a more permissive attitude towards drug use. A large number of them had taken the drugs at home or at drug parties.

Other changes proposed in the Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill include giving the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) the power to seize psychoactive substances, or legal highs, before they are permanently outlawed, and the introduction of hair analysis to test for drug use.

The changes are aimed at enhancing deterrence even as the mandatory death penalty is lifted for certain carefully defined instances of drug trafficking.

Some three months after the review of the mandatory death penalty was announced by Home Affairs Minister Teo Chee Hean and Law Minister K. Shanmugam, the Bills were read for the first time in Parliament yesterday with some details ironed out.

Under the proposed changes, judges will be given discretion to impose a life sentence, instead of death, if strict criteria are met.

For murder, the killing must not be intentional.

For drug trafficking, to be spared the death sentence, a trafficker must only be a low-level courier, and must also have cooperated substantively with the CNB, or be mentally disabled.

"Substantive cooperation" is defined in the Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill as "substantively assisting in CNB's operations to disrupt drug trafficking activities within or outside of Singapore".

The Public Prosecutor will decide whether this condition has been met by assessing all available evidence to see if a trafficker had indeed been adequately cooperative. Those who qualify will then be issued a Certificate of Cooperation.

Changes were also proposed under the Criminal Procedure Code (Amendment) Bill, to make it compulsory for all death sentence cases here to be reviewed by the Court of Appeal, even when the person sentenced to death does not seek such an appeal.

In the last two years, only one person has chosen not to do so.

With the change, no prisoner can be hanged unless his sentence is confirmed by the appeals court on appeal or review.

Stiffer casino laws include limiting visits
The Straits Times, 16 Oct 2012

STIFFER casino laws were introduced in Parliament yesterday to further protect vulnerable groups from gambling ills.

The integrated resorts (IRs) will also be closely monitored to see if they are doing enough to remain attractive to tourists.

Among the key changes is one which limits how many times a person who is "financially vulnerable" can visit the casinos. Individuals or their family members can apply to set the limit.

The National Council on Problem Gambling will consider things such as the gambler's income and the frequency of his casino visits, both here and overseas, before imposing a limit.

Currently, problem gamblers, their family or a third party can get exclusion orders to stop them from visiting the casinos here.

An evaluation panel will be set up to assess the performance of the IRs to ensure that Marina Bay Sands (MBS) and Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) constantly develop non-gaming components.

Last night, MBS' convention centre won a Singapore Experience Award from the Singapore Tourism Board. RWS will open the world's largest oceanarium by December.

The panel's findings may be considered when the IRs renew their licences next year. RWS and MBS got their casino licences in February and April 2010, respectively.

This first step in amending the law comes after a month-long consultation on proposed changes to the Casino Control Act. The amendments, which cut across various aspects of the Act, including crime and the international market agent (IMA) regime, were first proposed in July.

Other changes include:

- Making it an offence to evade the $100 casino entry levy or stay beyond the 24 hours of the levy. 

- Making it an offence to place bets after the results are known. 

- Raising the maximum fine from $1 million now to 10 per cent of the casino's gross gaming revenue if it commits breaches. 

- Making it a law that IMAs are not allowed to target Singaporeans and permanent residents.RWS has already got the green light for two IMAs.

'Not out of the woods yet' on resale flat prices
Khaw warns that global situation could push up property prices
By Rachel Chang, The Straits Times, 16 Oct 2012

THE property market shows signs of stabilising, but "we are not out of the woods yet" when it comes to the rise of resale flat prices, said National Development Minister Khaw Boon yesterday.

He warned that prices could "rise beyond sustainable levels" because the global environment of low interest rates looks set to continue, owing to monetary expansion in the US and Europe.

The possibility prompted the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to restrict the length and size of home loans earlier this month, he told Parliament in response to MPs' questions on the affordability of HDB flats.

In his first comment on the curbs, Mr Khaw said the measures are to "encourage greater financial prudence among property purchasers".

He added: "This is a calibrated step to prevent excessive speculation."

The latest restrictions are the sixth round of cooling measures the Government has imposed since 2010.

All home loans are now capped at 35 years.

