Singapore Is World’s Leading Maritime For 13th Consecutive Year
Singapore has retained its position as the world’s leading maritime centre in the 2026 Xinhua-Baltic International Shipping Centre Development (ISCD) Index, marking the 13th consecutive year that it has topped the global rankings. The achievement underscores three decades of collaboration btween the MPA and the maritime industry to build one of the world’s most comprehensive […]
Singapore Acts Against Foreign Online Content Seeking To Pit Chinese Against Indians
The Singapore Government has moved decisively against a series of foreign-based online posts that sought to stir racial tensions between Chinese and Indians in Singapore. The Singapore Police Force (SPF) recently issued Disabling Directions under the Online Criminal Harms Act (OCHA), requiring YouTube, Facebook and X to block Singapore users’ access to 14 posts assessed […]
Singapore Braces for More Turbulence Ahead as Middle East Conflict Disrupts Supply: Tan See Leng
On Friday (Mar 20), Singapore’s Minister-in-charge of Energy and Science and Technology, Tan See Leng, warned that the escalating conflict in the Middle East could have serious implications for Singapore’s energy security and broader economic resilience. Speaking after a visit to Singapore LNG Corporation (SLNG), Dr Tan described the situation as “serious, volatile and uncertain,” […]
Keeping to the Singapore Way in a Stormy World: Tharman Shanmugaratnam
Tharman Shanmugaratnam has approved the Government’s spending plans for the coming year at a critical moment — one defined not by stability, but by rising global uncertainty. This is not business as usual. It is a time that calls for clarity, discipline, and foresight. A Rapidly Changing Global Landscape Reflecting on recent developments, President Tharman […]
Context Matters in Policy Debates on Class Size
First, why did Jamus Lim circulate only a partial clip of what Education Minister Desmond Lee said in Parliament? Context matters — especially in serious policy debates. Extracting a short segment from a longer speech risks distorting the substance of the argument. When the full remarks are considered, it becomes clear that the Minister was […]
Singapore’s OECD Results Are Not Simply a Product of the Tuition Industry
It is often suggested that Singapore’s strong performance in OECD assessments is largely driven by its extensive tuition industry. But this claim does not hold up against the evidence. If private tuition were the primary driver of national performance, we would expect two clear patterns: Students who cannot afford extensive tutoring would lag behind international […]
The Albatross File: Was Singapore kicked out by Malaysia, or did we seek Separation?”
The main contours of the story of Separation have long been well known. Tunku Abdul Rahman, the Malaysian Prime Minister then, recounted some of it in his 1977 memoirs, Looking Back. More information emerged as British, Australian and New Zealand diplomatic cables and reports of that period were declassified from the early 1990s onwards. Mr Lee Kuan […]
Tan Kin Lian’s Letter vs Ho Ching’s Perspective: Understanding How Par Policies Really Work
In a recent Facebook post, Tan Kin Lian recently wrote to the Chair of the board of directors of Income Insurance, arguing that a 1991 endowment policy will mature this year with a payout about 25 per cent lower than what was originally illustrated. He described this outcome as “unjustified,” claiming that the investment environment […]
“Fund the Child, Not the School”? The Irony of Kenneth Tiong’s Proposal
Kenneth Tiong’s recent adjournment motion, “Fund the Child, Not the School”, calls for a universal portable preschool voucher, arguing that subsidies should follow the child rather than the institution. On the surface, this sounds pro-child. Yet the irony is hard to miss: much of his speech focuses not on improving access or outcomes for children, […]
Singapore’s Hardline, Clear Messaging on Vaping Creates a Rare Opportunity for Global Study: WHO
Despite the introduction of various regulatory measures, vaping rates continue to climb in many parts of the world. According to Dr Wu Shin Ling, writing in the Bulletin of the World Health Organization, this trend reflects a deeper problem of inconsistent public messaging, particularly when governments promote e-cigarettes as safer alternatives for adult smokers while […]