As the haze situation in Singapore improves, almost 30 per cent of eligible Singaporeans have collected free N95 masks as part of the government's mask distribution exercise as of Oct. 29.

According to environment minister Grace Fu, nearly one-third of Singapore's population are now eligible to collect the masks after the eligibility age was lowered from 67 to 60 on Oct. 23, during the second round of distribution.

She was speaking in parliament on Nov. 3 in response to questions from Members of Parliament about Singapore's response to the haze crisis, including the take up rate of the free N95 masks.

Vulnerable individuals prioritised

In response to a question on whether her ministry will consider extending distribution to all residents if the haze persists, Fu said the government will continue prioritising Singaporeans who are more vulnerable to the health effects of the haze, or who may have limited means.

This includes senior citizens, pregnant woman, children, individuals with specific medical conditions, or holders of Chas orange and blue cards.

As haze does not involve the risk of people-to-people transmission, it does not require all Singaporeans to wear a mask.

The government will therefore consider the severity and predicted duration of the haze, prevailing health risks and the needs of vulnerable groups when deciding on the activation of mask distribution, said Fu.

She also expressed her gratitude towards those who have been involved in the distribution of masks, including People's Association's (PA) staff, grassroots volunteers, contractors and retailers.

No plans to change air quality readings

Fu also responded to queries on whether her ministry would consider including more granular air quality readings by increasing the number of PM2.5 forecasts.

The National Environment Agency's (NEA) current system of using daily forecasted 24-hour PSI readings and hourly PM2.5 readings have worked well, she said, pointing out that they can be used to plan for next-day outdoor activities.

She explained there is no need to include 12-hour, 24-hour, or 48-hour PM2.5 forecasts, as having too many indicators may "complicate our public messages".

"NEA will continue to review how its forecasting and public information services can be enhanced to provide more useful guidance."

Using climate vouchers

Lastly, Fu responded to concerns about ensuring good indoor air quality during periods of haze, particularly in centres serving vulnerable groups.

Indoor air quality is managed through standards, guidelines and advisories, as well as sector-specific measures implemented by premise owners, she said.

In spaces like schools, healthcare institutions and community care providers, response measures can include closing windows, deploying air purifiers and adjusting outdoor activities.

In larger air-conditioned buildings, the Singapore Standard's Code of Practice has recommendations for indoor air quality parameters and measures, including enhanced air filtration.

On that note, Fu highlighted that households can use climate vouchers to purchase eligible DC fans with air purifying functions.

These products can help improve air circulation and filtration, she said.

A proposed Certificate of Entitlement (COE) scheme to introduce rebates and surcharges on mass-market and luxury cars, respectively, has been supported by the majority of respondents, said Minister for Transport and Second Minister for Finance, Jeffrey Siow, on Nov. 3.

Siow, speaking in Parliament, noted that the new "feebate" scheme aims to restore a permanent price distinction in COE premiums.

The questions asked by Members of Parliament (MPs) concerned the proposed changes, such as whether prices for mass-market cars would remain within reach, and whether it would influence electric vehicle (EV) adoption.

The scheme proposed by Holland-Bukit Timah MP Edward Chia uses rebates and surcharges where a lower-value car receives a rebate on its COE price while a higher-value car gets a surcharge.

"Feebate" with five bands to reduce cliff effects preferred

Siow said that LTA concluded public consultation on COE categorisation on Nov. 2 and is studying the submissions and has not decided on the outcomes. 

He added that "Most people preferred a 'feebate' with five bands, to reduce cliff effects."

LTA proposed either a three-band or five-band system. The biggest rebate and surcharge are S$15,000 in both systems.

Depending on the structuring of the bands, the difference could be as large as S$30,000.

This comes as the gap between Category A and B COE premiums has diminished with the growing popularity of EVs.

EV power outputs can be adjusted using software by manufacturers and workshops, allowing the same car to qualify for different COE categories, stated Siow.

Hence, Category A premiums for smaller and less powerful car models exceeded Category B premiums for larger cars multiple times in 2026.