If a buyer wants a loan that extends past 30 years or beyond the re-employment age of 65, he must fork out in cash a down payment of 40 per cent for his first loan and 60 per cent for his second or subsequent home loans.

Mr Liang Eng Hwa (Holland-Bukit Timah GRC) asked Mr Khaw if there would be enough new flats to accommodate the entry of singles into the market.

Singles, hitherto restricted to resale flats, will soon be allowed to buy new flats from the board, which has yet to announce the criteria they must meet.

Mr Liang also asked if the Housing Board would consider building and holding a buffer stock of flats to meet unanticipated demand.

Mr Khaw said that the HDB had planned to roll out 25,000 new flats last year and again this year.

This would provide a buffer over and above the 15,000 families that are formed every year.

The planned supply would be "winding down" now, but the incipient entry of singles into the market has led him to ramp it up instead.

Last month, HDB said this year's supply would be raised to 27,000 flats.

But it is "very hard to put a figure on how much we should cater for singles", Mr Khaw said

In response to Mr Zaqy Mohamad (Chua Chu Kang GRC) and Ms Foo Mee Har (West Coast GRC), he said the rise in resale prices is not at an unacceptable level.

What is an "acceptable resale index" depends on the economy, he added.

"If prices remain unaffordable, that means people cannot afford to buy (property), then there will be no buyers and there will be no market."

Significantly more housing units to be completed in 2014
By Hetty Musfirah, Channel NewsAsia, 15 Oct 2012

26,800 Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats and 22,400 non-landed private housing units are projected to be completed in 2014.

The numbers are significantly higher than those projected for this year -- 11,300 HDB flats and 12,500 non-landed private housing units are expected to be completed in 2012.

The National Development Ministry revealed these figures in a written response to questions posed by Pasir Ris-Punggol Group Representation Constitutency (GRC) Member of Parliament (MP) Gan Thiam Poh in Parliament on Monday.

Speaking in Parliament, National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan said there is a significant supply of housing - both public and private - that will come onto the market over the next two years.

He said HDB has ramped up its Build-to-Order (BTO) supply significantly, and will keep up the pace of new flat supply into 2013.

He said this is to provide more options to suit individual housing needs and budgets.

Holland-Bukit Timah GRC MP Liang Eng Hwa had also asked if there are enough flats to meet unanticipated demand, such as those from singles.

He asked: "We may not always get the demand and supply right, so is HDB building some surplus to meet those unanticipated demand?"

Mr Khaw said the ministry is looking into the matter.

He answered: "We're still mulling over it. (It is) very hard to put a figure on how much should we cater for singles."

Mr Khaw added that strong demand for residential property in Singapore is likely to persist as interest rates stay low.

While residential property prices may be stabilising, Mr Khaw said, Singapore is not yet "out of the woods".

The Resale Price Index has seen an uptick in the third quarter this year, with a two per cent growth from the second quarter of 2012 based on flash estimates.

"With the recent announcements of further monetary expansion in both US and the eurozone, the current low interest rate environment is likely to persist," said Mr Khaw.

"This will continue to contribute to the strong demand for residential property, which could cause prices to rise beyond sustainable levels."

He added the recently-announced new curbs on loan tenures are to encourage greater financial prudence among property purchasers in both the public and private housing markets.

The new curb is also a calibrated step to prevent excessive speculation.

According to analysts, the increased number of HDB flats to be completed in 2014 does not come as a surprise, as the government has been ramping up HDB flat supply in the past years.

Analysts say most of the flats should have been taken up by then, as typically about 70 per cent of units have been booked. Remaining units are also sold under the Sales of Balance Flats programme.

"Also, the BTO is a scalable programme; the government can always scale down the number of units that's being launched once the needs of the home buyers have been met," added Mr Eugene Lim, key executive officer of ERA Realty.

The higher number of HDB units is not expected to have a significant impact on the resale market, if the flats are sold after the minimum occupation of five years in 2019.

Mr Lim said: "It is a bit far ahead to predict the impact on the resale market but I would suspect not all these flats' owners will be selling their flats at the same time. Therefore the impact on the resale market prices will not be significant."

