LOCAL GOVERNMENT INTEGRATION BILL

Order for Second Reading read.

7.08 p.m.

The Minister for Finance (Dr Goh Keng Swee): Sir, I have His Excellency the Yang di-Pertuan Negara's recommendation that the Bill be proceeded with. I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time."

Sir, you will recall that the integration of the City Council into the Central Government was a major administrative reform undertaken by the P.A.P. Government. The physical integration of the City Council, other than the three trading departments, has been in progress since 1st January, 1961, by means of the Financial Integration Ordinance. By means of the Public Utilities Ordinance, 1963, which was passed at the last sitting, the three trading departments were incorporated into a Public Utilities Board which was appointed with effect from 1st May this year.

These major administrative reforms are in accordance with the pledge of the Party to bring about smoother and more efficient public service to serve the people of the State. In the process, duplication of functions which previously had existed has been removed, and it is expected that in the long run economies would be effected and efficiency raised.

Sir, the Bill before the House is complementary to the Public Utilities Ordinance, already mentioned, and provides for the transfer to the Government with retrospective effect from 1st January, 1961, of all assets as well as liabilities and employees of the City Council and the Rural Board other than those transferred to the Public Utilities Board. This transfer and integration is spelt out in Part I of the Bill. It also enacts in Parts II to VII and IX all provisions of the Local Government Ordinance, 1957, relating to streets, sewerage, public health, etc. - matters which hitherto have been within the jurisdiction of the City Council and the Rural Board - and vests the various statutory powers in Government officers.

Part VIII, which establishes District Offices and gives certain powers to District Officers, is the only new provision in the Bill. The principal function of District Officers is to ensure the adequacy of various services provided in the districts to receive representations, and generally to act as liaison officers in the districts with respect to matters coming within their jurisdiction.

The enactment of this Bill will formally complete the Government's policy of integrating Local Authorities into a central administration. Since the Explanatory Statement gives the objectives and reasons for the Bill, I shall confine my remarks to the personnel and finance aspects of the Bill and to some of those changes which have been made to the Bill since it lay on this Table. The Select Committee deliberating upon the original Bill reported back with two amendments - one to clause 2 and the other one to clause 12 - as found in columns 543 and 544 in the Select Committee's published Report No. 10 of 20th September, 1962.

The Bill provides that all employees of the City Council who are not transferred to the Public Utilities Board shall be transferred to the service of the Government at the same rate of pay or as near as may be the same conditions of service as those on which they were employed by the City Council. Upon the coming into operation of this Ordinance, these employees will become civil servants and will be legally governed by Government regulations and by the Constitution. But it is our intention, in so far as salaries are concerned, that all serving officers on the permanent establishment of the City Council shall be allowed, if they so choose, to retain their existing salaries and salary scales on their transfer to the Government service.

With regard to other terms and conditions of service, it is hoped, in consultation with the Staff Unions concerned, to bring about a set of conditions of service that would be acceptable and which would be patterned on the terms and conditions now applicable to Government civil servants. It is expected that in the process certain minor adjustments and changes may be necessary.

As a result of representation from Staff Unions to the Select Committee, a Board of Inquiry has been set up by the Minister for Labour under section 70 of the Industrial Relations Ordinance under the chairmanship of Mr Eu Cheow Chye. This Board of Inquiry held its first session on 1st February, 1963, and to date has held 14 sessions.

The Bill also provides that persons transferred from the City Council who are already members of the Municipal Provident Fund will continue in membership of that Fund. In addition, such persons who are eligible for membership of the Fund at the time of transfer to the Government service will retain that eligibility if they so choose. Officers of the City Council who are not members of the Municipal Provident Fund nor are eligible for membership thereof will be governed by the Pensions and Central Provident Fund Ordinances in every respect as they are applicable to Government servants. Persons appointed after the coming into force of this Bill will, of course, be governed by the Pensions Ordinance and the Central Provident Fund Ordinance. The management of the Municipal Provident Fund will be transferred to the Government together with all its assets and liabilities, and the accounts thereof will be kept by the Accountant-General. The assets and liabilities connected with the public loans of the City Council, including the sinking fund for these loans, are to be transferred to the Public Utilities Board under the Public Utilities Ordinance, but the Government will contribute to the Board in respect of those portions of outstanding public loans which were used to buy assets to be transferred to the Government under this Ordinance.

Sir, there have been both in Select Committee and as a result of subsequent deliberations by the Government itself various changes and amendments to the original draft. I do not propose to deal with these amendments here in extenso because it is my intention that this Bill should be once again committed to Select Committee for consideration.

You will recollect, Mr Speaker, Sir, that when the original Bill was committed to Select Committee, one of the curious things that happened was the almost complete absence of representations from the public to the Select Committee. I do hope that on this second occasion members of the public, persons, organisations and associations, who will be affected by the provisions of this Bill, will make their views felt before the Select Committee.

Sir, this Bill will involve the Government in extra financial expenditure in the payment of salaries and operational expenses in various City Council departments integrated with those of the Government. These expenses were formerly chargeable to the Municipal Consolidated Fund and the Municipal Provident Fund. These amounts cannot at present be fully ascertained but will be dependent on the services to be provided and improvement works to be carried out by the Government under the Ordinance. However, this extra financial expenditure is, in reality, not so, for in previous years these services had been borne by the City Council and the Rural Board.

It is the Government's hope that when the administrative machinery of integration is fully implemented there should be, over a period, overall savings to Government, in that additional costs from duplication of functions and services would have been reduced, if not eliminated.

Sir, I beg to move.

Question put, and agreed to.

Bill accordingly read a Second time.

Mr Speaker: Select Committee?

Dr Goh Keng Swee: Sir, I beg to move,

That the Bill be committed to a Select Committee consisting of Mr Speaker as Chairman and five other Members to he nominated by the Committee of Selection.

Mr Speaker: Did the Minister say "five"?

Dr Goh Keng Swee: Yes, five.

Mr Speaker: May I suggest seven Members? There has been difficulty in getting a quorum.

Dr Goh Keng Swee: Yes, seven Members. That will be in order.

Question put, and agreed to.

Resolved,

That the Bill be committed to a Select Committee consisting of Mr Speaker as Chairman and seven other Members to be nominated by the Committee of Selection.

7.21 p.m.