ADDITIONAL AREAS FOR ASSESSMENT IN TOWN COUNCIL REPORT

ADDITIONAL AREAS FOR ASSESSMENT IN TOWN COUNCIL REPORT

3.

Mdm Ho Geok Choo asked the Minister for National Development whether the recent Town Council Management Report is exhaustive and should the areas of assessment include more areas of concern besides arrears, sinking funds and cleanliness.

Mr Mah Bow Tan: The aims of the Town Council Management Report (TCMR) are to:

(a) Provide residents with basic information about the key areas of estate management; and

(b) Facilitate discussions between Town Councils (TCs) and residents about how they can jointly achieve the desired level of upkeep of their estates over time.

To keep it simple, the first report did not attempt to be comprehensive at the first instance but focused on the "bread and butter" functions that are applicable to all TCs. It covers six indicators under the four areas of estate cleanliness, estate maintenance, lift performance and management of arrears in service & conservancy charges (S&CC).

Besides their relevance to TCs, the six indicators were chosen because they can be readily measured objectively. The data for four indicators come from TCs themselves while data for two indicators are obtained from HDB's estate inspections, which TCs are invited to attend.

It is possible that some residents' views of their towns may be different from that as assessed under the TCMR. This is understandable as residents' personal experiences may not always be congruent with the TCMR scores, which are averages of sample blocks. In addition, since only a proportion of the blocks can be inspected for each report, the TCMR results would have to be monitored over time to fully gauge a town's performance.

Over time, we will review and enhance the TCMR to inform residents about more aspects of their towns. Other possible indicators include the management of potential killer litter and adequacy of sinking funds. As financial needs can vary significantly across towns, depending on their plans and property profile, we are mindful that any additional indicator should provide information that is helpful for TCs' engagement with their residents.

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