Existing Category A and B COEs will be merged into a single category for cars under LTA's proposal.

EV adoption support to remain separate and govt studying transport grant option

MP for Chua Chu Kang, Choo Pei Ling, asked how the government would prevent the system from disincentivising the adoption of high-performance EVs, which often carry a higher Open Market Value (OMV) and ensure that mass-market car buyers are not financially crowded out by luxury car buyers.

Siow responded, saying that a separate "feebate" structure for EVs was proposed but would make the system too complicated.

EV adoption will be supported through the Vehicle Emissions Scheme rather than through COE policies, added Siow.

MP for Marine Parade-Braddell Heights Tin Pei Ling questioned if the proposed "feebate" scheme in the latest LTA public consultation on proposed changes to the COE system will drive up demand for lower-valued vehicles and bolster the prices of mass market cars.

Tin also asked about support for large Singaporean families with car needs.

Siow said he acknowledged that larger families with young children may find it difficult to travel together on public transport, but any support would also have to consider families that choose not to buy a car.

The government is studying a transport grant option, with more details to be given later.

LTA to finish review by end-2026

Siow said: "The reality is that we cannot even grow the car population much further."

Siow stated that there are 660,000 passenger cars today and roads occupy more than 12 per cent of Singapore's total land area.

LTA expects to finish its review by the end of 2026 and reveal its findings and recommendations in the first half of 2027.

To follow a "trend", a man in Singapore made a TikTok where he was seen taping a phone to the back of an SBS Transit bus while it was stationary along Jalan Besar.

The rest of the video, supposedly filmed from the taped phone, showed him on a motorbike apparently following behind the bus.

There were several other vehicles on the road beside him.

"When public transport becomes your film crew," the video caption read.

SBS Transit has since lodged a police report on the incident.

In response to Mothership's queries, SBS Transit spokesperson Grace Wu said, "We take a very serious view of this incident, which we do not condone, as it may put the safety of the individual and other road users at risk."

Reactions

The video, posted on Nov. 1, was filmed at 7am, according to the caption.

It added that "no law was broken", and asked viewers to follow the account and stay tune for the second part of the story where the man would explain how he got his phone back.

Several commenters questioned why the man filmed the video, believing he would likely get fined.

Some pointed out that he was riding in the bus lane, to which the man replied that the video was filmed at 7am.

The restricted hours for travelling in the bus lane starts at 7:30am.

A stunt?

In a subsequent video, the TikTok user posted an update in response to "very negative comments" left on his first video.

He shared that there was a "plot twist": he did not leave the phone taped on the bus, but had someone else film him on the road using a DJI camera mounted on another motorbike.

"We filmed the entire video at 7am, so nothing was illegal," the man said in the video.

He added in the caption that he would share the full behind-the-scenes process next.

Mothership has reached out to the man for more details.

A new bill was introduced in parliament on Nov. 3, 2026, requiring courts to consider reformative training or imprisonment as punishments for convicted young scam offenders.

In its first parliament reading, introduced by Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs Goh Pei Ming on behalf of Senior Minister and Minister for Home Affairs K Shanmugam, the bill would make these punishments the default sentencing options for youths aged 21 and below who commit scam-related offences.

Exceptions would only be allowed in exceptional circumstances.

High court ruling

The bill's proposal comes after a High Court ruling on Sep. 10, in the case of Mohamed Erzan Taib Zohri v Public Prosecutor, where the court ruled that reformative training or imprisonment should not be the default sentence for young offenders who commit scam-enabling offences.

Some offenders in that case, who were aged between 16 and 20 at the time of committing the scam-related offences, had their sentences substituted with probation instead after appeal.

In response, SM Shanmugam said in parliament on Oct. 6 that greater weight should be given to deterrence in such cases, instead of treating rehabilitation as the primary consideration because of their age.

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), the Parliament's intent has always been that swift and decisive deterrence of scams and scam-enabling offences is needed, and that the court should consider reformative training or imprisonment as the primary and default sentencing options, unless there are exceptional circumstances.

