Debated in Parliament on 9 Jul 2018.
Mr Gan Thiam Poh asked the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources what can the Ministry do to ensure that the food prices at hawker centres and coffee shops in new estates, such as Sengkang, Tampines and Sembawang are comparable to those in mature estates as shown in the Makan Index.
The Makan Index, developed by the Institute of Policy Studies, is based on the average prices of five food types observed at selected hawker centres, food courts and coffee shops. The Government does not regulate the prices of food sold in coffee shops, food courts or hawker centres.
Nevertheless, my Ministry ensures that affordable food options are available at all our hawker centres, including those in new estates. To moderate stall rentals and prevent rent-seeking behaviour, my Ministry has disallowed the subletting of stalls. We have also removed the reserve rent in our monthly stall tender exercises. This means that even if the bidding price for these vacant stalls is below market price, the National Environment Agency (NEA) will allocate the vacant stall to the highest bidder as long as there are competitive bids. About 40% of cooked food stalls have been awarded at bids that are below 85% of the assessed market rent.
To assist stall holders with rising manpower costs, we are deploying productivity measures, such as centralised dishwashing, automated tray return, e-payment options, and kitchen automation in our hawker centres. These initiatives will reduce the workload of the hawkers and allow them to focus on food preparation and cooking, especially during peak hours. In addition, NEA has approved more than a hundred applications worth about $214,000 since the Hawkers' Productivity Grant was launched in October 2017 to assist hawkers adopt stall-level productivity measures. Those who have benefited from the grant have given feedback that the equipment helps to reduce food preparation time significantly.
The availability of numerous stalls allows consumers to compare food prices and take into account affordability in their purchase decisions at hawker centres. This also helps to moderate the increase in food prices.
We are committed to upholding the role of hawker centres as community dining rooms in both mature and new estates so that Singaporeans from all walks of life can enjoy food at affordable prices. We announced in 2015 that 20 new hawker centres with approximately 800 stalls will be built by 2027. Some of these new hawker centres will be located in new towns, such as Sengkang, Tampines and Sembawang. The managing agents appointed to run these new centres will be required to provide affordable food options. An example is Hawker Centre @ Our Tampines Hub, where hawkers selling local food offer at least one meal option priced at $2.80 or less.
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