Sitting commenced at 8.30 pm
[(proc text) The President (accompanied by two ADCs) entered the Chamber, accompanied by Mdm Speaker, who was preceded by the Serjeant-at-Arms (without the Mace), the Deputy Clerk, the Senior Assistant Clerk and the Clerk. (proc text)]
[(proc text) On the Clerk announcing \"The President\", the President delivered his Opening Address. (proc text)]
Page: 12
The President (Dr Tony Tan Keng Yam): Hon Members, this Session of Parliament opens at an important moment in our history. Next year, we celebrate our Golden Jubilee. For 50 years since Independence, we have built our homes together, raised families, and helped one another as friends, neighbours and compatriots. Despite long odds, we have not only survived, but prospered. Every Singaporean can take pride in this as we celebrate as one people.
At 50, we are still a young nation, with great promise ahead. Just as our pioneers overcame formidable obstacles with grit and determination to build today's Singapore, we too must create our Singapore of tomorrow. Our work continues – to build a fair and just society, regardless of race, language or religion; to achieve happiness, prosperity and progress for our nation. These are the founding ideals in our Pledge, which we must always uphold.
In the second half of this Twelfth Parliament, my Government pledges to work with all Singaporeans to address the concerns and aspirations of our people and build a better future.
We will strengthen safety nets to help the vulnerable and the elderly cope with the vicissitudes of life.
We will enhance retirement adequacy to give greater assurance and peace of mind to all Singaporeans.
We will support strong families and communities, so that values such as empathy, filial piety, respect and mutual help continue to be part of our lives.
We will create the conditions for every Singaporean to enjoy a better quality of life, with improved transport options, more recreational spaces and rejuvenated neighbourhoods for all to enjoy.
We will create more opportunities for working adults to have a fulfilling career, to keep learning all their lives, and to realise their dreams and aspirations.
We will enable young Singaporeans to fulfil their potential, pursue their dreams, and follow their interests in diverse fields.
My Government will pursue new strategies to achieve these goals. Our environment has changed, and so must our approach to nation building. We will chart this journey
Page: 13
together with all Singaporeans. We have heard from the many citizens who participated in the OSC (\"Our Singapore Conversation\"). We will give substance to these voices, and set out a new way forward for ourselves and our nation.
First, we will keep pathways upwards open to all Singaporeans, regardless of background or family circumstances.
Singapore must remain a nation of opportunities for all. Those who do not succeed at first should have a second chance, indeed must always have the chance to try again. We want an open and inclusive society, where all have opportunities to learn, and to earn our own success; where we respect fellow Singaporeans, regardless of social status, for the worth we see in everyone; and where we interact informally with one another free of rigid social hierarchy.
Our education system must uphold this ethos. This means inculcating empathy and respect from young, and fully developing everyone's abilities in a meritocratic society.
We are investing more in pre-school education, to help those who are born with less get to a good starting point, and give them every chance to achieve their full potential.
We recognise that competition in our schools is keen, especially at milestones like Primary 1 registration or the PSLE. We will continue to improve the system, so that no single point in our education will wholly determine our future. We will ensure that every school is a good school, and offer more opportunities for students to hone their interests and talents across many fields. We will go beyond academic success, to imbue our young with practical skills, good character and sound values that are just as important in life.
Beyond Primary and Secondary school, we will create diverse and flexible options to cater to students' different abilities and pace of development. The ASPIRE committee is exploring ways to create more opportunities for ITE and Polytechnic students. We are also expanding University places, and introducing new degree programmes in our 5th and 6th autonomous universities – SIT and UniSIM – with a stronger focus on practical application.
But education must continue beyond our ITEs, Polytechnics, and Universities. Through lifelong learning, the Government will help our workers upgrade skills and develop expertise in every vocation, and stay abreast of changing industry demands. This is critical because jobs are changing faster, and knowledge is becoming obsolete more quickly. We will focus not only on low-income workers, but middle-income Singaporeans and professionals, managers and executives (PMEs) too. We are strengthening our system of Continuing Education and Training (CET), including the two new CET Institutes – the Devan Nair Institute
Page: 14
in Jurong, and the Lifelong Learning Institute in Paya Lebar.
Beyond equal opportunities for fulfilment, every Singaporean should enjoy a fair share of our nation's success. We will strengthen our social safety nets, not only to give all Singaporeans peace of mind, but also to share the fruits of progress more widely, especially with the lower-income and vulnerable groups.
Promoting home ownership remains a key strategy. Home ownership has made an enormous contribution to levelling up our society. It has enabled Singaporeans, especially the lower-income, to build up significant assets and have a tangible stake in Singapore's progress. No other country in the world has done this.
The Government will continue to keep housing affordable for all Singaporeans, and help low- and middle-income households to own their HDB homes and build up a nest-egg for retirement. We will also develop new housing options to encourage extended families to live closer together, and strengthen our family bonds and ties of kinship.
We will ensure affordable and quality healthcare for all Singaporeans. We have enhanced the Community Health Assist Scheme (CHAS), expanded the use of Medisave, and increased subsidies for outpatient care. MediShield Life will give all Singaporeans, including those with pre-existing illnesses, better lifelong protection against high medical bills. The MediShield Life Review Committee is finalising the details of the scheme. We will ensure that the premiums will be affordable for all.
We will pay particular attention to vulnerable Singaporeans, including low-wage workers and our elderly. We will strengthen social safety nets beyond home ownership and Workfare.
We will also do more for our elderly. Singaporeans are living longer. To ensure that they have enough for their financial needs in their golden years, we will improve the existing CPF savings and CPF LIFE annuity schemes and develop more options for Singaporeans to unlock the value of their homes in their retirement.
But as we do more for the vulnerable, the poor and the old, we must also give people the means and the incentives to help themselves. Singaporeans believe that personal responsibility and effort are essential to their dignity and self-worth. This was the pioneering spirit that built the Singapore we see today. Let us preserve this spirit, even as we strengthen social safety nets and give Singaporeans more confidence to face the uncertainties of life together.
Page: 15
Government spending will increase over the next decade and beyond, especially on social programmes. We have to ensure that our social spending can be sustained, and that we have enough revenues to balance our budget.
But at the same time, Government spending, by itself, does not create a wealthier, a better or a happier society. It must be matched by individual and community effort and initiatives.
Active community involvement engages the human spirit, provides personal fulfilment and strengthens our collective well-being. This is how we will build a nation for tomorrow, a home where we feel a sense of responsibility for one another and not just a sense of entitlement to the benefits of citizenship.
Singapore cannot be just a marketplace in the global economy. For every one of us, it is first and foremost our home: where we sink our roots, raise our families and share life's ups and downs together with one another. Singapore must be a home that endears, with an active citizenry dedicated to creating our shared future.
A good home reflects the best of its people. We must keep Singapore a place where people of different races, religions and backgrounds live harmoniously together, and where we embrace one another as fellow Singaporeans, working together for a common purpose and a shared future. We also have new immigrants and foreigners amongst us, who contribute to our society and economy. Let us treat them with graciousness, kindness and fellowship, even as we expect them to respect our values and our Singaporean way of life. This spirit will enable us to progress and prosper together.
A good home provides an environment for people to thrive. We will create a living environment where all Singaporeans enjoy a better quality of life. We will continue to upgrade our HDB heartlands and neighbourhoods, connect them to a more extensive and convenient transport network, and integrate them into a web of green corridors and waterways, as well as sports and leisure facilities. We will also enrich our lives through vibrant arts and cultural pursuits.
As our city becomes increasingly complex and diverse, the demands on amenities, infrastructure and resources will rise. We will make full use of new technologies to develop sustainable and innovative solutions that improve our lives. We will make Singapore a Smart Nation: enabling safer, cleaner and greener urban living, more transport options, better care for the elderly at home; more responsive public services and more opportunities for citizen engagement.
Page: 16
To achieve all these ambitious goals, it is crucial to maintain constructive politics that puts our nation and our people first. Politics lives off robust debate and passionate argument. But in many countries, the hurly-burly of politics has resulted in short-term populist measures, and sometimes gridlock and paralysis. This sort of politics will weaken Singapore.
We should continue to have vigorous debates on the challenges facing our nation, and be prepared to take necessary and bold decisions for our future. It is important for us to do so, to have the best ideas and the best leadership for Singapore. Everyone should join in the debates, understand the issues, share their views and argue their positions. Sometimes, these debates will stir great passions, but we cannot allow our differences to pull us apart. So, while we may have differing views, all sides must take a long-term perspective for the common good. And once the debate is settled, we must come together again, to move ahead as one united people.
This is how we have continued to adjust and adapt to changes in global competition, the limits to growing our labour force and to the evolution of Singapore society. The Government made major shifts over the last decade, to build a more inclusive society and to transform our economy. We introduced ComCare and Workfare to take care of our needy as well as our low-wage workers. We embarked on a multi-year plan to raise skills and productivity, create quality jobs and raise incomes for Singaporeans.
In recent years, the Government has made further moves. We sped up housing and public transport programmes to address urgent needs. We implemented parenthood and immigration policies to ensure a sustainable population where Singaporeans form the heart and strength of our nation. We slowed the inflow of foreign workers, while being mindful to maintain a vibrant economy to create opportunities and jobs for Singaporeans. With social issues becoming more pressing, we introduced the Wage Credit Scheme and the Progressive Wage Model to help raise wages.
Our plans for the future reflect our determination to keep adapting, improving and upgrading ourselves. But amidst these changes, some things remain constant: Singapore will always be a small country, constantly navigating dangers and threats in an uncertain world. Recent events in Ukraine, as well as tensions and maritime disputes nearer home in East and Southeast Asia, remind us that we must never take our safety and security for granted.
We need effective diplomacy to safeguard our interests abroad, cooperate with other countries and earn respect around the world. We also need a strong SAF and Home Team to protect our homes and families. Our NSmen have the spirit and resolve to defend our nation and provide us with that sense of security to pursue our dreams. They deserve our support
Page: 17
and recognition: the Committee to Strengthen National Service will propose ways to do this.
In December 1965, a few months after Independence, President Yusof Ishak opened the First Parliament of the Republic of Singapore. President Yusof expressed our hopes for Singapore to become a \"tolerant society, multiracial, multilingual, multi-religious, welded ever closer together by ties of common experience\". This remains at the heart of what we stand for – a strong Singaporean identity, in a diverse and plural society.
Our Golden Jubilee will be an occasion for us to re-dedicate ourselves to building a better Singapore.
Our pioneers had a dream of what Singapore could be. They fought for our Independence and toiled for our success. They succeeded in large measure and created in Singapore something special and precious for all of us to enjoy. The Pioneer Generation Package is a sincere expression of appreciation for their sacrifices and contributions.
But the best way to honour our pioneers is to uphold this same pioneering spirit – to dream and fight for Singapore. We must be stewards of our pioneers' success and leave behind a better Singapore than we inherited. We, and especially our young, must take the torch, run faster and further, and keep Singapore's light burning bright.
Our best years lie ahead. We have not overcome all our challenges, but we are determined to do so, and we will. Singapore remains a home that brings out the best in us. By recognising our collective destiny, by finding fulfilment in building our home and nation, we can continue to progress and prosper. As we approach our 50th anniversary of independence, let us pledge ourselves anew to build a better, brighter Singapore.
Adjourned accordingly at 8.56 pm.
ADDENDA TO THE PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS AT THE OPENING OF THE SECOND SESSION OF THE TWELFTH PARLIAMENT ON FRIDAY, 16 MAY 2014
Page: 18
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Ministry of Communications and Information","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Minister for Communications and Information (Assoc Prof Dr Yaacob Ibrahim): MCI's mission is to build a nation of connected people and achieve a better quality of life by developing vibrant infocomm, media and design sectors, cultivating learning communities, and fostering an engaged public.
IDA and MDA will develop a new Infocomm Media Masterplan to make Singapore a Smart Nation that leads the world in harnessing infocomm and media (ICM) technologies. The Design Singapore Council will push for design disciplines to be widely applied in the Food, Retail and Infocomm services, so as to raise productivity and competitiveness.
Infocomm, Media and Design will offer good jobs for Singaporeans who are willing to make, create, tinker and build. Promoting computational thinking in students and our youths will better equip them to be creators of solutions, and not just consumers of technology.
We will nurture innovative enterprises by fostering a vibrant startup ecosystem in infocomm, media and design. We will give Singapore-based tech-product startups a chance to go through a rigorous accreditation process led by IDA and level the playing field to enable accredited firms to effectively compete in appropriate Government ICT tenders.
We will build new infrastructure to serve our future needs, such as a heterogeneous network and a nationwide sensor network.
We will introduce measures to improve the resilience of our media and infocomm infrastructure in both the physical world and cyberspace. We will continue to reach out to the public and partner with them to raise infocomm security adoption.
Our regulatory environment will need to keep pace with changes. We will study whether Internet and mobile services should be classified as an \"essential utility\" under the Telecommunications Act, in order to simplify the rollout of high-speed broadband and mobile connectivity.
