Louis asked the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth (a) in 2015, how many applications have been made for charity or IPC status respectively; (b) of these, how many applications have been approved respectively; and (c) what are the main reasons for rejecting a charity or IPC status application respectively.

Ms Grace Fu Hai Yien (MCCY): In 2015, 86 applications were made for charity status. As at 31 March 2016, 41 of these have been registered as charities and 17 charity applications were rejected. In the same period, 39 applications were made for IPC status. Of these, 30 were granted IPC status and three were rejected. The remaining cases were withdrawn or are still under consideration.

Most of the rejected applications for charity registration were unable to meet registration requirements such as having objects which were exclusively charitable. Some were rejected due to the lack of substantive activities, programmes or plans to demonstrate their sustainability. Others were rejected because they did not have clear intended beneficiaries or because their activities did not substantially benefit the community in Singapore.

The main reasons for rejecting IPC applications were poor governance, qualified audited financial statements, regulatory non-compliance or because applicants conducted activities which were not wholly beneficial to the community in Singapore.

Source: Hansard (Parliament of Singapore)

Louis delivered his budget cut on Support for Institutions of a Public Character that Internationalise at Committee of Supply 2017.

Louis: The Government is providing funds to help firms internationalise and build capabilities to operate overseas. We should do the same for our IPCs. We should support our local IPCs who internationalise, who fly the Singapore flag proudly overseas and who lend a helping hand to our neighbours. Let us be seen to not just venture into other countries to compete, to take, but to also give and to help. Can the Minister share if there are plans to provide this help and, in particular, to remove the 80:20 Fund-Raising Rule for local IPCs who have projects overseas? We should let the public rather than the Government decide on how donations are spent.

Ms Grace Fu Hai Yien (MCCY): Mr Louis Ng spoke about the Institutions of a Public Character (IPCs) that extend overseas to help our neighbours. IPCs enjoy Government support. They are allowed to issue tax deduction receipts on qualifying donations. Hence, there is an expectation that IPCs exclusively help the local community. Where there is an exceptional basis to allow otherwise, the Minister may grant a waiver so they can conduct overseas activities.

With regard to fundraising for foreign charitable purposes, at least 80% of funds collected by both IPCs and non-IPCs must go towards charitable purposes in Singapore. This ensures that resources are not collected from the public for overseas causes, at the expense of local needs. The Commissioner of Charities can and does, on a case-by-case basis, waive this rule to support, for example, appeals in aid of providing immediate disaster relief.

Source: Hansard (Parliament of Singapore)

Louis supported the Charities (Amendment) Bill with speech as follow:

Louis: Sir, this Bill is timely to restore the public's trust in Singapore's charity sector, after a few high-profile scandals in the past years, which shocked the nation.

I am heartened to see that there is constant review of the Charities Act, with the last one just seven years ago, and that we continually seek to strengthen accountability in this sector.

I have the privilege of starting my own charity 17 years ago when I was a little boy. ACRES has a gone a long way since our birth in 2001 in my bedroom in my parents' house. I actually never told my parents I used our home address as the first ACRES address but I guess now is a good time to tell them.

I can tell you that it is not easy starting and running a charity in Singapore and, in fact, many said I would fail when I first started ACRES.

As a charity fully dependent on donations, I am aware of the difficulties local charities face in raising funds to sustain their operations. It would be a great pity to see a rare few black sheep wreak distrust in the charity sector, hampering the necessary work of more than 2,000 registered charities in Singapore.

Fundraising success depends on the goodwill of the public, and goodwill is often very fragile, dependent on the level of trust held by the public that the dollar donated makes a positive impact on the lives of the beneficiaries.

Trust hangs by a thread and once broken, is terribly difficult to restore. Thus, I am encouraged that constant reviews and amendments of the Charities Act help to prevent errant behaviour and ultimately, protect the good work of the vast majority of charities in Singapore.

However, parts of the Bill may have the contrary effect of hampering the charity sector due to the lack of clarity.

First, the revised definition of "fundraising appeal" as proposed in clause 10 may have a dampening effect on funding for the charity sector. Based on feedback I received and also via REACH, there were questions raised about whether an "appeal" includes unsolicited funds.

