SCDF seeks powers to take action against suppliers of non-compliant bomb shelter products
If passed, the Bill will allow SCDF to issue directions to parties in the supply chain if there are reasonable grounds to believe that a regulated shelter product is non-compliant.
A bomb shelter in a flat. (Photo: CNA)
New: You can now listen to articles.
This audio is generated by an AI tool.
Read a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
SINGAPORE: The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) will get powers to deal with suppliers of non-compliant bomb shelter products, such as doors, if a Bill is passed in parliament.
The Civil Defence Shelter and Fire Safety (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill was introduced on Tuesday (Aug 4) by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and aims to strengthen regulatory controls over shelter products such as household and storey shelter doors.
If passed, SCDF can take action such as issuing directions to the parties in the supply chain if there are reasonable grounds to believe that the product does not comply with standards.
Currently, SCDF’s main enforcement lever is against certification bodies, the ministry said in response to CNA’s queries.
Guess Word
Crack the word, one row at a time
Buzzword
Create words using the given letters
Mini Sudoku
Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser
Mini Crossword
Small grid, big challenge
Word Search
Spot as many words as you can
SCDF works with the Singapore Accreditation Council to suspend or withdraw accreditation from non-compliant certification bodies that fail to properly certify shelter products.
“However, there is no legal framework to take enforcement action against parties in the supply chain, such as suppliers and manufacturers, for non-compliant shelter products. The Bill will close this gap,” said MHA.
To date, SCDF has not identified any cases of non-compliant shelter products, it added.
Under the Civil Defence Shelter Act, new houses and flats are required to have household or storey shelters incorporated into the development.
These shelters are designed to protect people against weapon effects such as blast and fragments during a national emergency.
Under the law, owners or occupants are not allowed to carry out any repair or alteration that is likely to damage or impair the efficient use of the household or storey shelter.
This includes modifying or removing the household shelter door and frame and tampering with any part of the ventilation openings.
FIRE SAFETY
The Bill also proposes amendments to the Fire Safety Act 1993, which include introducing a class licensing regime for lower-risk petroleum and flammable material activities.
This will reduce regulatory burden on businesses while maintaining robust fire safety standards, said MHA.
Anyone who intends to import, transport or store petroleum or flammable materials beyond stipulated exemption quantities is required to obtain a licence from SCDF.
SCDF issues more than 6,500 individual licences for petroleum and flammable material activities every year.
For a start, this proposed class licensing regime will apply to activities such as storing of petroleum and flammable materials at construction sites, petrol stations, certain laboratories and buildings storing diesel solely for their emergency generators.
Where applicable, class licensees such as petrol stations will also be permitted to dispense petroleum and flammable materials stored on their premises, as per the conditions of their licence.
Owners of eligible premises will no longer need individual licence approvals from SCDF, but they must meet the requirements of their class licence, including the prescribed fire safety and regulatory requirements.
These premises will also be subject to SCDF’s routine inspections, audits and enforcement checks.
“Where non-compliance or breaches are detected, SCDF may take enforcement action for offences under the class licence regulations or revoke the class licence,” said the ministry.
Companies whose class licences have been revoked will be required to meet conditions such as submitting plans to rectify the breach and ensure future compliance, before they are allowed to re-register.
Higher-risk activities involving petroleum and flammable materials will continue to be licensed individually, said MHA.
To reduce compliance burden on businesses, the maximum validity of licences or permits issued under the Fire Safety Act will be extended from three years to five years. This does not include class licences, which are not time bound.
The SCDF currently deploys supplementary enforcement officers to conduct standard fire safety enforcement checks and building inspections. If the Bill is passed, their roles can be expanded to conduct compliance checks on the transport of petroleum and flammable materials to ensure they are moved safely.
“This allows SCDF officers to dedicate their expertise to more complex investigations and petroleum and flammable materials incidents,” said MHA.
Other proposed amendments include providing the Minister of Home Affairs with the flexibility to determine the tenure of two inquiry panels – the Fire Safety Engineers Inquiry Panel and the Registered Inspectors Inquiry Panel – which is currently fixed at two years.
This will align with similar bodies under the Fire Safety Act.
The Bill also seeks to repeal the Chemical Weapons (Prohibition)(Amendment) Act which is no longer required, said MHA. Subsidiary legislations in other Acts have already been amended to ensure safe transport of the relevant scheduled chemicals by road within Singapore, it added.
The ministry said: “The Bill strengthens SCDF’s regulatory framework by streamlining and reducing licensing processes, enhancing enforcement capabilities and improving regulatory oversight.
“This maintains Singapore’s robust civil defence preparedness and fire safety standards while supporting a pro-enterprise and business-friendly environment.”
Source: CNA/ng(mi)
Sign up for our newsletters
Get the CNA app
Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
Get WhatsApp alerts
Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
About The Author