We will ensure that infocomm and media sector regulations continue to safeguard the consumer. We will review the Media Market Competition Code, including the anti-siphoning provisions. We will ensure content classification standards are continuously aligned with community values and expectations. We will expand co-regulation into more areas, such as
\tPage: 19
films and arts entertainment.
We will work with the community to promote information literacy, media literacy and safe and responsible online behaviour.
We will ensure infocomm and media regulations protect and uphold the public interest and the national interest. We will amend the Broadcasting Act so that it can provide a single legislative framework for converged media services.
We will develop a new masterplan for the National Library and National Archives, with a strong focus on facilitating Singapore content creation. We will expand the programme to digitise our collections and archives. We will partner the community so that \"citizen-archivists\" can contribute in transcription and documentation of our collections. We will expand our partnerships with researchers and media producers, to use the collections and archives as a resource. We will also upgrade the NLB and NAS premises.
We will continue to improve the quality of Public Service Broadcasts, so that Singaporeans enjoy diverse programme choices. We will take steps to promote and cultivate an appreciation for Singapore-made productions. We will also invite more broadcasters and production houses to participate in the production of PSB programmes.
We will ensure infocomm and media are enjoyed by as many Singaporeans as possible. We will set up a Digital Inclusion Fund. We will study how to progressively raise the percentage of TV broadcasts that are subtitled, so as to eventually cover all broadcasts. We will design disabled-friendly services, such as Two-Factor Authentication tokens for the visually handicapped that were launched earlier this year, and ensure the development of e-Government services that are accessible to the handicapped.
We will continue to enhance public engagement through REACH. REACH will continue to explore new ways of interacting with Singaporeans, such as through open concept booths located at malls, bus interchanges or MRT stations known as \"Listening Points\". REACH will also enhance its online and social media capabilities to engage citizens who prefer interacting online.
We will enhance the Government Communications Service, streamlining operational processes and reviewing training for all communications officers.
With the support of the National Translation Committee (NTC), comprising members from the private, public and people sectors, we will uphold good translation standards in Government communications, promote best practices and groom good translators through
\tPage: 20
scholarships and training courses.
Ultimately, MCI's programmes aim to improve quality of life for Singaporeans and, in so doing, build a Better Singapore.
\tPage: 21
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Minister for Culture, Community and Youth (Mr Lawrence Wong): Through the arts, sports, community and youth development, MCCY seeks to create an environment where all Singaporeans can pursue our aspirations for fulfilling lives, contribute to the community and foster a strong sense of belonging to Singapore, our home.
We will press on with efforts to develop Singapore as a distinctive cultural capital. We will continue to support our artists and arts groups, who play an important role in this journey. We will enhance and make performing arts spaces more accessible, provide arts housing and develop incubators for the arts. We will also open doors for our artists to showcase their works on the international stage.
We will develop and enhance our national cultural infrastructure. We will have the new National Gallery of Singapore by late 2015 to tell the story of Singapore and the region through visual arts. We are enhancing the National Museum of Singapore and the Asian Civilisations Museum, to better engage Singaporeans about our shared history. A new Indian Heritage Centre in Little India is slated in early 2015 to join our existing Malay Heritage Centre and the Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall as Heritage Institutions for Singaporeans to learn more about our rich multicultural heritage and identity.
In the performing arts, we are finalising the refurbishment of the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall, and refitting the Esplanade to enhance its spaces. We are also adding new venues like the Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre. Singaporeans can also look forward to the inaugural Singapore International Festival of Arts this year.
We will step up our community engagement efforts to bring culture to everyone, everywhere, every day. We will establish a Public Art Trust to fill our public spaces with works of art. We will also form an island-wide network of community arts nodes, community museums and galleries, as well as heritage trails.
MCCY will continue to expand opportunities for everyone to participate and excel in sport. Through ActiveSG, our new national movement for sport, we will offer more sporting programmes in the community and galvanise the nation to live better through sport.
We will ensure that Singaporeans of all abilities have access to sports and recreation facilities. We will build a new network of modern sports facilities island-wide at the national, regional, town and precinct levels under the Sports Facilities Master Plan, starting with the new Sports Hub and National Stadium which opens its doors in June. When the Master Plan
\tPage: 22
is completed, sports facilities will be available within a 10-minute walk of most homes.
As we prepare to host the 28th SEA Games and the 8th ASEAN Para Games in 2015, we will continue to support Singaporeans with the ability and potential to excel in sports and do Singapore proud. We will work with partners, like the National Sports Associations, to develop more pathways, capabilities and programmes to help talented athletes pursue sports excellence.
Through the Singapore Sports School, we will improve the quality of training support accorded to student-athletes, while continuing to provide them a sound academic foundation. We will continue to enhance our High Performance Sports system to help Team Singapore athletes become leaders and champions in their respective sports.
MCCY will continue our efforts to support the charity, co-operative and voluntary sectors. We will work with partners in the community, like the Community Development Councils, the Charity Council and the National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre, to promote a nationwide spirit of giving. We will also reach out to the disadvantaged segments of society through the arts and sports, using these as platforms for engagement, motivation and rehabilitation.
We will encourage more businesses to become partners in meeting the needs of the community. We want giving to be part of the DNA of corporate Singapore. For our seniors, we will explore more ways for them to make meaningful contributions to the community, even in their silver years. For our youths, we will expand opportunities for them to contribute to the community in sustained and impactful ways, including in the newly-established Youth Corps Singapore.
Beyond the Youth Corps, MCCY will strengthen our efforts to reach out to youths. We want to make culture more accessible for our young, so that all are exposed to arts and sports at an early age, and given opportunities for deeper engagement. We want to create an environment where young people are inspired to dream and committed to action for the common good. MCCY and the National Youth Council will work together to coordinate and lead youth engagement efforts throughout Singapore.
We will strengthen the Kampong Spirit by promoting community values of harmony, graciousness and contribution, and step up our efforts to bridge differences within our multicultural society. We will continue our efforts to promote good neighbourliness and harmonious community relationships with various partners, such as the Singapore Kindness Movement and the Inter-Racial and Religious Confidence Circles.
\tPage: 23
In 2015, we celebrate our Golden Jubilee. SG50 is an opportune moment for us to reflect on what we have been through together – to honour our Pioneer Generation, to celebrate the values that make us Singaporean and to envision our future as a nation. We invite all Singaporeans to embark on this journey together – to imagine and strive for what our home can be.
\tPage: 24
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Ministry of Defence","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Minister for Defence (Dr Ng Eng Hen): The global security landscape has experienced increased turbulence and instability in recent years. Against the backdrop of changing geopolitical dynamics brought about by the rise of Asia, regional militaries are rapidly modernising. Countries have also become increasingly assertive over regional territorial disputes, as overlapping claims intersect with historical animosities and domestic nationalism. Recent events in Ukraine and tensions closer to home in Asia Pacific underscore the continued importance of a strong defence in safeguarding Singapore's independence and sovereignty.
The SAF is the ultimate guarantor of Singapore's sovereignty and independence, and underpins our continued peace and prosperity. A strong security force also complements our diplomatic efforts to safeguard Singapore's interests abroad, build cooperation with other countries and enlarge our international space. We are, therefore, committed to investing resources to maintain a strong and capable SAF. Our 3rd Generation transformation efforts have sharpened the SAF's capability edge with information superiority and precision strike. The SAF's operational readiness has been validated by our deployments in support of regional and international security efforts, such as our deployments to Afghanistan, the Gulf of Aden and for disaster relief.
In the next bound of our 3rd Generation transformation, we will continue to invest in advanced technologies and new fighting concepts to build a more effective SAF that is more efficient in the use of our manpower resources to effectively deal with a wide spectrum of threats and mission scenarios. We will upgrade our F-16s and acquire A330 Multi-role Tanker Transport (MRTT) aircraft, two Type-218SG submarines and two more Sikorsky S-70B Naval Helicopters over the next five years. We will put in place a multi-layered air defence with the deployment of SPYDER and ASTER-30 Surface-to-Air Missile systems. We will also acquire more Terrex Infantry Carrier Vehicles and link these to Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and work towards doubling the number of units operating on wheeled or tracked platforms. We will also continue our steady investments in defence science and technology, particularly in our indigenous research and development capability, which contributes to the SAF's strategic edge.
In parallel, we will hone and validate our fighting capabilities through tough and realistic training, even as we continue to strengthen our training safety and medical systems to ensure our soldiers' safety and well-being. The SAF will also continue to contribute to homeland security, working with other national agencies to defend Singapore against
\tPage: 25
terrorism, maritime threats and other contingencies.
The strong and capable SAF that we have today is made possible by our steady and prudent investments in defence over the years. We will continue to be good stewards of the funds, land and other public resources allocated to defence, upholding the confidence and trust that have been placed in MINDEF and the SAF.
Our National Servicemen are our most important resource and the backbone of our fighting force. We have, therefore, invested significant effort into strengthening the National Service (NS) training system to meet the SAF's new operational needs and ensuring that we recognise and optimise the contributions of our National Servicemen. We will also continue to support National Servicemen in balancing their NS responsibilities with their work, educational and family commitments. The Committee to Strengthen National Service has announced its recommendations to strengthen the NS system and sustain public support for NS.
To better achieve the SAF's mission and fulfil our servicemen's aspirations, SAF, SPF and SCDF will recruit about 1,300 more regulars to improve training and inculcate values more effectively. More opportunities will be given to National Servicemen to hold leadership positions as the SAF will expand the proportion of officers and specialists from 30% up to 40% to meet new operational needs. We will also make better use of the skills of our full-time National Servicemen (NSFs) by matching them to vocations during NS. We will also encourage National Servicemen to volunteer their civilian expertise in national defence.
At the same time, we will continue to be good stewards of the time that our National Servicemen commit to serving Singapore. Wait time before enlistment will be reduced, to enable 90% of pre-enlistees to be enlisted within four months after post-Secondary studies. This will enable more NSFs, who proceed for work after NS, to do so earlier. Fewer NSFs will need to be disrupted from NS for local University studies. We will also facilitate NSFs' transition to work and studies after NS.
We will ease administrative restrictions and work towards delivering a more positive NS experience. We will partner National Servicemen to maintain their fitness by giving them more time and flexibility to meet their Individual Physical Proficiency Test (IPPT), IPPT Preparatory Training (IPT) and Remedial Training (RT) requirements, and offer more convenient venues for fitness training. There will also be an increase in the incentives to recognise National Servicemen's achievements in IPPT. To increase convenience for National Servicemen while still providing information critical for manpower and operational planning, there will be changes to the reporting requirements for the MINDEF Notification Centre and the Home Team Overseas Notification Centre, such that notification need not be given for
\tPage: 26
overseas trips of two weeks or less.
We also want to recognise National Servicemen by supporting their healthcare, housing and education needs. The NS Recognition Award will be revamped to the NS HOME (HOusing, Medical and Education) Awards, which will include a Medisave grant and more flexibility to use the award for National Servicemen's housing and education needs. We will also provide coverage for life and personal accident insurance for NSFs and National Servicemen during their in-camp training.
To strengthen the broader community's support for defence and NS, we will restructure the Advisory Council on Community Relations in Defence (ACCORD) to establish three councils – the Employer and Business Council, the Educational Institutions Council and the Family and Community Council. We also want to encourage employers and businesses to better support their National Servicemen employees by establishing a scheme to recognise organisations which have gone the extra mile to support National Servicemen. An SAF Volunteer Corps will be established to encourage women, new citizens and first-generation Permanent Residents to come forward and contribute to national defence. As every Singaporean has a part to play in Singapore's defence, we will also continue with our Total Defence efforts to strengthen national resilience and cohesion among Singaporeans, to allow us to overcome future crises.
Singapore will continue to work closely with friends and partners to enhance regional stability and deal with common security challenges. To enable militaries to respond effectively to natural disasters in our region, the SAF will host a Regional Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) Coordination Centre (RHCC). We will continue to strengthen and expand our network of bilateral partnerships, which also helps secure the SAF's access to overseas training areas and advanced defence technology. As an open and robust regional security architecture is key to enhancing strategic trust and regional cooperation, we will continue to work with partners to grow the ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting (ADMM), ADMM-Plus and other multilateral platforms for strategic dialogue and practical cooperation.
No one can underwrite our security except ourselves. With the support and partnership of all Singaporeans, MINDEF and the SAF will continue to provide a strong defence to ensure our nation's peace and prosperity.
\tPage: 27
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Ministry of Education","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Minister for Education (Mr Heng Swee Keat): Our goal is to bring out the best in every child, in every domain of learning, in every school, at every stage of the learning journey, whatever the starting point. We will achieve this by working in partnership with parents and the community.
Our Pioneer Generation of educators, through their hard work, dedication and perseverance, had contributed significantly to the strong fundamentals in our education system today. But the future our young will grow up in, will see greater complexities and challenges.
