The PAP using the tried and trusted pork barrel politics again

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FairPrice to give Ramadan care packs to over 1,300 needy Muslim families from March 4​

The care packs contain staples such as cereal, soya milk, tinned tuna and pitted dates.PHOTO: FAIRPRICE GROUP
Calista Wong
Mar 04, 2025

SINGAPORE - More than 1,300 needy Muslim families will be getting Ramadan care packs worth $40 each throughout the fasting month starting March 4.

The care packs, sponsored by the FairPrice Foundation, contain staples such as cereal, soya milk, tinned tuna and pitted dates, and will go towards ensuring the families have healthy and nutritious food for the pre-dawn meal.

The care packs were distributed at ITE College Central in Ang Mo Kio on March 4, and will continue for the entire month of Ramadan at all three ITE colleges. ITE College East is in Simei and ITE College West is in Choa Chu Kang.

Eligible families can also get the care packs at Mendaki Satellite Centres across the island.

On March 3, volunteers from the FairPrice Group and Mendaki prepared about 1,500 care packs for distribution. The initiative is part of efforts by the retail giant to support Singaporeans in need, said FairPrice Foundation general manager Jean Khong.

On March 6, another 200 care packs will be given out to needy Muslim families at a break-fast event as part of a tie-up between FairPrice and the National Trades Union Congress.

 

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New hawker centres to open in Bukit Batok West and Punggol Coast in first half of 2025​

The Bukit Batok West Hawker Centre at 469 Bukit Batok West Avenue 9 will have 22 cooked-food stalls.PHOTO: NEA
Chin Hui Shan and Shabana Begum
Mar 04, 2025

SINGAPORE – New and improved hawker centres, a national push to keep indoor temperatures at or above 25 deg C, and vouchers to offset the cost of efficient home appliances are among the national initiatives that Singaporeans can look forward to.

The Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment (MSE) gave updates on some of these initiatives on March 4. Here are the highlights:

1. Two new hawker centres to open in 2025; up to $1 billion to be invested in upgrading and building of hawker centres​

Two new hawker centres will open in Bukit Batok West and Punggol Coast in the first half of 2025, while five more hawker centres will be built to serve residents in existing or new estates in years to come, said the MSE and the National Environment Agency (NEA).

It is not known where the five new hawker centres will be.

The Bukit Batok West Hawker Centre at 469 Bukit Batok West Avenue 9 will have 22 cooked-food stalls and more than 400 seats, while the Punggol Coast Hawker Centre at 84 Punggol Way will have 40 cooked-food stalls and more than 680 seats.

The Punggol Coast Hawker Centre at 84 Punggol Way will have 40 cooked-food stalls and more than 680 seats.PHOTO: NEA
To upgrade ageing hawker centres and build new ones, the MSE and the NEA will invest up to $1 billion over the next 20 to 30 years under the Hawker Centres Upgrading Programme 2.0. The first iteration of the programme took place more than 20 years ago to upgrade or rebuild almost 100 centres, said Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment Koh Poh Koon.

Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu said: “Over time, as our people’s needs evolve, our hawker centres have to be revitalised and future-ready. With climate change, an ageing population, rapid urban developments and shifting hawker profiles, patrons and hawkers have new expectations.”

She added: “Hawkers also require more productive and innovative solutions to meet their business aspirations and tackle operational challenges.”

Under the programme, hawker centres will be upgraded to become more vibrant, accessible and climate-resilient.

For example, the NEA will optimise the use of space within the centres, such as through better layout and stall configuration, to make them more pleasant for multi-generational families and the community.

To adapt to rising temperatures and make the centres more comfortable, NEA will explore solutions to improve air circulation and reduce ambient temperatures, such as by using high-volume, low-speed fans.

However, some older hawker centres in mature estates may need to be rebuilt instead of just being upgraded. MSE and NEA are working with the relevant planning agencies to identify such centres.

2. $600 rental support for hawkers​

A one-time rental support of $600 will be given to stallholders of each cooked-food and market stall in hawker centres and markets managed by the Government and government-appointed operators.

This is to recognise the role hawker centres and markets play in Singapore’s national identity and heritage. It is also to celebrate SG60 and the fifth anniversary of the inscription of Singapore’s hawker culture in the Unesco Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Existing registered stallholders with an active tenancy as at Feb 18 will receive $600 per stall from April.

3. $88 million worth of climate vouchers used so far​

In April 2024, all HDB households received $300 in climate vouchers, and about $88 million worth of these vouchers has been spent as at Jan 31.

Assuming that the households that used the vouchers redeemed all $300 at one go, this means some 293,333 households, or more than a quarter of all households in Housing Board flats, have used up their climate vouchers to buy energy- and water-saving appliances.

Overall, 80 per cent of households – around 850,000 HDB units – have claimed the e-vouchers from the RedeemSG website to use later.

These vouchers – which will be topped up by $100 for families living in HDB flats and extended to Singaporeans living in private housing from mid-April 2025 – are valid until Dec 31, 2027.


The top three appliances bought using the vouchers so far were direct current fans, refrigerators and washing machines, said Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment Amy Khor.

“This translates to annual energy savings that can power 19,000 four-room HDB flats and annual water savings equivalent to 900 Olympic-sized swimming pools, or about $31 million in annual utility savings,” said Dr Khor.

The vouchers can be used to buy 10 types of energy- and water-efficient appliances and fittings, such as air-conditioners, washing machines and refrigerators. They include air-conditioners labelled with five ticks and refrigerators with at least three ticks.

The vouchers can be used at about 170 retailers, covering more than 520 outlets islandwide.

4. Keeping buildings at 25 deg C​

It might be more common to see the thermostat set to 25 deg C or higher at buildings, offices and malls in the future, as efforts are under way to avoid overcooling and help buildings save on electricity bills.

The Government intends to start an initiative to work with the public and businesses to slightly turn up air-conditioning temperatures, while still allowing people to escape the heat. More details will be announced later in 2025.

“This will reduce energy cost and allow occupants to dress more appropriately for our tropical climate,” said Ms Fu.

Air-conditioners tend to guzzle a lot of electricity while releasing planet-warming refrigerants.

Keeping the temperature at 25 deg C has been a practice at government buildings for a couple of years now since the public sector’s sustainability movement began.

5. Greening up the public sector​

About $300 million will be set aside in an energy efficiency fund for public sector buildings, for use over the next five years.

The fund will be used to invest in worthwhile projects that will help government facilities reduce energy usage and reap savings from lower utility bills in the long run. Eligible projects could include retrofits to energy-guzzling systems or the installation of smart systems to optimise energy efficiency.

Public sector facilities that could be covered include offices, hospitals and MRT stations.

And from the 2025 financial year, businesses will need to keep sustainability in mind when they bid for event venues and event management tenders put out by the Government.

This is part of efforts to extend environmental sustainability criteria to Mice (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) tenders. Since 2024, public tenders related to large construction as well as information and communications technology have taken environmental sustainability into account.

 

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Silver Housing Bonus to be extended to more private home owners who right-size to HDB flats​

From Dec 1, seniors need not top up their RA up to $60,000 to qualify for SHB if their CPF housing refunds exceed $60,000.ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI

Grace Leong
Mar 05, 2025

SINGAPORE – Seniors who right-size from a private residential property with an annual value of between $21,000 and $31,000 to a three-room or smaller Housing Board flat will be eligible for the Silver Housing Bonus (SHB) from Dec 1, 2025.

Currently, only seniors aged 55 and above who own an HDB flat or private home with an annual value of up to $21,000 are eligible for SHB of up to $30,000 when they right-size to a three-room or smaller flat.

This is on the condition that they make a cash top-up – capped at $60,000 per household – to their CPF Retirement Account (RA) with their net sale proceeds and when they join CPF Life.

Under the current scheme, even after their RA has been topped up to the Full Retirement Sum (FRS), seniors who want to qualify for SHB have to make a cash top-up of up to $60,000 in their RA.

But from Dec 1, 2025, there may be no need for them to make this cash top-up to qualify for the SHB if their CPF housing refunds are more than $60,000.

“This will make it easier for seniors to benefit from the Silver Housing Bonus,” Minister for National Development Desmond Lee said in Parliament on May 5 during the debate on his ministry’s budget.

About $61 million in SHB has been disbursed to 2,535 HDB households as at Dec 31, 2024. There were no senior private property owners who right-sized to a three-room or smaller HDB flat and received the SHB, MND said in response to queries from The Straits Times.

CPF housing refunds refer to the CPF principal withdrawn to buy a property plus accrued interest that needs to be refunded back to CPF after the property’s sale. If the homebuyer has pledged the property to make up their retirement sum, they will also need to refund the pledged amount.

For those aged 55 and above, the housing refunds will be used to top up the RA to the FRS, and the balance will remain in the Ordinary Account (OA).

Further, if their net proceeds from the sale of either their HDB flat or private property are more than $60,000, they must commit the full $60,000 to their RA from Dec 1, 2025. But if their net sale proceeds are less than $60,000 – for example, $50,000 – then they have to commit the entire $50,000 to the RA.

In this case, seniors who own an HDB flat or private residential property of up to $21,000 will qualify for SHB of $25,000, based on $1 bonus for every $2 committed towards their CPF RA.

Those who own a private residential property with AV between $21,000 to $31,000 will qualify for SHB of $8,333, based on $1 bonus for every $6 committed towards their RA.

In addition, to support seniors living in lower-value private residential properties, the Government will extend the SHB to seniors who right-size from their private home with an annual value of between $21,000 and $31,000.


With this extension, over 15,000 more seniors can qualify for SHB. This will now potentially cover three in four residential properties, including both HDB flats and private residential properties.

Including a $10,000 additional cash bonus if they right-size to a two-room flat or smaller, including Community Care Apartments (CCA), seniors who own a private property with annual value of between $21,000 and $31,000 will get up to $20,000.

In comparison, seniors who own an HDB flat or private property with an annual value of $21,000 or less will get up to $40,000 if they right-size to a two-room flat or smaller. Those who right-size to a three-room flat will get up to $30,000.

In cases where the seniors used cash to pay for their home and do not have any CPF housing refunds, they have to make a cash top-up of up to $60,000 from their net sale proceeds to their RA to qualify for SHB of up to $30,000.

If their net sale proceeds are less than $60,000, then their SHB is pro-rated based on the annual value of their property.

