Debated in Parliament on 14 Sep 2021.
Mr Lim Biow Chuan asked the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment in view of the “code red for humanity” warning in the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s latest report (a) whether the Government will bring forward the targets in the Singapore Green Plan 2030; and (b) whether there will be an introduction of more incentives for electric vehicles ahead of schedule.
The latest report from the Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is a sobering assessment of the grave threats posed by climate change. Singapore remains fundamentally vulnerable to the impact of climate change.
Senior Minister Teo, who chairs the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Climate Change, outlined Singapore’s Considered, Committed and Collective approach to climate action at this year’s Committee of Supply debates. As a small city-state with limited land and alternative energy options, we face much starker trade-offs in mitigating our emissions. But we are committed to doing our full part in the global fight against climate change.
Our ambitious climate goals have real impact on Singapore’s development and the lives of Singaporeans and are made after careful and coordinated planning. Last year, we submitted our enhanced 2030 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) and our Long-Term Low-Emissions Development Strategy (LEDS) under the Paris Agreement. Less than a year later, we launched the Singapore Green Plan 2030, our national roadmap towards sustainable development and net-zero emissions. The Green Plan builds on our enhanced NDC and LEDS and maps out ambitious targets and concrete initiatives over the next decade.
The Member has asked if we would review our initiatives and targets in light of the latest IPCC findings. Our initiatives and targets are not static. We are pressing ahead decisively and gaining experience from implementing them. Where the conditions allow, we will strengthen our suite of initiatives and push ourselves to do more. The extent to which we can realise emissions reductions will become clearer, as technology evolves and matures, and as the modalities for international cooperation and collaboration become formalised. We are making efforts on both fronts. We are investing and working with key partners on low-carbon technologies and solutions, such as hydrogen. We are also working hard on the international front to advocate for a multilateral, rules-based approach to address climate change and to foster collaboration in areas like carbon markets and regional energy grids that will support our push for decarbonisation.
In the meantime, we are advancing our efforts to transform our industry, economy and society to be more energy- and carbon-efficient.
For the transport sector, we will tackle emissions systematically by limiting our vehicle population, reducing traffic congestion and promoting the switch from internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles to cleaner vehicles, such as electric vehicles (EVs). Today, there are several schemes, including the enhanced Vehicular Emission Scheme (VES) and early adoption incentives, to narrow the cost differential between ICE vehicles and EVs. We have seen early signs of increased adoption of EVs and will monitor whether further incentives are necessary. We have accelerated plans for the nationwide deployment of charging infrastructure and set a target of 60,000 charging points by 2030. LTA recently launched an EV Common Charger Grant to co-fund charger installation costs at non-landed private residences, as an early adoption incentive. As explained earlier, we will review our schemes and programmes regularly.
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