Our children will need a compass and navigation skills, not a map with well-marked paths. A compass so that each child has a sense of direction, a sense of right and wrong, character and values, self-mastery, resilience and perseverance, compassion, empathy, leadership and social skills to work with others, and the heart to contribute to our community and nation. Navigation skills so that each child can analyse situations, apply knowledge to solve novel problems, collaborate and work in cross-cultural teams in a globalised information age, imagine and invent new possibilities and chart their own paths together as one people.
Two key principles: (a) student-centric: our children will be our key focus and we will organise our educators and harness our resources to bring out the best in every child; and (b) values-driven: our children must develop a strong moral compass, forge robust character and acquire deep expertise and competencies to thrive in a fluid and unpredictable future.
Three key dimensions: (a) breadth: broad in providing opportunities and multiple pathways, in an open and inclusive system, to develop different talents in each child to the fullest. Broad and holistic education, to allow each child to discover their interests and strengths over a wide range of disciplines and create connections across different domains of knowledge; (b) depth: deep values and a deep commitment to Singapore and fellow Singaporeans, built on a strong core of values and character; depth and rigour in the foundation of numeracy and bilingual literacy, in critical and inventive thinking, in communication, collaboration and information skills and in civic-literacy, global-awareness and cross-cultural skills; and (c) length: lifelong learning, with age-appropriate learning at each stage catered to the child's pace of development; learning for the long haul of life and not just for exams.
\tPage: 28
Four key shifts: (a) beyond academics: to a stronger focus on character, values and different ways of learning; (b) beyond theory: to a stronger focus on application to solve problems and create new things; (c) beyond qualifications: to a stronger focus on lifelong learning of deep skills and expertise; and (d) beyond schools: to a stronger focus on partnerships with parents and the community.
Our children will receive a more holistic education and will experience: (a) age-appropriate preschool learning experiences, with Singapore-centric content; (b) closer interactions and guidance from co-form teachers in lower primary years; (c) wider access to Arts, Sports, Games, Outdoor Education and activities in Programme for Active Learning, to discover their interests and talents, and to develop values and socio-emotional skills from a young age; (d) better amenities, such as indoor sports halls, music rooms and so on and well-trained teachers for Physical, Art and Music Education in all our schools; (e) sound Character and Citizenship Education at all levels, with Values-in-Action projects that benefit the schools' immediate community and deepen our children's commitment to Singapore and fellow Singaporeans; and (f) less emphasis on chasing the last point with changing of PSLE T-score into broader bands of merit, creating time and space for our children to channel their energy towards also developing their other competencies.
Our children will have opportunities to access a range of diverse pathways, each leading to peaks of excellence, to develop their strengths and interests to their fullest potential whatever their starting point and find success in their own way.
A child will: (a) choose from a range of Secondary schools, each providing distinctive educational programmes catering to different strengths and interests and come to appreciate how learning in the classroom is applied in real-life and be interested to learn more in Applied Learning Programmes; develop values and character in our students and strengthen their people and social skills in Learning for Life Programmes; (b) experience more flexibility in subject offering at lower Secondary levels in all our schools, to cater to different strengths in different subjects; (c) choose from more publicly-funded University options, as places are increased from 13,000 to 16,000 by 2020, and graduate with skills sought by industry; and (d) develop deep skills relevant to the industry and take part in research, innovation and enterprise in the Polytechnics and ITE, as we continue to enhance applied pathways to better cater to our students' strengths and interests.
All Singaporeans will benefit from: (a) increased capacity for continuing education established in close collaboration with the industry, to upgrade their skills and acquire new competencies; (b) stronger educational and career counselling on new career possibilities that make the best use of their interests, talents and capabilities; and (c) more productive and engaging learning via the use of technology, across all our schools and Institutes of
\tPage: 29
Higher Learning.
Our children will have access to these pathways, whatever their starting point: (a) a strong start for every child, including children from less advantaged families, through quality kindergarten curriculum resources refined in MOE's affordable pilot kindergartens and better quality preschool programmes across the sector; (b) a child who has fallen behind will benefit from support in the form of levelling-up programmes that ensure a strong foundation in literacy and numeracy skills; (c) a child who can benefit from a structured and supportive environment in after-school care, particularly where both parents are working, will benefit from a further expansion in Student Care Centres and places in our Primary schools and from the programmes that these centres offer in collaboration with VWOs and SHGs; (d) a child with financial difficulties will continue to be supported in all our institutions; and (e) our students with special education needs will also receive more support as we work with other agencies and the community to step up efforts to diagnose special education needs early and provide support through school-based programmes, specialised services, SPED schools and programmes in collaboration with employers to smoothen the transition from school to work for SPED students.
Our teachers are our nation builders as they are instrumental in educating our next generation. We will recognise good teachers through a more robust career architecture and talent management framework. We will strengthen teacher training and ongoing professional development, infusing the latest local and international research findings where relevant via AST and NIE.
Parents remain our most important partners. We are grateful to parents who participate proactively in enhancing the school experience for their and others' children, for example, through Parent Support Groups. We will continue to engage parents to support our schools to benefit our children.
The community provides an authentic environment for learning beyond the classroom. We will collaborate with the community in Applied Learning Programmes and Learning for Life Programmes, aesthetics, sports and service learning activities. As part of our Values-in-Action programme, our schools will serve the needs of the community they are in, and the community can provide authentic learning experiences for our students and see our schools as valuable assets of the community.
With rigorous programmes, dedicated teachers and committed partners, we are confident we can Bring Out the Best in Every Child – and provide every child with a compass and the skills to navigate the challenges of tomorrow.
\tPage: 30
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Ministry of Finance","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance (Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam): Our fiscal policies will aim to ensure a vibrant economy and a fair and equitable society, so as to enable a higher quality of life for all Singaporeans. They will continue to be anchored in a system of sound and sustainable finances, especially as our society gets older and Government spending needs to go up.
Our economy is in the midst of transformation. This is a critical journey to build deeper capabilities, bring about pervasive innovation and uplift productivity. This is the only way to ensure that Singaporeans have good jobs and to sustain rising incomes.
We are also building an inclusive society. We are doing more to preserve social mobility and help every citizen share in our nation's progress. We are providing the Pioneer Generation with special healthcare support for life, and providing the vulnerable with a stronger sense of assurance.
A healthy fiscal position has enabled us to set aside funds for the Pioneer Generation Package and other future needs. But our fiscal position will tighten in the coming years, driven by rising expenditures, especially in healthcare and infrastructure. We must ensure that spending is sustainable, through judicious allocation of resources, maximising outcomes for every dollar and keeping a lean and efficient public sector.
Over the longer term, we must, nevertheless, build up our revenues to anticipate and meet higher spending needs. We will do so in a way that will sustain a dynamic economy, and a fair and progressive system of taxes and benefits. We will continue to tap on the Net Investment Returns Contribution that provides a significant supplement to the annual Budget. This is enabled by a framework that allows GIC and Temasek to pursue investment strategies that generate sustainable portfolio returns for the long term.
We are providing comprehensive support for businesses and industries to innovate and improve productivity. We are also boosting incentives for SMEs to adopt proven ICT solutions and pilot emerging technologies. We will continue to develop strong R&D capabilities through the next phase of Research, Innovation and Enterprise Plan. We will also invest further in every worker, to help Singaporeans prepare for the jobs of the future.
We will continue to enhance the ease of doing business in Singapore, by amending the Companies Act and Business Registration Act to keep regulatory burdens low, and streamline
\tPage: 31
registration and filing processes.
On the international front, we will advance Singapore's economic interests through our active participation in major regional and global financial fora, and enhancements to our network of double taxation agreements. We will also contribute to global initiatives on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting, while maintaining a conducive business environment.
Our most important social strategy is to provide opportunities for all Singaporeans to do well and contribute to a strong society. We will sustain social mobility by investing in early childhood education, strengthening support for weaker students, widening cohort participation rates at the tertiary level, strengthening applied pathways at the Polytechnics and ITEs, and building a first-rate system to support lifelong learning.
However, we will also provide Singaporeans greater assurance of housing and healthcare affordability, and retirement adequacy. In healthcare, we will strike an equitable and sustainable balance of funding, including greater pooling of risks through MediShield Life, enhancing Government subsidies and looking into effective ways to avoid an upward spiral of costs. For the Pioneer Generation, the $8 billion Pioneer Generation Fund will provide strong assurance of support for the rest of their lives. We will also strengthen retirement adequacy for other Singaporeans.
We are making major moves to enhance Singapore's living environment, with very significant investments in the public transport system to better meet commuters' needs. We will also rejuvenate and upgrade our housing estates and introduce more innovative urban design and greenery. We will build more facilities for citizens to enjoy sports, the arts and heritage, and engage in community activities.
Finally, we will push for more widespread online and mobile e-services for the convenience of citizens and businesses. We will make more data available to the public so that more people can make use of the data to create useful applications for Singaporeans. We will also strengthen internal controls and bolster capabilities in procurement and internal audit.
\tPage: 32
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Ministry of Foreign Affairs","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr K Shanmugam): The international environment is becoming more challenging and complex. We are witnessing an intensification of shifts in global power, where the Asia Pacific is taking centre stage. The fluid situation brings both risks and opportunities. Although our ability to influence global developments is limited, MFA will work to ensure that Singapore remains well-positioned to manage the uncertainties and seize emerging opportunities.
ASEAN will remain the cornerstone of our foreign policy. A strong and united ASEAN provides the framework for the maintenance of peace and stability and for anchoring major powers in the region, besides creating more opportunities for growth. Singapore will work actively to support ASEAN centrality and keep the regional architecture open and inclusive. Singapore will actively contribute to ASEAN's regional integration efforts towards an ASEAN Community and Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) by 2015, as well as the effective implementation of the Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity.
Good relations with our immediate neighbours are essential for our security and prosperity. While there are challenges and issues that have to be managed, relations with our neighbours are stable and broad-based. Singapore will build on our bilateral relations with Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei, and strengthen them on the basis of mutually-beneficial cooperation. Singapore and Malaysia have continued to expand our collaboration across a number of sectors. Economic cooperation, particularly in Iskandar Malaysia, is growing. To enhance our strong people-to-people ties, we are working with Indonesia to share our development experience, in areas such as health, education and the environment. Relations with other ASEAN Member States will remain a priority as we work towards stronger economic and people-to-people ties, and the strengthening of institutional linkages, including the provision of technical assistance through the Singapore Cooperation Programme.
Beyond the immediate region, Singapore will build on our links with key partners, including the United States, China and Japan, whose engagement is important for continued regional stability and prosperity. We will continue enhancing our excellent relations with China and expand cooperation in areas, such as financial services, social governance and sustainable development. We will also strengthen relations with other major partners like the Republic of Korea, Australia and India with whom we share strong political and economic ties, as well as the European Union with whom we are working on the ratification of the EU-Singapore Free Trade Agreement.
\tPage: 33
Singapore is constantly looking to expand our political and economic space, and to identify emerging opportunities and new markets, including in the Middle East, Turkey, Latin America and Africa. We have established new Missions in Oman, Turkey and Brazil as well as appointed a Non-Resident Ambassador to the African Union and Ethiopia. The entering into force of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)-Singapore FTA will boost our efforts to strengthen economic ties with the Gulf states. Singapore is negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, which will provide us with greater market access across TPP members and make it easier for Singaporean businesses to operate across members. We successfully applied for observership at the Pacific Alliance trade bloc, which will create more opportunities for Singapore to engage the fast-growing economies of Latin America. We will continue to enhance our engagement of the Caribbean countries, with whom we share common interests as small states and work closely on a range of issues, including climate change.
As a small country, Singapore's continued survival and prosperity also depends on our ability to ensure that international norms and rules, which are constantly evolving, remain conducive to the pursuit of our national interests. We will continue to play an active role at the United Nations and its agencies to uphold fundamental rights, including the freedom of navigation and overflight and the legitimacy of international law, which are vital to Singapore's interest and survival as a small state. Singapore will continue to actively contribute to the international agenda at the UN, including on the new global agreement on climate change. We will work with APEC member economies and through the World Trade Organization to promote trade liberalisation and uphold the rules-based multilateral trading system. To better understand the opportunities and challenges posed by environmental changes in the Arctic and the opening of new shipping routes through the Arctic, Singapore successfully obtained observership in the Arctic Council. We are actively contributing to the work of the Arctic Council Working Groups, particularly in the areas of emergency preparedness and discussions on the Polar Code, to promote safe Arctic shipping.
We will continue to provide technical assistance to developing countries through the Singapore Cooperation Programme and in collaboration with other countries and International Organisations. We remain committed to helping developing countries attain the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and to strengthening ASEAN by building their human resources, in particular, in public administration and sustainable development. We will also play an active role in forging the UN's post-2015 Development Agenda and Sustainable Development Goals.
MFA expects there to be an increasing demand for consular services and assistance in the coming years. MFA has leveraged on technology to improve our provision of consular support to overseas Singaporeans. We will continue to explore innovative means to provide
\tPage: 34
prompt and effective consular assistance to Singaporeans in distress overseas.
Going forward, Singapore will have to remain nimble, adaptable and cohesive so that we can continue to expand our diplomatic, political and economic space. MFA will work with other Ministries as part of a whole-of-Government effort to preserve and advance Singapore's external interests in a fast-changing world.
