Government Tenders for Public Opinion Polls

Mr Low Thia Khiang asked the Minister for Communications and Information (a) how many public opinion polls have been put up for tender on GeBIZ between 2014 and 2016; (b) how many of such tenders have not been put up on GeBIZ; (c) what has been the total amount spent on public opinion polls during this period; (d) what is the total number of respondents covered in these polls; and (e) what criteria does REACH use to determine if the findings of a poll are of interest to the public and, hence, worthy of publication.

MCI conducts opinion polls to understand public sentiment on issues and to assess public awareness of, and response to, specific Government policies and programmes. Opinion polls have helped the Government evaluate if there are segments of the population who might benefit from a better understanding of a policy or programme. This is in line with our overall thrust of using data to better inform our communications strategy. The data also helps the Government adjust the way it delivers services or implements policies, to better meet the needs of citizens.

All tenders for public opinion polls are put up on GeBIZ. MCI has put in place a whole-of-Government Framework Agreement for Research and Perception Studies on GeBIZ, which enables Government agencies to commission research projects by tapping on a pool of vendors.

Between 2014 and 2016, MCI commissioned a total of 14 opinion polls through the Framework Agreement. On average, opinion polls reach between 1,000 and 2,000 respondents, to ensure that the sample is broadly representative of the national population. The amount spent by the Government on opinion polls is in line with market rates.

REACH periodically releases findings that may be of interest to the public – these touch on topical issues which may have been discussed in the media or other platforms. Such representative polling can help to provide a more holistic and objective sensing of public sentiments on issues.