Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam has slammed arguments that Singapore's decision to treat vaping like drug offences undermines harm reduction approaches on tobacco.He was talking to the media at a community event in Yishun on Saturday (Aug 30).Harm reduction promotes a substance user's right to continue using a harmful substance and assumes a low probability of recovery. According to a Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) study, it is based on the addicted individual's ability, even under impairment, to make choices. Singapore's approach to harm is based on eradication.In the wake of Singapore rolling out sterner measures against vaping, the Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA) executive coordinator Nancy Loucas had claimed  that «prohibition will only fuel underground markets while denying smokers access to safer alternatives».Loucas' comment was reported by Tobacco Reporter, which describes itself as «the leading trade journal around the world». 

What began as an overseas call which she would normally ignore turned into a elaborate and manipulative scam — one that cost her $250,000, nearly wiping out her life savings. Speaking to the media at Police Cantonment Complex on Aug 18, the woman, who wished to be known only as Tan, recounted how a scammer impersonating an Air China officer first reached out to her in April this year. «I am usually cautious about calls from China. Most of the scam calls come from there,» said the mother of one, who is in her 40s. «But this one didn't ask for money upfront. They were just verifying my identity at first.»Tan, a Singaporean, shared that the caller claimed there were irregularities involving flight cancellations and insurance claims under her name.When she denied any involvement, the caller suggested that her identity might have been stolen and advised her to file a report with the Chinese police.

Scam victims in Singapore lost less money in the first half of 2025 compared to the same period last year, with the number of cases declining for the first time since 2021.Releasing the mid-year scam and cybercrime statistics on Saturday (Aug 30), the police said the total amount that victims were cheated off in 2025 — $456.4 million — dropped by 12.6 per cent from $522.4 million in 2024.The overall number of scam cases also fell, from 26,563 to 19,665 in the same period. While the dip in cases and money lost from scammers had buckled an upward trend observed over the past four years, the police said that the scam situation “remains of concern”.

SINGAPORE — The National Basketball League (NBL) Division 1 final will be postponed from Aug 30 to Sept 7, after defending champions Adroit had earlier fielded suspended players who are under investigation for allegedly fixing league games.In a statement on Aug 29, the Basketball Association of Singapore (BAS) said that the club “included players who are currently under suspension” in their NBL semi-final win (67 to 52) over Siglap on Aug 27. In the other semi-final at the Singapore Basketball Centre, Eng Tat Hornets edged out SG Basketball 79 to 73.

The police are seeking the public's help to locate 11-year-old Muhammad Hairil Muhammad Effendi, who has been reported missing.In a news release issued on Friday (Aug 29), the Singapore Police Force said the boy was last seen in the vicinity of Block 29 Marine Crescent at around 11.05am on that day.Hairil, who has special needs and is mostly non-verbal, is said to have left home barefoot and shirtless, wearing only a pair of grey shorts, according to a post by the Reunite Missing Children Facebook page. His parents discovered he was missing around 11am on that day, with a neighbour's CCTV camera recording him leaving their Marine Terrace flat.

Coastal barriers, raised structures and tidal gates are among the recommended measures to protect the Greater Southern Waterfront (GSW) and Changi from the threat of rising sea levels, Singapore's National Water Agency PUB announced on Saturday (Aug 30).The proposals are part of PUB's first site-specific coastal protection study for the City-East Coast, which also covers the upcoming Long Island project.The Long Island project, announced in 2023, is an integrated solution that will protect the entire East Coast area. Together with GSW and Changi, the measures will form a continuous line of defence against coastal flooding.Said Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong at the inaugural Coastal Protection Exhibition on Aug 30 (Saturday) at VivoCity. «Coastal protection requires long term and careful planning. And trade offs are inevitable. There are still coastlines with unique characteristics that we will proceed with site specific studies progressively.»We will explore solutions that will have to balance across diverse priorities, while maintaining and providing the flexibility to adjust subsequently."

The Public Service Division on Friday (Aug 29) announced one new permanent secretary appointment and re-designation that will take effect from Oct 1, 2025.Tan Chye Hee, 52, will be appointed Permanent Secretary (Home Affairs Development) at the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and concurrently Permanent Secretary (Information and Development) at the Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI) form Oct 1. He takes over the portfolios from Aubeck Kam, 54, and Chng Kai Fong, 46, respectively. Tan has been director of the Internal Security Department at MHA since 2020.He was formerly Deputy Commissioner of Police for Investigations and Intelligence at the Singapore Police Force (SPF) from 2015 to 2020, and previously held various appointments in the Ministry of Trade and Industry, MHA and SPF. 

SINGAPORE — Loh Kean Yew missed a golden opportunity to earn his second Badminton World Federation World Championships medal as he lost 22-20, 21-18 to unheralded Canadian Victor Lai in the men's singles quarter-finals on Friday (Aug 29).World No. 50 Lai, who was 100th at the start of the year before he became the Pan Am champion in April, is assured of at least a bronze. He was the only unseeded player left in the draw.World No. 9 Loh was the hot favourite even though the Singaporean was making a comeback after a bacterial infection that left him bedridden for weeks and kept him out of international competition in July.But following slow starts in his earlier victories over 233rd-ranked Mauritian Julien Paul, Finland's world No. 53 Kalle Koljonen and Japan's world No. 8 Kodai Naraoka, he was once again off-colour, committing numerous unforced errors to allow his opponent to score a mighty upset.Lai, 20, took the first two points after his more illustrious opponent smashed into the net before he played a sharp angled shot to signal his intent.

A Vietnamese-American man was sentenced to a jail term of 19 months and fined $239,065 after he was convicted of three counts of money laundering on Thursday (Aug 28).In news release, the police said that Nguyen Duy Khiem, a 61-year-old dual citizenship holder, was involved in a US$8.3 million (S$10.6 million) money laundering case.Between 2018 and 2019, he entered into arrangements with various overseas call centres that were promoting fake investments to potential investors.He worked with those centres to receive fraudulent proceeds from investors and transferred them to overseas bank accounts, said the police.Khiem set up various companies in Singapore and used their corporate bank accounts for these fraudulent activities.In 2019, he arranged for two Vietnamese women, Hoang Dinh Phuong Thao and Hoang Thi Thuy Hang, to incorporate two companies, Kaloca Asia and Wellington York Partners, respectively in Singapore. Khiem also arranged for the two women to set up bank accounts for Kaloca and Wellington in Singapore.