Elder-friendly fittings in private homes​

Mr Lee also responded to questions from Ms Joan Pereira (Tanjong Pagar GRC), Ms Denise Phua (Jalan Besar GRC) and Mr Henry Kwek (Kebun Baru), who asked about plans to help seniors in private residential properties age in place.

Mr Lee said the scope of the Estate Upgrading Programme (EUP) has been expanded to include senior-friendly enhancements such as barrier-free ramps and covered drains for more walkways.

He added that the Government will expand the Enhancement for Active Seniors (Ease) programme to include households with seniors living in private residential properties.

The programme allows eligible households to install elder-friendly fittings including grab bars in their homes at a subsidised cost. The subsidy will cover 75 per cent of the cost of selected senior-friendly fittings, up to a cap of $1,200.

This three-year programme, targeted to be launched by the first quarter of 2026, is expected to benefit more than 70,000 seniors living in private homes.

These homes refer to all Singapore citizen households in private properties with at least one senior aged 65 years or above, or between 60 and 64 years old and require assistance with at least one or more daily self-care activities, including washing or bathing, dressing, feeding, toileting and mobility.

They will be eligible to engage a contractor from a pre-qualified list to supply and install a selected range of senior-friendly fittings to be made available. Further details on this and the application process will be announced later.

The Government is currently studying the list of senior-friendly fittings to be offered and will need some time to call and evaluate the tenders before appointing contractors to carry out installation in eligible private properties.

The cost of the enhancements largely depends on the number and type of senior-friendly fittings installed, which will vary with households, MND said.

MND said it will also need to review residents’ feedback and assess the take-up rate before deciding on the next steps.

 

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HDB resale prices will stabilise as more flats enter market and cooling measures take effect: MND​

High resale prices have caused concern among Singaporeans over the affordability of public housing.ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI

Wong Yang
Mar 05, 2025

SINGAPORE - The Housing Board resale market will start to stabilise as a greater supply of such flats enter the market over the next few years and existing cooling measures continue to take effect, National Development Minister Desmond Lee said.

Citing a supply-demand imbalance as the reason for high resale flat prices, Mr Lee pointed out that the Covid-19 pandemic had severely impacted construction of new flats and also caused demand to spike because people were concerned about housing delays.

High resale prices have caused concern among Singaporeans over the affordability of public housing. These concerns were raised by Mr Xie Yao Quan (Jurong GRC) and Mr Pritam Singh (Aljunied GRC) during the debate on the Ministry of National Development’s budget on March 5.

Addressing these anxieties in Parliament, Mr Lee said there will be a significant jump in the number of new flats reaching their minimum occupation period (MOP), from 8,000 in 2025 to 13,500 in 2026.

The number of flats meeting their MOP will steadily increase before hitting 19,500 in 2028, added Mr Lee.

Thus, “the supply tightness should start to recover next year”, he said.

Taken together with cooling measures to curb prices, which will also continue to “work their way through the market”, the HDB resale market will stabilise, he said.

The MOP is the minimum amount of time that owners of new flats must live in their unit before they can sell it on the open market.

Prices of HDB resale flats grew 9.7 per cent in 2024. A report released by property firm OrangeTee Group on Feb 11 also predicted that prices would have risen for 23 consecutive quarters by the end of 2025.

 

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Two new MRT lines under study; Jurong Region Line extension in West Coast to proceed​

In the nearer term, Mr Chee Hong Tat said new MRT stations or lines will be added here every year from now until the end of the decade.ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO

Kok Yufeng
Mar 05, 2025

SINGAPORE - A potential new rail line that could serve areas in Singapore’s west and north-west, such as Tengah, Bukit Batok, Queensway and Bukit Merah, is being studied for its feasibility.

Tentatively called the Tengah Line, it is one of two possible MRT lines that the Government is looking to build as part of the next bound of its rail expansion.

Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat laid out these plans during the debate on his ministry’s budget on March 5.

The other potential rail line, tentatively called the Seletar Line, has been under study since 2019.

Running from Woodlands to the future Greater Southern Waterfront, it could serve areas such as Sembawang, Sengkang West, Serangoon North, Whampoa and Kallang. “I hope it could also go through some parts of Toa Payoh,” Mr Chee added.

He said early assessments by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) are that the proposed Tengah and Seletar lines could meet at the Greater Southern Waterfront. Feasibility studies will thus look into the possibility of joining the two lines into a single line.

If both lines are found to be workable, up to 10 MRT lines could be crisscrossing the island in the 2040s, up from six today.

Meanwhile, a proposal to extend the Jurong Region Line (JRL) southwards to join the Circle Line (CCL) has been given the go-ahead, a decade after it was mooted, Mr Chee announced.

Called the West Coast Extension, the rail project will improve connectivity in the west by lengthening the JRL so that its Pandan Reservoir station connects with the Cross Island Line (CRL) at the future West Coast station by the late 2030s.

The plan is to extend the JRL further from West Coast station to connect with the CCL at Kent Ridge station by the early 2040s.

Besides supporting future developments, Mr Chee said the West Coast Extension will shave up to 20 minutes off journeys from western Singapore to the city centre.

It will also add to overall resilience of the rail network by providing an alternative travel option.

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Mooted in 2015, the initial plan for the extension was to possibly extend the JRL to join the CCL at Haw Par Villa station.

Discussions about the need for such an extension were reignited after a massive East-West Line breakdown in September 2024 crippled train services between Jurong East and Buona Vista stations for six days.

On the proposed Tengah and Seletar lines, Mr Chee said they can be expected to be completed in phases from the 2040s, if studies confirm that they are feasible.

“It will benefit more than 400,000 households, who will be within a 10-minute walk from this new combined line,” he added.

Plans for the Seletar Line were announced in 2019 as part of the Land Transport Master Plan 2040. LTA had said then that the potential new line, if built, could cut commutes by up to 40 minutes and relieve increasing travel demand in the north-east.

The Greater Southern Waterfront, where the Seletar and Tengah lines could pass through, is a 2,000ha area of land that has been earmarked for future redevelopment.

Twice the size of Punggol, it stretches from Marina East to Pasir Panjang.

The first Build-to-Order project there, which will yield around 6,000 Housing Board flats on the site of the former Keppel Club, is expected to be launched later in 2025.

In the nearer term, Mr Chee said new MRT stations or lines will be added here every year from now until the end of the decade.

The JRL - Singapore’s seventh MRT line - is expected to open in phases from 2027 to 2029.

The CRL, Singapore’s eighth and longest rail line, is expected to open progressively from 2030, connecting major hubs such as the Jurong Lake District, Punggol Digital District and the Changi region.

Noting that rail projects require careful planning, Mr Chee said economies that face persistent budget deficits would not have the fiscal resources to roll out such long-term and large-scale works.

“It also requires political stability, as well as a strong government which can plan long term, and have the ability and resources to turn these plans into reality, because the plans will span multiple terms of government,” he added.

 

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Plans for 8 more parks, another 13km of park connectors in Singapore​

One of the areas that will get new parks is Farrer Park.PHOTO: SPORT SINGAPORE

Wong Yang
Mar 05, 2025

SINGAPORE - To bring Singaporeans closer to nature, another eight parks and 13km of park connectors will be developed here.

During the debate on its budget on March 5, the Ministry of National Development (MND) also provided updates on the Budget Meal initiative and on an ongoing review of the Animals and Birds Act.

The Act covers laws that deal with preventing the introduction and spread of animal-borne diseases, controlling the movements of animals, birds and fish, safeguarding their welfare, and preventing cruelty to them.

Other announcements include a new $100 million grant to help construction firms, architects, developers and other firms in the built environment sector to adopt technology that improves productivity and develop their enterprise and manpower capabilities.

Here are some of the highlights:

1. New parks and more park connectors​

Another eight parks and 13km of park connectors will be built as part of plans to create more green spaces and connect Singaporeans to nature.

With these green spaces, the Government aims to develop more than 25 parks covering an area totalling over 170ha and more than 50km of park connectors by 2030.


Some areas that will get new parks include Farrer Park, Spottiswoode and Woodgrove, while the park connector network in areas including Yishun Avenue 1, Bukit Panjang North and Pioneer Road North will be expanded.

Among the parks in the pipeline is the 72.8ha Mandai Mangrove and Mudflat Nature Park that will beef up Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve’s capacity to be a sanctuary for wetland biodiversity and migratory shorebirds.

A roughly 8ha Teachers’ Estate Park will link the Central Catchment Nature Reserve to Khatib Nature Corridor.

As at the end of 2024, there are now more than 400 parks and 391km of park connectors here.

The National Parks Board said Singapore has met its 2021 target of developing 130ha of new parks by 2026 a year ahead of schedule.

The agency added that it will conduct concept studies for more than 100ha of land that could be developed into parks in the future.

2. Public funding for upgrading works by town councils​

Aljunied-Hougang Town Council submitted the fewest projects to be considered for funding by the Community Improvement Projects Committee (CIPC) among all town councils in the financial year 2024, said Senior Minister of State for National Development Sim Ann.

The CIPC had given the town council in-principle approval for the 18 projects it submitted, which totalled $1.2 million, she added.

Ms Sim was responding to concerns raised by Leader of the Opposition and Workers’ Party (WP) chief Pritam Singh on March 4 about CIPC funding for town councils in opposition wards.

CIPC funds are typically used for facilities such as covered walkways, footpaths, cycling tracks and playgrounds.

Ms Sim said the funds granted to each town by the CIPC depend on the number of HDB flats in the town, the number and value of projects submitted, and whether the submitted projects meet eligibility criteria. For instance, projects that are not value for money or cater only to specific interest groups or commercial entities will be rejected.

Broadly speaking, larger towns that submit more projects amounting to higher values get more funding, she added.

Ms Sim said the five town councils that had the least funding approved to date between financial year 2021 and financial year 2024 were Aljunied-Hougang, Marsiling-Yew Tee, East Coast, Holland-Bukit Panjang and Bishan-Toa Payoh, with approved funding ranging from $4.9 million to $11 million.

Most of these town councils are in smaller towns that have between 39,000 and 53,000 HDB flats each, although Aljunied-Hougang is a mid-sized town with 62,000 flats, added Ms Sim.

The five town councils that had the most funding approved to date during the same period were Ang Mo Kio, Pasir Ris-Punggol, Jurong-Clementi, West Coast and Sembawang, with funding ranging from $14.2 million to $21.1 million.

Ms Sim said these are larger towns that have between 69,000 and 104,000 HDB flats each.