The Bill's introduction thus sets out and reiterates this intent, it said.

If passed, the legislation will apply to the sentencing of scam and scam-enabling offences committed before, on or after the Act's commencement date.

The ministry added, "If a deterrent approach is not taken, Singapore’s scam and youth offending situation could deteriorate."

Scams most prevalent crime type in Singapore

According to MHA, scams remain the most prevalent crime type in Singapore.

The Singapore police received an average of 90 scam reports in the first half of 2026, amounting to S$2 million in losses per day.

Elderly victims aged 65 and above remain the age group suffering the highest average losses from scams.

In 2025, the police also investigated more than 1,000 youths in connection with scam reports.

The number of youths who committed cheating and related offences increased by 37 per cent, from 814 in 2024 to 1,114 in 2025.

Most youths involved in these offences were involved in scam cases as mules, said MHA.

As scammers,  often use bank account, local SIM cards and Singpass accounts to perpetuate scams, disrupting the supply of these enablers is therefore key, said MHA.

Since 2023, the ministry has passed five Bills to deter scam mules, including creating new offences to penalise mules.

Caning for scam and scam-enabling offences was also introduced.

The nine-and-a-half-hour public healthcare service disruption on Oct. 13, 2026 was caused by a "preventable lapse", said Senior Minister of State for Health Tan Kiat How said in parliament on Nov. 3.

Tan said "we apologise" and added that a required security update by a contracted service provider caused the lapse, not a cyber attack.

"The cause was a required safety update to a shared domain name system or DNS service that was not completed before a scheduled global change."

Services affected by the outage include appointment bookings, visitor registration, medication dispensing and billing, noted Tan.

The incident led to the rescheduling of around 4,000 outpatient appointments, with patients experiencing delays of up to two hours.

Mothership had previously reported that all three public healthcare clusters, NHG Health, National University Health System and SingHealth, were affected.

Synapxe reviewing provider's contractual obligations

Synapxe, Singapore's HealthTech agency, had contracted a service provider to manage the update, but it was not carried out, stated Tan.

Tan said Synapxe, which "remains accountable for the resilience of its critical systems", is reviewing the provider's contractual obligations and will take appropriate action.

"Synapxe is strengthening monitoring and fault diagnosis to enable faster recovery."

Public healthcare systems have backup infrastructure, including two data centres; however, both depended on the same DNS service and security configuration, stated Tan.

Healthcare institutions activated downtime procedures

Downtime procedures were activated in the healthcare institutions, with additional staff supporting operations using selected read-only patient records and manual workflows, added Tan.

"No adverse patient safety incidents were attributed to the disruption."

The government is strengthening resilience in three areas to prevent, contain and ensure the continuity of care in full and partial outages:

1. Prevention by improving tracking and verification of critical technical changes
2. Containment by addressing shared dependency and improving recovery arrangements
3. Ensuring continuity of care by improving downtime systems, staff readiness and regular exercises

An expert panel has also been appointed by Synapxe to review the investigation findings and proposed remediation measures and identify further improvements.

Tan concluded: "We must make our technology more reliable while ensuring healthcare workers can continue caring for patients safely, even when technology fails."

Alex Lo Chun Ming was charged with the murder of his then-23-year-old ex-girlfriend.

Her body was found in a bathtub at a five-star hotel in Hong Kong in 2022.

He has pleaded not guilty to murder.

Charged

The victim, also known as Aqua Chow, was found dead at The Ritz-Carlton hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui between Jun. 29, 2022, and Jun. 30, 2022.

His trial took place on Nov. 2 at Hong Kong’s High Court, as reported by HK01.

Prosecution argued that he had planned the murder, and it was not something done out of impulse, reported the South China Morning Post (SCMP).

Rocky relationship

The court heard that Lo and Chow started dating in February 2021, and moved in together two months later.

However, they had a rocky relationship and broke up in February 2022.

Chow soon started dating another man in June 2022.

