Senior Minister of State Lee Yi Shyan's reply to Parliament Question on Profiteering of Essential Goods during Crisis

Questions

Mr Desmond Lee Ti-Seng: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry whether he will consider introducing legislation that will allow the Government to impose restrictions or controls on commercial entities on the sale of certain goods during times of crisis, in order to prevent hoarding by companies and individuals, combat profiteering and to ensure that these items remain generally accessible to Singaporeans.

Ms Penny Low: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry in view of complaints about steep increases in the price of essential goods like masks in the current haze environment (a) whether the Ministry is satisfied with current measures against unfair profiteering activities; (b) what action will be taken against errant merchants; and (c) how does the Ministry intend to strengthen unfair profiteering measures.

Oral Answer by Mr Lee Yi Shyan, Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry

The Control of Essential Supplies Act, which was enacted in 1973, provides Government with the powers to control and ration the domestic sale of essential supplies during a crisis.  The President may, by order published in the Gazette, declare any article or food to be a controlled article.

The Act was not invoked during the haze period, as the spike in PSI to unhealthy levels was for a short duration. When the PSI went into the unhealthy range, there was a spike in demand from the public for N95 masks. The supply at the retailers was insufficient to meet the surge in demand, and as a result some members of the public were unable to obtain the masks.

The Ministry of Health (MOH) maintains a dedicated stockpile in preparation for a possible flu pandemic. This stockpile was subsequently released to retailers such as Giant, NTUC FairPrice, and Watsons, to ease demand. MOH is now working on re-stocking the national stockpile levels so that we will be fully stocked should there be an outbreak of pandemic flu in Singapore.

Government has in place various channels for the public to provide feedback on issues and concerns. For example, the Retail Price Watch Group (RPWG) keeps a watch out for excessive price increases of daily essential goods and anti-competitive behaviour. RPWG members come from both the private and public sectors, and include Mayors, business leaders from the retail sector, as well as officials from the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA), Competition Commission of Singapore (CCS) and Consumer Association of Singapore (CASE).

 In addition, CASE also serves as a key partner, providing feedback on issues faced by consumers and following-up with businesses on consumer complaints.   Consumers who come across unfair trading practices can report them to CASE. RPWG and CASE will continue to stay vigilant and take action when cases of profiteering come to their attention. Any substantiated reports of anti-competitive practice that come to Government’s attention will also be referred to the CCS for investigation.