But it could be a different story for the private housing market.

According to Mr Lim, an oversupply is possible, and investors renting out units could be affected.

"We are already reducing foreign manpower and if this were to continue in the years to come, then we'll find that in the year 2014, there may not be as much foreign manpower to take up the rental units," said Mr Lim.

"And when you have so many new units being completed in the market, then we might have a slight oversupply situation and that would lead to reduced rentals."

The National Development Ministry says about 39,600 units of private homes from projects in the pipeline remain unsold as of June this year.

Govt stresses need to maintain clear line between politics & religion
By Saifulbahri Ismail, Channel NewsAsia, 15 Oct 2012

The government has stressed the need to maintain a clear line between politics and religion in Singapore.

Deputy Prime Minister and Home Affairs Minister Teo Chee Hean said the separation of religion and politics is a long established principle in Singapore.

He was responding to a question from Nominated MP Laurence Lien who wanted an update on the government's stance on what it means to keep religion and politics separate.

Mr Teo said: "Our politics and policies must serve all Singaporeans, regardless of race, language or religion. The government must not take sides with any religious group when making policies.

"If politicians use the religion card for their own political purpose and agenda, and seek to sway voters through religious appeals, it will sow the seeds of division in our society, and undermine the inter-religious and social harmony we have painstakingly built."

Mr Teo noted that a citizen who belongs to a particular religion will often be guided by his religious beliefs and personal conscience.

However, he should always be mindful of the sensitivities of living in a multi-religious society and the bounds of the law.

To guard against the dangers of mixing politics and religion, parliament enacted the Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act in 1990.

Mr Teo said should any individual or group seek to embroil any religious group or use a religious office to further its political agenda, the government will take firm action.

Mr Teo said he understands and respects that religious groups have deeply-held views which they wish to express and to be given due consideration.

However, he said there are established formal and informal channels for them to do so.

Recently, Singapore's Archbishop Nicholas Chia was involved in an exchange of words with activist group Function 8.

This was over a letter he sent to the group on the Internal Security Act.

Mr Teo confirmed that the Archbishop had intended the letter as a private communication to Function 8, but had later decided to withdraw the letter upon reflection as he was concerned it could be used in a manner that he did not intend and possibly harm social harmony.

"Those who know Archbishop Chia and the type of person he is and his contributions to Singapore over the decades will certainly know he's not one who would endanger social harmony in Singapore. The position he took in withdrawing the letter was consistent with his words and deeds throughout his leadership of the Catholic Church and as a respected religious leader in Singapore," said Mr Teo.

Blocking film about preserving harmony
By Jennani Durai, The Straits Times, 16 Oct 2012

THE Government had asked Google to block the anti-Islam film, Innocence Of Muslims, as a matter of principle against offensive and inflammatory content that was causing violence in other countries, including those nearby, said Mr Teo Chee Hean.

The Deputy Prime Minister said it had to take a firm stand because "the consequences of a single incident in Singapore could have a long-lasting impact on the inter- racial and inter-religious bonds we have built over the years".

The Home Affairs Ministry also engaged community and religious leaders on the matter to reiterate Singapore's stand against religious intolerance, he added, in reply to Nominated Member of Parliament Eugene Tan.

Singapore's authorities had asked Google last month to block online access to the 13-minute anti-Islam video clip, believed to have been made by a small group of extremist Christians in the United States. The Internet giant agreed to do so.

Mr Teo, who is also Minister for Home Affairs, noted that the "protests came very close to home, with incidents reported in Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand".

He noted that Singapore has laws against incitement of hatred and disharmony which allow for decisive action that assures the public the Government will act when a line is crossed and "there is no need for affected groups to respond in inappropriate ways".

"This episode is a tragic reminder that freedom of expression does not mean that one has unfettered rights to insult and denigrate another's religion or race, which is something that is held deeply and dearly by others. Rather, we safeguard this freedom only through mutual respect of the views and beliefs of others."

But Assistant Professor Tan asked if such bans by the Government would weaken Singaporeans' ability to deal with hate speech whenever it arose.

