SINGAPORE – The Republic has a range of policy levers besides taxation to tackle inequality, such as giving Singaporeans a wealth injection through public housing and the occasional Central Provident Fund (CPF) top-up, said Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.<\/p>\n
That is the reason why even the bottom 20 per cent of households here has significant net assets \u2013 because of Singapore\u2019s home ownership policy, he said, in a conversation at the Bloomberg New Economy\u00a0Forum\u2019s gala\u00a0dinner on Nov 19.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s one way we can continue to fine-tune our policies to provide more support and uplift for lower-income groups,\u201d he said, at the event at Clifford Pier. The annual forum is taking place from Nov 19 to 21.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe also have CPF… which is the individual\u2019s own retirement nest egg, which we do top-ups from time to time.\u201d<\/p>\n
PM Wong was responding to a question from Bloomberg editor-in-chief John Micklethwait, who asked him whether the influx of wealthy foreigners to Singapore meant people were more aware of inequality, despite the Gini coefficient<\/a> here having come down.<\/p>\n Singapore\u2019s Gini coefficient, a measure of income inequality, peaked in 2007 and has declined in recent years, partly due to government transfers and policies such as the Progressive Wage Model.<\/a><\/p>\n The Prime Minister said there are two separate issues: tackling wealth inequality among its people, and managing the funds of people who are not Singaporeans.<\/p>\n As a financial centre, the city-state welcomes family offices<\/a> and for foreigners to manage funds out of Singapore, as these create jobs for Singaporeans, he said.<\/p>\n \u201cSometimes it creates frictions, especially when they are ostentatious shows of wealth,\u201d he acknowledged. \u201cWe have just to remind them, \u2018Singapore is a different society, we are egalitarian, our norms are different, please understand.\u2019 And for the most part, they do.\u201d<\/p>\n Mr Micklethwait also asked about illicit money coming in from abroad as part of these flows, such as the $3 billion money laundering case in 2023.<\/a><\/p>\n PM Wong said illicit flows are something that all financial centres have to deal with, and are not a problem unique to Singapore.<\/p>\n \u201cThe key is, what do you do? And we are very stringent, and we take swift action,\u201d he said. \u201cWe are determined to protect our reputation because that\u2019s what keeps Singapore going \u2013 a trusted business and financial centre.\u201d<\/p>\n Asked about Singapore\u2019s energy future<\/a> and whether nuclear energy is going to become a big part of the Republic\u2019s energy mix, PM Wong said the city-state is studying the option seriously, though there won\u2019t be \u201can easy silver bullet\u201d to meet its energy needs.<\/p>\n He noted that some new technologies like small modular reactors (SMRs)<\/a> are safer, but there are currently very few commercial-scale SMRs that meet Singapore\u2019s needs.<\/p>\n Other options include hydrogen, which is still expensive, and working with neighbouring countries to bring about an Asean power grid, which he said is \u201ctaking time, complex, but it\u2019s happening\u201d.<\/p>\n Fate of US and China will be determined by their own people<\/p>\n Mr Micklethwait also asked about the US-China rivalry, and if the US was losing South-east Asia due to its policies, such as trade tariffs.<\/a><\/p>\n PM Wong said that in his regular visits to China, he observed that the US\u2019 actions had only strengthened the Chinese side\u2019s resolve to work even harder and move faster on technology and self-sufficiency.<\/p>\n While everyone is focused on what one country does to the other, the fates of the two great powers will, at the end of the day, be determined by their own people, he said.<\/p>\n \u201cAmericans decide America\u2019s future, Chinese people decide China\u2019s future \u2013 that\u2019s what it comes down to,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd it\u2019s their actions, their agency, that determines domestic reforms, that determines the direction that these countries will take.\u201d<\/p>\n On South-east Asia, PM Wong said the region was once an arena for proxy wars, and does not want that to happen again.<\/p>\n \u201cAsean will continue to be fiercely independent \u2013 not so much non-aligned, but multiple-aligned, engaged with all the key players\u201d and taking positions on issues based on their own national interest, he added.<\/p>\n Amid the unravelling of the stable multilateral framework, with countries today more concerned about security and resilience, Singapore wants to see a new framework that finds ways such that countries can protect their national interest but with restraint and shared rules, he said.<\/p>\n Singapore is working with like-minded countries to get there, he added, citing partnerships such as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP)<\/a> and the Future of Investment and Trade Partnership (FIT-P).<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThey are about setting new norms, new rules of the road… in a way, we are laying the foundations for a new multilateral framework that may come later on,\u201d said PM Wong.<\/p>\n Mr Micklethwait noted that FIT-P countries include Brunei, Costa Rica, Chile, Liechtenstein, Morocco, New Zealand, Panama, Rwanda, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates and Uruguay, which \u201cis a fantastic kind of World Cup group to be in (but) doesn\u2019t feel like the beginnings of a big trade bloc\u201d.<\/p>\n In response, PM Wong recounted that long before the CPTPP became one of the largest regional free trade agreements, it had begun as a partnership of four countries \u2013 Brunei, Chile, New Zealand and Singapore.<\/p>\n \u201cGreat things can start from small places, including Singapore,\u201d PM Wong said to applause from\u00a0the\u00a0audience.<\/p>\n Mr Micklethwait closed the conversation noting that PM Wong was Singapore\u2019s first prime minister born after the country\u2019s independence, and asked what made him different from the three Singaporean prime ministers before him.<\/p>\n PM Wong said that while being from a different generation than his predecessors is part of it, in ethos, mindset and values, he represents the PAP.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are here to build a better Singapore because history has never been kind to small states,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd we know, despite our success these last 60 years, the world is a dangerous place. It\u2019s become even more dangerous.<\/p>\n \u201cOur mission, my mission, is to keep Singapore going \u2013 not just in my term, but to leave behind a better Singapore for my successor and for future generations.\u201d<\/p>\n Source: The Straits Times \u00a9 SPH Media Limited. Permission required for reproduction<\/a><\/p>\n