No reports of S'poreans affected by HK protests
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) has not received reports of Singaporeans directly affected or injured by protests in Hong Kong, said Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan.
There are an estimated 15,000 Singaporeans residing in Hong Kong, he said in his reply yesterday to Mr Saktiandi Supaat (Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC).
Dr Balakrishnan also urged those travelling there to register with MFA online, take necessary precautions and have comprehensive travel insurance.
More than 2,000 placed in early childhood jobs
In the past three years, more than 2,000 jobseekers have been placed with more than 400 employers in the early childhood care and education sector, Manpower Minister Josephine Teo said yesterday.
They were assisted by two government programmes that help mid-career workers pick up the necessary qualifications and skills for the sector, even if they do not have prior experience.
Responding to Dr Intan Azura Mokhtar (Ang Mo Kio GRC), Mrs Teo said that the Government hopes to attract more mid-career workers to join the sector as it continues expanding.
Valuation of unlisted assets updated regularly
When reviewing the overall risks of its entire portfolio of assets, the Government takes into account the valuation of unlisted assets in the portfolios of GIC and Temasek, such as private equity, infrastructure and real estate.
Second Minister for Finance Lawrence Wong stated the above in response to Workers' Party Non-Constituency MP Leon Perera yesterday.
Mr Perera had also asked how the Government ensures unlisted assets are valued realistically.
Mr Wong replied that the valuations are regularly updated and are in line with accounting standards, including testing for potential impairment. There is also an annual independent audit of the valuation methodology and the auditors have not raised any issues to date, he added.
Govt to automate more IT processes to limit errors
Several government IT processes will be automated to reduce human error, in view of lapses found by the Auditor-General.
The latest and previous audits have flagged processes that require users to manually update and monitor areas such as access and log management.
Such manual processes can result in delays and errors, Senior Minister of State for Communications and Information Janil Puthucheary said yesterday in reply to Workers' Party chief Pritam Singh (Aljunied GRC).
"The Government will introduce systems to relieve our officers from carrying out these processes manually and reduce the likelihood of such lapses," said Dr Janil.
