FOREIGN CONSULTANTS TO GOVERNMENT AND/OR STATUTORY BOARDS (Number and fees paid)

Mr Chiam See Tong asked the Prime Minister for the period from 1997 to the present date, (a) how many foreign consultants have the Government and/or statutory boards consulted; and (b) what were the fees paid to them.

BG Lee Hsien Loong (for the Prime Minister): Mr Speaker, Sir, the Government is constantly grappling with new, complex issues in a rapidly changing environment. Ministries and statutory boards engage external consultants when they lack internal expertise and experience in these new issues, or when an external view will be helpful. External consultants can bring knowledge of best practices from all over the world. In some cases, such as the liberalisation of the telecommunications and power industries, external consultants have acquired considerable proprietary expert knowledge, gained from having worked on similar projects in other countries. They can therefore provide valuable inputs to Government agencies formulating policies to meet our needs and conditions.

However, the Government does not track how many external consultants Ministries or statutory boards engage, or how many of these consultants are foreign. Government agencies make no distinction between local or foreign consultants. Consultancy contracts are awarded to the vendor who is best qualified to do the job and offers the best value for money, usually through an open tender. Consulting firms typically work in teams which include both foreigners and Singaporeans, based on their individual competencies and what is needed to deliver the job.

Mr Chiam See Tong: Sir, the key part of my Question has not been answered.

BG Lee Hsien Loong: Mr Speaker, Sir, since we do not track all of the individual contracts for consultants, I do not have a total tally.

Mr Chiam See Tong: Does the Government have the same problem as the recent problem in Thailand where the Ministers over there objected to the high fees to be paid to a foreign consultant there?

BG Lee Hsien Loong: Mr Speaker, Sir, I am not sure whether in Thailand the Minister or the MP complained. In Singapore, when we engage consultants or when we spend any Government money, it is a very careful decision. There are tender procedures which have to be followed. We must satisfy ourselves that this is money spent on a good purpose which is worthwhile doing and furthermore, that the price is reasonable. There are procedures for approving all these Government expenditures. If it is going to be very large or likely to be contentious, the Cabinet is aware of it, and there have not been cases where the Cabinet has argued over whether it is worth spending the money.

Mr Chiam See Tong: Can the Minister tell us whether or not they have paid consultants up to $1.5 million at a time?

BG Lee Hsien Loong: I do not have an off-hand answer, but I would not be surprised if we have had consultancy projects which are worth more than that. For example, when we first designed the MRT system, we engaged several sets of consultants and I imagine we must have paid them several million dollars. Column 2072;