Ministers give their take on issues in new talk show

Ministerial Coffee Talk, an eight-episode talk show where ministers address issues of national concern, will begin airing today.

Produced by the Chinese Media Group of Singapore Press Holdings (SPH), each 30-minute episode will see a minister discuss and reply questions from newspaper readers and radio listeners. Hosted by UFM100.3 DJ Wong Woon Hong, the first episode will feature Minister of State for Health, Dr Lam Pin Min, who will speak on the topic "Will MediShield Life put people at ease?". Joining the minister on the show are Mr Chua Chim Kang, managing editor of SPH's Chinese Media Group, Mr Samuel Ng, chief executive officer of voluntary welfare organisation Montfort Care, and a reporter from Chinese news daily Lianhe Zaobao.

The programme, which will run from today to Aug 28, will be available online every Tuesday and Friday at 8.30am on zaobao.sg, wanbao.sg and omy.sg.

It will also air on E City (StarHub TV Channel 111/825) at the same times on Tuesdays and Fridays, with repeat telecasts at 9.30pm.

It will also be available on StarHub's TV Anywhere Internet TV service and Video On Demand.

StarHub is SPH's broadcast partner for the programme. The show will be edited into shorter episodes for radio and broadcasted on UFM100.3 between 7pm and 8pm on Tuesdays, and between 8.30am and 9.30am on Fridays.

Other ministers slated to appear in subsequent episodes include Mr Lee Yi Shyan, Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry and National Development, and Ms Josephine Teo, Senior Minister of State for Finance and Transport.

Said Ms Jeannie Ong, StarHub's Chief Strategic Partnership Officer: "StarHub has an established TV platform with extensive reach, while SPH is strong in news and content creation. The Ministerial Coffee Talk is a great start to our collaboration."

This article was first published on August 4, 2015.
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