On Jun. 28, 2022, Lo checked into The Ritz Carlton and paid HK$2,000 (S$330) for a room. This was the room where Chow was eventually found, the prosecutors said.

He extended his stay by another day the next morning and purchased a knife from a kitchenware shop.

The prosecution said Lo also visited luxury stores like Delvaux and Hermès.

Chow met up with a friend on Jun. 29, who noticed her messaging someone called Alex Lo on Telegram.

There were pictures of a brown Delvaux handbag and Hermès scarves in the chat.

Chow told her friend that he wanted to give her a handbag, and that she planned to ask him for a scarf as well.

At about 4:34pm on the same day, Lo allegedly picked Chow up from her home and brought her to the hotel.

Did not board flight

Chow was scheduled to fly to the U.S. on Jun. 29 to attend a yoga course.

She was supposed to have dinner with her boyfriend before he took her to the airport.

He lost contact with her around 5pm that day, but headed to the airport, hoping to find her there.

However, Chow never turned up.

Chow’s mother reported her missing to the police on Jun. 30, 2022.

Police searched Lo’s home that day, and he said he did not know where Chow was, the prosecution said.

That night, Lo went to the Police Station with his lawyer.

The lawyer handed the police a Ritz-Carlton cardholder and two key cards.

When officers entered the hotel room, they found bloodstains on the carpet outside the bathroom, on the pillows and bedding, and inside two wardrobes, the prosecution said.

Chow was found lying facedown in the half-filled bathtub, clothed, with visible cuts on her left arm and back. Her body was already stiff.

A bloody towel was found in the bathtub as well, covering some parts of her body.

Officers found a Victorinox knife in the bathtub, about 22cm in length.

Prosecutors alleged that this knife was the murder weapon.

More than 40 knife wounds

A forensic report presented in court showed that Chow suffered more than 40 knife wounds to her face, neck, torso and limbs.

Forensic experts believe that Chow was attacked from behind.

She then fell to the ground and curled into a fetal position, as reported by HK01.

There is no evidence of her drowning.

Her cause of death was severe blood loss from her wounds.

According to the prosecution, the shoeprints at the scene matched a pair of Gucci shoes that belonged to Lo.

The trial is still ongoing.

Indonesia's Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Bahlil Lahadalia stated that the country could continue exporting electricity to Singapore, provided the transaction price is advantageous for Indonesia.

According to Kompas, Bahlil emphasised that the export price must align with the rates determined by the Indonesian government.

Otherwise, domestic electricity needs will take priority.

"As long as the price is right. As long as the price is suitable and follows our rate, it is certainly possible. But if the price isn't right, we will prioritise domestic needs," Bahlil said at the Jakarta Presidential Palace Complex on Nov. 2.

Bahlil reiterated that bilateral trade between Indonesia and Singapore must remain mutually beneficial.

The minister’s latest comments come after recent tensions between Singapore and Indonesia over cross-border haze and natural gas exports.

It was previously announced that Indonesia will begin cutting natural gas exports to Singapore by 31 billion British thermal units per day (BBTUD) from Oct. 24.

Warning against lobbying

Bahlil also cautioned sovereign investment agency Danantara against yielding to lobbying to lower electricity export prices, stressing that the statutory authority to issue export permits rests solely with his ministry.

"If the price is still unsuitable, we can't proceed. That's why I ask Danantara not to be lobbied to follow suit so that prices can be lowered," Bahlil stated.

Bahlil, who also serves as Coordinating Minister for Downstreaming and Energy Transition, said his ministry has already calculated the proposed export tariff in its submission, though he did not disclose specific figures.

At the Singapore-Indonesia Leaders’ Retreat in July 2026, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto appointed Danantara to implement cross-border electricity trade with Singapore.

During the summit, Prabowo and Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong exchanged agreements on economic cooperation on electricity trade, amongst others.

Routing exports directly

On Nov. 2, Bahlil also spoke at the Minerba Convex 2026 forum, saying that Indonesia should stop routing its natural resource exports through third countries before they reach their final destinations.

