RENTAL FLATS (Provision of more options)

Column No : 1987

RENTAL FLATS:

(Provision of more options): 14.

Mdm Halimah Yacob asked the Minister for National Development whether the Ministry will consider providing rental flats which are not as highly subsidised as the present HDB rental flats but yet are lower in rental compared to the private rental flats, so as to provide more options to lower income Singaporeans who find it difficult to purchase their own homes.

Mr Mah Bow Tan: Mr Speaker, Sir, low-income Singaporean families who cannot afford to buy HDB flats can rent subsidised 1- and 2-room flats from HDB. The qualifying monthly income ceiling for the HDB Public Rental Scheme was raised from $800 to $1,500 with effect from 1st October 2003.

Current rentals are very affordable and are pegged according to the income of the household. For households with monthly income of up to $800, the average rent is about $30 for a 1-room flat and $60 for a 2-room flat. For those with monthly incomes between $801 and $1,500, the rentals are $110 for a 1-room flat and $140 for a 2-room flat.

The current income ceiling of $1,500 corresponds roughly to the 23rd household income percentile. In other words, about one in four households can qualify for subsidised HDB rental housing. As for higher-income households, they have other housing options. Nevertheless, requests for subsidised rental housing from households with monthly income exceeding $1,500 but are in financial hardship can still be considered on a case-by-case basis. We will also continue to closely monitor the housing needs of Singaporeans and we will review our policies accordingly if necessary.

Column No : 1988

CHANGI AIRPORT:

(Provision of aviation fuel): 15.

Prof. Ivan Png Paak Liang asked the Minister for Transport what are the commercial arrangements for the provision of aviation fuel at Changi Airport, and in particular (i) who are the concessionaires (ii) how are the concessions awarded; (iii) the duration of the concessions; and (iv) the pricing and conditions of service.

The Minister of State for Transport (Mrs Lim Hwee Hua) (for the Minister for Transport): Sir, there are currently six aviation fuel suppliers at Changi Airport, namely, Air Total, BP, Caltex, Exxonmobil, Shell and SPC. To avoid duplication of infrastructure at the airport, these suppliers formed a company called Changi Airport Fuel Hydrant Installation Pte Ltd, in short "CAFHI", to construct and operate a single set of fuel hydrant system at Changi Airport. The fuel hydrant system includes the fuel jetty, storage tanks, underground pipelines and other infrastructures which are shared by these fuel suppliers to store and deliver aviation fuel to their respective airline customers.

Although the fuel suppliers share a common infrastructure, they compete independently. Pricing and services provided to airlines by each fuel supplier is contracted separately and airlines are free to engage any one of the six suppliers.

When Changi Airport opened in 1981, CAAS issued CAFHI a 30-year operating licence to operate in Changi Airport. Under this operating licence, which expires in 2011, the consortium is required to ensure the quality of aviation fuel from the fuel suppliers, as well as adhere to the performance standards in the supply of aviation fuel.

Although major fuel companies like Shell, Exxonmobil, BP are already represented in Changi Airport, CAAS welcomes competition and any new oil company interested in doing business at Changi can do so by joining this consortium. The admission criteria for new entrants are spelt out in the CAFHI's Heads of Agreement. Any reputable oil company that can meet the admission criteria will be eligible to join the consortium by buying over an equity shareholding from the existing shareholders.

Prof. Ivan Png Paak Liang (Nominated Member): Would the Minister please remark on whether the consortium would be a way by which the existing members can cartelise the business in Changi Airport?

Mrs Lim Hwee Hua: Sir, perhaps, I can provide the following information to address the perception of a lack of market access or price control. We should note that CAFHI is structured as a consortium where the six fuel companies supplying fuel are shareholders and new suppliers interested in supplying fuel at Changi Airport are open to joining this consortium as a shareholder. The list of entry requirements is made available to anyone that is interested to apply as a shareholder. In addition, the consortium will provide its reasons to the applicant in the event that its application is rejected. There has not been a case where a new fuel supplier applying to join the consortium was rejected. The last interested applicant was actually Kuwait Petroleum in 1993, but it withdrew its application before the consortium could send it the list of entry requirements. Another non-fuel trading company, Cosco Feoso, merely verbally expressed its interest in joining the consortium in 1998 but had never formally applied. All said, Sir, we need not fear that the present arrangement is actually causing any artificial inflation of fuel prices at Changi Airport, as our prices are the lowest in Asia.

Column No : 1990

CHANGI AIRPORT:

(Rail and bus transport between terminals): 16.

Prof. Ivan Png Paak Liang asked the Minister for Transport (a) what are the provisions for rail and bus transport between Terminals 1 and 2 and the future Terminal 3 at Changi Airport; (b) what will be the waiting time and travel time between each pair of terminals; and (c) what are the provisions for disabled passengers and passengers with heavy luggage.

Mrs Lim Hwee Hua (for the Minister for Transport): Sir, Terminals 1 and 2 and the future Terminal 3 will be linked by an elevated light rail system which is similar to the system installed at Sengkang and Punggol New Town.

There will be a total of seven point-to-point rail lines linking Terminals 1, 2 and 3. These lines would serve passengers and staff in the transit areas, as well as the airport visitors and staff in the public areas.

In the event of a breakdown to any of these rail lines, buses will be deployed to ferry the passengers between the terminals. However, passengers in the transit areas can still make use of travellators to commute between the terminals.

As for travel and waiting times, the distances between Terminals 1, 2 and 3 are all different. Each trip will not take long at all - ranging between a little over a minute at the shortest to two-and-a-half minutes for the longest. Waiting time on the platforms will range from two-and-a-half minutes to three and a half minutes.

Prof. Ivan Png has also asked about the provisions for disabled passengers and passengers with heavy luggage. For the light rail systems, there will be a wheelchair ramp at each station. In the light rail vehicles themselves, there will be designated spaces for wheelchairs and passengers with trolleys.

I would like to assure the Member that each of the terminal buildings also has wheelchair ramps at the arrival and departure kerbsides, as well as lifts and toilets for the disabled. The airlines also provide assistance to passengers with disabilities. Passengers with heavy luggage can avail themselves of the porter service at the terminals.