Singapore needs to prepare to live with Covid-19 for a long time, and brace itself for significantly more new cases, Parliament was told yesterday.

A prolonged outbreak could also delay significant projects like Changi Airport's Terminal 5.

Touching on how difficult it is becoming to keep the virus at bay, Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said infections outside China are growing at "alarming rates".

"This is worrying as they pose a high risk of importation of cases into Singapore," he said. "Even amongst our closest neighbours, the situation is evolving. Therefore, it is likely that this disease will stay with us for a long time."

Singapore will keep adjusting its response to the changing situation, he said.

As more countries face infections, it will become increasingly difficult to stop the virus at the borders "as we cannot ban visitors from every country and shut ourselves out from the world", he added.

Speaking at a workshop organised by the International Air Transport Association, Senior Minister of State for Health and Transport Lam Pin Min said the current precautions were not sustainable.

In the case of a pandemic, travel restrictions might have to be replaced by measures like rigorous screening at airports so that life can go on, Dr Lam said.

Singapore currently does not admit visitors who have been in China, South Korea, Iran and northern Italy within the last 14 days.

In reply to Dr Lily Neo (Jalan Besar GRC), Mr Gan said there is a high risk of importing cases even though Singapore is doing swab testing at the borders on people who are ill. But people may enter without showing symptoms and fall sick while here, he added.

"We do expect to see a significantly higher number of cases in time to come," said Mr Gan. "And with higher number of cases in Singapore, the risk of community spread will also increase."

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But every outbreak is different, he said in reply to queries from Ms Sylvia Lim (Aljunied GRC) and Mr Christopher de Souza (Holland-Bukit Timah GRC) on preparing better for the future. "We must always expect the unexpected."

Measures Singapore takes may need to be adjusted to factor in a long-term outbreak, as it will take some time for vaccines and treatments to become available.

What is critical is the ability "to mount a swift and effective response", including mobilising the resources of all relevant government agencies so those fighting the outbreak can "assess, decide and execute our response quickly", he said.

Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan said a prolonged outbreak may also delay some major transport infrastructure projects such as Terminal 5 at Changi Airport and the expansion of the MRT network, as it may disrupt the supply of construction equipment and materials.

Mr Gan pointed out that "it is important to be transparent and share the information we know as soon as possible" in order to preserve the trust between the people and the Government, which is essential in the fight against Covid-19.

It is equally crucial to counter and respond decisively to fake news "to avoid diversion of our resources and prevent disruptions to our efforts", he added.

Mr Gan praised the SG Clean campaign, which encourages all Singaporeans to adopt good personal and environmental hygiene habits and calls on organisations to adhere to sanitation and hygiene checklists by the authorities, for picking up momentum as that plays an important role in stopping the spread of the coronavirus.

Everyone has to play their part in the fight, and good hygiene practices must become a way of life, he added.