Sengkang Town Council, which is also run by the WP, submitted the most projects to be considered for CIPC funding, with 248 projects worth $30 million.

This is about half of the more than $60 million in CIPC funding approved for all towns, said Ms Sim.

She pointed out that the CIPC could support only 47 of Sengkang’s higher-ranked projects, amounting to $4.5 million, due to funding constraints.

Said Ms Sim: “The CIPC is happy to clarify with any TC (town council) or CCC if they have queries on their rejected proposals. In fact, the CIPC has regularly provided explanations to town councils and CCCs that requested such information and will continue to do so.”

3. Budget Meal progress update​

Privately owned coffee shops in HDB estates that renew their application to use their outdoor refreshment areas from May 2025 will be required to offer budget meals and drinks.

The outdoor refreshment areas are unenclosed spaces that are typically an extension of the coffee shop and may be sheltered.

The Budget Meal scheme was officially launched in January 2024 and requires all Housing Board rental coffee shops that renewed their tenancies from May 2023 to provide at least four budget meals and two budget drink options.

The Budget Meal scheme was officially launched in January 2024.ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY
Budget meals are defined as lunch or dinner options that are typically priced at $3.50 or below, and drinks priced at $1.20 or below.

As at January, more than 60 per cent of the 397 HDB rental coffee shops and about 30 per cent of the 403 privately owned HDB coffee shops offer budget meals and drinks.

Giving an update on the scheme, Ms Sim said more than 80 per cent of HDB flats have a coffee shop offering budget meals within a 400m radius, or about a five- to 10-minute walking distance from a block.

Ms Sim said that the Government is on track to have all HDB rental coffee shops offer budget meals by 2026.

To avoid overburdening local food businesses, particularly stallholders running small or micro-businesses, the Government is also considering a review of the price-quality method used to evaluate tenders for HDB coffee shops.

This review considers increasing the weightage given to quality and consider the fees that prospective coffee shop operators will impose on individual stallholders.

To ensure stallholders can sustain their businesses, the Government is also reviewing HDB’s rental renewal policy to deter overly high rental bids for HDB rental shops and coffee shops.

4. Enforcement powers, regulatory levers under Animals and Birds Act being reviewed​

The Animal and Veterinary Service (AVS) is reviewing enforcement powers and regulatory levers for animal welfare and management.

This includes looking at existing penalties such as fines, jail terms and the disqualification-order regime under the Animal and Birds Act to ensure that they remain effective in deterring animal cruelty and abuse. Disqualification orders bar a person from owning or being in charge of any animal or any class of animals for up to 12 months.

Besides reviewing enforcement powers – such as powers of seizure and arrest – to better manage cases of animal cruelty or failure in duty of care, NParks is reviewing the licensing regime for activities that could pose a higher risk to animal health and welfare and the use of animal training devices.

AVS, a cluster within NParks, is also reviewing disease measures to prevent and control the spread of animal-borne diseases, including those that are novel and emerging. These include penalties to deter the illegal import or transshipment of animals and veterinary biologics such as vaccines, diagnostic kits and genetically modified organisms.

Measures to ensure the quality, traceability and safety of veterinary health products, such as veterinary medicines and animal vaccines, are also being studied. NParks and AVS said this could include establishing a licensing regime and a registry of approved veterinary health products to regulate the supply chain of such items.

These are among the areas being looked at as part of an ongoing review of the Animals and Birds Act by AVS to strengthen its safeguards on animal health and welfare, as well as public health and safety.

The review comes as the number of confirmed reports of animal cruelty and welfare concerns hit a 12-year high of 961 in 2024.

NParks told ST that it needs time to formulate proposals and engage relevant parties because the review covers many areas. It added that later in 2025, AVS will engage various parties, such as animal welfare groups, pet shops and veterinarians for its review of the regulatory levers for animal welfare and management.

5. New grant to help firms improve productivity, and upgrade enterprise and labour capabilities​

Construction firms, developers, architects, engineers and others in the built environment sector will be able to tap a new $100 million grant that co-funds the costs of adopting technology that improves productivity.

Replacing the Productivity Innovation Project grant, which ends on March 31, the new scheme will also co-fund the costs of initiatives to develop enterprise and labour capabilities, such as additional equipment, or consultancy and professional services.

Open for application on the Government’s Business Grants Portal from April 1, the grant will provide up to 70 per cent in funding support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and up to 50 per cent for non-SMEs.

Then, from April 1, 2027, to March 31, 2030, such support will taper off to up to 50 per cent for SMEs, and up to 30 per cent for non-SMEs.

Second Minister for National Development Indranee Rajah also announced new initiatives by the task force on architectural and engineering consultants set up in September 2024, which she co-chairs.

They include a pilot introduced in March 2024 to prioritise quality and control fee-diving, which is when firms bid for projects at excessively low rates, will be expanded to more public-sector projects.

Meanwhile, the Government will review contractual clauses for public-sector projects, such as limitation-of-liability clauses, to ensure a fairer balance of risks between government agencies and built environment consultants. The task force is engaging private developers to encourage them to adopt similar procurement approaches.

To attract talent to the sector, the task force will work with industry players such as architectural and consultancy firms and institutes of higher learning to create more enriching internship opportunities and review the starting salaries for fresh graduates.

It will release its final recommendations in the second half of 2025.

Separately, some proposed changes have emerged from an ongoing review by BCA of a code that specifies design and construction requirements to make buildings accessible to those with disabilities, the elderly and young families.

These include increasing the minimum depth of wheelchair-accessible passenger lifts and expanding the list of mandatory features that lactation rooms, which new buildings must provide, should be equipped with, such as seats and side tables.

BCA said a public consultation on a draft of the revised code has been completed, and it aims to release changes to the code later in 2025.

6. More time for developers of complex projects to start and complete construction, sell all units​

Housing developers undertaking complex projects will get more time to start and complete construction and sell all their units to support them in their transformation efforts.

National Development Minister Desmond Lee said the Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD) remission timeline for developers of such projects will be extended.

MND and the Ministry of Finance said in a release that these projects will be granted an extension of between six and 12 months to the ABSD remission timeline.

If developers do not meet these timelines, the upfront remittable ABSD component will be clawed back. These rules ensure a timely injection of housing supply, said Mr Lee.

He added that the extended ABSD remission timeline will apply to housing developers of complex projects.

Such projects include those that transform Singapore’s urban environment on a large scale, rejuvenate older estates, adopt technologies to improve productivity, or those which optimise land use through intensification or integration with other developments such as major public infrastructure.

​

 

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More subsidies for Singaporeans, amid rising medical costs: Ong Ye Kung​

Healthcare capacity will also be expanded to meet rising demand, even as the Government invests in preventative health efforts for the population.ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG

Salma Khalik
Mar 07, 2025

SINGAPORE - Government spending on healthcare is expected to shoot up from the $21 billion set aside for 2025 to more than $30 billion by 2030.

To help people afford the healthcare they need as costs keep rising, the Government will increase subsidies for dental and long term care, and also increase the amount they can use from their Medisave accounts to pay for their outpatient treatments.

Healthcare capacity will also be expanded to meet rising demand, even as the Government invests in preventative health efforts for the population, such as Grow Well SG, which aims to inculcate healthy habits in children and adolescents.

Speaking at the debate on his ministry’s budget, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said that while the Government cannot let healthcare expenditure rise uncontrollably, “it is very difficult to rein in escalating healthcare expenditure, especially when it is a matter of life and death for ourselves and our loved ones”.

The S+3Ms framework – subsidies, the national insurance scheme MediShield, the compulsory medical savings MediSave, and the safety net for the poor MediFund – helps to cushion patients against increases in healthcare costs.

He said: “Today, seven in 10 patients in subsidised hospital wards pay nothing out-of-pocket, while eight in 10 pay less than $100.”

As part of the constant review and enhancement of the S+3Ms, the Government will allow more Medisave funds to be used for outpatient treatments.

Medisave withdrawal for outpatient scans, such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), will go up from $300 a year now to $600 from January 2026. The $300 a year that Singaporeans 60 years and older can use for outpatient needs under the Flexi-Medisave scheme will be raised to $400 from October 2025.

These higher withdrawal limits will potentially benefit over 500,000 patients who use MediSave annually for their outpatient scans, and around 700,000 patients who draw on Flexi-MediSave annually for their outpatient medical treatments.

Long-term care is another area where demand is growing with Singapore’s rapidly ageing population. Mr Xie Yao Quan (Jurong GRC) was concerned with the high cost of such service and asked if the cost could be capped.

Mr Ong assured him that his ministry has been increasing funding to support nursing home providers, while also quietly imposing caps on fee increases for existing residents. However he also pointed out that the cost of such care has almost doubled over the last five years, from $1.7 billion to about $3 billion today. And it continues to rise.

The Ministry of Health (MOH) will significantly expand its support for seniors and their families by providing higher subsidies of up to 80 per cent and increase the number of people who can get such help by raising the eligible per capita household income from $3,600 to $4,800.

The increase in subsidies will be effective from July 2026. Between now and then, the MOH will provide interim rebates to keep the fees low for Singaporeans.

The ministry is also increasing the number of hospital and nursing home beds to meet the rising demand. Nursing home beds will go up from 20,000 in 2025 to 31,000 by 2030 while hospital beds will be increased from 12,000 to 15,000 over the same period.

This will require more healthcare workers. To meet the rising demand, the three medical schools here increased their student intake to 550 in 2024, up from 500 in 2020. More nurses have also been recruited, with 4,500 joining the profession in 2023 and 3,800 in 2024.

Mr Ong said that while the 84-year average lifespan of Singaporeans is among the longest in the world, only 74 of those years are healthy ones. “We need policies that improve population health,” he said.

One change will be to encourage better dental health. Loss of teeth diminishes the ability to chew effectively, and affects people’s nutritional intake. He said: “A person needs at least 20 natural teeth to chew effectively. Unfortunately, only about half of our older population have them.”

To allow more people to preserve their teeth rather than having them extracted, the MOH will raise its subsidies for restorative procedures such as root canal treatments and crowns for the Pioneer and Merdeka generations and holders of blue and orange CHAS cards.

Mr Ong also reiterated his ministry’s main objectives are for healthcare to be available when people need it, of high quality and affordable. But he acknowledged that they are competing objectives: “It is impossible to achieve all three fully. Something has to give.”

In the United Kingdom, for instance, patients don’t have to pay for public healthcare, he pointed out. As a result, demand has shot up and there are now seven million public patients on the waiting list for elective treatments.

