The Lien Foundation's new $2.7 million programme to groom 150 pre-school principals is welcome news, reporter Priscilla Goy said. She added that overseas research shows that school leadership accounts for 25 per cent of a school's impact on students' learning, so effective school leadership is important. http://str.sg/44kf

Minister for Trade and Industry (Industry) S. Iswaran's announcement that the Government is giving the tourism industry a $700 million boost over the next five years is a much needed injection for the sector. Reporter Melissa Lin said tourism growth has weakened and is expected to decline even further. But she noted there are bright spots amid the gloom. http://str.sg/4Z9M

News that four brokerages had been raided by regulators and that several remisiers had been questioned disrupted a week of recovery on the local trading scene. Assistant Business Editor Yasmine Yahya pointed out that attempts to manipulate the stock markets are not new, but this latest attempt reminds regulators to stay vigilant to protect the interests of retail investors. http://str.sg/4ZKZ

Singapore adopted a hardline stance at the United Nations General Assembly session to discuss the issue of drugs. Home Affairs and Law Minister K. Shanmugam said that Singapore will not soften its zero-tolerance policy. Reporter Seow Bei Yi noted that although the war on drugs is complex, Singapore has found a model that works for it and is sticking to it. http://str.sg/4ZLt

Food Editor Tan Hsueh Yun said that any initiatives to groom the next generation of hawkers is to be lauded. But she argued that current ad hoc initiatives are not enough and that the only way to keep Singapore's hawker culture alive is to provide sustained assistance to young hawkers. http://str.sg/4ZBP