Larger gatherings may soon be possible; Phase Three roadmap in the works: Gan

THE government has begun piloting activities with a larger number of attendees, such as trade exhibitions, conferences and religious worship sessions, said Minister for Health Gan Kim Yong in Parliament on Monday.

If the pilots are successful, the lessons learnt may be applied to allow more large-scale events to proceed. The social and dining group size limit of five persons may also be reviewed, so that larger families or groups of friends can meet and have meals together, he said.

Meanwhile, the multi-ministerial task force is working on a roadmap towards Phase Three, and more details will be unveiled in the coming weeks. There are no plans to lower the DORSCON level, and "Singapore must continue to keep our guard up", Mr Gan added. "Until the world is safe, we will not be safe," he said, noting that Covid-19 cases in other parts of the world are still rising.

Mr Gan was responding to parliamentary questions by Jessica Tan from the People's Action Party, and Louis Chua from the Workers' Party, the Members of Parliament (MPs) for East Coast and Seng Kang GRCs respectively. The MPs had asked about reopening plans, with Ms Tan citing the low number of Covid-19 community cases at present.

Mr Gan sounded a note of caution on what to expect as activities in Singapore resume. "Even as we move towards Phase Three, the new normal will be different from what we are used to in the pre-Covid days," he said.

Citing the experience of other countries in easing precautionary measures, he noted that the hasty or premature lifting of restrictions may result in a resurgence of cases, leading to the need to partially re-impose these restrictions. He urged the public to keep up the guard even as more activities resume, and limits on social gatherings begin to partially loosen. The government is especially concerned about dining activities, he highlighted, as diners remove their masks to eat, drink and talk to one another.

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"On the other hand, it is not sustainable to maintain tight restrictions for a prolonged period of time, which will severely impact not only our economy, but also our lives," said Mr Gan. The government has therefore taken a calibrated approach, with close monitoring, extensive testing and comprehensive contact tracing, to "balance the protection of lives and livelihoods", he added.

Mr Chua asked for more specifics on the roadmap for Phase Three, especially pertaining to remote work arrangements. Work-from-home arrangements had allowed more fathers to play an active role in childcare, and could help level gender roles in the household, he suggested.

In response, Mr Gan said working from home would continue to be the default arrangement, subject to the guidelines released on Sept 28, where employees should continue working from home at least half the time, and there should be no more than 50 per cent of such employees at the workplace in any point of time.

Within those guidelines, he encouraged employers and employees to work out mutual arrangements, depending on the employees' specific circumstances and business needs, which differ from sector to sector.

"It is still a flexible arrangement," Mr Gan emphasised. "We provide flexibility, but we still encourage employees and employers to work out an arrangement to work from home as much as possible. This will help to reduce overcrowding in workplaces, and at the same time reduce congestion on the roads and public transport."