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East Coast Plan unveiled
- Thread starter A Singaporean
- Start date
Heng Swee Keat
6 hrs·Was happy to participate in a lively virtual dialogue with more than 80 architects from the Singapore Institute of Architects (SIA) yesterday.
The dialogue was wide-ranging and I learnt much. Our architects, like others in the built environment industry are facing a difficult time during this pandemic. The best use of this downtime is to explore how we can work together and to build up new capabilities so that when the storm is over, we are in a good position to run and recover faster.
We are never truly done building our city — our next phase is to make Singapore into a green oasis, one that is digitally connected to the rest of the world. I look forward to the contributions of our architects, engineers, developers and urban planners, to create a Singapore that is even more vibrant, liveable, and sustainable.
Heng Swee Keat
4 hrs·Thank you to all residents and everyone who joined us for our East Coast GRC Virtual Raya last night. We had some lovely performances from Jamil Said, Sofia and John Lye, and our hosts Dzar Ismail and Sharina kept the evening lively and fun. Dr Maliki Osman, Tan Kiat How, Jessica Tan Soon Neo, Cheryl Chan 陈慧玲 and East Coast MAEC members also shared our heartfelt greetings for the season.
Out of all the nice words and music I heard, the ones that touched me most were from newlyweds Shafiq & Safwana, who reminded all of us that there are opportunities even in these unusual times, and the important thing is to spend time with our loved ones.
Heartwarming too to hear everyone's thanks and cheers for our frontline heroes. Selamat Hari Raya again! I hope you all enjoyed the performances and games, and wish everyone a happy and healthy year ahead.
#EastCoastCares
Heng Swee Keat updated their cover photo.
11 hrs·A wooden boat filled with multi-coloured glass spheres floats on the Dragonfly Lake at Gardens by the Bay. This is one of the artworks by Dale Chihuly, a world renowned glass artist. In this setting, both his art and the beauty of the gardens complement each other.
The exhibition runs from now till August this year, so you still have plenty of time to visit. Meanwhile, stay tuned for the virtual exhibition which will be coming online soon.
5 million would be quite appropriate, not over-crowded and the rent-seekers will get their money too.
Heng Swee Keat
8 hrs ·Our cleaners will be receiving significantly higher wages in the coming years as part of the Progressive Wage Model (PWM), with baseline wages in excess of $2,400 by 2028.
The annual salary increase is one of several recommendations by the Tripartite Cluster for Cleaners, which the Government has accepted. The outcome reflects the consensus reached among key stakeholders in the sector. This is a collective effort with employers paying higher wages, workers embracing upskilling, government providing some support, and consumers and service buyers eventually paying a little more.
The uplifting of our cleaners is part of a broader tripartite effort led by SMS Zaqy Mohamad to expand the PWM to all sectors and to raise the salaries of our lower-wage workers. This is possible only because of strong tripartism – with employers, NTUC Singapore and the government working closely and constructively together.
We mark an important milestone in our collective journey to uplift our lower-wage workers. This also reflects the commitment of the People's Action Party government to build a better shared future, where we stand in solidarity with one another and progress together as a society.
8 million would definitely result in over-crowding and maybe even some quarrels among strangers.
Your idiotic suggestion of 10 million is too many. You are a fucking moron. LOL....................
from straitstimes.com:
SINGAPORE - President Halimah Yacob has given her approval for a law that will allow the Government to borrow for major long-term infrastructure, the first time such loans will be allowed since the framework for protecting Singapore’s reserves was established in 1991.
As custodian of the country's past savings, all proposals on borrowing must be carefully scrutinised by President Halimah, and the Government can raise loans only after she has given the nod.
"This is a prudent and considered approach. Borrowing obliges future generations to make good what the current generation has committed to, failing which, the burden naturally falls on our past reserves," she said after she gave her assent to the Bill for the Significant Infrastructure Government Loan Act (Singa) on Monday (June 7).
Under the new law passed by Parliament in May, the Government will be able to borrow up to $90 billion to pay for infrastructure that will last for at least 50 years.
The annual interest threshold of such borrowings cannot exceed $5 billion, and each project funded under the law must be sizeable and cost at least $4 billion.
Describing Singa as an "important waypoint" under the reserves protection framework, Madam Halimah said the law will allow the Government to distribute fiscal responsibility more equitably across the generations who will benefit from the projects.
"I am glad that parliamentarians had a robust debate during last month's second reading of the Singa Bill," she added.