"Our natural resources must no longer be routed through other countries. If we are sending goods to China, they should go directly from Jakarta to China, not stop over in that 'particular' country," the Jakarta Globe quoted Bahlil as saying.

"They just put a stamp on the goods and then claim that they are exports from their country. Where did you get those goods?" he added.

Bahlil said the practice had been going on for years and instructed his director generals to ensure that Indonesian commodities were no longer unnecessarily routed through intermediary countries.

Although he did not name Singapore, his remarks came after he accused the country in late October of reselling some of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) it imported from Indonesia to other countries, rather than using it for domestic consumption.

In response to Mothership's queries, a spokesperson for Singapore's Ministry of Energy, Trade and Industry (METI) subsequently clarified on Oct. 30 that "piped natural gas imported from Indonesia is for domestic use, and not for export".

A man filmed two conservancy workers in a Marine Parade-Braddell Heights estate returning cans and bottles at a Beverage Container Return Scheme (BCRS) return machine. 

He then accused them of obtaining the cans from waste bins and criticised them for earning a "double salary".

Backlash came swiftly after, with netizens calling him "kaypoh" (nosey).

The town council later clarified that the workers were returning beverage containers they had collected themselves.

The video

On Oct. 29, TikTok user jiatong888 posted a video of the two workers at the BCRS machine.

A voice can be heard admonishing the two workers while they were returning their drink containers.

It said, "You see town council people ah, they can take the rubbish ah, the can ah, and [collect] the money ah.

"But other people, old man cannot take. You see what the government is doing."

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A post shared by Mothership (@mothershipsg)

The workers largely ignored him and continued with their returns.

He wrote in the caption:

"#TinPeiLin why the govt say old ppl cannot take cans from rubbish bins but the town council ppl can? They r taking salary from the govt yet they take the refund money from the cans taken from the rubbish bins!! That's mean they r taking double salary? I just wan to know whether is it a double standard to normal citizens n those working for the govt? In the video u can see the town council ppl still smiling! Is it they r sarcastic or happy waiting to receive the refund money from the cans?? (sic)"

It was previously reported that there were cases of individuals rummaging through rubbish bins to look for bottles and cans to obtain the 10-cent BCRS refund.

Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu said that those found doing so could face legal action.

Backlash

However, online users defended the two workers, with many calling him "kaypoh" for filming and posting the video.

They pointed out that migrant workers, such as the ones in the video, already earned a meagre salary, and called for greater sympathy on the poster's part.

Others also said that he should be grateful as the conservancy workers were the ones keeping his estate clean.

Town council's response

Marine Parade-Braddell Heights Town Council later made a Facebook post on Nov. 1 to respond to the situation.

In the caption, it wrote: "To clarify, the workers were depositing containers from their own purchases, with some also given to them directly by residents."

The post also clarified that they were doing so after working hours.

The council noted that workers are aware that they are not permitted to rummage through trash to retrieve such items, and have advised them to change out of their work uniforms when carrying out personal BCRS returns so as to avoid misunderstandings.

It stressed that as members of the community, conservancy workers can participate in the BCRS recycling scheme just like anyone else, adding that the conservancy workers "play an important role in keeping our neighbourhoods clean."

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The female co-pilot of the fatal Florida jet crash, which killed all nine people on board, has been identified as 20-year-old Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras.

She could be heard pleading for help in air traffic control audio prior to the crash, the New York Post reported.

It was also reported that Filgueiras had received her pilot's licence in high school.

Jet crashed

An earlier report mentioned that a private jet in the U.S. plunged toward the ground in Florida on Nov. 1 (U.S. time).

Air traffic control revealed the final moments from the jet before the incident, reported the New York Post.

The private jet was headed from Austin, Texas, to North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas.

It crashed in Greenacres, Florida, a community for modular and mobile homes.

Just 10 minutes before the jet crashed, she texted her boyfriend, Justin, and said: "I’ve got turbulence, I've got ice."