There, healthcare is affordable but may not always be available, said Mr Ong.

Switzerland, he noted, adopts novel medical technologies and ranks top in the world for quality. But about a quarter of the population chooses not to be treated, citing high cost.

Hence it has high quality healthcare, which is not always affordable.

“These countries offer an important lesson – if we are dogmatic and want to achieve one objective - 100 per cent - we pay a big price in the other objectives,” he said.

“But if we take a more practical approach, we can balance the trade-offs, and try to achieve maybe 80 per cent of each.”

A key to achieving this lies in a healthy population, he stressed.

“With better health, we achieve all three at the same time – without trade-offs.”

Hence his decision to roll out Healthier SG in 2023, where people aged 40 years and older have one primary care doctor, who will provide health screening and advice on vaccinations and healthier lifestyles. So far, 1.2 million people, or half those who are eligible, have signed up.

He said: “Health screening and vaccination rates are improving. Discernibly, more Singaporeans are exercising. We are happy with this good start.”

 

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Higher dental subsidies, more people to be covered under Chas for better oral health​

Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said dental health is one area where affordability is becoming a concern.PHOTO: ST FILE

Joyce Teo
Mar 07, 2025


SINGAPORE - Higher dental subsidies for tooth-saving procedures such as root canals and permanent crowns will be offered under the Chas scheme to make it easier for Singaporeans to get these costlier procedures done to upkeep a functional set of teeth.

Subsidies will kick in from the fourth quarter of 2025, with the subsidy caps varying by procedures and Community Health Assist Scheme (Chas) card type.

The subsidy enhancements for oral care are expected to benefit up to 1.7 million Chas cardholders.

Speaking at this ministry’s budget debate, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said dental health is one area where affordability is becoming a concern.

Many residents have told him that they would rather have their infected tooth extracted than repaired, because extraction was cheaper and involves fewer trips to the dentist. However, Mr Ong said that having fewer teeth can affect nutritional intake as it can diminish one’s ability to chew effectively.

He said MPs have asked if oral health can be part of Singapore’s preventive care strategy Healthier SG, where residents pair up with a general practitioner to help them take charge of their health.

A longstanding collaboration between Ministry of Education schools and the Ministry of Health (MOH) protects the teeth of the young. But, in adulthood, oral health deteriorates, Mr Ong said.

“Generally, a person needs at least 20 natural teeth to chew effectively. Unfortunately, only about half of our older population have them,” he added.

This is why MOH will also provide subsidies for 10 preventive dental procedures such as polishing, scaling, filling and extractions to Chas Orange cardholders, who are people with a household monthly income per person of $1,501 to $2,300.

These subsidies are currently given only to PG, MG and Chas Blue cardholders.

The Chas scheme enables all Singapore citizens to receive subsidies for medical and dental care across all public healthcare institutions, participating general practitioners and some 900 private dental clinics. Pioneer Generation (PG) and Merdeka Generation (MG) Chas cardholders, people born before 1960, receive the highest dental subsidies under the scheme.

For instance, a PG cardholder getting a molar root canal treatment in a private clinic can get the maximum subsidy of $594.50, up from $266.50 previously.

For a MG cardholder getting a molar root canal at a Chas clinic, the subsidy enhancement will mean that his out-of-pocket payment will be nearly halved to $370, from $700, said Mr Ong.

If the MG cardholder uses up to $400 in Flexi-MediSave, there may not be any cash payment required, he added.

From mid-2026, MOH will allow the use of Flexi-MediSave (for patients aged 60 and above) for root canal treatments and permanent crowns at Chas clinics and public healthcare institutions.

PG, MG and Chas blue cardholders will receive the highest increase of $487.50 in subsidies for permanent crown treatment. This translates to a subsidy cap of $625, $620 and $615, respectively, for the cardholders.


To strengthen governance and prevent abuse, MOH will introduce fee benchmarks for common dental procedures in the fourth quarter of 2025.

“When subsidy goes up, we must prevent some providers from raising prices sharply and creaming off the subsidy,” said Mr Ong.

Currently, many people head to a public institution instead of a private clinic for subsidised dental care but this may entail a long wait. At the National University Centre For Oral Health Singapore (Nucohs), for instance, the average wait for a root canal treatment or to get dentures done is five months, and this has been the case for the past two years, the centre said.

Patients, particularly those seeing a dentist for the first time, may not know whether to trust the pricing in the private sector, said Associate Professor Patrick Tseng, senior advisor at Nucohs.

Fee benchmarks will enable the public to gauge how much they have to pay, and see who are the outliers, Prof Tseng said.

“The whole intention is to move patients to the private sector where there is capacity… so that the wait lists in the public sector are more manageable,” he said, adding this will allow the national centres to focus primarily on the complex cases.

He said that Nucohs is almost hitting its maximum capacity.

At dental chain Q&M Dental, chief operating officer Dr Raymond Ang said fee benchmarks might encourage some people to head to the private sector for quicker service. “They may feel more comfortable going to a private sector clinic if the polyclinic is full,” Dr Ang said.

Dr Angela Tran, a dental surgeon at a smaller chain Casa Dental, said many elderly patients opt for extraction, because it is cheaper than a root canal treatment which can cost $400 to $1000 and a crown that costs $1000 or more.

With the increased support for the complex procedures, more patients may opt to save their tooth instead, she said.

 

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$600,000 in free vending machine meals to help vulnerable residents in South West District​

The credits are disbursed through the Taste Asia app, which can then be used to make purchases from the vending machines.ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN

David Sun
Mar 09, 2025

SINGAPORE - Vulnerable residents in the South West District will be able to redeem value meals from vending machines to help them cope with the rising cost of living.

A total of 80 machines will be progressively deployed at selected locations in the district, primarily at Housing Board blocks, to provide easy access for the residents.

The machines are part of the Value Meals @ South West initiative, a partnership between South West Community Development Council and Select Group.

The initiative was launched on March 9 by Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong and Mayor of South West District Low Yen Ling at the pavilion next to Block 165A Teck Whye Crescent.

As part of its corporate social responsibility and in celebration of SG60, Select Group is sponsoring $600,000 worth of credits for vulnerable residents to buy the meals from the vending machines.

The credits are disbursed through the Taste Asia app, which can then be used to make purchases from the machines.

Other residents in the district can also benefit from the machines, which contain meals priced at $3 or less.

About 80 residents and beneficiaries turned up for the launch and were among the first to taste the meal options from the machines.

The meals include curry chicken, fried rice and butter chicken, as well as sandwiches, cakes and pizza.

Speaking at the launch, DPM Gan said at least 2,000 low-income families are expected to benefit from the initiative.

He added that while the Government expects inflation to ease further in 2025, prices remain elevated and Singaporeans are still anxious.

He said the initiative is an example of how the Government, private sector and community can come together to build a caring society.

“Such efforts by the private sector and the community complement the Government’s efforts,” DPM Gan said.

Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong (third from left) and Senior Minister of State Low Yen Ling (fourth from left) at the launch of the Value Meals @ South West initiative.ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN
“This is a reflection of the Team Singapore spirit, where we work together and support one another to overcome challenges, and those who can contribute more give to those who need more.”

Ms Low said the initiative was more than six months in the making, and she had personally tasted more than 10 of the different vending machine meals to ensure they are tasty.

“Even as we prioritise the affordability of these meals, we want to assure you that the quality and nutritional value will not be compromised,” she said.

“The vending machines offer a variety of halal meal options. You will find local favourites like wok hei hor fun and fried rice, as well as vegetarian choices.”

She added that data would be collected on residents’ preferences so that the machines will each be stocked with everyone’s favourite foods.

The meals include curry chicken, fried rice and butter chicken, as well as sandwiches, cakes and pizza.ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN
One beneficiary of the initiative is Madam Lim Chwee Lian, a 74-year-old retiree who received $300 in credits to use at the vending machines.

She said the credits would help defray some rising costs, and that the vending machines are especially helpful for those who work late, as they are available round the clock.

She said: “The food is very tasty, and for an old person like me, it’s quite a large portion so I’ll share it with my husband.”

Madam Lim added that even after her credits are used up, she intends to continue buying meals from the vending machines as they are significantly cheaper than those sold at coffee shops.

Also at the event was Ms Chua Wei-Shan, who has been seen walking the ground with the People’s Action Party.

Ms Chua told the media that she did not want to answer questions relating to her potentially standing in the upcoming general election as it may distract from the event.

She added that she was there as a member of the grassroots, which she said she has been a part of for more than 20 years.

 

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Low-income families to get more support for health and housing under ComLink+​

The MSF will also partner the Housing Board to guide families towards owning their own homes.ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE

Theresa Tan
Mar 10, 2025

SINGAPORE - Close to 1,600 families have signed up for support packages under the ComLink+ scheme, where low-income households get financial incentives and other support if they take steps to improve their lives, such as holding a stable job that pays CPF.

And from the later part of 2025, a new model of support to address the health needs of families on ComLink+ will be rolled out.

“We are weaving health and social support together. Being healthy enables us to live, work and pursue our aspirations,” said Senior Parliamentary Secretary for the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) Eric Chua on March 10, during the debate on his ministry’s budget.

“But families trying to make ends meet may find it hard to keep track of medical appointments or need help identifying relevant healthcare services.”

For example, family coaches will guide families to lead healthier lifestyles, such as by adopting a healthier diet, exercising regularly and getting health checks.

For families with complex health conditions, family coaches and healthcare staff would help them develop and adhere to a customised health plan.

A person struggling with poorly managed chronic asthma, for instance, would be reminded to take their medicine, see their doctors as scheduled and advised to change their lifestyle.

The MSF will also partner the Housing Board (HDB) to guide families towards owning their own homes.

For example, when families first move into highly-subsidised public rental flats, HDB officers will help them work out the income and savings needed to buy their desired flat, and the family coach would guide the family to achieve their goal.

The two measures are the latest developments to the ComLink+ scheme, which was first unveiled in 2023 as part of a national push to boost social mobility. A unique feature of the scheme are family coaches, who will motivate and support families in working towards their goals.

The scheme was first offered to families with children living in public rental flats, and about 10,000 families in such flats are now on ComLink+.

Since March 2024, it was extended to low-income families who are not living in public rental housing and who meet certain criteria. For example, these families are eligible for the KidStart programme or their children are at risk of long-term absenteeism from school.

In August 2024, the first of four support packages under the ComLink+ scheme was launched. The pre-school package aims to spur families to send their children to pre-school by the age of 3.

