Spike in fines, warnings issued to owners of public toilets in 2024

10 coffee shops have also been suspended for toilet-related and food safety offences

- Tang Yi Qing

There has been a spike in enforcement actions taken against owners of public toilets in 2024, the Year of Public Hygiene, as designated by the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment.

Figures from the National Environment Agency (NEA) and Singapore Food Agency (SFA) showed that 1,253 enforcement actions comprising fines and warnings related to public toilet cleanliness were taken against premises owners from Jan 1 to Nov 15.

This is more than triple the 367 enforcement actions taken over the same period in 2023.

In addition, 10 coffee shops have been suspended by SFA for toilet-related and food safety offences under the Points Demerit System in 2024, compared with just one suspension each in 2022 and 2023.

Owners or operators of public toilets can be fined up to $500 for not providing basic amenities, such as soap or toilet paper, or not keeping toilets clean. Coffee shops are suspended for one day if they accumulate 12 points within 12 months, according to the SFA website.

The clean-up is far from over.

A new campaign, the Cleaner Public Toilets Campaign 2024, was launched by Mr Baey Yam Keng, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Sustainability and the Environment, on Nov 21 at Senja Hawker Centre.