The Managing for Excellence Directorate, Ministry of Finance, will be holding the POWER Award Ceremony at the Institute of Public Administration and Management Auditorium on Friday, 25 April 2003 at 9.00 am. Mr Eddie Teo, Permanent Secretary of the Prime Minister’s Office, will be presenting the awards.

The POWER Award is given out twice yearly to recognise Ministries that are responsive to public feedback and proactive in reviewing their rules. The objective is to reduce Government bureaucracy and improve the quality of service to the public. The Ministries are judged on their responsiveness to feedback and proactiveness in cutting bureaucracy and streamlining processes. Details of the POWER Award are at Appendix 4.

This is the fourth consecutive time that MND has won the POWER Award. In keeping with our ongoing efforts to make Singapore an attractive place to live, work and play, MND will adopt a lighter regulatory touch in our continuous efforts to review policies and to reduce or simplify our rules and regulations. MND welcomes feedback from the public on how we can further streamline our processes and improve our service standards. Below are some examples of initiatives undertaken by the MND Family:

HDB has reviewed the procedure for change in trade and/or company’s name, cutting down the processing time from 28 days to just 1 day.

Previously, tenants have to obtain HDB’s prior approval before they change trades and/or company’s name. This took about 14 days to process. Upon approval, appointment will be arranged for the tenants to come to HDB for the signing of an agreement and payment of stamp duty before the changes take effect. This may take up to another 14 days.

HDB has identified a wide range of trades that are allowed in HDB shops. Shop tenants who wish to engage in a trade in the approved list or change their company’s name need only to notify HDB through a standard notification form. Upon receipt of the forms and payment, HDB will issue an acknowledgement letter on the same day and the tenants can commence their business in the new trades or company’s name immediately.

The change in procedure has made it easier for shop tenants to change trade and/or change company’s name. It saves them the need of multiple trips to HDB Hub to first submit their application and then sign the agreement. It also enables shop tenants to start new trades and operate under a new name much earlier.

The Building Control Act requires the approval of a permit to carry out building works after the plans are approved. To facilitate productivity in the industry, BCA has allowed plans to be submitted for approval progressively and in stages so that construction need not be delayed. Examples of the stages of submission for a typical project include piling, sub-structure, super-structure and roof truss. At each stage, the relevant plans are submitted for approval together with an application for a permit. The industry was familiar with the process and had no issue with them.

However, as part of service improvement, BCA reviewed these procedures with a view to make the system more "pro-business" and to facilitate the deregulation policy. Resulting from the review, BCA rolled out the One Permit System on 1 Sept 2002 to simplify and streamline the procedures. The new system was introduced after a review confirmed that the simplified procedures do not compromise the necessary controls for ensuring safety and compliance with statutory requirements.

Essentially, the One-Permit System did away with the multiple-permits process. In the new system, only one permit is granted in a project, corresponding with the submission of the first set of plans. That permit remains valid and in force for all subsequent submissions of plans for the project. Works in subsequent stages may be carried out immediately after the plans are approved.

Feedback from the industry after implementation has been positive.

As the national planning authority, URA’s mission is to make Singapore a great place to work, live and play. To do that, URA has translated the planning visions and intentions in the Concept Plan and the Master Plan into a set of rules to guide and facilitate developments.

To ensure that the development rules and guidelines are reflective of the needs of the various stakeholders, URA constantly gets feedback from them. URA recently went one step further in this feedback process by adapting MOF’s POWER session to also involve the private sector and members of the public in the review of its rules.

Last year, URA held two POWER sessions. The sessions brought together private architects, real estate developers, real estate consultants and members of the public, making URA the first to bring POWER beyond the public sector.

A total of 30 rules related to industrial developments and flats & condominiums, was reviewed; out of which 23 recommendations made by the participants were accepted.

Through POWER, URA has taken the partnership process with our customers and stakeholders to a higher level of engagement.

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A pro-business environment is important to our economic growth. MTI and its agencies aim to be at the forefront in the fight against red-tape, removing regulation impediments and reducing compliance cost for all businesses. In this regard, MTI is honored to be a recipient of this year’s POWER Award. The examples below showcase some of the initiatives undertaken by MTI agencies during the qualifying period (Jul-Dec 02).

JTC has carried out a comprehensive rules buster exercise in 2002, with a clear policy intent to move from "control to facilitation" and to create a pro-enterprise environment. As a result, about 30% out of the 80-120 rules and regulations in the lease/tenancy agreement would be dropped or turned into guidelines/best practices in the customer handbook. Lower regulatory burden will lead to cost savings. JTC tenants will also enjoy greater latitude in their business dealings and greater business flexibility.