Under this package, each child enrolled in pre-school will get a one-time $500 top-up to the Child Development Account (CDA) in the year he or she turns three. The CDA is a special savings account for children that can be used to pay for pre-school and other fees.

And children between the ages of three and six will get a $200 CDA top up every three months if they attend pre-school regularly.

The employment package was launched in December 2024.

Under this package, beneficiaries will get financial incentives if they find a job that pays CPF contributions with a gross salary of at least $1,400 a month.

For example, each adult with a job that meets these criteria will get top-ups of between $450 and $550 in a combination of cash and CPF payouts for every quarter that he or she is employed.

If two adults in the same household qualify, they will each get an extra $50 every three months. A maximum of two adults per family can benefit from this employment package geared towards encouraging families to find a stable job.

The other two support packages, to encourage families to save up for an HDB flat and help them clear debt, will be rolled out in the coming months, Mr Chua said.

During the Budget on Feb 18, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong announced that the amounts that recipients of the Government’s ComCare financial aid scheme will be increased from April.

On March 10, Mr Chua said that the MSF has enhanced ComCare to reflect “the evolving cost and definition of basic needs”.

He added that recent studies from the Singapore Management University and the Institute of Policy Studies found that Singapore residents see social activities and the ability to handle minor exigencies as basic needs the Government and the community could share in providing.

That is why the MSF is increasing the ComCare rates to support these needs, alongside the ministry’s regular reviews of ComCare, he said.

A MSF spokesman told The Straits Times that regular reviews of ComCare incorporate the latest prices to account for inflation and ensure the sums given are adequate for the “evolving needs” of these families.

The MSF spokesman added: “In the latest review, we took account of the need for flexibility to meet other essential needs such as affordable social activities and a buffer for minor exigencies.”

Those on the ComCare Long-Term Assistance Scheme, which helps the destitute who are permanently unable to work because of old age or illness and have little or no family support, will get an additional $120 a month for a one-person household.

From April 2025, a one-person household will get $760 a month, up from $640 currently.

Meanwhile, families on the ComCare Short-to-Medium Term Assistance (SMTA) scheme will also get more financial help, though the actual sums will differ based on the family’s composition, needs and income.

The SMTA scheme gives families temporary financial aid to cover the shortfall in their incomes to meet their basic living expenses.

In 2023, the median sum for each beneficiary on the SMTA was $370 a month, according to the latest data contained in the Supporting Lower Income Households Trends Report released by the MSF in November 2024.

In 2023, a total of 22,960 families were on SMTA scheme, while there were 3,479 families on the Long Term Assistance Scheme.

 

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More options for people with disabilities to live independently in rental flats from 2025​

Up to 250 PWDs will take part in the two programmes during the pilot period. ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG

Shermaine Ang
Mar 10, 2025, 01:07 PM

SINGAPORE - More help is on the way for persons with disabilities (PWDs) to live independently in the community, with two pilot programmes by the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF).

The Enabled Living Programme (ELP) and the Home Support Programme (HSP) will support PWDs with low to moderate support needs to continue living in the community instead of being institutionalised if they do not have caregiver support and alternative residential options.

Up to 250 PWDs will take part in the two programmes during the pilot period.

Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Social and Family Development Eric Chua announced the upcoming schemes on March 10 during the debate on his ministry’s budget.

He said the HSP’s visiting services will help many PWDs living with ageing caregivers who may be frail and soon unable to care for them. “Without other options, they may end up institutionalised.”

For instance, a person with intellectual disabilities and low to moderate support needs living with an aged caregiver may benefit from services such as monitoring and reminder services, coaching on independent living and social skills, and future care planning on how they can live independently at home after their caregiver passes on.

The HSP will start in 2026.

The ELP will help PWDs who are unable to live with their families and need support, such as lower-income PWDs whose aged caregivers have passed on. These individuals will get support such as basic supervision, financial assistance and coaching on living and social skills.

The ELP will start in the second half of 2025 for eligible PWDs with low to moderate support needs, who may require additional support for independent living.


They will live in pairs in public rental flats set aside for the pilot, where they can receive services onsite for daily living, such as information, referral, and coordination services, coaching for independent living and social skills, and ongoing monitoring and reminder services.

The four sites of these flats will be confirmed in mid-2025.

Both the ELP and HSP will be subsidised on a means-tested basis, said MSF. Clients will pay a programme fee, that will be made public closer to date of implementation.

These plans come amid a push to support PWDs here to continue living independently in the community for as long as possible.
ith disabilities to join pilot for independent community living over next 3 yearsMore features added to S’pore’s transport infrastructure for people with disabilities
The ministry said that as of December 2024, there were about 1,000 PWDs residing in 11 adult disability homes in Singapore - most of which have an occupancy rate of nearly 80 per cent.

Admission of PWDs in such homes should be considered “as a last resort and only when it is in their best interests”, it added. “They should be encouraged and supported to live in the community for as long as possible.”

Aside from the community living pilots, there are also plans to boost lifelong learning for PWDs.

Mr Chua also announced MSF’s upcoming launch of the Enabling Skills for Life Programme with selected sheltered workshops and day activity centres. This will be launched from the fourth quarter of 2025 to 2028.

He said the programme aims to serve PWDs with a single service catering to their evolving learning needs, so they do not have to move between multiple services.

The programme aims to improve the quality of life for adults with disabilities by equipping them with independent living, communication, social emotional functioning and vocational skills.

It will support persons with disabilities who have higher support needs to keep learning, building on what they learned in special education schools.

Mr Jarran Ng’s family has been toying with plans for Jarran, who has intellectual disabilities, to move out into a Build-To-Order (BTO) flat when he turns 35.

Mr Ryan Ng (left), who helps his parents care for his brother Jarran (right), thinks the ELP will help Jarran transition to living independently.ST PHOTO: GAVIN FOO
They have since been approached by SG Enable in 2024 to consider signing Jarran, 30, up for the ELP.

Jarran, a 30-year-old graduate of APSN Delta Senior School, travels to work as an assistant gardener in Shangri-La Singapore by himself. But he has trouble counting money and making financial choices, and his family worries about him falling prey to scams online.

Jarran’s brother Ryan Ng, who helps his parents care for him, thinks the ELP will help Jarran transition to living independently.

“Because I think living independently constitutes a whole multitude of stuff other than just living apart from caregivers,” said the 34-year-old, citing tasks such as operating a washing machine, paying bills and what to do if the electricity trips or appliances need servicing.

Mr Ng, who works as a human resources specialist, said he wants his brother to be meaningfully engaged and involved in the community. He said Jarran used to spend his free time watching television at home, but he prodded him to go for Zumba classes in the neighbourhood.

“At first, he was reluctant, but after going for one class, there was a period where he went every day. When we walk around neighborhood, people recognise him. People say hi to him. And people start to look out for him as well.”

“My biggest hope for him is to live a fulfilling life, to not just be left to his own devices, but to be engaged in things around him, to head out and participate in activities.”

 

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New NHB scheme to provide more support for heritage businesses with at least 30 years of history​

The SG Heritage Business Scheme will be piloted in areas such as major conservation precincts, like Kampong Gelam (above), Chinatown and Little India.ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO

Syarafana Shafeeq
Mar 10, 2025

SINGAPORE – Heritage businesses that have been operating for at least 30 years can soon be supported by a new scheme to drive awareness and boost patronage of shops that have cultural significance.

The SG Heritage Business Scheme by the National Heritage Board (NHB) will be piloted in areas such as major conservation precincts, including Chinatown, Kampong Glam and Little India.

Local businesses in these areas that have been operating for 30 years or more can receive support to sustain themselves in the form of branding, marketing and consultancy services by NHB and other agencies.

Announcing the scheme on March 10, Senior Minister of State for Culture, Community and Youth Low Yen Ling said these are businesses that provide “locally rooted trades, goods and services, and contribute significantly to the identity of a community or place”.

An initial group of about 150 heritage businesses, most of them in the central area, will benefit from this scheme, she added.

She was speaking at her ministry’s budget debate, in response to Mr Henry Kwek (Kebun Baru), who had asked what could be done to safeguard and support heritage businesses.

The initiative will be the first such government scheme to recognise and inspire appreciation for local businesses for their heritage qualities.

It is part of NHB’s Our SG Heritage Plan 2.0 efforts to safeguard Singapore’s cultural identity and heritage.

More details and a call for nominations to the scheme will be announced in the next few weeks.


Other key announcements and updates from the debate on the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth’s (MCCY) budget include:

The Arts Education Programme (AEP), which provides pre-schoolers with arts-related experiences, will be implemented in all Early Childhood Development Agency-supported pre-schools by 2027. This will cover nearly 1,000 pre-schools and 44,000 children, said Ms Low.

The National Arts Council (NAC) will onboard 80 new anchor operator and 120 partner operator centres into the AEP in 2025.

In 2024, the programme reached more than 34,000 children from more than 500 pre-schools.

The Performing Arts-Based Learning scheme will also be rolled out to all lower secondary cohorts in schools by 2027, to encourage students to deepen their appreciation of live music, local culture and heritage.

In the past three years, NAC has invested more than $5 million in talent development programmes, including scholarships and international residencies, Ms Low said.

An additional $2 million a year will be allocated to arts scholarships, allowing more NAC arts scholarships for undergraduate and postgraduate studies to be awarded, she added.

This funding will also go towards a new NAC Creative Arts Scholarship for pre-tertiary and diploma studies offered by the School of the Arts, Singapore, Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts and Lasalle College of the Arts.

In total, this will support about 40 more students to pursue higher arts education each year.


To mark Singapore’s 60th birthday, a nationwide campaign hopes to rally Singaporean adults to donate $60 each, or any amount from $1, to the Community Chest as a gift to the nation.

All donations raised through SGShare will go towards supporting social service programmes, such as those for children with special needs, disadvantaged young people, adults with disabilities and those with mental health conditions.

Donations to SGShare will qualify for dollar-for-dollar matching by the Government. Those who are interested in contributing can visit giving.sg/sg60share for more information.

Our Singapore Fund, an initiative that supports ground-up projects to meet community needs and do social good, has also put out a call for applicants who want to run projects in the spirit of SG60.

This fund serves as the seed to kick-start meaningful ideas for Singaporeans, by Singaporeans, said Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong.

The fund has supported more than 700 citizen-initiated projects with about $8 million in funding since its launch in 2016.

