Debated in Parliament on 14 Feb 2022.
Miss Cheryl Chan Wei Ling asked the Minister for National Development (a) what measures are in place to prevent discriminatory practice in the rental market of HDB flats to minorities; and (b) with newer HDB BTOs having a smaller number of units per precinct, how does this affect the ethnic integration policy quota percentage by block and neighbourhood.
For HDB flat rental transactions facilitated by property agents, CEA's regulatory guidelines require property agents to be sensitive to the multiracial, multi-religious and multicultural nature of Singapore's society. Property agents who fail to comply with these guidelines can be issued a written warning or be subject to disciplinary action which may result in financial penalties, suspension or revocation of their licence or registration.
Members of the public can lodge a complaint with CEA if they come across any potentially offensive or discriminatory advertisements by property agents. Nonetheless, the rental of residential properties in the open market is, ultimately, a private agreement between the property owner and the tenant. Similar to how a tenant has the freedom to choose his accommodation, a landlord has the right to decide whom he would like to rent his property to. While we have a framework that protects the rights of all Singaporeans, we cannot rely on the law in every instance and will need to continue to deepen mutual understanding and empathy across different groups to build mutual trust, respect and understanding in our community.
The Ethnic Integration Policy (EIP) limits are applied at the block and neighbourhood levels. These EIP limits do not differ according to the number of units in each precinct. The sale of all new BTO flats is also subject to the EIP limits to ensure that HDB neighbourhoods continue to have a balanced ethnic mix even as new projects are added to the neighbourhood.
PAPERCUTS