"The concern really is how do we fortify ourselves because there will constantly be hate speech like this," said Prof Tan.

Mr Teo replied that this was one of the dilemmas the Government had to face and that the authorities could not clamp down on everything on the Internet. He said his ministry assessed both the video content and its possible impact when determining whether or not to request that it be blocked.

"The issue at hand is not censorship of Internet content but taking the necessary pre-emptive measures to prevent Internet content from inciting or being used to incite social unrest in Singapore," he said. The minister reiterated that it was "a matter of principle" for the Singapore Government, and added that the violent protests were greatest in "countries which are not so dissimilar from ours".

S'pore productivity decline reflective of slowing economy: Teo Ser Luck
Channel NewsAsia, 15 Oct 2012

Trade and Industry Minister of State Teo Ser Luck said Singapore's productivity decline is reflective of the slowing economy. 

Speaking in Parliament on Monday, Mr Teo said that as business activities slow, companies tend not to adjust their workforce immediately due to the cost of hiring and firing workers.

Mr Teo said the process of redesigning jobs takes time with some industries needing a longer time to change. 

He added that it is important to educate and provide guidance to these companies.

Mr Teo said about 7,000 companies have benefited so far from various productivity initiatives, with 86 per cent of them being small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

He said: "We must see beyond the short-term fluctuations, but press on with our productivity drive for the long term. We must continue to boost productivity at all levels.

"We need to restructure our economy to move up the productivity chain; companies need to also review their reliance on manpower; and workers need to upgrade themselves continuously to take on higher value-added jobs."

'No recession next year, but modest growth'
By Robin Chan, The Straits Times, 16 Oct 2012

SINGAPORE will not be hit by a recession next year but growth will be modest, said Minister for Trade and Industry Lim Hng Kiang yesterday.

He foresees the economy growing at a pace similar to this year's forecast of between 1.5 per cent and 2.5 per cent.

Mr Lim made these points in Parliament when replying to Nominated MP Tan Su Shan.

He said: "Next year our growth rate will be below our potential, but we will still continue to enjoy modest growth. We can achieve between 1.5 per cent and 2.5 per cent this year, and similar rates next year.

"So we are not heading into a recession, a technical recession notwithstanding."

A technical recession occurs when the economy contracts for two quarters in a row. A full recession refers to a longer period of economic decline and rising unemployment.

Ms Tan had asked whether the Government was more concerned with rising inflation or weakening growth. She also asked if Singapore's competitiveness was falling against other economies, and if there was a need to let the Singapore dollar strengthen at a slower pace.

A strengthening Singapore dollar can help keep inflation at bay by making imports cheaper, but it also makes exports more expensive.

To ease concerns over competitiveness, Mr Lim cited Singapore's No. 2 ranking on the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Index this year, and the Economist Intelligence Unit rating it as the most competitive city in Asia.

He noted that other Asian economies such as South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong are also seeing a slowdown in their exports. Their total exports contracted by 0.7 per cent in the first half of the year.

He also said the Singapore dollar is a monetary policy tool to manage inflation, not the competitiveness of exports.

"Over the longer term, competitiveness can only be achieved through higher productivity and innovation such as creating new products that the market demands," he said.

Singapore avoided a technical recession after better-than-expected figures for the second quarter.

As a result, the projected contraction of 0.7 per cent when measured against the first quarter was revised upwards to a 0.2 per cent expansion.

But the economy still shrank 1.5 per cent in the third quarter against the second quarter, said the MTI last Friday.

On the same day, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said it would stick to a policy of a modest and gradual appreciation of the Singapore dollar, indicating it was more concerned with rising prices than a slowing economy.

Mr Lim reiterated the position.

Inflation is still higher than what Singapore is used to, he said, with the inflation benchmark Consumer Price Index expected to be slightly above 4.5 per cent this year, and between 3.5 per cent and 4.5 per cent next year.

"This is still significantly high inflation by Singapore's inflationary experience... The MAS has decided to maintain its gradual and modest appreciation (of the Singapore dollar) in order to keep this inflation risk at bay," he said.