The public can apply for the grant at oursggrants.gov.sg

A new partnership will explore ways to better integrate foreign professionals into the workplace and community in Singapore.

The Alliance for Action on Integration of Foreign Professionals was convened by MCCY, Singapore National Employers Federation and Singapore Business Federation. The group is scheduled to meet from February to September.

Minister of State for Culture, Community and Youth Alvin Tan, who co-chairs this alliance with PwC Singapore chairman Marcus Lam, said: “Local employers are committed to fair, equal-opportunity hiring; they want to better integrate employees and foster positive interactions in workplaces.

“Foreign professionals want to adapt to Singapore’s cultural norms and build relationships with local colleagues.”

Over the past decade, professional, managerial, executive and technician employment in Singapore grew by 382,000, while the number of Employment Pass and S Pass holders grew by 38,000.

The alliance has engaged corporate leaders, middle management and staff from different companies in the past few months to understand their views on integrating foreign professionals. It will develop recommendations on improving integration and share them in the second half of 2025.

4. 10-year road map for cooperatives
A consultation will be launched with cooperatives in Singapore to create a 10-year transformation road map aimed at expanding their social missions and improving the competency of the sector, said Mr Tan.

Cooperatives are membership-based enterprises that are owned and run by members to work towards a common social mission. For example, running club Runninghour became a co-op in 2014 to boost its social mission of integrating people with special needs into society through sports.

MCCY, in partnership with the Singapore National Co-operative Federation, will launch the consultation and engage co-ops and others like youth and industry experts.

Mr Tan said the Government will waive the first-tier Central Co-operative Fund contributions for co-ops in 2025. Co-ops contribute part of their yearly surplus to the fund, which supports their development and growth in areas like education, training and research.

The waiver will help more than 60 co-ops.

A programme to delay the frailty process among seniors will be expanded to more active ageing centres, said Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Culture, Community and Youth Eric Chua.

He was speaking in response to MPs – Mr Xie Yao Quan (Jurong GRC), Mr Darryl David (Ang Mo Kio GRC) and Mr Sitoh Yih Pin (Potong Pasir) – who raised questions about promoting more sports participation among seniors.

The eight-week Combat Age-related Loss of Muscle programme focuses on exercise, nutrition and sleep to maintain or increase the lean muscle tissue needed to function properly daily.

The programme was rolled out in September 2024 in the Queenstown health district, and has reached more than 1,200 seniors at 54 active ageing centres. Seniors who have completed the programme reported better health and confidence in maintaining muscle strength.

The aim is to expand the initiative to about 100 active ageing centres by the end of 2025, Mr Chua said.

More active ageing centres will be able to use adaptive sports – modified versions of games to suit those with mobility concerns – to keep seniors active.

SportSG and the Agency for Integrated Care aim to provide 100 active ageing centres with equipment for five such sports – seated floorball, ladder toss, disc golf, boccia and sport stacking.

 

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New community clinic in Beach Road provides affordable or free care to seniors in rental flats​

Since a community clinic opened in Beach Road, more than 66 per cent of the 1,000 care visits have been made by residents in the low-income group living in rental flats.PHOTO: LIANHE ZAOBAO

Judith Tan
Mar 10, 2025

SINGAPORE – A community clinic in Beach Road that provides free and highly subsidised primary care to elderly people living in the area’s rental flats has seen its number of patients growing steadily.

Since the clinic, a joint initiative by Sata CommHealth and Singapore Health Services (SingHealth), opened in September 2024, more than 66 per cent of the 1,000 care visits have been made by residents in the low-income group living in rental flats.

The Sata CommHealth Community Clinic was officially opened by Mayor of Central Singapore District Denise Phua on March 10. “The objective of this centre is really to ensure accessibility because it is right smack in the middle of a housing estate that is in need, and that is really important,” said Ms Phua, who is also an MP for Jalan Besar GRC, where the clinic is located.

She emphasised that the clinic is also affordable because it is “plugged into our Chas system, and that’s really useful”.

The Community Health Assist Scheme, or Chas, enables all Singapore citizens, including Pioneer Generation and Merdeka Generation card holders, to receive subsidies for preventive, medical and dental care at participating general practitioners and dental clinics.

The colour of the Chas card – blue, orange or green – indicates the subsidy tier the card holder is entitled to.

Sata CommHealth will pay the out-of-pocket amount for eligible Chas card holders, with the amount varying according to current subsidies.

Sata CommHealth chairman Tan Boon Gin said: “Since our soft opening in late September 2024, some 520 residents have visited us until Dec 31, 2024.

“More than 66 per cent of the 1,000 care visits during this period were made by residents of rental blocks. These are the patients Sata CommHealth wants to serve, and we are grateful for the opportunity to do so.”

He said the idea of establishing the community clinic in Beach Road began about two years ago during a dinner attended by the leaderships of Sata CommHealth and SingHealth. This led to the two organisations “coming together to provide accessible and affordable primary care for vulnerable families and seniors”.

Dr Kelvin Phua, chief executive of Sata CommHealth, said the senior population makes up more than 25 per cent of the residents in the Beach Road area.

“We provide frailty screening and our interest is in the prevention of falls, which can have catastrophic results for these elderly residents. Apart from the usual cough and cold consultations, we also provide intervention against frailty, such as exercises and nutrition,” he said.

The doctors and nurses at the clinic also educate the elderly residents about the importance of having advance care planning (ACP) and a lasting power of attorney (LPA).

ACP is a national programme that aims to empower Singaporeans to choose how they would like to be cared for, while the LPA is a legal document, which allows them to voluntarily appoint one or more persons to make decisions and act on their behalf should they lose their mental capacity one day.

Since September 2024, the number of daily patients at the clinic has risen from 10 to between 20 and 30 today.

“We are anticipating the numbers to reach 40 to 50 in the next few months,” Dr Phua said.

He added that Sata CommHealth has its sights set on the Chin Swee Road area for another clinic as its residential make-up is similar to that of Beach Road.

“Once we find the right location, we will start setting up a community clinic there,” Dr Phua said.

 

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4 bus services to be rolled out in Hougang, Boon Lay, Ang Mo Kio, Bishan and Mayflower​

The bus services will ply only a section of an existing route, catering to stretches with high passenger demand.PHOTO: LIANHE ZAOBAO
Sheo Chiong Teng
Mar 10, 2025, 09:23 PM

SINGAPORE – Four bus services will be introduced in the next two weeks to better serve passengers in the Hougang, Boon Lay, Ang Mo Kio, Bishan and Mayflower areas.

From March 24, passengers heading from Hougang Central Bus Interchange to Hougang Avenue 7 will have an extra travelling option in the form of a new “short trip” bus service 112B, said operator SBS Transit on March 10.

“Short trip” services are variants of existing bus services that ply only a certain section of the existing route instead of the whole route. Such services are meant to cater to stretches with high passenger demand, such as areas that are near MRT stations or schools.

Service 112B will start at Hougang Central Interchange and call at five bus stops, namely The Midtown and Block 465A in Upper Serangoon Road, before heading to Rio Vista and opposite Riverfront Residences in Hougang Avenue 7, and terminating opposite Block 321 in Hougang Avenue 7.

It will operate on weekdays during the evening peak period from 5.38pm to 7.13pm. The service will not operate on weekends or public holidays.

From March 23, supplementary bus service 258M will provide passengers with direct connection to amenities such as Boon Lay Shopping Centre, operator SMRT said on March 7.

Supplementary bus services complement existing bus services, such as by extending the bus route or serving only selected bus stops along the route.

Service 258M will ply the same route as Service 258, along with an extended route by looping at Boon Lay Place. This means it will call at seven new bus stops.

The bus stops are at Block 191 Boon Lay Drive, Boon Lay Shopping Centre, Boon Lay Community Centre, Block 185 Boon Lay Avenue, Block 188 and opposite Block 239A Boon Lay Drive, and Block 662D Jurong West Street 64.

The bus will run only on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays from 6.30am to 12.30pm, with a frequency of 11 to 13 minutes. When service 258M is in operation, service 258 will not operate.

From March 17, passengers travelling from Mayflower MRT station to Bishan MRT station will also get a new “short trip” bus service 71A. Operated by SBS Transit, this bus service will run during the morning peak period from 6.53am to 8.30am on weekdays, excluding public holidays, said the operator on March 7.

It will serve 17 bus stops, starting from the one at Mayflower MRT station’s Exit 5, and terminating at the bus stop in Bishan Road, opposite Bishan MRT station.

It will call at bus stops in Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3, Ang Mo Kio Avenue 1, Bishan Road, Braddell Road and Bishan Street 11, including bus stops opposite Mayflower Secondary School, opposite Raffles Institution and Bishan MRT station.

SBS Transit is also introducing a new supplementary bus service 138M, which will benefit passengers travelling to the Ang Mo Kio Polyclinic, from March 15.

Operating from Ang Mo Kio Bus Interchange, this loop bus service will call at four bus stops. Three of them are at Ang Mo Kio Avenue 6 – before Ang Mo Kio Library, Courts Ang Mo Kio and before Al-Muttaqin Mosque – and one at Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3 at Block 700B.

The bus will stop at the bus stop nearest to the Ang Mo Kio Polyclinic – Courts Ang Mo Kio – so passengers can walk to the polyclinic without needing to cross the road, operator SBS Transit said on March 7.

Service 138M will run every 30 minutes on weekdays from 7.30am to 5pm, and on Saturdays from 7.30am to 1pm. It will not operate on Sundays and public holidays.

 

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GE2025 electoral boundaries announced: 15 SMCs and 18 GRCs​

The EBRC's recommendations have been accepted by the Government, the Elections Department said on March 11.ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG

Linette Lai
Mar 11, 2025, 03:13 PM

SINGAPORE - Major changes ahead of Singapore’s next general election will see the creation of one more GRC and an additional single-seat ward, bringing the total to 18 GRCs and 15 SMCs. The number of elected MPs will increase to 97, up from 93 now.

The revisions will see electoral boundaries change in 22 out of the current 31 constituencies.

The release of the report marks a major step on the road to the next GE which is expected to be held in the first half of 2025.

Explaining its recommendations, the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee (EBRC) said in its report that voter numbers have grown significantly in Pasir Ris-Punggol, Sembawang and Tampines GRCs, as well as the single seats of Hong Kah North and Potong Pasir.

This is largely due to population shifts and new housing developments in these areas, it said. Voter numbers in each of these constituencies have increased by more than 10,000 since GE2020.

