No more second chances: NEA, SFA to get tougher on diners who fail to clear tables
SINGAPORE — Diners at hawker centres, coffee shops and food courts who fail to return used trays and crockery will face stronger enforcement actions from Jun 1, the National Environment Agency (NEA) said on Tuesday (April 18).
SINGAPORE — Diners at hawker centres, coffee shops and food courts who fail to return used trays and crockery will face stronger enforcement actions from Jun 1, the National Environment Agency (NEA) said on Tuesday (April 18).
Currently, enforcement officers from NEA and the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) will advise diners who do not clear their tables to do so. Those who do not comply and are first-time offenders will be issued written warnings. Second-time offenders will face a composition fine of S$300, while subsequent offenders may face court fines.
The rules have been in place since Sept 1, 2021 for hawker centres and Jan 1, 2022 for coffee shops and food courts.
On Tuesday, NEA said that from June 1, offending diners across these public eating places will be asked for their particulars. First-time offenders will be issued a warning right away, instead of an advisory, while subsequent offenders will continue to be issued fines or charged in court.
NEA and SFA are stepping up enforcement "to reinforce good habits and deter the minority of diners who repeatedly fail to return their used trays and crockery".
It "aims to ensure that the good efforts of the majority (over 90 per cent) of diners who return their used trays and crockery are not marred by the inconsiderate behaviour of the minority", NEA added.
The agencies said they would continue with a "pragmatic" approach and avoid enforcement actions against "the less-abled, frail elderly and children, who are clearly unable to clear their tables".
As of March 31 this year, two written warnings have been issued and no one has been fined or charged in court, said NEA.
The average tray and crockery return rate at hawker centres has also increased from 65 per cent in August 2021 to about 90 per cent now, while the rate at coffee shops and food courts has remained around 90 per cent as well.
NEA also pointed to a Singapore Management University survey published earlier in April, which showed that 95 per cent of diners returned their used trays and crockery "all the time". The proportion who felt that individual diners were primarily responsible for clearing their tables also rose from 58 per cent in 2021 to 84 per cent.
The agency also said it would be stepping up enforcement against littering by deploying remote surveillance cameras at "hotspots" from this month.
From 2020 to 2022, NEA issued an average of 18,700 tickets for littering and high-rise littering, with the most given out last year (21,200).
First-time littering offenders are fined S$300 while those prosecuted in court may be issued a fine and given a Corrective Work Order (CWO) to clean up public places under supervision. About 2,200 CWOs were issued from 2020 to 2022.
NEA said CWO sessions were introduced at the city areas of Chinatown and Tanjong Pagar last November, to "further drive home the impact of littering".
These sessions will be expanded to the vicinity of Farrer Park from July 2023. CNA
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Source: CNA