Implementation of the recommendations is in progress, starting with tenants in JTC’s flatted factory since July 2002, and extending to the rest of JTC lessees/tenants from 2003 onwards. Examples of rules dropped or relaxed include:

1. Flatted factory tenants can now start operation after the installation of the machinery without having to seek a final inspection from JTC.
2. Flatted factory tenants and land lessees are allowed greater flexibility on the usage of the lease space. Previously, they have to maintain full and continuous occupancy of their premises throughout their tenancy.
3. Land lessees no longer have to complete upgrading their facilities within 18 months to qualify for their 2nd lease term.

In the past, before JTC lessees could carry out works on new and existing JTC premises, they had to seek plan endorsement from JTC as landowner first and subsequently, submit the development plan to obtain Written Permission from URA. The entire process would take 10 to 12 weeks. Lessees also had to pay plan fees to URA based on the GFA of the development, which could be substantial if the development was major.

JTC has worked with URA to rationalise the entire process and launched the Lodgement Scheme, whereby the approval process is now "one stop". Henceforth, lessees need to submit the application with all supporting documents to JTC only. JTC will process the entire application, including checks on land planning requirements (such as MINDEF's height constraints) that were previously done by URA. URA will not carry out any further checking. Upon endorsement, JTC will issue an acknowledgement letter to the lessee on behalf of URA in lieu of the Written Permission.

The fee structure has also been revised. A flat fee of $400/- is charged, regardless of the size of the development, offering substantial cost savings to the lessee. Processing time is also shortened to 8 –10 days, not to mention the convenience and better customer service that the applicants now enjoy, in dealing with a single agency.

Previously, STB made use of two IT systems, viz. Singapore Travel Exchange (STE) website and TRAILS for the administration and licensing of travel agents in Singapore. There were many shortcomings. One of them was a delay in the updating of data, as changes made by travel agents through STE could only be transferred over to TRAILS overnight. Furthermore, the systems could not meet the travel agents’ needs in terms of information provision and the application for certain services such as the application/renewal of licenses.

TRUST was launched to replace the two older systems. It serves as a one-stop online centre for travel agents. For applications and submissions to STB, the procedures and supporting documents required are clearly provided for online. There is also a built in e-payment module to enable end-to-end transactions. On information provision, an updated copy of the Travel Agent Handbook is made available online. Information that would be useful to travel agents such as upcoming overseas or local trade or consumer events, circulars or press releases by STB is also made available in TRUST.

TRUST has resulted in time and cost savings for travel agents. The availability of e-payment facility has helped to reduce the quantity of cash/cheques transactions for payment of licenses and fines, as well as the number of counter visits to STB. With the Travel Agent Handbook made available online at no charge, travel agents no longer need to pay for the hardcopies, which was the practice in the past. TRUST also serves as a one-stop information centre for the travel agents.

An additional new feature is that TRUST has a section for the public, whereby up-to-date information on licensed travel agents is posted.

The primary aim of the CPS Scheme is to ensure the safety of consumers in Singapore with regards to 39 types of electrical, electronic and gas appliances and accessories designated as controlled goods.

Previously, the registration process for the CPS Scheme was done in-house by SPRING. It was tedious and costly to traders. The turnaround time for each registration was about 21 days.

Spring has done a fundamental review of the registration and certification procedure. One of the key changes made was for SPRING to outsource the certification function to third party Conformity Assessment Bodies (CABs). The improved registration process reduces the turnaround time from 21 days to 1 day. The registration fee was also reduced from $280 to $180. Furthermore, the new process is open to CABs designated by Singapore’s Mutual Recognition Agreements (MRA) partners, in support of the government’s initiative of having such agreements in selected priority areas for regulated products.

Under the Electricity Act, consumers have to go through a Licensed Electrical Contractor (LEC) in order to engage a Licensed Electrical Worker (LEW) for electrical work. The LEC will be held accountable for the work done by the LEW.

This was necessary for consumer protection in the past, as there was insufficient trained personnel to ensure the safety of electrical work done. Given that there is no longer a shortage of skilled electricians, EMA has taken steps to make all the electrical contractor licenses expire on 30 Nov 02 and to phase out the licensing of electrical contractors on 1 Dec 02. Consumers can now engage LEWs directly to carry out electrical work without going through an intermediary.

With 1,491 LECs to-date and an annual renewal fee of $150 for the electrical contractor license, the industry will be able to save $223,650 a year in terms of business costs. This will enhance the competitiveness of the industry, with the consumers benefiting from more competitive prices and better services.

MHA recognises that fostering inquisitive minds is a key cultural element for cutting red tape. We encourage our officers to question the rationale for having certain procedures and processes. Conventional ways of doing things that are not able to stand up to questioning should be reviewed and, where appropriate, eliminated.