Explaining her decision to give her assent, she said the Government had briefed her and the Council of Presidential Advisers on the proposal, and assured her that there would be safeguards to make sure the borrowing is done in a sustainable and responsible manner so that future generations of Singaporeans will not be saddled with overly onerous financing costs.
The President noted that this is important as it would help to mitigate the risk of future draws on Singapore's past reserves due to such borrowings.
"Singapore has, thanks to the wisdom of past leadership and good governance, accumulated our national reserves over many past generations. We similarly owe it to our future generations to steward these reserves responsibly," she added.
During the debate on the law in Parliament in May, Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat, who was also Finance Minister then, said Singapore was embarking on a "generational upgrade" to its infrastructure over the next 15 years, and borrowing to pay for the major infrastructure projects will help to smooth out the hump expected in development spending.
With major highways, the Cross Island and Jurong Region MRT lines, and climate adaptation structures in the works, Singapore expects its yearly development expenditure to rise to around 5 per cent of gross domestic product, compared with the current base line of 3.7 per cent.
Singa will help to lower the yearly figure to 4.2 per cent for the next decade.
Madam Halimah said that borrowing for development spending was not new.
In the 1960s and 1980s, when Singapore lacked the resources for rapid development as a young nation, borrowing was "the only way for our finances to keep pace with our ambitions".
Even as Singapore protects its past reserves so future generations can also benefit, stewardship also means planning for the future, she said.
"The best gift to future generations is to start building a solid foundation now. Only then will we be able to maintain the momentum of Singapore's long-term development," she added.
"Therefore, let us invest in a better Singapore for all, so that together we can create a brighter future for everyone."
President Halimah assents to law that lets Government borrow for major infrastructure
SINGAPORE - President Halimah Yacob has given her approval for a law that will allow the Government to borrow for major long-term infrastructure, the first time such loans will be allowed since the framework for protecting Singapore’s reserves was established in 1991.
As custodian of the country's past savings, all proposals on borrowing must be carefully scrutinised by President Halimah, and the Government can raise loans only after she has given the nod.
"This is a prudent and considered approach. Borrowing obliges future generations to make good what the current generation has committed to, failing which, the burden naturally falls on our past reserves," she said after she gave her assent to the Bill for the Significant Infrastructure Government Loan Act (Singa) on Monday (June 7).
Under the new law passed by Parliament in May, the Government will be able to borrow up to $90 billion to pay for infrastructure that will last for at least 50 years.
The annual interest threshold of such borrowings cannot exceed $5 billion, and each project funded under the law must be sizeable and cost at least $4 billion.
Describing Singa as an "important waypoint" under the reserves protection framework, Madam Halimah said the law will allow the Government to distribute fiscal responsibility more equitably across the generations who will benefit from the projects.
"I am glad that parliamentarians had a robust debate during last month's second reading of the Singa Bill," she added.
Explaining her decision to give her assent, she said the Government had briefed her and the Council of Presidential Advisers on the proposal, and assured her that there would be safeguards to make sure the borrowing is done in a sustainable and responsible manner so that future generations of Singaporeans will not be saddled with overly onerous financing costs.
The President noted that this is important as it would help to mitigate the risk of future draws on Singapore's past reserves due to such borrowings.
"Singapore has, thanks to the wisdom of past leadership and good governance, accumulated our national reserves over many past generations. We similarly owe it to our future generations to steward these reserves responsibly," she added.
During the debate on the law in Parliament in May, Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat, who was also Finance Minister then, said Singapore was embarking on a "generational upgrade" to its infrastructure over the next 15 years, and borrowing to pay for the major infrastructure projects will help to smooth out the hump expected in development spending.
With major highways, the Cross Island and Jurong Region MRT lines, and climate adaptation structures in the works, Singapore expects its yearly development expenditure to rise to around 5 per cent of gross domestic product, compared with the current base line of 3.7 per cent.
Singa will help to lower the yearly figure to 4.2 per cent for the next decade.
Madam Halimah said that borrowing for development spending was not new.
In the 1960s and 1980s, when Singapore lacked the resources for rapid development as a young nation, borrowing was "the only way for our finances to keep pace with our ambitions".
Even as Singapore protects its past reserves so future generations can also benefit, stewardship also means planning for the future, she said.
"The best gift to future generations is to start building a solid foundation now. Only then will we be able to maintain the momentum of Singapore's long-term development," she added.
"Therefore, let us invest in a better Singapore for all, so that together we can create a brighter future for everyone."
