Flexibility in Ethnic Integration Policy for HDB Flats

Mr Hri Kumar Nair asked the Minister for National Development whether the Ethnic Integration Policy is still necessary with respect to purchasers and whether the Ministry will exercise flexibility in cases where the owner needs to sell his flat for financial reasons but is unable to secure a purchaser of the relevant race.

The Minister of State for National Development (Dr Mohamad Maliki Bin Osman) (for the Minister for National Development): Madam, the Ethnic Integration Policy (EIP) was implemented in 1989 to prevent the formation of ethnic enclaves and promote racial harmony in HDB estates. This policy is still needed, to ensure a good mix of residents of different races in different neigbourhoods and blocks of an HDB estate.

The EIP limits are consistently applied across all ethnic groups. Currently, only 11% or 18 of HDB neighbourhoods are affected by the EIP limits. For these neighbourhoods, flat sellers are usually still able to secure buyers from the eligible ethnic groups given the large volume of resale transactions annually. For owners facing financial difficulties and cannot service their mortgage, HDB has various financial assistance measures to assist them.

Mr Hri Kumar Nair (Bishan-Toa Payoh): Mdm Speaker, I thank the Minister of State for his response. I have had instances of residents coming to me saying that they are unable to sell their flats which have been on the market, in one case, for at least eight months, because they did not receive offers from persons of the relevant race. In cases like that, where they can demonstrate that they did not receive offers, will HDB exercise some flexibility?

Dr Mohamad Maliki Bin Osman: Madam, we will look at appeal cases on a case-by-case basis, but our observation is that for those cases affected by EIP, often times, it depends on the practical nature of the asking price. We noticed that in many cases that are affected by EIP, at the end of the day, they are able to sell their flats. Majority of the cases that are affected by EIP are being sold either at or above valuation. The way we look at it is: we want to try to encourage these families to look at the conditions of their flats and to try their best to find buyers.

Yes, I understand that sometimes they are not able to receive any offers, but when we look deeper, often times, it is due to the kinds of prices that they are prepared to receive. The prices that they are prepared to offer are also dependent on the characteristics of the flats. If we looked at the figures, even in the Member's constituency in Bishan-Toa Payoh, the majority of flats that are affected by EIP have been able to be sold by sellers at or even above valuation. There are also flats that are not affected by EIP that were sold at below valuation. So, I think the EIP alone is not one of the key factors in determining whether the seller is able to sell their flats. We recognise that some face more challenges than others but, by and large, our data show that it is not impossible for them to be able to find the buyers of the necessary ethnic group.

Mr Gan Thiam Poh (Pasir Ris-Punggol): Thank you, Mdm Speaker. May I know whether the Minister of State will consider extending the EIP to private estates and private and executive condominiums?

Dr Mohamad Maliki Bin Osman: Madam, I think the laughter from the other Members of the House reflects the answer. It is beyond the Government at this point in time. We understand the importance of the EIP and because 90% of Singaporeans live in public housing estates, we want to ensure that the ethnic mix is useful for our society to continue to function. Within private housing estates and condominiums, these units are bound by the Management Councils' regulations. We will leave it at that. But we hope that Singaporeans will also be able to appreciate the mix that is required and that it would come naturally in the private estates. We hope that Members will continue to support the EIP within the HDB estates.