An emphasis on training and continuous learning

Elimination of red tape will mean devolving decision-making on more issues to our officers. This means that our officers must possess the necessary skills and knowledge in order to make sound decisions. MHA therefore promotes a culture that emphasises training and continuous learning. This is supported by our adoption of the Learning Organisation approach. Our policies and activities are geared towards getting officers to have the right attitude towards training and continuous learning. Senior management and ground commanders also constantly encourage officers to improve their skills and knowledge. Through these measures, we hope to change the mindsets of our officers.

We are pleased to highlight some key initiatives that have simplified processes for our "customers":

1. The New Driving Licence
2. Certificate of Merit
3. Payment of dental fees for inmates at Tanah Merah Prison

 Details on these initiatives are provided at Annex A.

Before 16 December 2002, drivers had to renew their driving licence every year or once every 3 years, paying $20 for each year of renewal. The licence, being made of paper, was easily torn and damaged. There was no photograph to identify the licence holder. Its size also made it inconvenient to carry around.

From 16 December 2002, drivers pay $50 to have a photocard driving licence that is valid for life. It is credit card sized, making it easy to fit inside standard-sized wallets. It is also made of a more durable plastic material, and contains a colour photograph of the licence holder for easy identification. It has both visual and hidden security features to prevent tampering and forgery. This improvement helps to save money and time for drivers. It is also more readily accepted by overseas authorities and car rental companies.

Previously, Traffic Police sent out cards to those driving licence holders who qualified for the Certificate of Merit (COM). The COM is issued to drivers who maintain a 3-year period free from demerit points. There were also no other means for licence holders, insurance companies, car rental companies and other interested agencies to find out a driver’s driving licence status or the classes of vehicle he/she was allowed to drive except by writing to Traffic Police.

Electronic Driver Data Information & Enquiry System (EDDIES) was put online (http://www.ecitizen.gov.sg/) on 15 Oct 02. It is an online enquiry system that allows members of the public, insurance and car rental companies to retrieve and view a driver's driving licence status and eligibility for Certificate of Merit (COM).

EDDIES benefits driving licence holders by:

• Allowing them to check the up-to-date status of their licences and eligibility for the COM anywhere and at anytime.
• Allowing participating insurance companies to check via the Internet if the licence holders are eligible for COM that entitles them to a 5% discount on their insurance premium, at the point of insurance purchase.
• Allowing employers and rental companies to check the up-to-date status of their driving licences via the Internet round the clock and globally.
• Foreign and local business entities such as car rental and leasing companies will also be able to access EDDIES round the clock and from any part of the world to authenticate a Singaporean customer’s driving licence status.

In Tanah Merah Prison (TMP), the payment of inmates’ dental fees/making of dentures is made by the inmates’ visitors in person to the Record Officer, in TMP’s Record Office, which is within the institution. This was observed to be a laborious process, as the inmates’ visitors have to pass through five access gates to come inside the Record office.

With effect from Sep 02, following a review of the rule, the process was streamlined with the installation of a NETS machine at the Tanah Merah Prison’s visit office, which is outside the institution, to serve as a one stop service centre for the inmates’ visitors.

The benefits to the public/businesses include:

1. Provision of one stop service to facilitate the delivery of efficient services to the inmate’ visitors.
2. In line with the government’s vision of cash-less transactions, the installation of NETS machine has made it possible for the inmates’ visitors to settle other miscellaneous payments such as exam fees, purchase of medication, payment for spectacles etc at the Visit office.
3. Cut-down the average waiting time of the inmates’ visitors by 20 minutes.

The POWER (Public Officers Working on Eliminating Red-Tape) Award was implemented by the PS21 Organisational Review Committee to recognise Government agencies that are proactive in amending their rules and responsive to public feedback. The objective is to reduce Government bureaucracy and improve the quality of services to the public.

The award is open to the 15 Ministries and 4 key Organs of State, namely, the Supreme Court, Subordinate Court, Attorney-General’s Chambers and Auditor-General’s Office. It is given out twice yearly to the top 3 Ministries/agencies.

Ministries/Agencies will be judged on (a) how proactive they have been in cutting bureaucracy and streamlining processes and (b) how responsive they have been to feedback.

Proactiveness is assessed both quantitatively and qualitatively based on (a) the percentage of rules reviewed and percentage of rules eliminated, and (b) up to 5 impactful cut-red-tape initiatives, with clear benefits to the public, that have been implemented by their agencies during the preceding 6 months.

Responsiveness is measured by how many suggestions each Ministry/Agency has successfully implemented under the Pro-Enterprise Panel (PEP), Zero-In Process (ZIP) and Public Officers Working on Eliminating Red-tape (POWER) initiatives. This ensures that the Award supports and is aligned with these three initiatives.

Last year, all 15 Ministries and the Supreme Court participated in the POWER Award, which was eventually won by MND, MOF and MOM.

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