H.E. Mr. Bansarn Bunnag, Ambassador of Thailand, welcomed H.E. Gen. Sirichai Distakul, Minister of Labour of Thailand and former Permanent Secretary for Defence, who visited Singapore on 14-16 October 2015 in order to receive the Distinguished Service Order (Military) from H.E. Dr. Tony Tan Keng Yam, President of Singapore, for his contribution towards strengthening the excellent defence ties between Thailand and Singapore, especially military training exchanges, during his service as the Permanent Secretary for Defence. The ceremony took place on 15 October 2015 at the Istana.

During this visit, Ambassador of Thailand also led the Minister of Labour of Thailand to pay a courtesy call on H.E. Mr. Lim Swee Say, Minister for Manpower of Singapore. On this occasion, the Thai Minister of Labour congratulated H.E. Mr. Lim Swee Say for his appointment as the Minister for Manpower of Singapore, as well as stressing the importance Thailand places on Thai workers in Singapore, especially regarding S-Pass workers, including Thai chefs, and the acceptance of the certificate of qualification issued by the Ministry of Labour of Thailand by the Ministry of Manpower of Singapore. In addition, Ambassador of Thailand also led the Minister of Labour to visit approximately 50 Thai workers who work for Dragages Singapore Pte Ltd at Sky Vue Condominium. Minister of Labour expressed his concerns for Thai workers’ health, however he stressed the importance of quality of work of Thai workers in order to gain acceptance and trust by Singaporean employers.