Was expecting MSE Minister Grace Fu to answer MP Louis Ng, but instead Senior Minister of State Amy Khor gave the same disappointing reply as she did in 2018 and just would not budge.

I can't emphasise enough how non-smokers need to COLLECTIVELY speak up, take action and call for change. Facebook is NOT the right platform as there is no permanent record and comments are lost over time.

We need to write letters to The Straits Times and TODAY Voices (see guidelines at bottom), report to NEA via OneService app for smoking offences, apply for mediation via the Community Mediation Centre, email our MPs. All these letters and feedback are tracked monthly and prove to policymakers just how MANY of us are affected by neighbours' toxic smoke drift.

By suffering in silence, and delegating the job to safeguard our health to 1 or 2 individuals instead of taking action via the right channels, status quo will remain.

MP Louis Ng called for a ban on smoking near windows and balconies.

He said: "Even when MPs want to help, they cannot seek help from law enforcement because there is no relevant law or regulation to enforce. A different solution is needed ... It cannot be solved the same way we solve all these other neighbourly issues."

This proposal is enforceable using existing technologies already used on the ground, he added.

"NEA has been using cameras to catch high-rise litterbugs. These surveillance cameras are focused only on the external facade of the housing units being investigated to capture the act of littering. It can even capture someone throwing cigarette butts out of their windows," he said.

"We have years of experience fine-tuning their use and to minimise privacy intrusion and to maximise successful enforcement. What is missing now, is just the legislation," he said." (CNA)

"(Dr Amy Khor) added that of the 11,400 smoking complaints received in the first four months of 2020, 58 per cent (6,630) were in residential estates.

Of these cases, 95 per cent (6,310) were related to smoking in common areas such as staircases, corridors and void decks.

Only 5 per cent (320) of the residential cases involved smoking in homes, said Dr Khor." (ST) 

>> we all know this is NOT TRUE. People are not reporting smoking in homes simply because it is NOT AGAINST THE LAW. So please START REPORTING SMOKING IN HOMES to HDB, Town Council, NEA, your MP to set the record straight!!

By repeatedly saying "no" to helpless non-smokers and giving all kinds of justifications, the authorities are creating a position not to do anything. The objective is simply to wear us down so that we will give up.

So all the more, we have to keep on fighting for change to take place, as I had for the past 15 years (see track record here).

Please come on board as smoke-free advocates and take action!