Parliamentary Q&A for 16 August 2016 Sitting

BOARD MEMBERS’ AWARENESS OF TRAIN DEFECTS

Faisal Manap asked if members of the PTC, board members of SMRT and LTA, and the management of Temasek Holdings were aware of the MRT train defects and the subsequent train recall exercise in 2013.

Khaw Boon Wan said that the issue was discussed between the ministry, LTA, and SMRT. The SMRT Board was aware of the defects and recall exercise; the PTC was not involved; and he does not know what was communicated between SMRT and Temasek Holdings.

Read the full exchange here.

 

PLANS FOR HIGH-SPEED RAIL PROJECT

In light of various investigations into 1MDB by Singapore and the US, Dennis Tan asked if the government is concerned about aspects of the high-speed rail project that are related to 1MDB, and what contingencies are in place to ensure that the high-speed rail project will proceed without delay and losses.

Khaw Boon Wan said that each government is responsible for funding, constructing and maintaining the infrastructure within their own countries. Singapore has worked out a framework to ensure the project will be financially viable and sustainable, and a bilateral committee will be formed to oversee the cross-border aspects of the project and minimise delays.

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HDB BLOCKS WITHOUT FIRE ENGINE ACCESS

Dennis Tan asked for the number of HDB blocks without fire engine roads

Lawrence Wong said that all HDB blocks have either a fire engine access road, or access to a fire rising mains breeching inlet.

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COMMUTER USAGE OF TAXIS AND PRIVATE HIRE CARS

Dennis Tan asked if the Ministry has carried out studies on commuter usage of taxis and private hire cares, and whether the findings can be shared with the public.

Khaw Boon Wan said that LTA conducts annual surveys on commuter usage patterns of taxis, but has little data on private hire cars due to it being a relatively recent phenomenon. LTA will include private hire cars in future surveys and will amend the Road Traffic Act to ensure that they submit trip data to LTA.

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RE-EMPLOYMENT UPON REACHING RETIREMENT AGE

Dennis Tan asked how many workers have been offered re-employment upon reaching retirement age; of these, how many have received reduced wages despite doing the same jobs; what the average reduction in wages is; and how the ministry ensures that employers do not unfairly reduce the wages of workers who have reached retirement age.

Lim Swee Say said that in recent years, over 98% of employees who wished to continue working were offered employment beyond 62, although employers could choose to re-employ these workers on new contracts or allow them to continue on existing contracts. In 2015, 98% of those who accepted re-employment did not have their basic wages cut; the median wage cut of the remaining 2% was 10%.

Read the full exchange here.

 

 

PROBLEMS WITH MRT TRAINS DELIVERED IN 2013

Dennis Tan asked if LTA was aware of the defective MRT trains delivered in 2013 before placing new orders for more trains in 2014 and 2015; why LTA chose to give new contracts to the same supplier despite the defects; if LTA had sourced for alternative suppliers; whether any new changes were made to the new contracts to ensure that the same problems would not occur; and whether LTA has asked the supplier to provide solutions or compensation for the defective trains.

Khaw Boon Wan replied that the Kawasaki-Saifang consortium had shown exemplary conduct in fully complying with the terms of their warranty, and have rectified the defects to LTA’s full satisfaction.

He also said that subsequent contracts will “have the bolsters from Japan” despite revealing in a separate response that he does not know if there is a qualitative difference between bolsters made in China and Japan, and does not wish to read more into the use of Japanese bolsters by the consortium, lest it creates a diplomatic problem.

Read the full exchange here.

 

SAFETY RISKS OF MRT TRAIN DEFECTS

Daniel Goh asked if the hairline cracks on the MRT trains posed zero safety risks to commuters and what the risks are of cracks happening on other train components. He also asked why the new train bolsters are now being made in Japan than in China, and whether the ministry is going to take this into account for future contracts.

Khaw Boon Wan said that the hairline cracks are safe, as assessed by the independent assessor. The cause of the cracks is due to a batch of aluminium used to manufacture the bolsters, and other train parts are not affected. In response to the use of Japanese bolsters, Khaw Boon Wan declined to comment saying that he did not want to create a diplomatic problem.

Read the full exchange here.

