Dennis Tan on Transport Sector (Critical Firms) Bill

What were some of the risks observed in the prospective critical entities that drove the need for the Transport Sector (Critical Firms) Bill and for the proposed amendments to the sectoral Acts? Under the Bill, only "fit and proper" persons may be given approval to 25 per cent, 50 per cent or 75 per cent controllers of designated entities. Will the Government be publishing any guidelines in the subsidiary legislation on how a person is "fit and proper" as required under the Act, similar to what is envisaged in the recent Significant Investments Review Act? MP Dennis Tan raised these questions in Parliament on Wednesday (May 8). He also asked the Government to clarify what "public interest" entails within the context of the current Bill. With the Bill requiring designated entities to report certain matters to the authorities, Mr Tan also asked if the Government would be informing the public of such events or the irregularities reported and remedial actions taken. He also wanted to know what mechanism will be put in place to ensure that the Government can carry out any pre-employment checks on operators who are reluctant to report any such events or irregularities or to ensure timely rectifications.