Fibre broadband hits 95% coverage, but concerns remain
By Irene Tham, The Straits Times, 16 Oct 2012

WHILE 95 per cent of homes and offices have been hooked up to Singapore's fibre-optic broadband network, there are worries whether the 100 per cent target can be achieved by January next year.

Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts, said in Parliament yesterday that the Infocomm Development Authority (IDA) of Singapore has expressed "grave concerns" to network builder OpenNet and its contractor SingTel over the delays.

"It has taken longer than expected to work out the rollout arrangements with its subcontractor," he added, even as he noted that OpenNet has fulfilled its obligation to connect 95 per cent of homes and businesses as of the middle of this year.

He added that OpenNet and SingTel have committed to a nine-month timeline to reach the remaining 5 per cent of buildings.

Dr Yaacob said the IDA "will continue to press OpenNet for a quicker resolution". The regulator is concerned that the nine-month rollout schedule - from now till mid-next year - would mean that OpenNet would have difficulties offering fibre broadband to all homes and offices by next January.

It is unknown if the delay is related to OpenNet's existing dispute with SingTel, first disclosed in May.

Declining to reveal details, OpenNet had said the disagreement affected "some aspects" of its performance and that the matter was headed for arbitration.

MPs are equally concerned about the delays, with Mr David Ong (Jurong GRC) and Ms Lee Bee Wah (Nee Soon GRC) asking what would happen if OpenNet could not meet its obligations by January next year.

"I would like to know what is the reason for the delay. Is it shortage of manpower?" asked Ms Lee, who had received complaints from residents in recently completed public housing projects Jade Spring and Dew Spring in Yishun and two-year-old condominium Northwoods. These properties have not been wired up.

Said Dr Yaacob: "We've been pressing them for an early resolution. But certainly we must recognise that beyond the 95 per cent mark, the areas that they have to cover are very, very wide and so it's not possible for them to cover each area with the same speed and frequency as we expect for the 95 per cent rollout."

More than 220,000 subscribers, or close to one in five households, have signed up for fibre broadband. Services go for as low as $39 a month for a 25Mbps plan from Internet service providers like SingTel, StarHub and M1.

Newcomers like ViewQwest and MyRepublic have also entered Singapore's broadband fray.

Haze hotspots spiked after falling in past six years: Balakrishnan
Channel NewsAsia, 15 Oct 2012

After falling steadily in the past six years, the number of haze-causing hotspots in Indonesia has suddenly spiked to numbers that now exceed those in 2006.

Minister for the Environment and Water Resources, Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, said this is a "considerable backslide".

Singapore, as chair of the sub-regional Ministerial Steering Committee on Transboundary Haze Pollution, is actively promoting regional collaboration to address the haze problem, he told Parliament on Monday.

A new initiative the committee is looking into is using satellite mapping to identify companies whose concession areas see excessive fire outbreaks.

But the minister said law enforcement can only do so much.

He said: "There are several evidential difficulties with this. First, if you actually look at the list of concession map, you will realise that there is a lot of companies, shell companies, subsidiaries, joint ventures and a variety of business arrangements behind the clearing of lands and the planting of oil palms. So that's first level. 

"Second level is that actually in order to achieve prosecution in court, you need to have caught the person in the act, circumstantial evidence on its own, probability may not be sufficient.

"The third difficulty is that, these are local crimes and need to be prosecuted in local jurisdiction.

"So what we can do more of now is to introduce more transparency, list out who owns which pieces of land, list out the number of hotspots which are occurring, in real time, in those pieces of land and then, after that, this involves the consumer groups, non-government organisations, international organisations, who all have a stake in this value chain.

"I think that's the only effective way, because you can pass all the laws you like in the respective governments, but if you can't enforce your law and you can't ensure that people comply with regulations and rules...this problem will keep recurring."

Current nuclear technology not suitable for S'pore: Study
Risks of housing nuclear energy plant here outweigh benefits, says Iswaran
By Grace Chua, The Straits Times, 16 Oct 2012

CURRENT nuclear energy technology is not suitable for Singapore, a pre-feasibility study has concluded.

