Has the highest paid government delivered qualitative growth in the last 6 years?

[theDoors]

Good quality growth needed to have good jobs: Grace Fu
Updated 09:46 PM Oct 23, 2012
by Imelda Saad Aziz

SINGAPORE - The country needs good quality growth for all segments of society to have good jobs and wages, Minister in the Prime Minister's Office Grace Fu reminded young Singaporeans today.

Speaking to about 200 students and staff from tertiary institutions at a dialogue organised by the Institute of Policy Studies, she told her young audience that they can wish for good things, but the economic conditions need to be right "to get the better things in life".

Most in the audience were Gen Y - those in their 20s. The dialogue was meant to get young Singaporeans thinking about the kind of Singapore they want to see in 2050.

Ms Fu said quality growth remains important for Singapore as it helps sustain social spending.

And to maintain economic vitality, Singapore needs a steep improvement in productivity with a calibrated inflow of foreign workers to address the shrinking labour force.

Students MediaCorp spoke with said they are optimistic about the future but they voiced concerns about having too much focus on economic growth at the expense of a better quality of life.

Nurhana Shariff, a final-year student at the Nanyang Polytechnic, said: "What students think nowadays is: why can't I get the life I want somewhere else where it's not as competitive or as stressful, as fast-paced as Singapore is nowadays?"

Ms Fu said a good quality of life is something Singapore should strive for.

"While we can talk about living condition and the better quality of life we all aspire to, don't forget this very basic part, that we still need good jobs, and we still need a vibrant economy. These are important issues," she said.

"Economic vibrancy of the country remains an important political consideration for us. But we are also hearing the views that they want to have work-life balance, like to see better living environment as well.

"There's a lot of concern about whether our infrastructure is able to cope. Definitely (this is) an important issue for us to address and we have to plan ahead for it," added Ms Fu.

"So, good jobs, vibrant economy, but good living environment, good quality of life is what we should strive for."

Senior Fellow at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy Donald Low said the Government may need to re-look the current strategy of reserve accumulation when the population is aging rapidly.

But Ms Fu cautioned against committing too much for the future.

She said: "I think that we should continue to help the lower income and I think we can do more but we have to be careful not to over-extend ourselves.

"I think we do not want to mortgage our future away, so it has to be in a financially sustainable manner."

Ms Fu called on young Singaporeans to participate in the National Conversation on Singapore's future.

But even as they do that, she urged them to consider the interests of other stakeholders - less skilled Singaporeans who do not have the same options as them, and future generations who will have to live with the outcome of the decisions made today. CHANNEL NEWSASIA
URL http://www.todayonline.com/Singapor...ity-growth-needed-to-have-good-jobs--Grace-Fu

Copyright 2012 MediaCorp Pte Ltd | All Rights Reserved

 

[theDoors]

Economic Climate on the Middle Class

PAP - News & Stories


GST Hike: Helping the Sandwich Class

Dated : 14-02-2007


GST Hike: Helping the Sandwich Class
by Ms Seet Cher Lui Stephanie
Sengkang West Division of Ang Mo Kio GRC
Assistant Secretary, Young PAP

While the elderly and lower income groups will be better off with the GST offset package, recent economic restructuring appears to affect the middle income class the most. Given the climate of economic reforms, the impact of the GST hike on this group should not be evaluated in isolation.

The economy appears to have fully recovered from the 1997 Asian financial crisis, with 2006 registering a better-than-expected 7.6% growth. The government has also announced plans to restore CPF cuts.

There are, however, indicators of leaner times ahead, with the growing income divide being magnified with the emergence of a dual economy. Reports of middle class wage stagnation over the past ten years hardly suggest that the bullish economy benefits the majority of income-earners.

 

[theDoors]

First World country, but not First World wages?
Asiaone - S'pore firm offers

Singapore has grown rapidly in the past four decades, achieving First World status in terms of economic growth.

