Internet Disruptions Due to Cable Cuts

Mr Ang Wei Neng asked the Minister for Communications and Information (a) for the past five years, how many instances of internet disruption lasting more than three hours have there been; (b) of these, many cases have been due to cable cuts; (c) how many users have been affected by the latest cable-cut incident in Jurong on 12 April 2017; (d) what are the lessons learned from the latest cable-cut incident; and (e) what are the measures that IMDA have taken to prevent a repeat.

The Minister for Communications and Information (Assoc Prof Dr Yaacob Ibrahim): Mdm Speaker, IMDA takes a serious view of any service disruptions to public telecommunications services. IMDA has put in place strict regulatory requirements to prevent such disruptions and ensure quick service recovery when disruptions occur. Based on reports made to IMDA under its Outage Reporting Code, 26 Internet disruptions lasting more than three hours have been reported since 2013. Of these, 14 were caused by cable cuts.

Madam, the cable cut incident on 11 April 2017 affected about 3,800 subscribers. Services were progressively restored over 28 hours. This incident was caused by construction works undertaken by several contractors involved in a HDB project in the Jurong area. IMDA's investigation is on-going, and thus it would be premature to share any conclusions or lessons learnt at this time.

Investigations into past cable cut incidents revealed that most incidents occurred because contractors did not follow established standard operating procedures (SOPs). These contractors were also not careful and failed to exercise due diligence when undertaking earthworks. So, to overcome these problems, IMDA has been carrying out regular dialogue sessions with relevant Government agencies and their contractors on preventive measures. IMDA has also circulated "Dos and Don'ts" in multiple languages at worksites to alert workers on the need to exercise due care and caution when carrying out earthworks.

Madam, cable cut incidents impose significant costs on operators, consumers, and businesses. I am told that the telcos' repair costs alone can sometimes exceed half a million dollars. These costs exclude those incurred by consumers and businesses. IMDA will continue to work closely with all parties involved to ensure that the number of such cable cut incidents is minimised.

Mr Ang Wei Neng (Jurong): I thank the Minister for the reply. Would you consider asking the companies that caused the cable cut to also compensate the Internet users who are affected by these kinds of incidents?

Assoc Prof Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: Madam, to begin with the company responsible for the cable cut will be investigated by IMDA and if found guilty will be prosecuted. As to whether the company wants to do a gesture of good-will, it is up to them.

Mdm Speaker: Mr Leon Perera. Keep it very short; we are running out of time.

Mr Leon Perera (Non-Constituency Member): Just a brief supplementary question. Thank you, Madam. Does the Minister have any data on how well Singapore is doing compared to other developed countries in terms of frequency and extent of Internet disruption? And if there is no metric that is currently being tracked, would the Minister consider tracking and publishing that in future?

Assoc Prof Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: I thank the Member. I do not have the answers; I am not too sure whether there is such a global metric. But by all accounts, in terms of connectivity, we are doing quite alright. In terms of availability, that is something we have to look at. At this point in time, there is a demand for faster and better connectivity for the Internet. I will take your point and see what we can do.

12.30 pm

Mdm Speaker: Order. End of Question Time. Introduction and first reading of Bills, Minister Ong Ye Kung.

[ Pursuant to Standing Order No 22(3), Written Answers to Question Nos 19, 21-24, 26-27, 29, 31-35, 37-46, 48-51 and 53-57 on the Order Paper are reproduced in the Appendix. Question Nos 20, 25, 28, 30, 36, 47 and 52 have been postponed to the next available sitting of Parliament. ]