Transcript of Media Doorstop by Mr K Shanmugam and Mr Alvin Tan, on Revitalisation Measures at Boat Quay Historic District, Upper Circular Road Area and Clarke Quay Conservation Area

Question: Why is the Government relaxing the measures in Boat Quay and Clarke Quay at this juncture?

Minister Shanmugam: We have been in discussions with the Singapore Nightlife Business Association (SNBA), Singapore River One (SRO), and members of the public, and we have been looking at how to make sure the place is lively, it’s part of the attraction of Singapore as a whole, and as part of the feedback, after looking at it, we have decided to make some changes.

There are essentially three changes:

(a) One is, new bars, new nightclubs, new pubs, will be allowed – they would be given, depending on the landlord, maybe up to three years to try out. That would also allow them to explore new concepts. The pilot itself – meaning this idea of opening up, we will try it out for a year, and then we will look at it at the end of one year. Those who were allowed to do the businesses – new ones, they will have up to three years.

(b) Second, we will extend the liquor trading hours starting from Thursday night, Friday night, Saturday night, up to 4am. It also applies to the eve of public holidays to the next day, to the entire Boat Quay area, at the Upper Circular Road area, and also the Clarke Quay Conservation Area.

(c) Third, Circular Road will be closed. Road closures will start during these periods. These, we think, will help, in consultation with the businesses, and we will continue to see how we can improve the vibrancy of these precincts.

Question: We understand from the press release that, with regards to the security arrangements in this area, this will be handled by Singapore River One, so it’s more of a private security arrangement. What is the reason for doing that?

Minister Shanmugam: The broader security will always be provided for by Police – that’s the position in Singapore, but as part of these relaxation measures, we asked the business owners to take some responsibility to increase the level of security. Because it is a balance – we open up, and we can expect some more incidents, and we want to make sure that it does not get out of hand. They also have responsibility to try and help out, and so they will put in some security officers to do some patrolling. Singapore River One has committed to having these security deployments, and also some contingency plans in place. We will monitor the outcomes.

Question: What are some of the benchmarks that the Government will be assessing at the end of this pilot?

Minister Shanmugam: The way I would look at it is, we will assess the law-and-order situation, the security situation – whether it is getting out of hand. Then, what do we need to do – do we need to do anything, is there something we can do without affecting the measures? We want the pilot to succeed. We want the place to be vibrant. We want, in fact, as much relaxation as possible. So, we will try it out. I don’t want to go into how many incidents and so on, but we will look at it.

Question: If the pilot is successful, will it be rolled out in other areas – Tanjong Pagar, Duxton, Liang Seah Street, Club Street, Ann Siang, at all of these areas?

Minister Shanmugam: We will discuss. I think at this stage, I don’t want to get into a speculative mode.

MOS Alvin Tan: I am very happy that we were able to partner with Singapore River One (SRO), Singapore Nightlife Business Association (SNBA), and partners from the security agencies to land this series of measures. These measures are meant to revitalise the Boat Quay as well as the Clarke Quay Districts, and this will happen in different stages. One is for the government to apply these new measures. Then, work together with the business owners and associations to come up with new and fresh ideas, placemaking, as well as new pubs, nightclubs, and other ways of opening up businesses, including using the Circular Road road closures as an example of placemaking.

This is in addition to what we are doing to revitalise and encourage more tourist attractions in Singapore. I have been speaking to SNBA and SRO to see how we can better partner them to make use of the big events, for example, MICE events and F1, to bring global tourists to Boat Quay and to liven it up. We are very excited with this series of measures. We thank all our partners. They are critical to make this happen, and we cannot wait for the new concepts to take fruit and come to fruition.