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Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong's salary will increase by SGD1.4 million (about RM4.5 million), representing a pay hike of more than 60%
In a 44-minute speech in parliament, Wong said the decision to increase the salaries of the prime minister, deputy minister, and cabinet ministers was a difficult one, as their pay had remained unchanged for the past 15 years.
The prime minister's pay will increase from SGD2.2 million to SGD3.6 million (RM7 million to RM11.5 million), while the deputy prime minister's pay will rise from SGD1.8 million to SGD3 million (RM5.7 million to RM9.6 million).
The Financial Times reported that the Singapore prime minister already has the highest salary of any head of government in the world, with Wong's new pay far outstripping the wages of many other leaders.
In comparison, the US president earns USD400,000 (RM1.6 million) a year, while the UK prime minister is paid about USD230,000 (RM935,000) annually.
Meanwhile, Singapore's cabinet ministers will receive a one-off 9% pay adjustment.
According to the Straits Times, ministers in Ministerial Grade 4 (MG4), the highest grade in the hierarchy, will see their salaries increase from SGD1.1 million to SGD1.8 million (RM3.5 million to RM5.7 million), a whopping RM2.2 million increase.
Wong justified the pay adjustment by saying that high salaries are necessary to prevent corruption and attract top talent with the calibre to compete with the private sector.
In 2017, an independent review committee recommended an upward adjustment, but the government refused to follow through.
Another review scheduled in 2023 was also deferred.
"As a result, the salary norms for political officeholders have remained unchanged for 15 years.
"Over the same period, salaries elsewhere have moved. Private sector pay has risen. Civil service salaries have been adjusted. Judicial salaries have been updated.
"Ministerial salaries have, therefore, fallen further behind. The gap is most obvious when compared with the private sector. But even in the public service, some senior permanent secretaries earn more than ministers. It is not because the framework has changed. But because successive governments have decided, at different points, to hold back," Wong said.
The prime minister said it "would have been easier politically" for him to maintain the status quo, but it would not be the right thing to do
"It is ultimately about whether Singapore will continue to have the quality of political leadership we need to take our country forward and to serve Singaporeans well in the years ahead.
"We cannot affirm a framework in principle but disregard it indefinitely in practice. Otherwise, over time, the framework loses its meaning. Restraint cannot become neglect. And that is why I have decided we must act now," he said.
Wong added that he will donate his full pay raise to "suitable good causes", but stressed that he does not expect other political officeholders to do the same.
In 2007, then-prime minister Lee Hsien Loong donated five years of his salary increments to charity. In that year, his pay increased from SGD2.5 million to SGD3.1 million (about RM8 million to RM9.9 million today), before being revised to SGD2.2 million (RM7 million) in 2012, reported Straits Times.
Lee said in 2007 that he had decided to donate his salary increase to demonstrate that the government's decision was made in the long-term interest of Singapore, while giving him the "moral standing" to defend the policy to Singaporeans.
"For more than 60 years, Singaporeans have benefited from a government that is able to plan ahead, take difficult decisions and deliver. Our responsibility is to preserve that capacity for those who come after us.
"And that is why I have decided to deal with this issue now. And I ask for your understanding and support as we make this adjustment," Wong said to close his speech.
Read Wong's full speech here.
