Bill Introduced in Parliament to Transfer Product Safety and Legal Metrology Functions from Enterprise Singapore Board to CCCS

Introduction

On 5 March 2025, the Ministry of Trade and Industry (“MTI“) introduced the Competition (Amendment) Bill (“Bill“) for First Reading in Parliament. The Bill proposes amendments to a range of legislation and most notably transfers product safety and legal metrology functions from the Enterprise Singapore Board (“ESB“) to the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (“CCCS“).

The legislation being amended includes the Competition Act 2004 (“Competition Act“), the Enterprise Singapore Board Act 2018 (“ESB Act“), the Consumer Protection (Trade Descriptions and Safety Requirements) Act 1975 (“Consumer Protection Act“) and the Weights and Measures Act 1975 (“Weights and Measures Act“).

Effectively, when the Bill is passed, regulatory oversight for consumer protection will be transferred from ESB and consolidated with CCCS. CCCS currently enforces consumer protection but only to a limited extent as the administering agency of the Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Act 2003 (“CPFTA“).

This Update identifies the key changes proposed by the Bill and the implications for businesses, especially those that deal with or trade consumer goods.

Transfer of Product Safety and Legal Metrology Functions from ESB to CCCS

By way of background, consumer protection in Singapore has always been a priority that has been enforced by both CCCS and ESB. CCCS enforces consumer protection as the administering agency of the CPFTA which seeks to protect consumers against unfair practices and to empower consumers to seek civil redress against unfair trade practices in Singapore. In this regard, CCCS has the power to conduct investigations against retailers that engage in unfair trade practices and file injunction applications with courts to ensure that errant retailers cease errant conduct.

Separately, the Consumer Protection Safety Office (“CPSO“), an office overseen by ESB, administers the Consumer Protection Act and its subsidiary legislation which seek to ensure that consumer products supplied in Singapore are safe for use and comply with applicable safety standards.  As such, matters relating to product safety (including product recalls) currently fall within the purview of CPSO and ESB. ESB is also the administering agency of the Weights and Measures Act which seeks to enforce the use of uniform weights and measures throughout Singapore, including its use for trade.

Under the proposed amendments of the Bill, CCCS will take over the following product safety and legal metrology functions of ESB, together with the assets, liabilities and records relating to these functions:

1. Promoting among suppliers in Singapore and educating consumers on: (i) the supply of safe consumer goods and the provision of relevant safety information about consumer goods; and (ii) legal metrology;

2. Preventing the supply of unsafe consumer goods in Singapore;

3. Administering and enforcing the Weights and Measures Act;

4. Acting internationally as the national body representative of Singapore in respect of: (i) promoting and enforcing the supply of safe consumer goods in Singapore and the provision of relevant safety information about consumer goods; and (ii) legal metrology; and

5. Advising the Government, public authorities and consumer protection organisations on national needs and policies in respect of these matters.

The proposed amendments under the Bill will grant CCCS with greater powers and effectively consolidate the enforcement of consumer protection matters with CCCS as it takes over ESB’s power to enforce and make regulations under the Consumer Protection Act. CCCS will also have the power to enter into memoranda of understanding (“MOUs“) with persons in or outside of Singapore for the purpose of performing its functions or discharging its duties to further its functions which include consumer protection. The power to enter into MOUs to further consumer protection is consistent with what CCCS can currently do to ensure compliance with competition law.

Takeaways for Businesses

The proposed amendments under the Bill, if carried into effect, will result in CCCS having greater comprehensive regulatory oversight on matters relating to consumer protection. As such, businesses would do well to take note of the expanded scope of CCCS’ powers especially in the light of the heightened enforcement climate for consumer protection in Singapore (see our previous Legal Update on this titled “Consumer Protection in Singapore – Five Key Observations for Businesses in a Heightened Enforcement Climate“).

CCCS will have a broader remit over consumer protection matters, from the advertising and marketing of consumer products, to also include issues relating to product labelling and product recall. With this change, consumer goods suppliers must be more careful about how they go to market, be it in terms of how they market their products, or the information provided on their product packaging or in-box documentation.

Please do not hesitate to reach out to our Team if you have any questions regarding this Update or the implications for your business.