 

INDEPENDENT REPORT ON HAIRLINE CRACKS ON MRT TRAINS

Png Eng Huat asked what the independent report on the hairline cracks found on defective MRT trains said, and whether the ministry will make the entire report public.

Khaw Boon Wan said the report assessed that the trains are safe to operate, and the root cause of the hairline cracks was the inherent defect in certain batches of the bolsters. He said that LTA will make the report public if the independent consultant has no objections.

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SECURITY CLEARANCE FOR GOVERNMENT AGENCY JOBS

Leon Perera asked in what contexts are job applicants’ personal data sent to the ISD for security clearance, and what safeguards are in place to ensure the accuracy of information collected and used.

K Shanmugam said that there are a variety of contexts and factors to take into consideration, but he cannot specify how or when such checks are done for operational reasons. He also said that information collected is assessed against other relevant information for reliability, but was unable to say more due to confidential operational procedures.

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MEDICAL BENEFITS FOR FEMALE PENSIONERS WHO RETIRED BEFORE 2005

Leon Perera asked for the number of female pensioners who retired before 2005, and how much it would cost to extend equal medical benefits to this group of pensioners and their dependeants [female pensioners who retired before 1 January 2005 cannot claim medical benefits for their dependants and spouses].

Teo Chee Hean said that there are currently 8,400 female pensioners who have retired before 2005, and it would cost more than $30 million annually to extend medical coverage to the dependants of these female pensioners. He said that they can instead rely on MediShield Life and the Pioneer Generation Package.

Read the full exchange here.

 

SOCIETIES DENIED REGISTRATION BY REGISTRAR OF SOCIETIES

Leon Perera asked how many society applications were denied registration by the Registrar of Societies between 2005 and 2015. He also asked for a breakdown of the cases by different types of reasons for rejection.

K Shanmugam said that the Registrar of Societies refused 20 society applications between 2005 and 2015. They were refused on grounds provided within the Societies Act.

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MEDIAN, MEAN, 10TH AND 90TH PERCENTILE TOTALS IN DECEASED MEMBERS’ INDIVIDUAL CPF ACCOUNTS

Leon Perera asked about the amount in individual CPF accounts of deceased persons in each year from 2010 to 2015.

Lim Swee Say replied that half of CPF members aged 65 or older who passed on in 2015 had about $6,800 or less left in their CPF accounts.

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INTRA-COMPANY TRANSFEREES FROM INDIA APPROVED UNDER COMPREHENSIVE ECONOMIC COOPERATION AGREEMENT

Leon Perera asked for the number of intra-company transferees from India that have been approved under the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement with India.

Lim Swee Say replied that intra-company transferees (ICTs) from any country, including India, would need to meet the Ministry’s work pass qualifying criteria in work in Singapore. ICTs from all countries are exempted from the advertisement requirement in the Jobs Bank. The Ministry does not disclose data on foreign manpower with breakdown by nationality.

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IMPACT ON SERVICE RELIABILITY AFTER TRAIN RETURNS

Pritam Singh asked how the Sifang-Kawasaki episode affected the Ministry’s plans to improve the reliability of the train system and what pre-emptive action is being taken to ensure manufacturing defects would not be repeated for that future batches of trains.

Khaw Boon Wan said that the incident has not affected the reliability of the train system and none of the train delays were due to the bolsters’ hairline cracks. He shared that the issue is settled as the train manufacturer said that all bolsters will be manufactured in Japan from now on.

Read the full exchange here.

 

2-ROOM HDB FLEXI-FLATS ON SHORT LEASE

Sylvia Lim asked for the reason for setting a higher price of 2-room HDB flexi-flats on short lease for first-timer single, divorced or widowed applicants under the Single Singapore Citizen Scheme compared to those applying under to other schemes.

Lawrence Wong replied that singles, including divorced/widowed persons without children, buying a 2-room Flexi flat on their own under the Single Singapore Citizen (SSC) Scheme pay a price difference of $15,000 for a 99-year lease flat. For those aged 55 years and above who purchase a 2-room Flexi flat on short lease, the price difference is pro-rated based on the length of the lease. This ensures that limited housing subsidies are equitably distributed among homebuyers.

Read the full exchange here.