There were also questions on what "a confined group of persons" mean. Would this refer to private fundraising activities? I understand the Minister had provided some examples earlier but how do we define small-scale private fundraising? And these small-scale private fundraising activities are commonplace in the charity sector, for example, a bake sale at a company event, or a birthday party. Surely, the law will not extend to these cases as well.

I hope that the Ministry be clear on certain types of fundraising appeals which can be exempted from which provisions in this Act.

Furthermore, charities raising funds for foreign purposes need to apply for a permit, and this requirement now extends to private events. Application permits are an administrative hassle, and unless the application process can be simplified, I fear that this may not bode well for charities, which conduct activities abroad, such as humanitarian charities.

As I mentioned in my Budget cut last year, "The Government is providing funds to help firms scale-up and internationalise and helping build capabilities to operate overseas. We should do the same for our IPCs. We should support our local IPCs who internationalise, who fly the Singapore flag proudly overseas and who lend a helping hand to our neighbours. Let us not be seen to just venture into other countries to compete, to take but also to give and to help."

Many of these charities and IPCs depend on volunteers and donations from private fundraising activities. There may be a dampening effect on fundraising for these charities – often already faced with additional barriers to fundraising, such as the 80:20 rule. These charities promote the Singapore spirit of generosity in some of the most difficult places, and should receive our fullest support.

I also raise the issue of crowdfunding, which has proven to be an effective platform for the needy, but have also suffered a few cases of malpractice. I understand that the Commissioner will be issuing a new code of practice for crowdfunding – but I would like to ask the reason for not including these changes into the Charity Act and thus making them mandatory.

On support for charities: I refer to the recent Charity Transparency Awards, noting that only 41 out of the possible hundreds or even thousands of charities assessed by the Charity Council made the cut on disclosure and transparency. This suggests that there is room for the majority of charities in Singapore to enhance their performance in the criteria assessed, such as financial management, internal control, fundraising management and conflict of interest. I suspect that this is because most charities are resource-strapped. Just like ACRES, we often rely on volunteers, a very small pool of full-time staff members and limited funding, and are often busy fighting day-to-day fires. Has the Ministry looked at ways we can better support charities, other than those that Minister had mentioned in the Opening speech, especially the smaller ones?

Finally, I would like to commend MCCY for its efforts to engage the public which I hope will become common place. I have read the Ministry's response to feedback received through REACH and have found it to be very comprehensive. Each comment received a detailed reply. It also showed that feedback received from the public was well-researched and proved to be constructive. I hope that more Bills will undergo similar public engagement – something that I firmly believe will help us to draft the best Bill.

Sir, these changes will strengthen accountability and public trust in our charity sector, and can only reap benefits for beneficiaries that we are trying to support. I stand in support of the Bill, and I am sorry, Sir, I forgot to declare at the onset. I declare my interest as the Chief Executive of a charity.

Source: Hansard (Parliament of Singapore)

Louis spoke up in support for giving and volunteerism at Debate on President's Address 2018 as follow:

Louis: Sir, I declare my interest as the Chief Executive of ACRES, a civil society organisation. Sir, our President spoke about the importance of fostering a compassionate and caring society, and a giving society where everyone lends a helping hand.

Beyond the dollars and cents, renewing our economy, strengthening our fiscal position, which is important to our survival, the heartware of this nation is equally important. How we care for one another, how we make sure no one is left behind, how we speak up for a better Singapore and how we have a culture of giving are crucial in the next chapters of the Singapore story. 

My late father taught me to always give and in his eulogy, I said "Daddy gave more than he received and that ultimately was his strongest philosophy in life. A philosophy I hold dear to my heart and one I will impart to my daughter as well." It was with this philosophy that I entered politics and the quote I used in my candidate video was "There is beauty in giving more than receiving".

This Spirit of Giving is very much alive in Singapore and I see it in my work as a civil society activist for the past 17 years and as a Member of Parliament for the past three years. I see it almost every week when I meet my Legislative Assistants. Perhaps the most common question I am asked now is how on earth do I speak up so much in Parliament. How do I find the time to research and draft so many speeches and questions. For this I have to thank "Melissa". Melissa has a full-time job, is actively involved in humanitarian work and is also my Chief Legislative Assistant. If there is just one word to describe her, it is that she is amazing. But she does not do this alone. She and my six other Legislative Assistants, Charmaine, Karen, Su, Roy, Jing Ling and Rachel embody the spirit of speaking up and this Spirit of Giving. And like Melissa, they too are amazing. Despite having full-time commitments, they give their time and energy towards the Singapore cause. They care deeply about our future and, most importantly, want to play a role in shaping it.

