STATISTICS (AMENDMENT) BILL

Order for Second Reading read. 2.15 pm

The Minister of State for Trade and Industry (Mr Mah Bow Tan): Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time."

Sir, the purpose of this Bill is to confer upon the Chief Statistician the duties of the National Statistical Coordinator, and to give him more access to statistical data collected by other Government agencies. The Bill proposes that a new section 3A be introduced to make the Chief Statistician the National Statistical Coordinator. His duties shall be as follows:

(a) to co-ordinate statistical activities in Government agencies;

(b) to advise Government agencies in the gathering, compiling, analysis and utilisation of statistics;

(c) to develop national statistical standards and standardise definitions, classifications, terms, procedures and concepts for use in statistical activities; and

(d) to promote the observance of approved national statistical standards by Government agencies.

These duties are similar to those undertaken by the Chief Statistician when he was Chairman of the National Statistical Commission, which functioned up till 1983 as the national statistical coordinating body in Singapore. Section 3A also proposes that research and statistics units comply with the Chief Statistician's recommendations on matters pertaining to national statistical standards. It further suggests that the Minister for Trade and Industry be the final authority to resolve any disagreement between the Chief Statistician and a research and statistics unit on these matters.

The Bill also proposes to introduce a new section 4A to give the Chief Statistician access to particulars or information collected by certain Government agencies and research and statistics units, on or after the commencement of the Bill. This will give the Chief Statistician the required data for statistical compilation and analysis as more data collection is decentralised to other Ministries.

No breach of privacy is involved in giving the Chief Statistician access to information collected by research and statistics units under the Statistics Act. This is because the Chief Statistician could well collect the same data under the Statistics Act. It is an anomalous situation at the moment, in the sense that the Chief Statistician does not have access to data collected under the Act if the data are collected by research and statistics units in other Ministries. As such, he has to collect the same data all over again if he requires them.

As for particulars and information supplied by Government agencies, section 5 of the Act is amended to forbid the Chief Statistician from releasing these particulars and information without the permission of the agency concerned. This will ensure that the privacy of information supplied to the Chief Statistician is respected. Moreover, information obtained under legislations relating to taxation or legislations administered by the Monetary Authority of Singapore are specifically excluded. This is to preserve privacy of sensitive information.

As listed in the Second Schedule to the Bill, seven research and statistics units (RSUs) will have to comply with the Chief Statistician's recommendation on national statistical standards and to release particulars or information collected under the Statistics Act to the Chief Statistician. These seven RSUs are the RSUs of the EDB, of the Ministry of Education, of the Ministry of the Environment, of the Ministry of Health, of the Ministry of Labour, also the Construction Economic Research Unit of the Construction Industry Development Board, and the Statistics Unit, Banking and Financial Institutions Department of the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

In addition, the Chief Statistician will have access to the following particulars and information collected by Government agencies as specified in the Third Schedule to the Bill:

(a) Particulars and information obtained under the Census Act;

(b) Section 3 of the Registration of Imports and Exports Act; and

(c) Particulars and information relating to employment, employers and wages of CPF members obtained under the Central Provident Fund Act.

Sir, I beg to move,

Question proposed.

Dr Lee Siew-Choh: Mr Speaker, Sir, keeping good, accurate and up-to-date statistics is essential for the development of the economy in a country. And statistics provide a wealth of information necessary for realistic planning and research, and for the Government to introduce appropriate policies and measures in keeping with the times. However, despite the assurance given to the House by the Minister of State, there is also widespread concern that some information acquired by the statisticians and provided to certain authorities could be misused and abused for improper political motives. For example, the competent authorities listed in the Third Schedule, namely, the Superintendent of Census, the Central Provident Fund Board, the Trade Development Board, all obtain a great deal of information which would be considered private and personal by many people. They consider it an invasion into the privacy of the individual and should not be tolerated in any democratic country. Today, with the help of a central computer, Government is already amassing a wealth of information, a dossier in fact, of the activities, relations and political activities of the people, especially of political opponents and critics of Government. This is one way of putting the people under surveillance.