Mr S. Iswaran, Second Minister for Trade and Industry, said in Parliament yesterday that the risks of housing a nuclear power plant here to generate electricity still outweigh the benefits, given the country's size and dense population.

But the two-year study by government agencies, external consultants and independent expert advisers, in response to an Economic Strategies Committee recommendation in 2010, did not rule out nuclear energy totally.

It recommended that Singapore continue to monitor new technologies.

The country also needs to strengthen capabilities to understand nuclear science and technology, and in emergency response and radioactive waste disposal, said Mr Iswaran, who is also Minister in the Prime Minister's Office and Second Minister for Home Affairs.

Many of the Republic's Asean neighbours are planning to build nuclear power plants. Vietnam aims to build 10 nuclear reactors by 2030. Malaysia is studying having one in operation by 2021.

Hence, Singapore should also play a role in global and regional cooperation on nuclear safety. It is, for example, a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency, an inter-governmental body that promotes the peaceful use of nuclear energy.

Dr T.S. Gopi Rethinaraj, an assistant professor and nuclear energy expert at the National University of Singapore's (NUS) Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, is not surprised the nation has ruled out the nuclear option for now.

"Current technology may not be suitable," he said. This is because the designs require large safety buffers, including an uninhabited zone with a 2km radius and a 5km low-density zone.

Newer, safer designs exist only on paper, he added. These would be at least 20 to 30 years from commercial development.

"In the foreseeable future, the best bet would be natural gas in the near term," he said.

Singapore aims to have a stable, economically competitive supply of energy while minimising carbon emissions and pollution. Eighty per cent of electricity is generated from natural gas piped from Indonesia and Malaysia. It has limited scope for solar, wind and other renewable energies.

But a liquefied natural gas terminal, set to begin operations next year, will allow Singapore to import gas from other countries.

This and the growth of unconventional gas sources like shale gas could help alleviate Singapore's energy security concerns even without a nuclear power plant, said Dr Michael Quah of NUS' chemical and biomolecular engineering department.

And even if Singapore does not build a nuclear plant, others in the region will, and it can help train people for regulatory and other industry roles. "Nuclear has long coat-tails. Where in the supply chain can we develop manpower?" said Dr Quah.

Everyone has a part in keeping environment clean: Lee Bee Wah
Channel NewsAsia, 15 Oct 2012

Member of Parliament for Nee Soon Group Representation Constituency Er Dr Lee Bee Wah filed a motion for adjournment in Parliament, on the standard of cleanliness in Singapore. 

Citing experience from her own ward, she stressed everyone should play a role in keeping the environment clean.

She recounted: "In Khatib Centre, we have cleaners working at 9am as well as 5pm. Last Friday, I told town council cleaners not to do any cleaning from 5pm onwards. And on Saturday, myself and about 100 grassroots leaders and community leaders went to Khatib Centre. We picked up bags and bags of rubbish."

"I'm sure this is not uniquely Nee Soon South and it happens in a lot of places in Singapore. And perhaps we have indeed become complacent," she commented. "Perhaps, a new generation has not learnt the lesson of what impact filth and grime can have on environmental health."

"Deputise senior members of non-government organisations, maybe even for grassroots organisations to act as enforcement officers who have a warrant card and be properly trained," suggested Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Environment and Water Resources.

He also suggested reviewing fines and penalty regimes for littering.

Parliament Q&As
- Second Minister S Iswaran's written reply to Parliament Question on Measures to Ensure Businesses Benefit from F1
- Written Answer by Ministry of National Development on whether HDB will consider waiving the income ceiling for buying a HDB flat
- Written Answer by Ministry of National Development on stabilising the pricing of public housing
- Funds Disbursed To Help Singaporeans Earning Less Than $1,500
- Effectiveness of Productivity and Innovation Credit
- Number Of Singapore Residents Declared As Property Traders
- Gender Differences in PSLE Performance
- Failure Rates at Year One in Junior Colleges
- Edusave Awards for Students who are Permanent Residents
- Effectiveness of Direct School Admission Programme
- Pre-school education for children from low-income families
- Written Reply by Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen to Parliamentary Question on National Service Defaulters