Tue, May 18, 2010
The Straits Times

By Sue-Ann Chia, Senior Political Correspondent

THE recession is over but bosses may not be heaving a sigh of relief. A new challenge is looming: rising wage bills.

From June, bosses will no longer enjoy any wage subsidy from the Jobs Credit scheme.

From July, they will have to fork out a higher levy for foreign workers, or pay more to hire local workers as the inflow of foreigners starts to slow.

From September, they will have to put in a higher contribution to their workers' Central Provident Fund (CPF) accounts.

And if that does not pack enough of a whammy, they also have to heed the national call to boost productivity and pay packages.

Poor employers, some would say, as they seem to be under attack on several fronts to raise wages.

But think of it the other way: Could it be payback time?

For years, companies have creamed off a larger share of economic gains - larger than those in other developed countries or industrialising economies in Asia.

As a result, workers get a slice of Singapore's gross domestic product (GDP) that is considered unusually small compared with their counterparts' share in those countries.

Workers' wages account for less than half of Singapore's GDP. In contrast, wages take up more than half of GDP in developed countries.

This means that Singapore may have achieved one of the highest per capita GDPs - at $51,656 last year - but the superlative showing may not reflect the wealth of workers or benefit them as much.

It has led some analysts to wonder if Singapore is a First World economy with what is closer to a Third World wage structure.

'Factually, our wage levels are much higher than Third World (economies'). Otherwise, so many foreign workers would not be flooding into Singapore,' notes economist Manu Bhaskaran from Centennial Asia Advisors.

'The problem is not our wage levels, which are reasonably high, but whether they are commensurate with our per capita GDP level.'

So are wage levels keeping pace with economic growth? Or is Singapore's low wage share of GDP an indication that workers have been losing out?

 

[theDoors]

Rise in HDB prices disproportional to wage increase

http://www.mom.gov.sg/statistics-publications/national-labour-market-information/statistics/Pages/earnings-wages.aspx

Median Gross Monthly (from the above mentioned MOM report)
Income From Work of Full-Time Employed Residents ($)
Year 2001 $2387
Year 2004 $2326
Year 2011 $3249

HDB prices from the same time period

HDB prices in 2004
3rm $90k
4rm $120k
5rm $160k
EA $280k

HDB prices in 2012
2rm $100k
3rm $160k (1.7x)
4rm $300k (2.5x)
5rm $380k (2.4x)
EC $800k (2.9x)

median wages went up 1.4 x from 2004 to 2012

1.4 x 1.4= 1.96, any increase more than 1.96 more indicate the prices are increasing exponentially

 

[captainxerox]

our pap govt delivered ... disappointment and disillusionment again and again. so for those who voted them again and again, please stop it.

 

[hillary888]

Current government is running out of ideas and needed to Gamble on our future.

Singapore’s two new casino resorts are no strangers to controversy. But with tourist numbers and GDP having seen significant increases since they opened for business, it’s also clear they’ve had a positive economic impact on Singapore. And with Asia’s casino sector currently standing up well in the face of growing economic uncertainty, things are looking positive for the future, too.

Given that the first of Singapore’s two ‘mega-casinos’, the Resort World Sentosa, only opened back in January 2010 – followed by the Marina Bay Sands in 2011 – it’s fair to say that Singapore’s casino industry is still in its infancy. But although it will take a while for its full economic impact to be felt, a positive picture is already emerging.

Tourism is one area to have profited. According to figures from the Singapore Tourism Board, year-on-year foreign visitor numbers actually declined by 1.6% in 2008, and 4.3% and 2009. Yet in 2010 and 2011, increases of 20.2% and 13.1% were observed respectively. While for the first quarter of this year alone, a 14.6% increase was recorded over Q1 2011.

Likewise, the launch of these casinos has also coincided with similarly big gains in GDP. And while Singapore’s economy is considerably more diverse than that of Asia’s other big casino hub, Macau, it’s clear that both of Singapore’s casinos are well on their way to making their economic presence felt.

