Singapore’s Wong dishes fresh handouts in first major speech
By Philip J. Heijmans
(Bloomberg) — Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong announced new benefits for its citizens including unemployment support, housing and training grants and mandatory paternity leave months before a ballot that will test the endurance of the ruling party.
Wong also promised a business-friendly environment and pledged to keep the regulatory burden to a minimum in his first major speech on Sunday since taking over from Lee Hsien Loong in May. The city-state must hold a general election by November 2025.
Singapore will provide temporary unemployment support of as much as S$6,000 ($4,563) over a period of up to six months, Wong said in his National Day Rally address.
This is a shift from the government’s longstanding resistance to provide unemployment benefits, focusing instead on incentives to keep citizens in the workforce. The resident unemployment rate was about 2.7% in the second quarter.
“We’ve seen what happens in other countries when the broad middle falls behind,” Wong said. “The center does not hold. Societies begin to fracture and collapse.”
He also lined up training allowance of up to S$3,000 a month, higher public housing grants for lower-income groups and mandatory paternity leaves starting April 2025.
“The whole subtext was really that this is a society in which everyone can thrive,” said Eugene Tan, a law professor at Singapore Management University. “This is his first and last National Day Rally before the general election so it’s really about burnishing the credentials of the People’s Action Party government.”
The ruling People’s Action Party had previously resolved to allow the 51-year-old Wong to lead the charge at the next polls as it seeks a mandate that would extend an uninterrupted run in power since independence in 1965. The party had its worst showing in the 2020 election despite winning 89% of parliamentary seats.
“It was important for Wong to make sure that people felt like their concerns are being addressed and that they could trust him and his team to do what is best for the country in these trying times,” said Nydia Ngiow, managing director at strategic business consultancy BowerGroupAsia.
He briefly touched on geopolitical issues facing the region, reiterating caution over intensifying rivalry between the US and China.
“We are writing the next chapter of our Singapore story amidst great uncertainty around us,” Wong said. Whatever the outcome of US election in November, “it’s clear that America’s attitude towards China is hardening.”
To survive, Singapore needs a government that is both “prudent and bold,” the premier said, evoking the nation’s first Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew.
Here are the key takeaways from Wong’s speech:
Extra six weeks of shared parental leave paid for by the government from April 1, 2025; increased to 10 weeks a year later
Paternity leave to be mandatory from April 1, 2025
More support for those with at least three young children
Public housing grant for lower-income couples to be raised
Singles applying for new public flats near their parents will get priority from mid 2025; previously only married children get priority
Elderly to get more housing options; existing public homes will be more senior-friendly
A 120-kilometer long waterfront coastline with an indoor arena for sports and entertainment events, homes
New Singapore College of Islamic Studies to groom Islamic leaders
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