\tPage: 35
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Ministry of Health","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Minister for Health (Mr Gan Kim Yong): MOH's vision is to enable all Singaporeans to live well, live long and enjoy peace of mind. To achieve this vision, we will improve the accessibility, affordability and quality of healthcare for Singaporeans as outlined in the Healthcare 2020 Master Plan. We will continue to develop new strategies and programmes to ensure that our health and aged care system meets our future needs.
Over the past five years, we have expanded the capacity of our healthcare system by more than 2,000 acute, community and nursing home beds. In addition, we have opened several new facilities, including the NUH Medical Centre and the new National Heart Centre. We have also expanded and renovated six polyclinics, and opened six new Family Medicine Clinics.
We have also expanded our healthcare professional workforce by almost 50% between 2008 and 2013. Our third medical school, the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, admitted its inaugural student intake in 2013.
We have improved affordability through a series of health financing reforms to keep healthcare cost affordable for patients. These include top-ups to Medisave, enhancements to MediShield, higher subsidies, including expansion of subsidies for long-term care, screening and chronic diseases.
We learned valuable lessons in responding to dengue, haze and emerging infectious diseases like H7N9 and MERS-CoV in 2013, and strengthened our emergency preparedness capabilities.
MOH will continue to add more healthcare facilities. Altogether, from 2014 to 2020, we will add over 11,000 more acute hospital, community hospital and nursing home beds. In addition, we plan to build up to six new polyclinics by end-2020. We will step up efforts to recruit and retain healthcare workers, and create more opportunities for their professional development and career progression. We will also continue to innovate to raise productivity.
MOH's focus is to create an integrated and patient-centric healthcare system that delivers better patient care. Through the development of Regional Health Systems, public, private and voluntary welfare organisation (VWO) healthcare providers across different care sectors work in partnership to keep our population healthy and deliver integrated care to patients. We will enhance primary care, strengthen partnership with GPs and develop the new Family Medicine Clinics (FMCs) so that patients, especially those with chronic conditions,
\tPage: 36
will be better cared for by their regular family physician with support from the Regional Health Systems.
As we increase intermediate and long term care capacity, we will also raise quality of care and strengthen capabilities of our service providers. In particular, we will expand the community-based services, such as the network of Senior Care Centres, and introduce measures to raise standards and quality of care. We will also develop and implement a new framework for home care services which comprehensively covers both home social and home health services, and provide more training and support to caregivers in taking care of their family members.
We are also integrating our processes and IT systems across healthcare sectors, leveraging on the National Electronic Health Record System, which has been rolled out progressively and will be further enhanced over the next two years.
MOH will continue to reform the financing framework to keep healthcare affordable for all Singaporeans. The implementation of MediShield Life in end-2015 will provide lifelong universal coverage for all Singaporeans. We will increase direct patient subsidies in specialist outpatient clinics and enhance drug subsidies to lower-income patients' out-of-pocket expenses. The Pioneer Generation Package, to be rolled out over the next two years, will provide additional healthcare subsidies for our pioneers. We will also review financing for long-term care to better address citizens' concerns on the cost of severe old-age disability and long-term care. Finally, we will introduce more flexibility of Medisave use to cover more outpatient treatments.
Additional subsidies to increase affordability must be complemented by efforts to manage overall healthcare costs to ensure the financial sustainability of these reforms. MOH will continue efforts to address the drivers of healthcare costs, including the use of new drugs and technologies, and to ensure appropriate use of healthcare services.
Central to our mission as MOH is to help Singaporeans stay healthy. We will continue to work on the planning and delivery of preventive health services, including health promotion and education. We are implementing the Healthy Living Master Plan to ensure that Singaporeans have access to a healthy lifestyle that is affordable in the workplaces, schools and in the community. Going forward, MOH and the Health Promotion Board (HPB) will work with stakeholders to target the avoidable risk factors, such as obesity and tobacco use.
We will continue to work on the Ministerial Committee of Ageing's vision of enabling our seniors to age-in-place gracefully. Our seniors are healthier than before. The Global
\tPage: 37
Burden of Disease Study 2010 ranked Singaporean men as having the world's second highest healthy life expectancy (HALE) at 68.1 years, and our women with the fourth highest HALE at 70 years, compared to 11th and 14th 20 years ago.
We will help keep seniors healthy, active and safe in the community and provide good quality aged-care services when our seniors require them. We will create an environment that sees ageing as an opportunity and encourages our seniors to remain physically, economically and socially active and continue contributing to nation-building. We look forward to a Singapore where our seniors feel empowered and have a good quality of life as they age. Singapore will be a nation for all ages.
\tPage: 38
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Ministry of Home Affairs","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs (Mr Teo Chee Hean): We have built up a strong record for safety and security in Singapore over the decades. To continue having a safe and secure home in the face of new security challenges, the Home Team will adapt its strategies, invest in new capabilities, further develop the potential of Home Team officers and foster even stronger community partnerships.
Terrorism remains a concern, both globally and regionally. The withdrawal of coalition forces from Afghanistan by end-2014, and the instability in Syria, the Horn of Africa and the Arabian Gulf, are potential breeding grounds for Al Qaeda and its affiliates as well as new terrorist groups. Jihadi elements remain active in our region. Self-radicalisation is a concern, given the widespread availability of radical material on the Internet.
Another challenge is cybersecurity. Countries around the world are still trying to keep pace with the threat of cyber-attacks, which can include the disruption of web services, stealing of information and crippling of critical systems. Criminals are also exploiting the anonymity of the Internet and its growing use to prey on the vulnerable.
Crime has become increasingly cross-boundary, taking advantage of easier transportation and Internet connectivity. We have to respond resolutely to these new developments with greater international cooperation and monitoring and control of cross-border movements and transactions. This is especially so for organised crimes, such as money laundering, illegal moneylending or match-fixing, which have taken on a cross-boundary dimension.
Drug abuse continues to be of concern, particularly among youths and repeat drug abusers, with an increasing trend of abuse of methamphetamine or ice. This is exacerbated by the worsening regional drug situation. We remain committed to our zero-tolerance approach towards drug abuse.
The Home Team will adopt a proactive and comprehensive approach to meet the emerging challenges and keep Singapore safe and secure for the future.
The Singapore Police Force (SPF's) Community Policing System (COPS) seeks to increase community engagement and enhance Police presence to prevent and deter crime. COPS will be introduced to all Neighbourhood Police Centres by 2015. Apart from being ready to fight fires and enforcing current fire regulations, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) will review, update and formulate fire safety requirements for new building materials, MRT
\tPage: 39
stations and high-rise buildings and the licensing and inspection regime for the storage of petroleum and flammable materials.
To tackle the drug problem holistically, SPF and the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) will build on their public education and community engagement initiatives to reach out to young people on the dangers of drugs and to stay away from crime, and work with the Singapore Prison Service (SPS) on rehabilitation programmes.
To deter re-offending, SPS will strengthen its throughcare system, starting from when offenders are incarcerated, and extending to aftercare, through the Conditional Remission System and the Mandatory Aftercare Scheme. The more structured aftercare with closer supervision will facilitate the reintegration of ex-inmates into society. We will deploy tagging devices with real-time island-wide automatic reporting capabilities to monitor suitable persons under supervision. This will ensure public safety while providing more options for offender rehabilitation and reintegration in the community setting.
To ensure that our legislative and policy levers remain effective to deal with emerging challenges, such as transnational and organised crime, we will introduce an Organised Crime Act to deal decisively with crime syndicates. We will also introduce legislation to regulate remote gambling, and provide inputs and support for the Private Member's Bill on the prevention of human trafficking.
The Home Team will also leverage on our international networks to help deal with the increasingly transnational nature of criminal activities. The INTERPOL Global Complex for Innovation (IGCI), which will be operational in Singapore in 2014, will greatly increase opportunities for collaboration with police forces internationally and support operations and investigations against trans-border crime. The INTERPOL Digital Crime Centre in the IGCI will also facilitate the development of capabilities to address cybercrime.
We will invest in new capabilities to support our new strategies and expand our ability to respond to the wide spectrum of threats the Home Team has to deal with.
We will provide better coverage and response. SPF will establish a new Divisional Headquarters in Woodlands and two Neighbourhood Police Centres at Geylang and Bartley. SPF will also revamp Neighbourhood Police Posts to provide round-the-clock electronic services to the community. SCDF will have new fire stations at Sentosa, Kallang and Jurong and a new marine fire station at Tanah Merah.
We will sharpen our sense-making capabilities to better anticipate and handle incidents. MHA and the Economic Development Board (EDB) have partnered several industry consortia
\tPage: 40
and Government agencies to prototype solutions that integrate information and derive analytical insights. This helps to improve situational awareness, interagency coordination and anticipation of security threats while optimising the use of manpower.
We will make use of new communications, imaging and mobile computing technology to enhance our Command, Control and Communications (C3) capability to facilitate the daily work of Home Team officers. This will also enable ground commanders to strengthen incident management, optimise resource deployment and facilitate operational decision-making. SPF's upcoming CUBICON 2 system will interface with SCDF's newly commissioned Advanced C3 Emergency System (ACES).
The use of Police Cameras in HDB estates has proven to be useful in deterring and solving crimes, including bringing unlicensed moneylending under control. Police Cameras will be installed in all HDB blocks by 2016. SPF will pilot the use of body-worn cameras, as police forces in other jurisdictions have found them useful in deterring crime, calming rowdy members of the public and providing valuable investigative leads. SPF will also use footage from cameras in fast response cars to provide better situational awareness to its operations rooms and help in post-incident investigation. The Traffic Police will progressively deploy digital speed cameras and red light cameras to help keep our roads safe.
We will invest in new equipment to help our officers do their work better. The Police Coast Guard will acquire new patrol and interdiction boats to augment its capabilities to secure our maritime borders. SCDF is acquiring unmanned fire-fighting machines for use in complex and dangerous situations, and enhanced personnel decontamination vehicles to strengthen its capability to deal with incidents involving hazardous materials.
The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) will introduce the next generation of biometric passports in the next few years. These next generation passports will have additional security features to improve the security, convenience and ease of cross-border travel for Singaporeans. ICA will also expand the use of biometrics and automation to clear travellers through our checkpoints more quickly, without compromising security.
We will invest in the continual training of our officers, including Full-time National Servicemen (NSFs) and Operationally-Ready National Servicemen (NSmen). We will raise the professionalism and deepen specialisation within the Home Team, especially in core areas, such as operations, investigations and intelligence. This will provide officers at all levels with meaningful and satisfying careers to attract and retain good officers. We have raised the retirement age for Home Team officers to retain valuable experience and expertise in our officer corps.
\tPage: 41
The Home Team Academy is updating the curriculum for the Home Team milestone development courses to prepare our officers to work together to tackle the evolving and complex environment facing the Home Team. We will also train and equip our officers to respond to a wide spectrum of operational situations. For example, SCDF provides safe and realistic simulator training to challenge frontline commanders and hone their command and control skills. The development of the Home Team Tactical Centre will facilitate the training and integration of our tactical and emergency response forces.
Our community partners and volunteers complement the work of the Home Team in areas, such as emergency preparedness, community policing and reintegration of ex-offenders, including programmes like the Yellow Ribbon Project. They thus play an integral role in keeping Singapore and Singaporeans safe and secure. We will put in place a training and development framework to provide volunteers with the necessary skills and support.
Building on this strong community support, we will strengthen our outreach to the community. For example, SCDF will engage and develop children and youth as lifelong advocates of Emergency Preparedness by expanding its Lionhearters Programme. SCDF will also broaden the coverage of its Civil Defence (CD) Ready programmes from schools and homes to workplaces.
We will also leverage on resources already available in the community to serve Singaporeans better. For example, we will work with community partners to install Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs), train volunteers and develop mobile applications to locate community first responders. This will help to improve emergency medical response. SPF has made improvements to its electronic Police centre and will develop new mobile platforms to facilitate crime reporting.
The Home Team will adapt and evolve to meet the challenges of a very dynamic operating environment. We will continue to develop our officers, strengthen integration within the Home Team and build even stronger community partnerships. By working together with the community, we will keep Singapore safe and secure for all Singaporeans.
\tPage: 42
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Ministry of Law","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Minister for Law (Mr K Shanmugam): MinLaw advances access to justice and the rule of law in Singapore, and supports the development of our economy and society. Our vision is to build \"A Trusted Legal System; A Trusted Singapore\". The following are our key initiatives.
We ensure that our laws remain relevant and adequate to address the challenges of modern society. In March 2014, Parliament passed a new Protection from Harassment Act to better protect people from harassment and stalking. In criminal law, we are working with MHA to rationalise offences relating to homicide and bodily hurt in the Penal Code, including the punishment for such offences, and whether and to what extent mentally disabled offenders should be dealt with differently. Thereafter, we intend to undertake a review of the Criminal Procedure Code to, among other things, develop a plea bargaining framework for early resolution of criminal cases.