There is already widespread illegal phone tapping. With all the information provided by the statisticians, Government would then be able to exercise an all comprehensive, almost spiderweb control over the activities of the people. I believe that there should be some form of control over what information a person is obliged to furnish to the competent authorities, and in turn to the Chief Statistician. Parliament should have some control of the nature of information. And I hope the Minister will consider what I have said, and perhaps make certain amendments to give the House the assurance that we need.

Mr Mah Bow Tan: Mr Speaker, Sir, I am quite amazed at how Dr Lee has managed to turn what is quite a straightforward matter of providing for the Chief Statistician to have access to information for the purpose of efficiency of information collection into one that touches on political dossiers and phone tapping. I grant that there is concern that information should be safeguarded and should not fall into the wrong hands. This is precisely the reason why my Ministry has been very concerned that no such breach of privacy takes place and in fact where there is information which is sensitive and which is not of particular relevance to the Chief Statistician's activities, eg, legislations under the Monetary Authority of Singapore or under the Banking Act, those are already specifically excluded. So I do not understand why he brings up matters such as misuse of statistics, phone tapping and so on. If he has any specific allegations of this nature of phone tapping, I would like him to substantiate those allegations. Otherwise I think he should withdraw them.

Dr Lee Siew-Choh: Is the Minister suggesting that no phone is being tapped in Singapore?

Mr Mah Bow Tan: Sir, I have asked him for substantiation of a very serious allegation. If he does not substantiate them in this House, I think he should withdraw them.

Dr Lee Siew-Choh: Mr Speaker, Sir, I think one would not be able to get easy evidence of many of these kinds of things. Because they are all controlled in certain quarters and, of course, if information that is required is not being provided to us, we are at a loss to produce any evidence. I can assure you, Sir, that in the past, Government had not only been phone tapping but had also put bugs in people's houses. [Laughter].

Yes, they laugh, Sir. I can assure you I had four bugs removed from my house. And I can assure you, if the Minister would like me to produce the evidence, I will produce the bugs to show him, because I have got the evidence. Therefore, to say that there is no phone tapping at the present moment is not correct. Of course, as I said, it is not easy to get such evidence. But just because we cannot get the evidence, the Minister cannot say that there is no such phone tapping at all.

Also, Sir, he says it is a very straightforward Bill, I agree it is a straightforward Bill. But many straightforward Bills have been rendered crooked by the Government.

Mr Mah Bow Tan: Mr Speaker, Sir, I repeat what I said earlier. I would like the Non-Constituency Member of Parliament to substantiate what he has said and to give us facts. I will undertake to pass them on to the relevant Minister to investigate.

Mr Chiam See Tong: Sir, may I ask the Minister of State -

Mr Speaker: Mr Chiam, you are very fond of taking part in a debate after it is being wound up. I think you do not know your Standing Orders.

Mr Chiam See Tong: This is relevant, Sir.

Mr Speaker: What do you want now?

Mr Chiam See Tong: I would like to ask the Minister of State whether the police has powers to tap the phone to investigate on illegal ---

Mr Speaker: Mr Chiam, I do not see the relevance of your question to the Bill that is being debated. It has got nothing to do with the Statistics (Amendment) Bill. If you have a question, I suggest you submit a question for oral answer.

Mr Chiam See Tong: All right, Sir.

Mr Speaker: Mr Mah, have you anything else to say?

Mr Mah Bow Tan: I have just posed a question to the NCMP and I would like his response.

Dr Lee Siew-Choh: What response does he want?

Question put and agreed to.

Bill accordingly read a Second time and committed to a Committee of the whole House.

The House immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill. - [Mr Mah Bow Tan].

Bill considered in Committee; reported without amendment; read a Third time and passed.