COST REVIEW COMMITTEE REPORT (Translation)

Mr Low Thia Khiang asked the Minister for Information and the Arts when the translation of the Cost Review Committee Report will be ready, and why his Ministry has taken such a long time for the translation.

The Minister for Information and the Arts (BG George Yong-Boon Yeo): Mr Speaker, Sir, the Chinese translation has just been completed. The Malay and Tamil versions are being translated and should be ready soon.

MITA has a small Translation Unit. The Report is 229 pages with many technical terms, charts and tables. The translation of the Report had to be done together with the other urgent work. The CRC Secretariat was aware of MITA's manpower constraint.

Mr Low Thia Khiang: Sir, could I take it that that was because of low priority given by MITA in the translation of the CRC Report? It has taken, I think, almost a year to finish the translation.

BG George Yong-Boon Yeo: Sir, the Report was made public at the end of September 1993. I do not have an abacus here, but I think it is less than half a year. The point is that from January to March this year the Translation Unit was heavily loaded with more urgent work, including the translation of the Civil Service medical benefits booklet and the translation of many important documents relating to projects in China.

Mr Low Thia Khiang: Sir, how many staff are there in the Ministry's Translation Unit?

BG George Yong-Boon Yeo: We have eight Chinese translators and we put three or four of the more senior translators to work on the CRC Report because of the importance of that Report.