Together with the Courts and MSF, we are also studying how to transform the family justice eco-system. We are reviewing the family court structure and working on reforms to promote parties' access to family justice. We will focus on developing a dispute resolution system that is less adversarial, places greater emphasis on counselling and consensual outcomes, and where the child's best interests are appropriately addressed.
Strong legal institutions ensure that the law is implemented objectively, consistently and transparently. We will continue to work closely with the Courts to streamline court procedures to ensure that access to justice is not out of reach for the common man. We will also look to strengthen the enforcement of civil orders and judgement.
To bolster the Bar, we are establishing the UniSIM Law School to train lawyers who have a predisposition for criminal law and family practice. This will introduce a new pathway for mid-career individuals to join the legal profession. Separately, we will work to establish NUS and SMU as leading centres for legal education and research in Asia.
We are also modernising the regulatory regime of the legal sector. There will be a streamlined disciplinary framework with common professional conduct standards for Singapore-qualified and foreign-qualified lawyers practising in Singapore. We will form the Legal Services Regulatory Authority to oversee the regulation of law practice entities.
MinLaw advises Ministries on key issues to consider when translating policies into legislation. We will strengthen this advisory function and also cultivate better public
\tPage: 43
awareness of the law to promote confidence and trust in our legal system. MinLaw will also advance Singapore's approach to the Rule of Law and contribute to discourse on international law issues. Singapore recently became a member of the Hague Conference on Private International Law, in order to help shape developments in this area.
We will develop Singapore to be a hub for the provision of legal services to the region and beyond. Singapore is well-positioned to be the preferred venue for dispute resolution in Asia. Building on our success in arbitration, the Singapore International Mediation Centre and the Singapore International Commercial Court will be established to provide an entire suite of dispute resolution services. We will support the growth of Singapore law firms into regional leaders, alongside the promotion of Singapore as a base for international law firms and in-house legal counsel that provide sophisticated services to the region. All these will create more opportunities for lawyers in Singapore.
Working with the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore, we aim to develop Singapore into a hub for (a) IP transactions and management, (b) quality IP filings, and (c) IP dispute resolution. In line with this effort, we will undertake a broad review of Singapore's copyright regime to address new developments in technology and facilitate the growth of copyright related services.
Through the Singapore Land Authority (SLA), MinLaw strives to optimise the potential of state land and state properties to help meet Singapore's social and economic objectives. Clusters of properties will be thematically developed to meet under-served sectors of the economy. Greater flexibility on tenure will be introduced as well to support innovative uses.
We are also reviewing our legislative framework to facilitate the development of underground space and improve the land acquisition process to minimise the impact on affected land owners. Additionally, SLA is leading a Government effort to develop a high-resolution three-dimensional national topographic map to enhance urban planning, flood control, civil aviation control and other uses.
The Legal Aid Bureau extends civil legal aid to persons of limited means to ensure that citizens with deserving cases have access to justice. We will also start providing direct assistance to defendants of limited means in criminal cases through increased funding to the Law Society's Pro Bono Services Office to run its Criminal Legal Aid Scheme. We will also encourage the legal profession to better organise its pro bono efforts.
The Registries of Moneylenders and Pawnbrokers work to ensure that moneylenders and pawnbrokers are professionally run. We will be reviewing interest rate caps, loan quantum caps and fees charged by moneylenders, to strike a balance in ensuring access to
\tPage: 44
credit, but not on unfair terms.
We will introduce a more rehabilitative regime that allows bankrupts to be discharged within clear time frames, without increasing the risk of moral hazard. This should encourage credit providers to undertake better risk assessment and borrowers to work responsibly towards clearing their debt. In parallel, we will update and unify the individual bankruptcy and corporate insolvency regimes into a single piece of legislation.
MinLaw encourages the use of mediation to resolve family and community disputes as it fosters better relationships between the parties. Together with MCCY, we will develop a legal framework to better manage community disputes, including the establishment of a Community Dispute Resolution Tribunal and introduction of mandatory mediation.
\tPage: 45
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Ministry of Manpower","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Minister for Manpower (Mr Tan Chuan-Jin): MOM's goal is to enable all Singaporeans to secure good jobs, enjoy sustained increases in real incomes and have a more secure retirement. We also seek to build workplaces with progressive, safe and healthy practices as well as harmonious industrial relations.
Our ageing population and slowing Singaporean workforce growth mean that we must be more manpower efficient and productive. We will press on with our efforts to achieve quality and productivity-driven growth to ensure sustained increase in real incomes. We must reduce reliance on manpower-intensive practices, while raising the quality and productivity of both our local and foreign workforce. At the same time, we must maintain a pragmatic balance in our manpower policies to ensure that Singapore continues to remain attractive to investors and talent and companies have access to the human capital required for growth. These efforts will ultimately provide the basis for sustainable wage growth and a greater array of good jobs which meet the diverse aspirations and capabilities of our people.
Restructuring for higher productivity must continue. This will require determined and concerted efforts by all parties (employers, unions/workers, community, Government) working closely together.
A workforce with the requisite skillsets, knowledge and experience is critical to achieving our goal of 2%-3% per annum growth in productivity in this decade. The Continuing Education and Training (CET) Masterplan 2020 will focus on addressing the challenges of economic restructuring and making the CET system responsive and relevant to evolving needs of industries, companies and individuals. We will continue to strengthen the culture of self-ownership for lifelong learning and empower individuals to make informed decisions on upgrading.
We are working with our tripartite partners to tailor training and job-matching services for the growing segment of Professionals, Managers, Executives and Technicians (PMETs) that have different learning needs and career profiles. We will also increase accessibility to training for SMEs and their workers, for example, by expanding the Enterprise Training Support (ETS) scheme to support e-learning. This will help companies capitalise on advancements in e-learning technology.
We will ensure that Singaporeans are fairly considered for work. The Fair Consideration Framework will take effect from August 2014 and facilitate Singaporeans' access to better jobs. This will be launched in conjunction with the Workforce Development Agency (WDA)
\tPage: 46
Jobs Bank, a one-stop portal for employers and resident workers to match job seekers with companies' manpower needs.
We will strengthen efforts to build an inclusive society where all citizens can aspire and work towards a better life, and where everyone can contribute and share in the nation's progress. We will help uplift our low-wage workers through the creation of good jobs, skills upgrading as well as both broad-based and targeted interventions where necessary to support increases in their real incomes. The tripartite push for the Progressive Wage Model will put in place a clear progression path for workers to upgrade and secure higher incomes. We will also step up enforcement and promotional efforts to ensure that our low-wage workers' basic employment rights, CPF contributions and well-being are protected.
Against the backdrop of increasing life expectancy and active ageing, the Retirement and Re-employment Act came into force in January 2012 to help older workers stay active and work longer. It is now timely to review the impact of this legislation as well as the Tripartite Guidelines on the Re-employment of Older Employees. We will consider further extension of the re-employment age from age 65 to age 67. Efforts to help older workers stay productive and employable will also continue.
We will continue to review and make improvements to the CPF system in consultation with our tripartite partners, so that Singaporeans can retire with a peace of mind while taking into account the cost implication to employers.
A strong tripartite partnership is key to strengthening resilience and social cohesion, amidst our journey of economic restructuring. Industrial peace and harmonious labour relations will translate to more stable jobs for our workers and enhance Singapore's attractiveness as a business location. We will reinforce the tripartite foundation and work together to effectively address ongoing manpower challenges.
Building harmonious, safe and progressive workplaces maximise the potential of our workforce. With an increasingly diverse and more educated workforce, we have extended the coverage of our Employment Act to include more workers – both PMEs and non-workmen. We will look into how unions can better represent the interest of PMEs and explore ways to provide access to affordable dispute resolution mechanisms. With the increasing prevalence of non-traditional working arrangements, we will also review how to better protect such workers through tripartite guidelines, or under the Employment Act.
We will help employers build capabilities in adopting progressive employment practices, through the expanded Tripartite Alliance for Fair Employment Practices. These will include
\tPage: 47
work-life, age management and best sourcing practices.
We will strengthen our system of enforcement and penalties to provide sufficient deterrence to any attempt by errant employers to circumvent our manpower policies or to compromise on basic employment standards. We will also step up our efforts to ensure that the well-being of foreign workers is looked after and manage the large foreign worker presence, including the provision of reasonable living conditions and amenities.
We will adopt a Total Workplace Safety and Health approach by integrating measures to enhance workplace safety with health and well-being promotion. We will enhance our risk management framework for Workplace Safety and Health (WSH), redouble efforts to strengthen capabilities of WSH professionals and nurture a strong WSH culture and mindset among both employers and workers, so as to reduce the workplace fatality rate to less than 1.8 per 100,000 workers by 2018.
\tPage: 48
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Ministry of National Development","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Minister for National Development (Mr Khaw Boon Wan): Our goal is to house all Singaporeans in affordable and quality homes, nurture cohesive and vibrant communities, and create a thriving green living environment.
We commit to house all Singaporeans and to help them own their homes. Our housing policies will advance important social objectives of supporting the family, uplifting the low-income and vulnerable, and helping the elderly age in place.
Our efforts to address a temporary imbalance in supply and demand are showing results – home prices have started softening. We will ensure that housing remains affordable, so that young couples can own their homes and start a family as soon as possible. We will strengthen bonds within extended families, by helping couples and their parents live together, or close by, so they can care for each other and render mutual support. The family is and must always be the bedrock of Singapore's society.
We want to progress together as an inclusive caring society. We will help our low-income and vulnerable Singaporeans level up and own a flat, so that they too can have the security of a home and an asset. We will work closely with social agencies to support job upgrading for them and to provide opportunities in education for their children. We will build more rental housing, and integrate them with sold flats in HDB estates.
We will support the elderly so that they can enjoy the fruits of their labour and retire comfortably. We will enhance options for them, if they so wish, to unlock the value in their housing asset. We will facilitate ageing-in-place by making HDB homes and estates elderly-friendly, and by enhancing them with more amenities to make them safe and conducive for healthy and active ageing. The Home Improvement Programme (HIP) refreshes older HDB estates and has covered one-third of all eligible flats. We will step it up to cover another one-third, or 100,000 flats, within the next three years.
A home is more than just a shelter. It is a special place where the heart resides, upon which we build our hopes and dreams, and where we share our lives with our families, our neighbours and our community. We will actively promote harmonious HDB living through well-designed community spaces in both new and existing towns. We will inject vibrancy and foster greater cohesiveness in existing towns under the Remaking Our Heartland initiative.
In HDB estates, we are creating and integrating spaces such as parks, sports and recreational facilities. For instance, we plan to integrate a library and sports facilities within
\tPage: 49
a bigger Toa Payoh Town Park. We will provide space for social and community needs, and we will engage residents in energising these spaces, such as the Town Plazas that are coming up in Bedok and Punggol. We will support citizen-led initiatives that catalyse social interaction, so that ground-up community bonding can take root and flourish.
Where there is opportunity, we will conserve buildings and special places with historical and architectural significance as well as strong social memories, so as to preserve the charm and character of old Singapore, and serve as anchors of our identity and markers of Singapore's progress over the years.
Community engagement efforts will extend beyond HDB heartlands. For example, we will seek ideas from the community on how we can sensitively enhance the natural environment and biodiversity of Pulau Ubin and protect its heritage and rustic charm. We will work closely with animal welfare groups, the pet industry and the community to ensure responsible pet ownership and animal welfare. Such ground-up efforts will strengthen community harmony and enhance our sense of identity and belonging to Singapore.
We will pursue our vision to make Singapore an outstanding City in a Garden that Singaporeans are proud of and passionate about. As we review the Sustainable Singapore Blueprint, we will reaffirm our commitment to develop a highly liveable, green and sustainable Singapore. We will leverage on technology to develop SMART HDB towns, to meet the varied needs of a maturing society of many ages. Since 2012, we have been test-bedding innovative urban solutions in energy, water and waste management technologies in Punggol, Singapore's first Eco-town. With SMART technology, our towns can be even more liveable, efficient, sustainable and safe for our residents.
Greenery will be made even more accessible to Singaporeans. We are expanding the park connector network, and building the Round-Island Route, a 150km continuous recreational corridor connecting Singaporeans to parks and places of interest across the island. Public housing estates will be planned and designed with more greenery and enhanced access to parks. We will find new and innovative ways to make greenery more pervasive in urban areas and developments, such as the 24km Rail Corridor, and the new initiatives under the Landscape for Urban Spaces and High-rises (LUSH) programme. Our target is for 90% of Singaporeans to live within 400 metres of a park. To conserve our rich biodiversity, we will dedicate 9% of our land for parks and nature reserves.
We commit to make public transport, cycling and walking choice modes of travel for Singaporeans. All HDB towns will have extensive pedestrian and cycling paths. We will build intra-town cycling paths across HDB towns and also new and upgraded cycling routes. We will also introduce fence-less and car-less concepts at Marina South, Kampong Bugis and the Civic District. To reduce the need to travel, we will bring more jobs to residential areas, such
\tPage: 50
as in Punggol and the Woodlands Regional Centre.