This Spirit of Giving is also very much alive in Nee Soon East. Tan Meng, my CCC Chairman and also my left-hand, left-leg, right-leg, right-hand man exemplifies this. He leads a team of dedicated volunteers and has been a grassroots leader for 26 years now. He serves with his heart and handles every feedback and every case so passionately, so meticulously and with compassion. And he does this every single day as a volunteer. Twenty-six years ago, he was curious and wanted to see how he can help improve the community and so he joined the CCC. Twenty-six years later, he looks young as ever. Perhaps the secret in looking young is to volunteer more. And I know he will volunteer more and continue to serve till his last breath. 

Siti Durriah is equally committed and I first met her when I was visiting a refugee camp in Aceh. I met this young lady who was so passionate about helping people that she used her precious time off from work, and her salary, to volunteer to help others. A physiotherapist by training, she was in Aceh to conduct developmental assessments for refugee children and teach them English. 

Sir, it really has been a privilege working with Melissa, Tan Meng and Siti, Singaporeans who embody the Spirit of Giving, who volunteer to give their time to help others. And there are others who are so devoted that they have chosen to make a career out of it.

I recently met Dr Sudha Nair when I joined President Halimah to open Safe Spaces, a Child Protection Specialist Centre run by PAVE. The stories they shared with us that day were heart wrenching. The children made cards for President Halimah and in one card, the child wrote about how she watched her father strangle her mother. It takes a very strong heart to be able to handle all these abuse cases every day but Sudha spoke with so much passion and so much determination. I thought this Executive Director must be quite new to this as she was so fresh, not jaded at all and was bursting with positivity. But she has actually been a social worker for more than 30 years now. We are fortunate to have someone like her, devoting her time towards ending family violence.

We are also fortunate to have Kalai who devotes his time to end animal cruelty. He has worked at ACRES for the past seven years now. He was previously a volunteer with ACRES before I conned him, I mean convinced him to join ACRES full-time. He took a pay cut to pursue his passion. He took on a job where the office hours are 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

A lot of animals are indebted to him, from otters to owls, from pythons to pigeons and most recently, a dolphin. The recent dolphin rescue near Bedok jetty was perhaps the best example of his level of commitment. He spent hours searching for that wild dolphin who needed our help. His hard work paid off and he managed to find and free the dolphin from the fish nets the dolphin was entangled in. He gave that dolphin a second chance at life.

Sir, there are many, many more stories to share. So many more civil society activists I have met who work steadfastly to feed one mouth, educate one mind and comfort one soul. The question is how do we have more Melissa, Tan Meng, Siti, Sudha and Kalai? How do we support their efforts more and strengthen this Spirit of Giving here in Singapore?

Volunteerism is increasing steadily. The National Volunteer & Philanthropy Centre (NVPC) found that one in three Singaporeans volunteered in 2016, up from one in 10 in year 2000. And we have SG Cares, a brilliant initiative to increase acts of kindness and volunteerism.

To further increase volunteerism and sustain it, perhaps we first need to take a step back and study the effectiveness of our school-based volunteer programmes. It is important as that lays the foundation in our youths for volunteerism. Mr Kwan Jin Yao raised several points about this including, "To what extent does involvement in the Values in Action (VIA), Community Involvement Programme (CIP) and service-learning projects affect whether students continue volunteering after graduation? Are students who chalked up a high number of VIA or CIP hours more likely to volunteer for a social cause after leaving school?"

Ms Tan Rong Ying view was that, "It is important to reconsider the rewards and mandatory aspect of volunteerism in schools so as to increase and make clearer students' intrinsic motivations. This could encourage them to willingly volunteer more often during their school days and after graduation, thereby promoting a culture of active volunteerism."

