SINGAPORE: A new climate action body formed by the People’s Action Party (PAP) aims to bolster support for businesses navigating the green transition, assistant secretary-general Desmond Lee announced on Tuesday (Jan 21).
Mr Lee said the PAP Climate Action Group, launched on Tuesday at the Singapore Sustainability Academy, will table a fourth motion on climate change in parliament later this year.
There are currently initiatives to help businesses adopt sustainable practices, such as the Enterprise Sustainability Programme and Energy Efficiency Grant, said Mr Lee, the Minister for National Development.
He noted that some companies - particularly small and medium-sized enterprises - still face challenges in this area.
“This motion will call for stronger support to help businesses navigate the green transition, and ensure a just and inclusive transition towards a low-carbon society,” said Mr Lee.
The climate action group is one of two new bodies formed by the party to address “issues that are also major priorities for the PAP government”, he said.
The party launched its mental health group in October last year.
The new groups were first announced by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong in June, as part of the party’s “Refresh PAP” exercise.
Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment Koh Poh Koon will chair the climate action group, alongside Nee Soon GRC Member of Parliament Louis Ng.
While the party already has various groups serving specific segments in the community, the two new bodies were set up to face “key challenges” that “cut across traditional demographic lines”, Mr Wong had said.
“Looking ahead, climate change poses an existential threat to Singapore, and will be one of the defining challenges of our time,” said Mr Lee on Tuesday.
He said that environmental sustainability has long been a core part of Singapore’s development, citing founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew’s efforts in the space and the country’s involvement on the global stage.
The upcoming climate change motion will be the fourth. The first was tabled in January 2021 by members of the government parliamentary committee (GPC) on sustainability and the environment, to accelerate and deepen efforts against climate change.
Mr Ng, who currently heads the GPC, said the group hopes to table the latest motion “sometime this year”.
Nee Soon GRC MP Louis Ng, co-chair of the People's Action Party's Climate Action Group, on Jan 21, 2025. (Photo: CNA/Fabian Koh)
Dialogue sessions with activists, SMEs and trade associations began in June last year, he shared.
“This fourth motion will really be about how we can support businesses, especially the SMEs, in this green transition; how we can provide more support, how we can pull resources together, a handbook maybe for them, how we can even have a job transformation map for all sectors, not just the finance sectors,” he said.
On Tuesday, Mr Ng also moderated a dialogue to gather more views on the matter from party activists and sector players.
The new climate action body will be structured into five sub-committees aligned with the Singapore Green Plan 2030: City in nature (led by Ms Nadia Ahmad Samdin), energy reset and transition (Ms Poh Li San), green economy (Mr Don Wee), resilient future (Ms Carrie Tan), and sustainable living (Ms Hany Soh).
When asked by CNA if climate issues would resonate with voters at this year's General Election - which must be held by November - Dr Koh said that everyone, from individuals to corporations, is increasingly feeling the effects of climate change.
“Going into the election, it is important for us as a party. While we may be wearing white, we are the original green party of Singapore,” said Dr Koh.
“We have to continue to put climate action at the forefront of what we do as a party, because the future of Singapore depends on our policy actions, that will actually make concrete changes to help mitigate some of the impact of climate change.”
Continue reading...
Mr Lee said the PAP Climate Action Group, launched on Tuesday at the Singapore Sustainability Academy, will table a fourth motion on climate change in parliament later this year.
There are currently initiatives to help businesses adopt sustainable practices, such as the Enterprise Sustainability Programme and Energy Efficiency Grant, said Mr Lee, the Minister for National Development.
He noted that some companies - particularly small and medium-sized enterprises - still face challenges in this area.
“This motion will call for stronger support to help businesses navigate the green transition, and ensure a just and inclusive transition towards a low-carbon society,” said Mr Lee.
MAJOR PRIORITY
The climate action group is one of two new bodies formed by the party to address “issues that are also major priorities for the PAP government”, he said.
The party launched its mental health group in October last year.
The new groups were first announced by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong in June, as part of the party’s “Refresh PAP” exercise.
Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment Koh Poh Koon will chair the climate action group, alongside Nee Soon GRC Member of Parliament Louis Ng.
While the party already has various groups serving specific segments in the community, the two new bodies were set up to face “key challenges” that “cut across traditional demographic lines”, Mr Wong had said.
“Looking ahead, climate change poses an existential threat to Singapore, and will be one of the defining challenges of our time,” said Mr Lee on Tuesday.
He said that environmental sustainability has long been a core part of Singapore’s development, citing founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew’s efforts in the space and the country’s involvement on the global stage.
TACKLING CLIMATE CHANGE
The upcoming climate change motion will be the fourth. The first was tabled in January 2021 by members of the government parliamentary committee (GPC) on sustainability and the environment, to accelerate and deepen efforts against climate change.
Mr Ng, who currently heads the GPC, said the group hopes to table the latest motion “sometime this year”.
Nee Soon GRC MP Louis Ng, co-chair of the People's Action Party's Climate Action Group, on Jan 21, 2025. (Photo: CNA/Fabian Koh)
Dialogue sessions with activists, SMEs and trade associations began in June last year, he shared.
“This fourth motion will really be about how we can support businesses, especially the SMEs, in this green transition; how we can provide more support, how we can pull resources together, a handbook maybe for them, how we can even have a job transformation map for all sectors, not just the finance sectors,” he said.
On Tuesday, Mr Ng also moderated a dialogue to gather more views on the matter from party activists and sector players.
The new climate action body will be structured into five sub-committees aligned with the Singapore Green Plan 2030: City in nature (led by Ms Nadia Ahmad Samdin), energy reset and transition (Ms Poh Li San), green economy (Mr Don Wee), resilient future (Ms Carrie Tan), and sustainable living (Ms Hany Soh).
When asked by CNA if climate issues would resonate with voters at this year's General Election - which must be held by November - Dr Koh said that everyone, from individuals to corporations, is increasingly feeling the effects of climate change.
“Going into the election, it is important for us as a party. While we may be wearing white, we are the original green party of Singapore,” said Dr Koh.
“We have to continue to put climate action at the forefront of what we do as a party, because the future of Singapore depends on our policy actions, that will actually make concrete changes to help mitigate some of the impact of climate change.”
Continue reading...