We will support R&D of new technologies pertinent to sustainable development. Research and innovation can help to overcome today's limitations as well as offer us long-term solutions. We will raise construction productivity and push for more sustainable construction processes. This will ensure a more efficient use of limited manpower and enhance the supply resilience for construction materials.
We will also develop technologies and plans to increase our land capacity through more underground and mixed-use developments. We will increase the productivity of our local farmers and strengthen food security so that Singaporeans continue to enjoy a stable and safe food supply.
Next year, Singapore will celebrate 50 years of nation-building. We have come a long way together and have made tremendous progress. And we will continue to thrive and grow as a nation, to transform Singapore and make it a city of opportunities and an endearing home for all Singaporeans, always. This is a vision that our Pioneer Generation held firmly to as they steered Singapore through the last 50 years; this must be our vision, too, as we chart the future together as one people.
\tPage: 51
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Ministry of Social and Family Development","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Minister for Social and Family Development (Mr Chan Chun Sing): Singapore's social services will need to evolve in the coming years to meet the challenges of ageing demographics, changing family structures and rising public expectations. To provide greater support and assurance for Singaporeans and their families, MSF will focus on building integrated social service system, developing new services for the future and expanding capacity and deepening capability in the sector.
MSF will play a stronger role in harnessing the contributions and capabilities of different partners – community groups, Voluntary Welfare Organisations (VWOs) and Government agencies – to build an integrated social service system that serves the social needs of Singaporeans. We will strengthen linkages among different social service providers to improve last mile delivery. This will include mobilising the community to develop local solutions, building up the network of Social Service Offices to deliver social assistance and conduct local service planning, and coordinating with Family Service Centres and other agencies to provide a range of specialist social service interventions. We will also strengthen coordination across Government agencies to deliver integrated social services to citizens.
The Ministry will complete the network of Social Service Offices across the island by end 2015 to bring social assistance closer to residents. We will develop and progressively roll out the Social Service Net – an integrated information sharing and case management system across various social service providers. This will enable citizens to receive more timely and seamless assistance and facilitate the planning of social services to meet emerging social needs.
MSF will proactively shape family and social services to keep pace with emerging needs and trends. We will strengthen our service and legal frameworks to better protect and care for vulnerable members among our growing elderly population and Singaporeans with special needs. This will include distinct roles for different stakeholders – community and grassroots in detecting needs and providing neighbourly support, VWOs in providing caregiver support and social work intervention and possibly legislation to intervene early in cases of abuse and neglect.
We will also strengthen services to better protect other vulnerable groups in our society. These include having more options to support children who require care and protection, as well as raising the standards of facilities for persons who need residential care. We will develop more early intervention measures for children from disadvantaged backgrounds and provide better support for families with multiple needs. For example, we will work
\tPage: 52
towards supporting these families and raise developmental prospects for their children through a whole-of-Government approach via better coordination and integration. For persons with disabilities, we will expand capacities in early intervention programmes and post-school care. We will also improve work and transport options and long-term financial assurance.
The family remains the basic building block of our society. Under the Family Matters! initiative, MSF will work with our partners to ensure Singapore remains a great home for families. To support parents in dual income families with limited caregiving support, MSF will improve the accessibility and affordability of preschool services. The Early Childhood Development Agency will implement a common regulatory framework in childcare centres and kindergartens and undertake developmental initiatives to raise the quality of preschool services.
MSF will work with community partners to strengthen marriages and preserve the family unit. We will also introduce support programmes for couples considering or undergoing divorce, and ensure that the affected children's needs and concerns are given due consideration.
Much of the task of providing family and social services is shouldered by the social service sector and its dedicated professionals. MSF will help the sector expand capacity and raise capability to deliver effective and coordinated services. We will invest in manpower development and organisational capability building of social service agencies. We will promote the wider use of technology to improve productivity and service delivery. We will also extend more funding and support to voluntary welfare organisations to improve their human resource and volunteer management.
We will need to strengthen professional development among our social service practitioners and provide them with fulfilling career prospects. We will achieve this by extending career and professional development opportunities to social workers, therapists, psychologists, counsellors, early intervention teachers and family life educators. We will also provide principals, teachers and edu-carers in preschools with better professional development and more rewarding careers. Together with the National Council of Social Service, we will intensify efforts to groom the next generation of social service leaders who have the breadth and depth of experience to lead the sector for tomorrow's challenges.
\tPage: 53
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Minister for the Environment and Water Resources (Dr Vivian Balakrishnan): The high quality of the environment that we enjoy today is a result of the vision, discipline and hard work of our Pioneer Generation and leaders. We must safeguard this legacy, and pass on an even more sustainable environment to future generations.
Our future challenges are significant. This includes dealing with greater urbanisation, coping with climate change, managing epidemics and improving our quality of life. The review of the Sustainable Singapore Blueprint (SSB) this year will set out the vision and strategies for Singapore's sustainable development in the next two decades.
First, we want to ensure a clean environment that provides Singaporeans a high quality of life. We will promote and nurture sustainable living by facilitating the adoption of green practices by individuals, households and corporations. We will improve our recycling infrastructure in existing and new housing developments to increase our recycling rate and extend the lifespan of Semakau landfill.
We aspire for not just a cleaned Singapore, but a clean Singapore that reflects our intrinsic values – social graciousness, mutual respect and collective responsibility. To do so, we have to uphold high standards of public cleanliness, food hygiene and sanitation; we need as a community to collectively reaffirm the positive social norms and behaviour. As there is still a minority who persists in anti-social behaviour, we will enhance our enforcement efforts to deter these recalcitrant offenders.
We will further tighten our vehicle emission and fuel quality standards in order to enhance air quality.
Growing our social capital also improves our well-being. We will create more social spaces for people to enjoy and bond with the community. We have been transforming and adding greenery to our waterways and water bodies and will continue to do so by expanding the ABC Waters Programme. The new hawker centres we are building will not only be a place for affordable, hygienic food in a clean, vibrant and inclusive environment, but also a venue where Singaporeans and non-Singaporeans from all walks of life can interact and form community bonds.
Second, we will build infrastructure ahead of demand to support a growing economy, and to improve resilience to climate change. Investments such as the Deep Tunnel Sewerage System (DTSS) Phase 2 and the Integrated Waste Management Facility (IWMF) at Tuas will
\tPage: 54
ensure that capacity keeps pace with our needs. We will expand drainage and water infrastructure to better withstand increasingly unpredictable weather events. We will also do more to integrate our plans upstream and improve operational coordination with other public agencies to optimise the use of scarce resources. The new underground service reservoir to be sited in the new Bidadari town is one such example.
NEA's Centre for Climate Research Singapore was set up in 2013 to help keep us current with climate science, and inform our strategies for a climate-resilient Singapore. In addition, we have developed a risk assessment framework which will allow us to systematically identify, assess and mitigate the risks associated with climate change across the whole Government early, as well as a framework to guide our adaptation plans.
Third, we resolve to achieve a greener economy. This will be a much greater emphasis in our new SSB, as compared to the last. We have made good progress over the years in maintaining a balance and synergy between economic development and environmental sustainability. Increasingly, we need to see both these pillars not as trade-offs, but mutually reinforcing and intertwined. Moving forward, it is imperative for us to approach them holistically.
We will step up our efforts to engage and work with companies and industries to improve their resource efficiency and adopt best-in-class practices. Large energy users in the industry sector are now required to submit energy consumption data and develop energy efficiency improvement plans under the Energy Conservation Act (ECA). Starting next year, we will extend a similar requirement to large water users to submit Water Efficiency Management Plans. We will work with large water users in key industrial areas, such as Jurong Island, to identify and implement water-efficient solutions. These could include the use of seawater for cooling purposes and increased localised water recycling. We will also work with industry to reduce pollutive emissions to improve air quality. Through these steps, we hope to enhance our companies' contribution to a sustainable environment, while helping them become even more efficient and competitive globally by saving them money and enhancing their resilience to external shocks.
In addition, we are also exploring ways to improve our resource recovery rate. In particular, we will promote the upstream segregation of key waste streams. This will help to reduce contamination and improve the recovery of recyclables.
We will further enhance our knowledge base and capabilities and invest in directed research and development of new technologies to help achieve our environmental objectives. New innovations will be fostered through our support for test-beds and the scaling up of successful pilots. The growth of green industries and the creation of good jobs
\tPage: 55
in this sector will build a base from which we can push the frontier further.
The Government fully intends to walk the talk. The Public Sector will demonstrate its commitment by enhancing the Public Sector Taking the Lead in Environmental Sustainability (PSTLES) framework.
Finally, we recognise that the protection of our environment is, ultimately, a collective responsibility. We will focus on encouraging and inculcating pro-social and pro-environmental behaviour by supporting more community-driven initiatives. We will also study ways to empower volunteers, by having them champion public cleanliness and take on stewardship of our water bodies. There are already many passionate individuals and organisations making a difference and a growing number of companies who embrace sustainability as not just a competitive edge but also as part of their contribution back to society. Therefore, I see great potential for bringing the community together to effect a real and positive change in Singapore.
We will complete our SSB review by the end of the year. The Blueprint will flesh out the key elements I have described, serving as a roadmap of what Government seeks to achieve in partnership with the People and Private Sector. Together, we can achieve our vision – a safe and sustainable city, a liveable and endearing home, an engaged and gracious community which takes collective responsibility for the environment that we hold in trust for future generations.
\tPage: 56
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Ministry of Trade and Industry","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Minister for Trade and Industry (Mr Lim Hng Kiang): MTI will promote sustainable economic growth and create good jobs, to enable Singaporeans to improve their lives.
Singapore has entered a new phase of growth where we face a favourable but also more competitive external environment. Recovery in the US and Eurozone as well as continued resilience in the Asian economies will support Singapore's growth over the near term. Increasing urbanisation and a rising middle class in Asia will boost demand for our services. However, other economies are also working hard to raise their competitiveness to attract investments and tap on these opportunities. We continue to face stiff competition from developed economies and global cities, and major emerging cities are also rapidly closing in on us.
Nevertheless, our strong economic fundamentals put us in a good position to continue growing our economy and create good jobs. Singapore sits at the heart of a growing Asia and is well-connected to the world. We have key strengths – our open and business-friendly environment, good governance, sound infrastructure, a highly-educated workforce and our reputation as a trusted hub – that we can apply and must safeguard. At the same time, we will need to sharpen our competitive advantages and maintain emphasis on high productivity, quality and expertise to deliver innovative goods and services that can command a premium.
We will support research and innovation to transform and develop our industrial capabilities. We will leverage the investments we have made in research and development (R&D) to transform existing manufacturing sectors and grow new ones. We will identify and grow competitive services sectors that play to Singapore's strengths, to tap on the region's growing demand for exportable services.
EDB will aim to position Singapore as the advanced manufacturing hub in Asia. A*STAR, EDB and SPRING will step up efforts to apply our R&D investments to help our companies deliver new products and services. Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) will help industry players raise their capabilities, and work with them to co-create new content and activities, so as to grow yield-driven tourism. International Enterprise (IE) Singapore and SPRING will continue to broaden and deepen our base of globally-competitive companies to seize opportunities regionally and globally.
We will reinforce Singapore's position as the Global Asia Hub by expanding our international network through multilateral platforms, such as World Trade Organization,
\tPage: 57
ASEAN and APEC. We will continue to strengthen our economic linkages and competitiveness through our network of Free Trade Agreements, Investment Guarantee Agreements and Double Taxation Agreements.
We will enhance our value proposition through timely investments in infrastructure and improvements to our enterprise-friendly business environment. The Energy Market Authority (EMA) will continue to reinforce our energy security and ensure that businesses and households have access to competitively-priced energy. The Competition Commission of Singapore (CCS) will focus on promoting healthy and competitive markets for businesses.
We will continue to encourage productivity at all levels. Our companies will need to raise their productivity and build new capabilities to compete effectively in the new operating environment, as well as to seize new growth opportunities locally and internationally. We will support them to persevere and stay the course on economic restructuring. MTI has set aside more than $300 million over the next three years to help small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in this restructuring effort. This is over and above the $1 billion that has been committed from the $2 billion National Productivity Fund to support a wide range of productivity programmes, most of which are targeted at SMEs.
We will focus more on upstream interventions in sectors with the greatest potential for productivity improvement. In addition, SPRING, A*STAR and other partner agencies will step up efforts to implement platform projects that drive significant productivity improvements within and across sectors. JTC will develop innovative infrastructure solutions, through clustering of related activities and shared facilities. SPRING will continue to support SMEs in their restructuring journey through incentives, advisory services and technology adoption.
Over the next three years, around 40,000 to 45,000 young Singaporeans are expected to enter the job market per year, with two-thirds aspiring to hold professional, managerial, executive and technical (PMET) jobs. Our efforts to transform our economy will create many good jobs to meet their aspirations. We will partner MOM, MOE and the industry to prepare Singaporeans to take up these opportunities.
