08/01/2013

Watz Online - 8 Jan 2013

Foreign lawyers' pool grew 42% in 6 years



The number of foreign lawyers here has grown faster than that of local ones in the last six years, said Law Society president Lok Vi Ming yesterday.

Speaking at the opening of the new legal year, he said: "The spectacular growth of the number of foreign lawyers practising in Singapore emphasises the need for our foreign brethren to lock hands with local lawyers, not in competition, but in cooperation and integration."

There are more than 4,300 local lawyers practising here today, he said, after the total number of lawyers here grew "steadily" over the last six years and the number of local lawyers passed the 4,000 mark for the first time last year.

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Singapore To Remain Malaysia's Most Important Source Of Foreign Tourist Arrivals



Tourism Malaysia expects Singapore to remain the most important source of foreign tourist arrivals in Malaysia, registering more than 50 per cent of total arrivals annually.

Its director for Singapore, Zalizam Zakaria, said more Singaporeans were expected to visit Malaysia in the coming years, especially during Visit Malaysia Year 2013-2014.

Malaysia ranks third, after Indonesia and China, for Singapore tourist arrivals

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Another sex scandal hits Singapore varsity

THE National University of Singapore (NUS) has been rocked by another online sex scandal, three months after the Alvin Tan case. 

Sin Chew Daily reported that an NUS student allegedly uploaded a 14-minute video showing a man masturbating and also measuring his penis with a ruler.

The video was uploaded last June and includes the man's name, e-mail address and the Singapore National Co-operative Federation (SNCF), where he obtained a scholarship.

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SDP’s Wijeysingha apologises to Tan Chuan—Jin

Opposition politician Dr Vincent Wijeysingha has apologised to Acting Manpower Minister Tan Chuan—Jin for comments deemed as defamatory about him in an article on the illegal strike by SMRT bus drivers from China.

The article, "’You can resign and go to SBS,’ the drivers were told", was posted on his own Facebook page on December 2 last year.

It focused on the strike on November 26 and 27 last year.


Halimah Yacob to be named Speaker of Parliament: report


Minister of State for Community Development, Youth and Sports Halimah Yacob (Screengrab)

Minister of State Halimah Yacob will be appointed as the next Speaker of Parliament in the Parliament sitting next Monday, according to a report by Chinese daily Lianhe ZaoBao on Sunday.

If that happens, the MOS for the Ministry of Social and Family Development would be the first woman to hold the post.

The speakership became vacant after Michael Palmer resigned from the ruling People's Action Party over an extra-marital affair.

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Singapore December Foreign Exchange Reserves $259.3 Billion Vs $255.8 Billion in November

Singapore's foreign exchange reserves stood at US$259.3 billion in December, up from US$255.8 billion in November, the Monetary Authority of Singapore said on its website Monday.

In Singapore dollar terms, foreign exchange reserves were at S$316.7 billion compared with S$312.1 billion in November, the central bank said.

MAS doesn't give reasons for the increase or decrease in its reserves.
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GIC acquires PGA West, La Quinta Resort & Club

Sovereign wealth fund Government of Singapore Investment Corp (GIC) has bought PGA West and La Quinta Resort & Club (pictured), along with several other high-end golf courses, for US$1.5 billion (S$1.84 billion) from a group led by US-based hedge fund Paulson & Co.

Under the purchase agreement, PGA West’s six courses, comprising 109 holes, will remain PGA-branded until 2061. Paulson & Co will also transfer the licensing agreement to GIC’s property investment division, according to Gary Sims, Managing Director of La Quinta Resort & Club and PGA West, a top-calibre golf destination known for its colourful Hollywood history.

“We had an existing license agreement with PGA of America that dates back to the early 80s and the original development here. But that licensing agreement (for PGA West’s six courses) was reaching its expiration about the time this ownership change took place. We renegotiated that agreement and extended it another 50 years.”

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