Revisions to electoral boundaries in these areas had knock-on effects on boundaries in some surrounding constituencies, the EBRC said.

The number of four-member GRCs will grow from six to eight, while the number of five-member GRCs will go down from 11 to 10.

One key change is the creation of a new four-member Punggol GRC. It will take in Punggol West SMC and parts of the old Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC, which has been shrunk to a new four-member Pasir Ris-Changi GRC.

Five SMCs have been taken off the map, while six new ones have been added. The single seats removed are: Bukit Batok, Hong Kah North, MacPherson, Punggol West and Yuhua.

The new SMCs have all been carved out of existing GRCs. They are: Bukit Gombak, Jalan Kayu, Jurong Central, Queenstown, Sembawang West and Tampines Changkat.

Three polling districts in Tampines West, east of Bedok Reservoir, have been moved from the opposition-held Aljunied GRC to Tampines GRC.

Sengkang GRC, which is also held by the Workers’ Party, is among nine constituencies to see no changes to electoral boundaries. The other eight are Bishan-Toa Payoh, Jalan Besar, Marsiling-Yew Tee and Nee Soon GRCs; as well as Bukit Panjang, Hougang, Marymount and Pioneer SMCs.

An estimated 2,753,226 voters will head to the polls this year, an increase of 101,791 from GE2020.

The EBRC submitted its report to Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on March 7. Its recommendations have been accepted by the Government, said the Elections Department (ELD) on March 11.

Significant changes have been made in the east and west of Singapore, where the fiercest electoral battles are expected to be fought.

In the east, the new Pasir Ris-Changi GRC will be formed by merging parts of Pasir Ris-Punggol and East Coast GRCs.

East Coast remains a five-member GRC. However, it will take in 15 polling districts from Marine Parade GRC, comprising mostly flats in Chai Chee and private estates in Siglap.

In the west, West Coast GRC will take in estates from the neighbouring Jurong West and Taman Jurong, which were formerly in the five-member Jurong GRC.

Meanwhile, a new five-member Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC will take in polling districts from the existing Jurong GRC, as well as parts of three SMCs which have been taken off the map - Bukit Batok, Hong Kah North and Yuhua.

The committee, which comprises five senior civil servants, was formed seven weeks ago, on Jan 22. It was directed to keep the average size of GRCs, the proportion of MPs elected from SMCs, and the average ratio of electors to elected MPs, about the same.

The average number of MPs in each GRC is now 4.56, down from 4.65. In the coming GE, there will be approximately 28,384 voters per MP, compared with 28,510.

And about 15.5 per cent of MPs will be elected from single-seat wards, compared with 15.1 per cent.

The next big step will be the issuance of the Writ of Election. This sets out a date for Nomination Day, when candidates confirm the constituencies in which they will stand.

Nomination Day will likely be followed by the minimum nine-day campaign period and Cooling-off Day - when campaigning is banned - before Polling Day.

In the past four general elections, the time between the release of the EBRC report and Polling Day has ranged from two to four months.

 

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New Punggol and Pasir Ris-Changi GRCs in north-east, following rapid population growth​

The existing five-member Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC will be split into two new four-member GRCs.PHOTO: ST FILE

Goh Yan Han
Mar 11, 2025

SINGAPORE – Two new GRCs have been formed in the north-east - the area with the largest increase in the number of voters since the last general election.

The existing five-member Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC will be split into two new four-member GRCs, with a new Punggol GRC created by carving out the estates in Punggol and merging those with Punggol West SMC.

Further east, Pasir Ris-Changi GRC will take in the remaining estates in Pasir Ris and some of the eastern-most parts of East Coast GRC.

The Electoral Boundaries Review Committee (EBRC) detailed these boundary changes in its report released on March 11, nearly two months after it was formed on Jan 22.

Compared to past reports, the committee set out in greater detail its rationale for the boundary changes, which the Government has accepted. The changes will take effect at the next general election - widely expected by mid-year.

The number of voters has increased to 2,753,226 voters as at Feb 1, 2025, up from 2,651,435 at the 2020 general election.

This increase was not evenly distributed across the island, the committee noted.

There was higher growth in Pasir-Ris Punggol GRC, Sembawang GRC, Tampines GRC, Hong Kah North SMC and Potong Pasir SMC due to population shifts and new housing developments, it said.

The two new GRCs in the north-east are largely drawn from the existing Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC, which made its debut on the electoral map in 2001.

This constituency has seen large population growth in the last five years, given the new Build-to-Order estates in Punggol such as Northshore Residences I and II. It will continue growing, with more housing developments in the pipeline.

In 2020, it had 161,952 voters. This grew to 184,593 voters as at Feb 1.

The EBRC hence recommended that the Punggol area of the constituency - roughly demarcated by looking north of the Sungei Serangoon park connector - merge with Punggol West SMC to form the new Punggol GRC.

This will combine some 96,825 voters in Punggol with 26,732 voters from the single-member ward for a total of 123,557 voters.

“This will also better reflect the identity of the estates in Punggol town,” said the committee.

The remaining polling districts from Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC will merge with the Loyang and Flora estates from East Coast GRC.

This new Pasir Ris-Changi GRC will have 100,639 voters - 87,768 from Pasir Ris-Punggol and 12,871 from East Coast.

The East Coast polling districts that come under this new constituency are those around Changi Airport and Changi Prison Complex.

Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC has been won by the PAP with vote shares between 64 and 73 per cent over the years. Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean, who anchors the GRC now, has contested there since 2001.

In 2020, it saw a three-corner fight with the Singapore Democratic Alliance and Peoples Voice where the PAP came away with a 64.16 per cent victory.

Punggol West SMC, a one-term constituency, was won by PAP’s Sun Xueling with 60.98 per cent of the vote in 2020 against the Workers’ Party’s Tan Chen Chen. It had been carved out of Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC then, reducing the six-member constituency to five.

WP may look to contest Punggol GRC in the upcoming election, based on its activity in the area so far.

In its report, the EBRC also recommended reducing the size of Ang Mo Kio GRC, which had the most electors - 190,800 as at Feb 1. It had grown from 180,186 in 2020, when it was also the largest constituency in terms of voter numbers.

By carving out a new Jalan Kayu SMC, the five-member GRC will now cover 161,235 voters.

Jalan Kayu will have about 29,620 voters.

Hong Kah North SMC has also grown significantly, and will continue to grow rapidly in the coming years, with new housing developments in Tengah and Bukit Batok West, noted the EBRC.

“It has become too big to remain as an SMC,” said the committee, which recommended dissolving the constituency into those around it.

The Tengah estates will be absorbed into Chua Chu Kang GRC, while the Bukit Gombak and Hillview estates in the GRC will be carved out to form a new Bukit Gombak SMC.

The remaining sections of Hong Kah North will join parts of Bukit Batok and Yuhua SMCs as well as Jurong GRC to form a new five-member Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC.

New single seats will be carved out from Sembawang GRC and Tampines GRC, which both saw their voter populations grow in the last five years due to new housing developments in Canberra and Tampines North.

The new Sembawang West SMC will have some 24,153 voters, while the new Tampines Changkat SMC will have 23,802 voters.

This will leave Sembawang GRC and Tampines GRC with fewer or similar number of voters as that of 2020.

With East Coast GRC ceding parts of its estate, the committee recommended that it take in parts of Marine Parade GRC - 40,675 voters from the Chai Chee Housing Board estates and Siglap private estates.

It will remain as a five-member GRC with 150,691 voters.

Marine Parade GRC will in turn absorb parts of Potong Pasir SMC given the high population growth from new HDB developments in Bidadari, said the committee.

The five-member GRC will also absorb all 26,779 voters of MacPherson SMC and 4,966 voters from Mountbatten SMC.

It will be renamed as Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC.

With the changes to Jurong area, a new Jurong Central SMC will also be formed, to maintain the new Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC as a five-member constituency.

Some estates in Jurong West and Taman Jurong - formerly in Jurong GRC - will also be merged into the adjacent West Coast GRC.

It will also be renamed to become West Coast-Jurong West GRC, which will remain as a five-member GRC.

To maintain its voter numbers, the eastern-most sections of the constituency that currently comprises estates in Harbourfront and Sentosa will be taken into Radin Mas SMC.

The Dover and Telok Blangah estates from West Coast GRC will also be moved into the adjacent Tanjong Pagar GRC.

With these changes, some estates in Queenstown - which is originally part of Tanjong Pagar GRC - will be carved out to form a new Queenstown SMC.

A number of the new GRCs featured double-barrelled names.

Some existing GRCs already follow this naming convention, meant to better reflect the identities of the geographic areas in the GRCs. These include Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC and Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC.

Hence the committee recommended continuing this practice for the new GRCS - Jurong East-Bukit Batok, Pasir Ris-Changi and West Coast-Jurong West.

It also recommended renaming Marine Parade GRC as Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC.

 

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Joo Chiat hived off from Marine Parade, absorbed into East Coast GRC​

With the addition of the 40,675 Joo Chiat voters, East Coast GRC will now have 150,691 voters - up from 120,239 voters in the 2020 general election.PHOTO: ST FILE
Wong Pei Ting
Mar 11, 2025

SINGAPORE – Voter numbers in East Coast GRC got a 25 per cent bump in the latest boundary report after absorbing Joo Chiat ward, including the Telok Kurau and Opera Estate landed enclaves that used to be part of Marine Parade.

Joo Chiat, when it was part of Marine Parade GRC, was overseen by Culture, Community and Youth Minister Edwin Tong. It is home to the stretch of condominiums on the eastern tip of Marine Parade Road, where Mandarin Gardens and Laguna Park are located.

East Coast was helmed by Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat at the last polls in 2020. The four other MPs with him are Mr Tan Kiat How, who is Senior Minister of State for Digital Development and Information, and National Development, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Maliki Osman, Ms Jessica Tan and Ms Cheryl Chan.

The Workers’ Party (WP) has been walking the ground in East Coast GRC before it contested the ward for the first time in 2006. It fielded a team there again in the 2011, 2015, and 2020 polls.

After former WP chief Low Thia Khiang moved out of Hougang SMC to stand in Aljunied GRC in 2011, WP has fielded in East Coast what has been described as its “second-best” slate or B team.

In the 2020 polls, East Coast marked the narrowest defeat for the WP in a GRC, when it got 46.61 per cent of the vote against the PAP. In Marine Parade, it lost after getting 42.26 per cent of the vote.

