The Workers' Party
[h=2]Parliamentary Questions for 21 October 2013 Sitting[/h]
October 20, 2013 at 11:00pm
QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWER*
*6. Mr Png Eng Huat: To ask the Acting Minister for Manpower with regard to the Fair Consideration Framework (a) what is the consideration for excluding small firms with 25 or fewer employees; (b) what is the current total number of small firms and the total number of workers they employ; (c) what is the estimated average ratio of Singaporeans to employment pass employees at the PME level in all firms; (d) what is the estimated average ratio of Singaporeans to employment pass employees at the PME level in all small firms; (e) what is the percentage of small firms that fall below 30% local shareholding; and (f) what is the estimated average ratio of Singaporeans to employment pass employees at the PME level in small firms that fall below 30% local shareholding.
*7. Ms Sylvia Lim: To ask the Acting Minister for Manpower under the Fair Consideration Framework (a) whether a Singaporean applicant using the national jobs bank can lodge a complaint if it is found from experience that the hiring process may be unfair; (b) what is the time frame or frequency for checking up on the ratio of Singaporean to foreigner PMEs in firms; (c) what is the low ratio threshold trigger for scrutinizing firms; and (d) how are repeated complaints for triggering scrutiny determined and calculated.
*15. Mr Low Thia Khiang: To ask the Minister for Communications and Information (a) what has been the usage pattern of Teletext in the last five years; (b) what is the number of users prior to its discontinuance; and (c) what assessment has been made on the impact of its discontinuance on users before the service is withdrawn.
*22. Ms Sylvia Lim: To ask the Minister for Health in view of a subsidiary of the multinational pharmaceutical company Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd being found guilty of data fraud by the US Food and Drug Administration in May 2013 (a) whether the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) has done a review of all data submitted to it by Ranbaxy; and (b) how HSA ensures Singapore's supply of generic drugs from overseas is safe for use.
*29. Mr Pritam Singh: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs (a) to date, how many requests for non-public user data has the Government made to Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, Twitter and Facebook without the knowledge of these users; (b) what are the types of information that the Government has asked to obtain including the number of requests for substantive content such as emails and internet chats; (c) whether the Ministry can provide a breakdown of the reasons for requests of user data; (d) if the requests relate to matters not concerning criminal investigations, what are these matters; and (e) what are the safeguards and procedures that the Ministry has put in place so that requests for user data from Internet service companies without the consent of such users are done for legitimate and proper purposes.
*30. Mr Yee Jenn Jong: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development whether the Government plans to introduce an official poverty line adapted from international practice to identify at-risk households and to measure the performance of governmental and non-governmental efforts in helping them leave the poverty cycle.
*32. Mr Yee Jenn Jong: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) what is the Government's internal measure of neediness that is used to define the 200,000 needy households to which masks are distributed during the recent haze; (b) what other internal measures of neediness are used to guide the Government's inclusive programmes to aid at-risk families; and (c) what is the Government's view on what is the minimal household income per person necessary to meet the basic needs of physical well-being and social inclusion.
*35. Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Minister for Health regarding the $507 million in net assets of the MediShield Fund at the end of 2012 (a) how much of this represents (i) reserves set aside to fund the expected scheme liabilities (ii) capital set aside to meet MAS's risk-based capital framework requirements for insurers; (b) what is the quantum of (i) reserves and (ii) capital set aside for each of the years from 2005 to 2012; and (c) what is the minimum Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) that MediShield targets to maintain over and above the minimum CAR of 100% required by MAS.
*44. Mr Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap: To ask the Minister for Education (a) what is the number of teaching and non-teaching hours that teachers and head of departments are required to fulfil in a week respectively; (b) what is the breakdown in the types/areas of responsibility and the time allocated for the areas that each teacher has to undertake; (c) what is the number of teachers who have resigned over the past five years; and (d) whether the Ministry tracks how many of these resignations are a result of workload-related issues.
*48. Mr Yee Jenn Jong: To ask the Prime Minister (a) whether MAS's Annual SME Financing Survey 2013 has been completed; (b) if so, what are the findings as to the trend of accessibility of bank loans for SMEs; (c) whether there are MAS rules requiring a mandatory project track record period or other requirements with regard to bank loans specific to SMEs; and (d) whether the setting up of a credit bureau for SMEs will help worthy SMEs obtain needed working and expansion credit from banks.
*50. Mr Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap: To ask the Minister for Communications and Information and Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs (a) what are the existing plans to follow up on the recommendations made in the Suara Musyawarah Committee report; and (b) whether there will be a periodic progress report to update the community on those plans and, if so, what is the proposed timeline for these reports to be made.
