The move to ease car loan curbs does not detract from Singapore’s vision of a car-lite society, said National Development Minister Lawrence Wong yesterday.

Instead, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) relaxed the loan curbs as they have achieved their objective of reducing inflation, he said.

Speaking on the sidelines of the Car-Free Sunday event, Mr Wong said the loan restrictions were introduced in February 2013 to put a lid on inflation.

“At that time, inflation was high and a big contributor to that high inflation was the certificate of entitlement (COE). So we took measures to address it,” he said.

“We are now not in a high inflation phase. We are in a negative inflation phase of our economy, so it is right that, given that the objective has been achieved, the MAS started to review and update the scheme,” said the minister, who is also a MAS board member.

“It does not detract from our overall objective, which is to continue with a car-lite vision,” he added.

The MAS made a surprise announcement last month to ease car loan curbs, allowing buyers to borrow up to 70 per cent of the purchase price and repay the loan within seven years, up from 60 per cent and five years previously.

This has caused a surge in demand for new cars, with COE premiums for cars rising by as much as 17 per cent this month. Premiums across all car categories after the latest tender are at their highest this year.

Mr Wong acknowledged that easing loan curbs has led to a higher demand for cars. “Initially, it may have some impact on demand but, over time, this is the right level of sustainable financing for cars,” he said.

However, he also noted that the car loan rules have not gone back to the days of liberal financing.

The MAS deregulated car loans in January 2003, and car buyers could take loans amounting to 100 per cent of purchase prices – meaning zero down payment – and stretch these loans for as long as 10 years.

Loan curbs were then imposed in February 2013.

Last month’s easing brought car loan rules to the level before January 2003, where loans were limited to 70 per cent of a vehicle’s purchase price, with repayment over a period no longer than seven years.

This article was first published on June 27, 2016.
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A new Government move to provide free insurance coverage for both full-time and operationally ready national servicemen has given Singaporean sons a reason for cheer.

From July 1, the Ministry of Defence (Mindef) and the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) will provide life and group term insurance coverage of up to $150,000 each during the servicemen’s full-time national service or reservist duties.

The recommendation by the Committee to Strengthen National Service, made in recognition of the contributions of current and former men and women in uniform, drew positive reactions from those The Straits Times surveyed.

Said Mr Kane Chua, an operationally ready national serviceman (NSman): “This is good news. It will definitely save me money and administrative trouble.”

The 21-year-old who is waiting to enrol in university thought the move was “especially timely” for him as it will alleviate his financial burden when his school term starts.

Since 2009, the Government had increased the monthly allowance of NSmen by $20 to help pay for basic insurance coverage. The new joint scheme, when it kicks in, ensures they will not even have to draw down from this increment.

There are no plans to remove the additional $20 from servicemen’s monthly pay.

Full-time national serviceman (NSF) Lemuel Poh, 21, said: “The insurance will give me peace of mind during my combat duties as I know that I’m protected by default. Compensation claims are more reactive and in some cases not guaranteed.”

Mr Poh expects to deposit his resulting savings under the new POSB Save-As-You-Earn scheme, where NSFs can enjoy an interest rate of 2 per cent per annum.

The joint Mindef-MHA group insurance will also be extended to regulars in Mindef, the Singapore Armed Forces, and the Home Team (Uniformed Officers).

Experts were surprised at the generosity of the move as the total bill “will be substantial”.

Mr Ho Shu Huang, associate research fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanyang Technological University, said: “It shows an interest in refining how they look after the welfare of their servicemen, even if the cost may be high.”

The lecturer in military studies also wondered if it would get the rest of the country to start thinking about insurance protection.

“It’s been reported that Singaporeans are under-insured so this could be a welcome secondary benefit for the country as a whole.”

While agreeing that the provision of insurance was a generous move, Sembawang GRC MP Vikram Nair, chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee for Defence and Foreign Affairs, cautioned against asking for more too fast too soon. “This is a very generous and positive step, but welfare extensions continue to be subject to budgetary constraints,” he said.

Singapore sons living overseas who came back for NS

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The New Paper, Republic of Singapore Navy

This article was first published on June 27, 2016.
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Motorists using the Kallang-Paya Lebar Expressway (KPE) to get to Nicoll Highway often find themselves stuck at the lights almost immediately after exiting the underground road.

This will soon be a thing of the past. The Land Transport Authority (LTA) is building an underpass that allows a seamless drive from the KPE to Nicoll Highway.

The underpass – a short underground road that bypasses a traffic junction – is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

It is expected to eradicate, or shorten considerably, the long tailback often witnessed on weekday mornings at the KPE’s Nicoll exit. The jam has been a regular feature ever since the underground expressway opened in 2007.

The construction project, undertaken by Japan’s Sato Kogyo for $45 million, started in 2012 and is slated to be completed by this year.

In response to queries from The Straits Times, an LTA spokesman said: “The two-lane underpass will allow traffic from the KPE and Sims Way to get to Nicoll Highway directly, allowing (motorists) to bypass the junction.”

He said the underpass is part of road enhancement works that cater to the Singapore Sports Hub and other future developments in the area, adding: “Since 2014, we have already completed the widening of Kallang Road, Sims Avenue, Geylang Road, Sims Way, Mountbatten Road and Fort Road.”

Unlike most underpasses in Singapore which tend to be fairly straight and short, the new one forms a wide arc under the Mountbatten and Guillemard junction. The entire facility measures 300m, but the tunnel section spans only 90m. A similar project is Woodsville Tunnel in Upper Serangoon, completed in 2012.

When the new underpass is completed, motorists from the KPE will surface at the Nicoll Highway exit before going underground again shortly afterwards.

National University of Singapore transport researcher Lee Der Horng said the underpass will allow Singapore’s expressway network to be better connected.

“At the same time, there will be less interruptions for traffic on the surface,” he added.

This article was first published on Jun 27, 2016.
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SINGAPORE – A total of 75 people were arrested in a four-day enforcement blitz conducted by the police on unlicensed massage parlours and public entertainment outlets.

Eight parlours and eight entertainment outlets located at Orchard Road, Upper Thomson Road, Upper Paya Lebar Road, and Balestier Road were raided between last Thursday (June 23) and Sunday (June 26), police said in a news release.

The raids were led by officers from Tanglin Division.

The suspects – 66 women and nine men aged between 19 and 51 – were arrested for criminal and employment-related offences.

Actions were also taken against six unlicensed massage establishments and three public entertainment outlets for “flouting licensing conditions”.

“These operations are part of police’s ongoing enforcement efforts against crime and licensing infringements at unlicensed massage establishments and public entertainment outlets,” the news release added.

Earlier this month, the operators of seven massage parlours were charged in court for running their establishments without a valid licence.

Illegal services were understood to have been offered at some of the parlours.

The police said then that it had been cracking down on massage establishments in areas such as Chinatown, Little India, Jalan Besar and Jalan Sultan since the start of the year.

This article was first published on June 26, 2016.
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