With the publication of the latest Electoral Boundaries Review Committee report on March 11, the largest five-member GRCs are Ang Mo Kio, West Coast-Jurong West, Nee Soon and East Coast, in that order.

With the addition of the 40,675 Joo Chiat voters, East Coast GRC will now have 150,691 voters - up from 120,239 voters in the 2020 general election.

A chunk of voters from Siglap ward, formerly part of East Coast GRC, will now become part of the newly formed four-member Pasir Ris-Changi GRC.

The 12,871 voters were carved out of largely private residential areas in the easternmost part of the GRC, where the Changi Prison complex, Changi Airport, and the Salvation Army’s Changi Corps are located. The ward was under Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Maliki Osman.

Another chunk of East Coast that has been carved out is a parcel bordering Aljunied GRC and Tampines GRC, which will form part of Tampines Changkat SMC.

The largely industrial area has just one registered voter, and is home to Safra Tampines and the upcoming United Medicare Residence (Tampines West) nursing home.

A public housing development is set to be completed in the area this year. The Tampines GreenOpal project will comprise eight blocks, with 1070 units in total.

 

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Jurong GRC to be split into four different constituencies, including new GRCs and SMC​

Voters will be split into two new five-member GRCS.PHOTO: LIANHE ZAOBAO FILE

Hariz Baharudin
Mar 11, 2025

SINGAPORE - Jurong GRC, which has been the People’s Action Party’s (PAP) best-performing area in the past two general elections, will be split into four separate constituencies for the upcoming polls.

The 132,272 voters currently in Jurong GRC will be redistributed into a newly created five-member Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC, a new five-member West Coast-Jurong West GRC, a new Jurong Central SMC, and the existing Holland-Bukit Timah GRC.

The new Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC will have 142,510 voters, incorporating 62,424 from the current Jurong GRC, according to the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee report released on March 11.

On top of absorbing parts of the existing Jurong GRC, it will take in adjacent polling districts Bukit Batok SMC, Yuhua SMC, and Hong Kah North SMC.

Meanwhile, 41,404 voters from Jurong GRC will be placed under the newly created five-member West Coast-Jurong West GRC, which will take in some estates in Jurong West and Taman Jurong. This new GRC will have 158,581 voters.

A new Jurong Central SMC will be carved out from Jurong GRC, encompassing 29,620 voters, with 25,668 from Jurong and the rest from Yuhua SMC.

The remaining 2,776 voters from Jurong GRC will be absorbed into the four-man Holland-Bukit Timah GRC, which will have 122,891 voters.

Jurong GRC has long been one of the PAP’s strongest-performing constituencies, securing 79.29 per cent of the vote in GE2015 and 74.61 per cent in GE2020, reinforcing its status as a party stronghold.

A key figure behind Jurong GRC’s strong performance was President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, who had represented the area for over two decades while he was an MP.

Mr Tharman began his political career in 2001 as MP for Taman Jurong and remained a key representative of the area until he stepped down in 2023 to contest the Presidential Election.

During GE2020, he led the PAP team that included Minister of State for Health and Digital Development Rahayu Mahzam, who oversees the Bukit Batok East ward, and Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Finance and Education Shawn Huang, responsible for Jurong Spring.

The team also comprised backbenchers Tan Wu Meng, who looks after Clementi, and Xie Yao Quan, in charge of Jurong Central.

 

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West Coast GRC renamed West Coast-Jurong West GRC; to absorb parts of Jurong​

The new West Coast-Jurong West GRC will remain a five-member one, and will have 158,581 voters.ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG

Ng Wei Kai
Mar 11, 2025

SINGAPORE – West Coast GRC will absorb some estates from Jurong GRC and be renamed as West Coast-Jurong West GRC in the coming general election.

It will also cede estates in Harbourfront and Sentosa to Radin Mas SMC, and areas of Dover and Telok Blangah to Tanjong Pagar GRC, said the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee (EBRC) in a report released on March 11.

The new West Coast-Jurong West GRC will remain a five-member one, and will have 158,581 voters, it said.

This is up from the 144,516 voters the current GRC had at the 2020 general election, where it had that election’s closest contest with the ruling PAP winning with 51.69 per cent of the vote against the newly-founded Progress Singapore Party (PSP), led by former PAP stalwart Tan Cheng Bock.

The report was received by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on March 7 and accepted by the Government to be implemented at the next general election which must be held by November 2025.

It gave reasons for the changes to West Coast Group Representation Constituency (GRC).

They are part of a cascade triggered by the growth of new estates in Tengah and Bukit Batok West – areas to the north of the constituency’s current boundaries.

The growth in population in these areas means they cannot remain in their current boundaries as the committee was tasked to keep the ratio of voters to MPs largely unchanged from the previous election, where the figure was 28,510 to one.

It therefore recommended re-drawing several constituencies in the area to creating, amongst others, the new Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC.

To maintain this new GRC as a five-member one, the committee recommended carving out some of its estates to form the new Jurong Central Single Member Constituency (SMC), as well as absorbing some of its estates in Jurong West and Taman Jurong into West Coast GRC.

In order to also retain the new West Coast-Jurong West as a five-member GRC after absorbing these areas, the committee also recommended carving out the current GRC’s Eastern-most polling district, comprising estates in Harbourfront and Sentosa, and placing it under Radin Mas SMC.

It also recommended moving polling districts in Dover and Telok Blangah estates into the adjacent Tanjong Pagar GRC.

The areas the new West Coast-Jurong West GRC will absorb from the current Jurong GRC are largely under Taman Jurong ward, which is represented by senior parliamentary secretary for Education and Finance Shawn Huang.

Mr Huang took over as the ward’s MP in 2023 from President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, who resigned in July that year to contest the presidential election.

The estates the current GRC will lose to Radin Mas and Tanjong Pagar are in largely under Telok Blangah ward, represented by MP Ms Rachel Ong.

Ms Ong, an entrepreneur, is a first-term MP introduced by the ruling party in the previous election.

The new West Coast-Jurong West GRC will likely be contested again by the PSP, with Dr Tan, 84, possibly remaining on the slate.

He told the media at a walkabout in February that the party expects West Coast GRC’s boundaries to change before the polls, but he said the PSP will contest in the area regardless.

“You are a politician, you fight... I am not making excuses – however West Coast is going to be cut, we will be there,” he said then.

Members of its previous slate, including Dr Tan and non-constituency MPs Leong Mun Wai and Hazel Poa, as well as new faces have been seen walking the area in the lead up to the election.

The PAP team has since the last election lost its anchor in former Transport Minister S Iswaran, who resigned in January 2024 following a corruption probe. He was later jailed.

The team’s other members have remained in place. They are: National Development Minister Desmond Lee, Ms Foo Mee Har, Mr Ang Wei Neng and Ms Ong.

Iswaran’s successor in the group representation constituency remains unclear, but new faces have been spotted in the area alongside sitting MPs.

They are: trade unionist Natasha Choy, Ms Valerie Lee, Sembcorp’s head of corporate affairs for Singapore and South-east Asia, and entrepreneur Ms Chua Wei-Shan.

Ms Chua was appointed acting branch chairman in Iswaran’s ward following his resignation, but the three women do not fulfil the GRC’s ethnic requirements, where the minority seat is allocated to the Indian community.

West Coast GRC was formed in 1997 out of the former Brickworks GRC and several surrounding areas.

It has over the years seen some changes such as the carving out of Pioneer SMC in 2011.

 

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6 new SMCs for GE2025, five single seats gone​

There will be a total of 15 single-member constituencies for Singapore’s upcoming General Election.PHOTO: ST FILE
Chin Soo Fang
Mar 11, 2025, 03:25 PM

SINGAPORE – Six new Single Member Constituencies (SMC) have been created, while five have been removed from the electoral map.

The new SMCs in the latest report by the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee (EBRC) released on March 11 are Bukit Gombak, Jalan Kayu, Jurong Central, Queenstown, Sembawang West and Tampines Changkat.

The five that will be removed are Bukit Batok, Hong Kah North, MacPherson, Punggol West, and Yuhua.

There will be a total of 15 single member constituencies (SMC) for Singapore’s upcoming General Election (GE), which is one more than the previous election in 2020.

The remaining SMCs are Bukit Panjang, Hougang, Kebun Bahru, Marymount, Mountbatten, Pioneer, Potong Pasir, Radin Mas and Yio Chu Kang.

Based on the report’s recommendations, the proportion of Members of Parliament (MP) elected from SMCs will be 15.5 per cent of the 97 MPs. There will be 28,384 electors per MP, a slight decrease from the 28,510 electors per MP five years ago.

In all, a total of 400,484 electors will be voting in the 15 SMCs.

Punggol West SMC has been removed, with the EBRC recommending carving out the Punggol estates in the growing Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC to merge with the SMC to form a new 4-MP Punggol GRC.

Hong Kah North SMC has grown, and will continue to expand due to housing developments in Tengah and Bukit Batok West. With 45,586 electors, it was deemed too big to remain as an SMC. The Tengah estates will be absorbed into Chua Chu Kang GRC, while a new Bukit Gombak SMC will be formed to take in those from Bukit Gombak and Hillview.

The remaining polling districts of Hong Kah North SMC, together with the adjacent polling districts in Bukit Batok and Yuhua SMCs, will be merged with Jurong GRC to form a new Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC.

A new Sembawang West SMC and Tampines Changkat SMC will also be formed in view of the growth in Sembawang GRC and Tampines GRC.

Ang Mo Kio GRC, which has 190,800 electors, is the electoral division with the most number of electors. It will be reduced in size by having some of its polling districts carved out to form a new Jalan Kayu SMC.

Potong Pasir SMC, which has had high population growth due to new Housing Board developments in Bidadari, will have some polling districts moved to Marine Parade GRC. The GRC will absorb MacPherson SMC and an adjacent polling district from Mountbatten SMC.

A new Jurong Central SMC will be formed with some polling districts carved out from Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC.

Radin Mas SMC will take in estates in Harbourfront and Sentosa, which are now part of West Coast GRC.

A new Queenstown SMC will be carved out of Tanjong Pagar GRC to maintain it as a 5-MP GRC.

In total, the EBRC recommended 33 electoral divisions, comprising 18 GRCs and 15 SMCs.

The Government has accepted the recommendations and will implement them in the next GE, which must be held by November 2025.

The report is the penultimate step before Parliament can be dissolved for the upcoming GE, which will be Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s first electoral outing since taking over Singapore’s top political post in May 2024.