There are good VIA programmes, like the one at Hougang Secondary. Rather than introducing volunteer work through ad hoc projects, at Hougang Secondary, it is a way of school life, a life of volunteerism that is inculcated from the very beginning, and they even get the parents involved. There are lots of lessons to learn from them. 

But at the end of the day, I do hope that MOE reviews our school-based volunteer programmes and see if there is still a need to make it compulsory and provide rewards.  

I also hope that we can consider giving people more time to volunteer. Time is perhaps the most valuable commodity in today's world and lack of time is the most common reason given for not volunteering. NVPC has found that volunteerism rates drop once people enter the workforce. 

To ensure the flames of volunteerism is not extinguished by the demands of work, employers are a key partner in building a nation of volunteers. We need to follow the positive example set by Salesforce Singapore, which offers seven days of volunteer leave annually. They have a particularly successful volunteer scheme with all of their employees making use of their volunteer leave in 2016 and clocking in more than 11,000 hours. 

I hope the Public Service, as the largest employer, can take the lead by extending the one-day volunteer leave currently given to public servants and consider allowing them to use their leave in blocks of hours instead of full days. 

Sir, we can also strengthen this Spirit of Giving by strengthening our engagement and collaboration with civil society. As John Mackey nicely put it, "A healthy society rests on three pillars: business, government and civil society, or non-profits. Each has a distinct and important role to play, and all three need to work together synergistically to create the most value for society".

Given the insights that civil society can bring to the table with their ground experience, I hope they can be better represented on the Boards of our Statutory Boards. As Prof Tommy Koh stated, "When we appoint people to boards, we can also appoint challengers who are subversive and who have alternative points of view. That's the kind of cultural change we want to see. It makes Singapore stronger, not weaker".

I do not believe that we hold the key to the best ideas. Rather, the best ideas are out there. I hope that we can build more regular channels for dialogue between the Government and civil society. Already, there have been many instances of fruitful dialogues. One example is the roundtable discussions that MEWR conducted to engage green groups to galvanise action and efforts for the Year of Climate Action. Participants shared with me that they came out of the session with greater optimism and a better understanding of the Government's efforts to tackle climate change.

Another recent instance was IMDA's consultations with filmmakers on amendments to the Films Act. IMDA had extended the consultation period upon request and had taken on board the suggestions by filmmakers in the final wording of the Bill. Jasmine Ng, one of the filmmakers I worked with, commented in a Facebook post that she "really does appreciate that this engagement with IMDA and with you and the other MPs has been authentic". I was particularly struck by her comment that, "we felt that we were heard and understood, even though we may variously disagree on some points". 

Indeed, even where there is disagreement over the outcome, there is greater acceptance of the end result when civil society understands the reasons for the Government's actions and policies. As such, I hope that the Ministries consider making consultations with civil society organisations a regular part of the policy- and law-making process.

Sir, recently, I was at an informal dialogue session between public servants and civil society activists. It was a beautiful session to say the least. Both sides gained a better understanding of each other's concerns, challenges and constraints. Most of all, both sides realised that we are all on the same side, on the same boat. 

Sir, a stronger civil society will mean a stronger Singapore and a stronger Spirit of Giving. Ultimately, we can fire up and mobilise the spirit and energy of Singaporeans if we engage more, consider more alternative points of views, empower more, inspire more and ensure people have time to give back when they are mobilised.

Sir, there truly is beauty in giving more than receiving and this strong culture of giving is very much needed. Let me end with a quote as always. Nelson Mandela said, "There can be no greater gift than that of giving one’s time and energy to help others without expecting anything in return". I was going to end with that quote but then I realise that actually, while we do not expect anything in return, sometimes we do stumble upon something valuable. Sometimes, we find true love. 

And this was the case for Joseph and Jing Yu. Jing Yu was volunteering at ACRES in 2012 when she met Joseph who was working at ACRES. They both gave their heart and soul towards helping animals and they also gave their hearts to each other. They got married two Saturdays ago.

And so for all the singles out there, start volunteering and you might find your true love. Better still, ACRES has quite a good track record, so volunteer with ACRES and you will find your true love while helping to strengthen this Spirit of Giving. Sir, I support the Motion of thanks to the President.