Commercical pilot

Speaking to New York Post, Filgueiras' mother, Camila, as well as her stepfather, confirmed that she was the co-pilot of the Learjet 60.

She would be 21 years old in January 2027, her mother said, adding that Filgueiras had been a commercial pilot for nine months.

In addition, she had 1,300 hours of flying experience, Camila's husband, 44-year-old Thiago Corteleti said.

Pilot's licence before driver's licence

In October 2023, Filgueiras was just 17 when she got her private pilot's licence and was featured in local media at the time, New York Post reported.

She did not have her driver's licence yet.

New York Post reported Filgueiras as previously telling another media outlet, CBS12: "I definitely do brag because people say, 'Oh, you can't drive,' and I'm like, 'Yeah, but I can fly'."

She wanted to become a pilot from a young age after she took her father's Beechcraft Bonanza, an American general aviation aircraft.

Camila said Filgueiras came home one day after flying with her father and declared she would become a pilot.

Though Camila objected at the time, Filgueiras' father said she would become one if she wanted to

The second of three sisters then began to take pilot lessons in 2020, and her father, who learned flying for fun in 2018, also taught her, New York Post reported.

Dreamed to be commercial airline pilot

New York Post reported that Filgueiras was still too young to apply to work at American Airlines, though she dreamed of becoming a commercial airline pilot one day.

She had graduated from American Flyers, a Texas-based flying school with a Florida branch.

Filgueiras then started working as an instructor at another school before she got another pilot job.

Mum knew flying would kill daughter

Camila said: "I wanted her to live her dream, but I knew that her dream was going to be the thing that would take her away from me."

"I knew that a plane was gonna take her away from me. I always knew it but I was so proud of her," she added, noting that she knew her daughter was living her dream.

"I know if she could pick a way to go, this would be her way to go, but I didn’t want it to be so soon."

Chilling audio

Prior to the crash, the pilot had initially reported moderate turbulence and manageable ice to the Miami Air Route Traffic Control Center.

However, the pilot soon radioed: "We're descending 8,000 - mayday, mayday - we're descending 10,000 ft per minute."

This was followed by: "We're going to crash into the ground."

About 35 seconds after the first mayday call, the last thing heard from the cockpit was a female crew member screaming, "Holy f*ck, we're out of time."

Investigation

Following the incident, the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said it would investigate if parts of the jet broke off before it nose-dived and exploded, the BBC reported.

It added that it would also investigate the extent to which ice and turbulence could be contributing factors.

According to the BBC, other victims in the crash included a tech entrepreneur who was with his young family.

A 73-year-old woman died after being hit by an SMRT bus along South Bridge Road towards Tanjong Pagar on Nov. 2.

In response to Mothership's queries, the police said they were alerted to the accident involving a bus and a pedestrian at around 11:40am.

The woman was taken unconscious to the hospital, where she subsequently died.

Separately, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted to the accident at around 11:45am and conveyed one person to Singapore General Hospital.

A 41-year-old male bus driver is assisting with investigations.

Accident involved SMRT bus service 61

TikTok videos posted by @wesleywes615 showed bus service 61 at the accident scene.

The bus appeared to have a cracked windscreen and damage to its front bumper.

Emergency responders were also seen attending to a person at the scene.

Woman was crossing between vehicles: SMRT

Vincent Gay, Deputy Managing Director of SMRT Buses, confirmed that the accident involved bus service 61.

"On 2 November, at about 11.40am, a bus on Service 61 was travelling along South Bridge Road when it hit a pedestrian who was crossing between vehicles," Gay said.

Gay also expressed condolences to the woman's family.

"We are deeply saddened by the pedestrian’s death and extend our heartfelt condolences to the family. Our care team has contacted the next of kin to offer assistance and support during this difficult time," he said.

Gay added that no other injuries were reported at the time of the accident and that all passengers were safely transferred to another bus to continue their journeys.

SMRT said it is cooperating with the police in their investigation.

Police investigations are ongoing.