We will develop career pathways, applied learning tracks and apprenticeship programmes to attract and prepare Singaporeans for the specialist, managerial and leadership roles in the economy. We will also provide more structured and systematic career guidance and counselling for both students and working adults, to deliver better matching of skills, competencies and aspirations to jobs.
We will ride on the strengths of our education system, through Pre-Employment Training (PET) and Continuing Education and Training (CET), to ensure that Singaporeans are
\tPage: 58
well-trained to meet the needs of the industry. We will work to develop the next generation of highly skilled technologists and craftsmen with strong vocational skills who are able to excel in the future manufacturing landscape.
We will nurture Singaporeans with a global outlook, a keen understanding of global and regional markets and relevant soft skills to operate in a cosmopolitan environment. This will prepare Singaporeans to take on key positions in global and regional headquarters based in Singapore and in local companies which are venturing abroad.
Together, we will transform the economy to succeed in a more competitive environment, develop Singapore into a leading global city with a mix of advanced manufacturing and productive service sectors, in order to generate quality growth and create good jobs for Singaporeans.
\tPage: 59
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Ministry of Transport","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Minister for Transport (Mr Lui Tuck Yew): We will continue to build a sustainable and people-centred land transport system that contributes to the Government's efforts to make Singapore a most liveable city. In the next few years, we will significantly raise the service standards and increase the capacity of our public transport system. We will further grow the maritime and aviation sectors to strengthen Singapore's global connectivity and economic competitiveness.
We will deliver a higher quality, better integrated public transport system with more connections and better service.
We have gradually introduced a new industry model for the public transport sector. We have introduced the New Rail Financing Framework (NRFF) for the Downtown Line and future lines, and are discussing with the public transport operators (PTOs) to possibly transit the existing rail licences to the NRFF on mutually acceptable terms. The NRFF lowers barriers to entry with a shortened licence period and Government ownership of operating assets, which also enables the Government to respond more quickly to changes in demographics and commuter needs and expectations with capacity and service enhancements.
We are also restructuring the public bus industry. We have started experimenting with contracting private bus operators to run some public bus routes. Moving ahead, we will adopt a contracting framework for all public bus services, and tender out bus routes, which will be determined by the Government, to be run by private sector operators. We will own all key assets, such as bus depots and buses, to lower barriers to entry and inject greater contestability into the industry. Under this model, the Government can adjust bus capacity in a more responsive manner, and more holistically plan and optimise the overall rail-bus networks, while bus operators would be spurred by greater competition to innovate and provide better service in a cost-competitive manner. The Government also intends to set service standards higher than today's regulatory standards under the new bus model. The transition of the public bus industry will be gradual, to provide reasonable business continuity for the incumbent PTOs but, at the same time, allow experienced and committed bus operators, including foreign operators, to enter the market.
By 2030, our rail network will double in length and our rail density will be comparable to New York City and London today. In the next three years, new lines and extensions will open, with the North-South Line extension in 2014, Tuas West extension in 2016, and the 42-km Downtown Line fully opened in 2017, expanding our rail network by some 25%. We will upgrade the signalling system for our oldest lines to run trains at higher frequencies, and
\tPage: 60
add 83 more trains to reduce waiting time and crowding. Commuters can also look forward to a more reliable train network as major upgrades to the track, train and signalling systems are completed.
We will enhance our initiatives to encourage commuters to travel during off-peak periods to optimise the capacity we have in our transport system. The free pre-peak travel scheme will be extended, and we will further engage employers to support flexi-work arrangements. This will enable employees to travel comfortably outside peak periods, and also help them better juggle work, family and personal commitments.
To complement mass public transport, we will ensure that more taxis are on the roads to meet commuter demand. We will facilitate better matching of taxi demand and supply, through providing better information to commuters and drivers, and harnessing technology.
We will need to have regular fare adjustments, to ensure the financial sustainability of our public transport system. However, we will, above all, keep fares affordable. Whenever necessary, we will introduce and enhance financial assistance measures to help needy Singaporeans cope with their public transport expenditures.
To ensure a liveable city, we will develop a greater variety of alternative, sustainable transport options. We will build over 200 km of sheltered walkways starting this year, and a comprehensive island-wide cycling path network totalling over 700 km.
At the same time, we will continue to encourage commuters to rely less on private cars. This is necessary, given the limited land for more roads. We will review the vehicle population growth rate this year to ensure that the vehicle population remains within what our road network can accommodate. We will give more support to alternatives to owning a car, such as car-sharing, to cater to those who have the occasional desire to use a car.
To future-proof our public transport system, we will continue to improve accessibility for the elderly and less mobile, with more barrier-free routes to our MRT stations and bus interchanges. We will install more lifts at overhead bridges and implement the Green Man Plus scheme at more pedestrian crossings. Pedestrian-friendly streets, and more School Zones and Silver Zones with enhanced pedestrian-safety features will be implemented.
We will also enhance our schemes to ensure that our vehicle fleets are less pollutive. We will partner the industry to trial the use of electric vehicles on a larger scale, and study the possible adoption of diesel hybrid public buses.
\tPage: 61
Our maritime and aviation sectors provide global connectivity for Singaporeans, businesses in Singapore, and our goods and services, and are key pillars of our economy.
We will ensure that we maintain our position as one of the world's premier hub port. We will push ahead with the expansion of Pasir Panjang Terminal and the long-term development of Tuas Terminal, to ensure sufficient infrastructure capacity. We will continue to work with the industry and our neighbours to enhance the safety, security and accessibility of the Straits of Malacca and Singapore, and we will also ensure safe shipping in our own waters.
To secure our future as a leading International Maritime Centre, we will step up efforts to attract and anchor ship owners and operators in Singapore. We will broaden and deepen the range of supporting maritime services in Singapore, such as maritime legal firms, shipping banks and marine insurance.
With demand for air travel expected to continue growing strongly, we will be expanding our airport infrastructure. In addition to Project Jewel and Terminal 4, we have begun preparations and planning for a three-runway system and a fifth terminal. To increase the capacity of our airport, we will also enhance our air traffic management capacity and capabilities, and introduce new concepts and processes.
At the same time, in order to ensure that both our seaport and airport are able to grow, given national manpower constraints, we will be working with the industries and educational and research institutes to implement productivity initiatives. We will also continue our efforts to attract and develop talent for the maritime and aviation sectors, which provide many rewarding and quality jobs for Singaporeans.
\tPage: 62
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Prime Minister's Office (Monetary Authority of Singapore)","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of MAS (Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam): The Singapore economy is going through an important phase of restructuring at a time when the external environment faces challenges. Economic growth is expected to remain sub-par in many developed economies. The tapering of asset purchases by the US Federal Reserve could lead to higher borrowing costs and falling asset prices, with potential spillover effects on the broader global economy and financial system. Singapore has weathered the global volatility of the last few years well, but there will be new risks.
MAS monitors these risks closely as we seek to safeguard Singapore's economic stability and financial resilience. Monetary policy will continue to aim at stabilising inflation. We will take into account the transitional challenge of an economy undergoing restructuring, with price pressures due to rising wages in a tight labour market while the shift to higher productivity is still underway. MAS will also ensure that macroprudential policies remain appropriate to maintain stability in the property market and ensure financial prudence.
The international regulatory landscape continues to see significant change. Changes in the structure of global banks and new regulations that have cross-border implications will have implications for Singapore's financial centre. MAS will position Singapore in the new regulatory landscape in a way that make sense for Singapore's financial sector, while ensuring a robust and trusted financial centre. We will at the same time foster a financial centre that plays a growing role in Asia and supports inclusive growth in Singapore.
The external environment will support continued moderate growth of the Singapore economy, but bouts of volatility can be expected. Growth would be capped by the tight labour market, before more significant and sustained gains in productivity are realised.
Following two years of elevated inflation (mostly due to imputed rentals on owner-occupied accommodation and car prices), the rate of increase in prices moderated in 2013, closer to Singapore's historical experience. Although inflation is expected to rise gradually due to strong wage pressures, it is unlikely to increase to the high levels seen during 2011-2012. MAS will continue to remain vigilant against a resurgence of cost and price pressures.
Continued judicious management of the exchange rate of the Singapore dollar will ensure medium-term price stability and anchor inflation expectations, while supporting the economy's transition to productivity-led growth.
\tPage: 63
Singapore's financial markets have remained resilient in the face of global financial volatilities. The expected tightening of global financial conditions can lead to stresses for financial markets and institutions, shifts in investor sentiment, and volatile capital flows. MAS will stay vigilant and guard against these risks.
We will build on our earlier efforts to fortify the resilience of financial institutions in Singapore and ensure the proper functioning of our capital markets and financial market infrastructures. Singapore has fully implemented the Basel III minimum capital requirements for the local banks, two years ahead of the international timeline prescribed. A risk-based capital framework has been introduced for capital market services licensees, while the capital framework for insurers is being enhanced. MAS is also reviewing the Basel III global liquidity rules for local implementation.
In an environment of increasingly complex financial group structures, MAS is strengthening its oversight of financial holding companies and their financial groups. We are also enhancing the regulatory framework for the resolution of financial institutions; this includes drawing up recovery and resolution plans for systemically important banks in Singapore. To enhance depositor protection, MAS is requiring foreign banks important to the domestic market to locally incorporate their retail banking business.
On the capital markets front, MAS has implemented a number of internationally mandated regulatory reforms in the trading of OTC derivatives. We will also introduce a regulatory framework for the setting of financial benchmarks. In addition, we will implement measures to strengthen the securities market in Singapore, to promote orderly trading and responsible investing. Proposals currently considered include a minimum trading price for issuers listed on SGX Mainboard, collateral requirements for securities trading, and short position reporting requirements.
To better safeguard the interests of retail investors, MAS is working with the industry to improve the quality of financial advice, foster a culture of fair dealing, as well as achieve greater efficiency in the distribution of life insurance and investment products. A web aggregator will be introduced to enhance comparability of life insurance products, while consumers will have direct access to basic insurance products without paying commissions. MAS is also reviewing its regulation of collective investment schemes to ensure that consumers are better informed and protected where necessary from new investment schemes. Against a backdrop of low interest rates and growing leverage, MAS has also introduced a series of measures to encourage financial prudence among borrowers. MAS will step up efforts to raise the financial literacy of Singaporeans and empower investors to make informed decisions.
\tPage: 64
To remain a valued partner on the international economic and financial front, MAS will continue to participate actively in organisations, such as the International Monetary Fund, the Financial Stability Board, as well as policy committees under the Bank for International Settlements, the International Association of Insurance Supervisors and the International Organisation of Securities Commissions.
Singapore is fully committed to international efforts to combat money laundering and tax evasion, and has taken a series of measures to ensure that we remain a clean and trusted financial centre. Laundering proceeds from tax evasion and tax fraud is now a crime in Singapore. MAS has stepped up to meet enhanced global standards on information exchange and has intensified its supervision of financial institutions to keep illicit money out of our financial centre.
Singapore has built a diverse financial ecosystem, strong in foreign exchange, capital markets, reinsurance and wealth management. In the coming years, MAS will build on these strengths and promote new capabilities and initiatives, such as fostering greater use of technology and innovation in financial services, developing an offshore RMB hub, as well as enhancing trade, infrastructure and SME financing. In addition, MAS will continue efforts to enhance the capabilities of our financial sector workforce and develop a strong core of Singaporean financial specialists and leaders.
\tPage: 65
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Prime Minister's Office (National Climate Change Secretariat)","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Climate Change (Mr Teo Chee Hean): Climate change affects all countries. As a low-lying, small island state, Singapore is particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change, such as rising sea levels and extreme weather events. We will thus continue to play our part by being a leader in environmentally responsible urban living and economic development, and lower our carbon emissions in spite of being constrained in alternative energy sources.
Singapore supports global efforts to address climate change through the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). We are taking measures to meet our unconditional pledge to reduce emissions to 7%-11% below our business-as-usual (BAU) level by 2020. If there is a global agreement on climate change, we will reduce our emissions even further to 16% below our BAU level by 2020. Singapore is also playing our part to facilitate negotiations for a new post-2020 global agreement, which could be reached by 2015.
Singapore is working to meet our current commitments and to develop a suite of measures to stabilise our emissions over the long term. We will continue to work with industry partners and academics to develop technology roadmaps to guide the research, development, demonstration and deployment of low-carbon technologies. We need to promote more energy-efficient designs, equipment and processes in our different sectors. We will increase the efficiency of our electrical generation and transmission system, and deploy renewable energy, such as solar energy, as it becomes cost-effective to do so.
We are also developing climate resilience plans in areas, such as coastal protection, biodiversity and greenery, public health, water resources and drainage, and urban infrastructure and energy. The 2nd National Climate Change Study will provide long-term climate projections for Singapore. The Coastal Adaptation Study will develop a coastal protection framework to prepare Singapore for the impact of rising sea levels.