Another positive for Singapore is the way its casinos have essentially carved out their own market in the region, as opposed to taking customers away from the likes of Macau. Although visitor numbers from China and Hong Kong have seen modest increases since 2009, it’s Singapore’s fellow ASEAN member states that continue to dominate its visitor statistics.

Not only are these countries Singapore’s biggest source of tourists, they’ve also seen the biggest percentage gains in 2010 and 2011. As such, the evidence suggests that it’s gamblers from Singapore’s nearest neighbours who are flocking its new casinos.

Perhaps the most welcome sign of all is that this has occurred in spite of the well-documented economic uncertainty in Asia and around the globe. And Singapore isn’t alone in feeling its benefits.

Macau, regarded as the home of Asian casino gambling since the Sixties, has experienced massive growth in recent times. Given that the vast majority of Macau’s visitors come from the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong, it’s perhaps not surprising that growth in tourist numbers has slowed significantly over the last 12 months. But even still, the territory still saw gross gambling revenue for May 2012 increase by more than 7% compared to May 2011.

The success of Macau and Singapore has also prompted other Asian countries to look at casinos as a means of driving tourism. A new casino building project is underway in Vietnam in conjunction with operator MGM, while Australia, Japan and eastern Russia have all been mooted as locations for future ventures.

Ultimately, there’s no guarantee that the wider economic issues afflicting Asia’s big economies won’t impact its casino sector at some point. But even if this results in those casinos performing slightly below their forecasts in the short term, it seems Singapore and its casinos are well position for the future.

 

[theDoors]

More rental flats for needy families

by Amanda Lee
04:45 AM Oct 24, 2012[/b]

SINGAPORE - Construction for 2,000 rental flats across various parts of the island will begin at the end of the year or early next year, as part of the Housing and Development Board's (HDB) plans to cater to the housing needs of needy families.

The 2,000 rental units located in towns such as Punggol, Sembawang, Yishun, Bukit Batok and Sengkang are expected to be ready progressively from 2014, an HDB spokesperson said.

These rental flats are part of the Government's plans to add another 7,000 units over the next two years, which was first announced by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong during last year's National Day Rally.

The remaining units, however, are still in the planning and design stages, said the spokesperson.

"As the new rental flats are not completed yet, there is no immediate impact on the waiting time," she said. "The supply of public rental flats will increase to 57,000 units by 2015 to meet the housing needs of needy families."

Members of Parliament (MP) TODAY spoke to welcomed the move to build more rental flats, citing requests from residents for these units.

Mountbatten MP Lim Biow Chuan, a member of the Government Parliamentary Committee (GPC) for National Development and Environment, noted that, out of the 25 to 30 cases at his weekly Meet-The-People Session (MPS), about six residents had sought his help to apply for a rental flat.

While residents would approach her about rental flats at her weekly MPS, Nee Soon Group Representation Constituency MP Lee Bee Wah said their requests have to be balanced against the time needed to construct the units.

Next month, 208 units of public rental flats near the now-defunct Tanjong Pagar Railway Station at Spooner Road, which once housed staff of Malaysia's railway operator, will be offered for rental to lower-income households.

In the interim, Mr Lim felt that the HDB could set aside more units, which had been earmarked for demolition under the Selective En Bloc Redevelopment Scheme, for public rental.

"Before your plans for redevelopment are ready, you can use these flats as temporary rental flats (and) as an interim measure to cope with the demand until more rental flats are built," he added.

Source: http://www.todayonline.com/Singapore/EDC121024-0000033/More-rental-flats-for-needy-families

 

[Bigfuck]

They did. To their own pockets and with insider purchases made under their wives and children. If we were to open their account books and their wives, it would be a bloody riot. Marcos is chickenfeed. This is the big one.

 

[mojito]

They did. To their own pockets and with insider purchases made under their wives and children. If we were to open their account books and their wives, it would be a bloody riot. Marcos is chickenfeed. This is the big one.

That is a serious allegation! You got to back it up!

Frankly I enjoyed your posts better before you went rabid. Your words and actions only serve to discredit others on your side.