Source: Hansard (Parliament of Singapore)

(Supplementary Question) Louis: A quick point to echo what Member of Parliament Zainal Sapari has said whether we really can provide some subsidies for the hawkers at some of these social enterprise hawker centres who are really not doing well. I know they came in knowing what the rental is, but the fact now is that, in contrast to what Assoc Prof Daniel Goh had stated, some of them are really finding it hard to break even – the social enterprises. So, can we provide some help to the hawkers at these social enterprise hawker centres which really are not doing well because of very low footfall?

Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan: I think that when there are specific cases, it can be made known to us. But as I have said, we keep a close watch on the viability of the businesses in these new hawker centres. And as of now, even for the hawker centres which had some bad press coverage and apparently low footfall, they have actually improved their business significantly. The operators have been able to enhance the vibrancy of these hawker centres, for instance, providing free shuttle bus service to the nearby industries and factories as well as office workers to dine in the hawkers centres, complimentary car parking, as well as discounts, lucky draws and so on to bring them in.

For instance, in Jurong West hawker centre, they have managed to bring in some popular stallholders which have also significantly increased the footfall. So, based on our understanding and survey of what is happening, we do not see that there is a need to do this but as I have said, if there are individual stalls that face problems, we can always take a look at it.

Source: Hansard (Parliament of Singapore)

Louis asked the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth (a) whether the Ministry will consider reviewing the 80:20 fund-raising rule requiring at least 80% of funds raised for foreign charitable purposes be applied towards charitable purposes in Singapore; (b) whether a specific list can be provided for fund-raising activities where this rule can be waived; and (c) whether this rule can be waived for more fund-raising activities other than those for immediate disaster relief in other countries.

Mr Alvin Tan (for the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth): Mr Speaker, the intent of the 80:20 fund-raising rule under the Charities Act is to ensure that donations from our Singapore public are used primarily to benefit locals and to address locals' needs. The intent of this 80:20 rule remains relevant.

Besides appeals in aid of providing immediate disaster or humanitarian relief to other countries, the Commissioner of Charities (COC) also waives this 80:20 rule for certain private fund-raising appeals. It would not be practical to provide a specific list of activities that would be eligible for waiver, as the COC considers a range of aspects in making its decisions, such as the nature of the appeal, target donor groups and beneficiaries, and the safeguards in place to mitigate risks.

But should an applicant wish to apply for a waiver of the rule based on its circumstances, the applicant may put forth its reasons for waiver of the rule in its application for fund-raising for foreign charitable purposes permit to the COC. The COC will consider the application on a case-by-case basis.

Louis: Thank you, Sir. I thank the Minister of State for the reply. I understand he cannot provide a specific list. Then, could I ask whether he could at least provide the list of fund-raising activities that have got exemptions in the past few years, not including those for humanitarian disasters. Second, I really hope that the Government can take a more light-touch approach. We can trust Singaporeans to decide who they want to donate to. The Government, I hope, can take a step back but still have the check and balance in place, do audits to make sure that the funds go to the appropriate beneficiaries.

Mr Alvin Tan: I thank the hon Member for his supplementary question. I want to assure the hon Member that we do actually allow our charities and our organisations to raise funds for foreign charitable causes. In fact, in 2021, COC granted a total 78 permits for organisations to conduct fund-raising appeals for foreign charitable purposes. The COC, as I mentioned earlier, can on a case-by-case basis waive this 80-20 rule, such as for appeals in aid of providing immediate disaster relief and for private donations raised for foreign charitable causes. 

In fact, they have done so. Including for private appeals and appeals for relief efforts, going to causes such as for COVID-19 in many different countries, for the Malaysian floods in December last year and January this year, and also for Typhoon Rai, which affected and afflicted the Philippines in December. 

It is really encouraging to witness, during these challenging times, how Singaporeans have stepped up and also have been moved by foreign charitable causes overseas; and we are helping to facilitate that as well. It really speaks to who we are as a nation and our role in the global community. At the same time as the Member had suggested, it is important that we provide the necessary safeguards as well as due process to help ensure that the funds go to verifiable and legitimate causes, and to mitigate the attendant risks. 

In this regard, the COC carries out regular review of the charity regulations on a regular basis and we will consider the Member's feedback and, in fact, welcome the Member's feedback in the next review.

Source: Hansard (Parliament of Singapore)