Climate change also offers substantial opportunities for green growth. The Government will continue to work with the research and business communities to grow the environmental and clean technology industries. This will create good jobs for Singaporeans, and improve our quality of life and living environment. We will continue to invest significantly into R&D and test-bedding to develop solutions in the areas of clean energy, energy efficiency, green buildings and clean transportation, with a view to commercialising and exporting successful innovations.
\tPage: 66
Everyone has a part to play to ensure that Singapore adapts and thrives in a low-carbon world. We will work with key partners and stakeholders, such as schools, non-governmental organisations and businesses, to raise public awareness and promote climate-friendly actions across all sectors.
Together, we will strengthen our capabilities and readiness to address climate change and develop Singapore along a sustainable pathway for the benefit of present and future generations.
\tPage: 67
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Prime Minister's Office (National Population and Talent Division)","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister-in-charge of the National Population and Talent Division (Mr Teo Chee Hean): We want a Singapore with a sustainable population – where Singaporeans are the heart of our nation, where we have opportunities to pursue our aspirations, and which we are proud to call our home.
The National Population and Talent Division (NPTD) works with other Government agencies to develop and implement population policies towards this vision, focusing on three key areas: providing more opportunities, as well as quality care for our rapidly increasing number of seniors, so that they remain active in society; sustaining our citizen population through a supportive environment for marriage and parenthood, engagement of overseas Singaporeans, and the integration of new immigrants; and taking a balanced approach to slow the growth of our foreign workforce, while maintaining a vibrant economy with opportunities and jobs of the future for Singaporeans.
As our population ages and the number of older Singaporeans increases rapidly, we will provide more opportunities for our seniors to be meaningfully employed, and tap on their wisdom and experience to contribute to society. We will also improve the quality of care and support to match the needs of our seniors, so that they can enjoy active silver years. These include healthcare, housing options, progressive work environments, lifelong learning, senior-friendly infrastructure, retirement adequacy and silver volunteerism.
Strong families are the bedrock of our society. We will continue to support Singaporeans' aspirations to marry and have children, and work with our community partners to provide more integrated support for Singaporeans in their marriage and parenthood journeys. We will also continue to engage Singaporeans abroad, so that they stay connected to Singapore.
To prevent our citizen population from shrinking and improve its age balance, we welcome new citizens who are committed to Singapore, willing to contribute and share our values. We also welcome foreign spouses of Singaporeans who are in a stable and sustainable marriage. We will continue to help these newcomers to better integrate into our society.
As we committed in the Population White Paper, we have embarked on a new strategic direction towards a more sustainable population with slower growth in the non-resident population. Companies are already facing tight manpower constraints as we slow foreign workforce growth. We will continue to take a calibrated approach, as we help companies to
\tPage: 68
raise productivity and restructure their work processes through this transitional period.
We must remain open to people, ideas and resources to generate innovation, new businesses and employment opportunities to support the aspirations of Singaporeans. We will also build and tap on the global network of friends of Singapore, within and beyond our physical boundaries. Singaporeans will remain the core of our workforce. We will continue to support skills upgrading and ensure that Singaporeans are considered fairly for jobs. We will work towards inclusive growth so that the benefits are enjoyed widely and fairly by all Singaporeans. We will broaden and deepen our efforts to promote greater mutual understanding and acceptance between Singaporeans and foreigners. We will also plan our city well, and ahead of demand, to support our population and ensure a high quality living environment.
To ensure that we have a sustainable population for Singapore in the medium and long term, we need to plan and implement our policies starting now. We will continue to review our policies to take into account the changing needs of Singapore and Singaporeans, as well as the changing domestic and external environment. With the Government working together in close partnership with Singaporeans, the community, businesses and institutions, we can make Singapore a truly distinctive home for all Singaporeans and for many more generations to come.
\tPage: 69
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Prime Minister's Office (National Research Foundation)","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of National Research Foundation (Mr Teo Chee Hean): The National Research Foundation (NRF) works with research performers, companies and Government agencies, such as MTI, MOE, MOH, MND, MEWR and MCI, to build R&D capabilities, encourage innovation and grow technology enterprises. Together with our partners, NRF seeks to develop Singapore as a knowledge economy and society, creating good jobs and improving well-being for Singaporeans.
Through the combined efforts of NRF and its partners, Singapore has achieved a good standing in R&D internationally. Our two top Universities have risen rapidly in international academic rankings. They have also established 15 research groups with 10 leading universities from the US, Europe and Asia at the Campus for Research Excellence and Technological Enterprise (CREATE). The A*STAR research institutes conduct high quality research with an industry focus, helping to anchor large corporations in Singapore. We have also seen MNC corporate laboratories setting up in Singapore.
NRF, together with partner Ministries, has broadened the research focus to other sectors where Singapore has the potential to make significant contributions globally. These include Translational and Clinical Research in Biomedical Sciences, Interactive and Digital Media, Environmental and Water Technologies, and, more recently, Marine and Offshore, and Satellite Technology. Through the National Innovation Challenges, we are also developing unique national solutions in the areas of energy, as well as land and liveability. There is also a new programme in cybersecurity, aimed at raising Singapore's capabilities to defend ourselves from cyberattacks.
We have invested in growing a strong pool of science and engineering researchers. The NRF Fellowships bring young, bright scientists to conduct research in Singapore. The new NRFInvestigator-ships provide opportunities for established scientists in Singapore to pursue ground-breaking, high-risk research. Our scheme to attract overseas Singaporean scientists home to continue their research careers and eventually take up leadership positions here, will help grow the Singaporean core of researchers. The scientific community here has matured, with our national science and engineering academies prepared to play a larger role in the science and technology ecosystem.
We are also developing an enabling ecosystem for startups, including venture capitalists, incubators and financing.
\tPage: 70
As we embark on planning for the next five-year science and technology plan, or Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) 2020, NRF's focus is twofold.
First, we will sustain strong performance across the different entities in our ecosystem through sound governance and accountability. NRF has worked with MTI, MOE and MOF to improve coordination within Government so that we achieve more effective R&D outcomes. We instituted changes to whole-of-Government structures to improve strategic planning and oversight. As part of the RIE2020 planning, stakeholder agencies are working together with research and industry partners to develop coherent strategies for each research domain from advanced manufacturing to the digital and biomedical sciences, establish clear national objectives for each sector, and draw up the plans and appropriate performance indicators. We will focus on areas where we can develop researchers who can conduct world-class research which leverages on our national strengths so that investments have a high chance of generating value for our economy and society.
Second, we will join up the entire value chain of players in our innovation ecosystem – scientists, entrepreneurs, venture funds and corporations – so that we are better at turning scientific discovery into useful innovations, and translating technological breakthroughs into growth companies. Companies with major manufacturing stakes in Singapore, like Rolls Royce and Keppel, have set up corporate research labs at our Universities, strengthening industry-science linkages.
We are working with economic agencies to grow clusters of innovative firms, in areas such as diagnostics and membrane technologies. NRF will support closer engagement between our Universities and home-grown companies, to facilitate technology transfer and help them develop future products and markets. In addition, we will work with large local enterprises to grow a strong technology ecosystem around them, so that we create jobs, scale production and spur growth, not just in new sectors, but also established and traditional ones.
Strengthening the linkages between research, innovation and enterprise will help Singapore to remain competitive in the knowledge-based future economy. Our goal is for our investments in R&D to translate into economic growth for Singapore and give rise to more innovative companies that continually create good jobs of the future for Singaporeans.
\tPage: 71
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Prime Minister's Office (National Security Coordination Secretariat)","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security (Mr Teo Chee Hean): In a globalised and interdependent world, threats to national security can develop quickly, can be omni-directional and can disrupt not just a singular target, but cause interconnected failures.
The National Security Coordination Secretariat (NSCS) works with various Government agencies to tackle multi-agency and cross-domain security challenges in key areas, such as maritime security, food security, cybersecurity and critical infrastructure security. NSCS also carries out longer-term studies to map out potential threats to national security and explores new concepts, strategies and technologies that can address them. Drawing on these studies, NSCS catalyses a coordinated and collaborative approach that harnesses the synergies across agencies to pilot and develop new capabilities.
NSCS' Risk Assessment and Horizon Scanning (RAHS) Programme helps us to better anticipate emerging issues and national security risks. Together with academic and international partners, the RAHS Programme has experimented with and developed processes and products that have helped Government agencies identify, analyse, model and monitor areas, such as the evolving range of cyber threats. The RAHS methodology is continually refined and will be used to analyse issues, such as extreme weather hazards and food security.
NSCS has worked with DSO National Laboratories to identify, understand and model the interconnectivities within and across the various domains of Singapore's national security to identify critical interdependencies and potential vulnerabilities. Such interdependency studies on national network infrastructure, such as the national telecommunications network, will help agencies to understand where critical inter-system dependencies and where vulnerabilities need to be addressed for greater resilience. The pilot phase of these studies focused on three key sectors of national network infrastructure – Energy, Water and Infocomms. The next phase will map other critical sectors, such as Transport and Healthcare.
To catalyse cybersecurity research and capability development, the National Cyber Security R&D Programme was launched in October 2013. Jointly supported by MHA, MINDEF, IDA, EDB, NRF and NSCS, the S$130 million programme provides an open platform for collaboration across Government agencies, academia, research institutes and the private sector to protect Singapore's information infrastructure and national assets. A grant call for research project proposals was launched on 7 March 2014 and closed on 2 May 2014.
\tPage: 72
Our national security also depends on the vigilance and resilience of all Singaporeans. NSCS will continue to educate and engage Singaporeans on our national security risks, through multiple platforms and channels.
Even as we try to prevent any national security incident from taking place, it is also important to build up our society's capability and resilience to withstand shocks and to emerge stronger from them. NSCS, therefore, also coordinates research to better inform policies to build social resilience in Singapore.
\tPage: 73
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Prime Minister's Office (Public Service Division)","subTitle":"Addendum to President's Address","sectionType":"OS","content":"The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister-in-charge of the Civil Service (Mr Teo Chee Hean): The Public Service Division (PSD) will continue to build a first-class Public Service that serves Singapore and Singaporeans well. To do so, PSD will help our public officers to develop the capabilities needed to carry out their duties and strengthen the role of public officers as trusted stewards of the public good.
The Public Service will improve coordination across the whole-of-Government so that citizens have a smoother experience interacting with various Government agencies. This will start with the delivery of municipal services, such as public cleanliness, grass-cutting and maintenance of walkways and drains, and assistance to families with several social service needs that cut across agencies. We will also work on improving public communications and engagement. The Civil Service College (CSC) is developing new training programmes to equip officers with skills in these key areas.
To develop policies that better meet the wide range of Singaporeans' needs, PSD will work with Government agencies to build capabilities to partner the community to understand different views and gather new ideas and to create solutions together for better outcomes. Policy officers will have more operational postings and attachments to help them better understand the issues faced by Singaporeans and the impact of Government policies when implemented. The Public Service will also pay more attention to policy execution so that good policy intentions are translated effectively to services delivered by frontline officers.
The Public Service is putting strong emphasis on the professional development and career progression of our public officers. We will invest in the development of our officers and encourage them to grow in their jobs. We want our public officers, from the most junior to the most senior, to have meaningful careers in the Public Service and to sustain their passion in serving the public.
We will ensure that our human resource management policies and practices are progressive and effective in attracting and retaining good officers, and encourage performance and alignment to the ethos of public service. The appointment of a Chief Human Resources Officer and the launch of human resources training programmes signal our commitment to upgrading the capabilities of our Human Resources officers across the Public Service.
We will build up specialist expertise among our officers. For example, we will build a deeper and broader pool of engineers, particularly in our larger statutory boards, who can design and develop innovative and complex projects. We will continue to strengthen our
\tPage: 74
foresight capabilities, focusing on translating insights about emerging trends into effective policy responses.
PSD will also broaden our leadership development programmes to nurture a more diverse pool of leaders to meet the challenges of a more complex environment. The Public Service Leadership Programme will groom officers with deep expertise in different sectors and professions, to take on future leadership positions in their respective areas across the Public Service.
Beyond good technical and management skills, every public officer also needs to uphold the values of integrity, service and excellence and serve Singapore and Singaporeans with a sense of mission. CSC will partner agencies in our effort to deepen the understanding of the Public Service's values and ethos at various milestones in an officer's career. PSD will recognise public officers who go the extra mile in their work, to inspire others to do the same. PSD will also create more opportunities for Public Service leaders to engage younger officers so that leaders can guide their officers to understand and embrace the values, ethos and culture of the Public Service.
PSD will work with MOF to review and strengthen critical governance processes to identify weaknesses or adapt to new circumstances. Personnel-related measures, including mandatory job rotation and block leave for officers in fraud-prone job functions, have also been introduced, and the Public Service will work together to ensure that these are implemented effectively.
As Singapore approaches its fiftieth year of Independence, the Public Service is proud to be part of the journey in getting Singapore to where we are today. The Public Service looks forward to continuing the partnership with Singaporeans to build a strong future together for our nation.
\tPage: 75
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null}],"writtenAnswersVOList":[],"writtenAnsNAVOList":[],"annexureList":[],"vernacularList":[],"onlinePDFFileName":""}