*65. Mr Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs (a) what is the annual number of ex-offenders registered with the Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative Enterprises (SCORE) for employment and re-integration programmes in the past five years; (b) what is the number of companies that are registered with SCORE in providing employment opportunities for ex-offenders in the past five years; and (c) what is the rate of ex-offenders who have successfully secured employment through SCORE's job-matching and employment scheme in the last five years.
*72. Ms Lee Li Lian: To ask the Minister for Transport in assessing the possibility of new public transport routes at Rivervale Crescent (a) whether information on ridership patterns, field surveys and collection of feedback have been obtained; and (b) what is the progress of requests to LTA to consider the possibility of introducing transport services given the new BTO developments in the area.
*74. Ms Lee Li Lian: To ask the Minister for Education what is the rationale for not allowing single parents' Singpass to be used for their children's primary school online enrolment.
*77. Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Minister for Health from 2011 to 2013 to-date (a) how many invitations have been sent annually to residents of 40 years old and older to go for health screening under HPB's Integrated Screening Programme (ISP); (b) how many residents took up those invitations in each of those years; (c) what are the charges for such screenings; (d) what is the rationale for charging such screenings; (e) what are the KPIs the Ministry uses to measure the success of the ISP; and (f) how does the Ministry rate the success of the ISP.
*79. Mr Png Eng Huat: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) if he can provide an update on the number of clubs licensed to operate jackpot machines that have adopted a responsible gaming code; (b) whether an Electronic Funds Transfer at Point of Sale (EFTPOS) system is allowed inside these jackpot rooms; and (c) whether the Ministry will consider standardising the minimum age for entry to such clubs and Singapore Pools with that of the casinos that is currently set at 21 years old.
*92. Ms Lee Li Lian: To ask the Acting Minister for Manpower whether Muslims who are above 55 years of age can be allowed to use part of their CPF Retirement Account for haj pilgrimages.
QUESTIONS FOR WRITTEN ANSWER
1. Mr Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap: To ask the Prime Minister (a) how many Public Service Commission (PSC) scholarships have been awarded to the Malay community annually in the past 10 years; (b) what is the breakdown of the various disciplines pursued; and (c) where have these scholars been deployed upon their graduation.
4. Ms Sylvia Lim: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs what are the specific justifications for detaining four suspects of global soccer match-fixing under the Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) Act rather than prosecuting them through the courts for corruption offences.
10. Mr Low Thia Khiang: To ask the Minister for National Development if he can provide an update on the first Greenprint pilot in Jurong East and whether the component of a rainwater harvesting system can be further developed for incorporation into planning guidelines to deal with flooding.
11. Mr Low Thia Khiang: To ask the Minister for National Development whether the population planning parameter of 6.9 million by 2030 as outlined in the Population White Paper is being used in the development of new HDB housing estates and, if so, what is the targeted percentage of the population living in public housing by 2030.
12. Ms Sylvia Lim: To ask the Minister for National Development whether the Interim-Estate Upgrading Programme announced as a 3-year pilot project in 2009 has been extended or is still in force and, if so, till when.
14. Ms Lee Li Lian: To ask the Minister for Health with regard to the development of 39 new Senior Care Centres by 2016 (a) how many have opened so far; (b) what is the expected timeline for the remaining Senior Care Centres to be completed; (c) who are the operators of these Senior Care Centres; and (d) how are the locations of these Senior Care Centres chosen.
16. Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Minister for Health how many MediShield policyholders are currently in age ranges of (i) 0-20 years (ii) 21-30 years (iii) 31-40 years (iv) 41-50 years (v) 51-60 years (vi) 61-65 years (vii) 66-70 years (viii) 71-73 years (ix) 74-75 years (x) 76-80 years (xi) 81-83 years (xii) 84-85 years and (xiii) 86-90 years.
17. Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Minister for Health (a) in 2011 and 2012, how many MediShield policyholders reached the (i) $50,000 policy year limit and (ii) $200,000 lifetime limit; and (b) in 2013, how many MediShield policyholders are projected to reach the revised (i) $70,000 policy year limit and (ii) $300,000 lifetime limit.
18. Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Minister for Health for each year from 2010 to 2012, how many MediShield policyholders paid cumulative MediShield Basic co-insurance amounts of (i) less than $6,000 (ii) $6,001 to $8,000 (iii) $8,001 to $10,000 (iv) $10,001 to $12,000 and (v) above $12,000.
41. Ms Sylvia Lim: To ask the Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth to what extent are public funds and resources expended to support the campaign of the Singaporean candidate for the 2013 election for the Presidency of the International Olympic Committee.
A walk around the (Telok Kurau) park
Yee Jenn Jong, JJ (余振忠)
[URL="https://www.facebook.com/workersparty"]The Workers' Party
[URL="https://www.facebook.com/workersparty"]The Workers' Party
Singapore's first 
