Fiscal policy in Singapore is characterised by a strong long-term orientation.
The Singapore Government plans far ahead to prepare for longer-term challenges such as ageing and climate change. This enables them to intervene effectively upstream, thereby avoiding the more costly interventions downstream. It also enables them to help our society and economy adjust to challenges.
Public spending in Singapore is focused on public goods and infrastructure that enable our people and businesses to thrive and grow.
The Singapore Government invests heavily in skills, education and infrastructure to develop our people and lay the foundations for long-term economic growth.
They also commit a steady amount of spending on security to safeguard our way of life.
Our social spending has increased as our society ages.
In fact, over the last decade, social spending has doubled from $27.2 billion in FY 2014, to $56.1 billion in FY2024.
Social spending continues to make up the largest part of annual Ministry expenditure. A large part of the increase has gone towards improving the quality, accessibility and affordability of healthcare, for which spending has more than doubled over this period.
As part of this longer-term planning, PM Wong and his team embarked on the Forward Singapore exercise to refresh our social compact as well as to give more assurance to help Singaporeans navigate the uncertainties in today’s world.
The Government will spend around $5 billion on policy moves resulting from the Forward Singapore engagements, in FY2024, and close to $40 billion in total by the end of this decade.
Key moves include the expansion of KidSTART (which help children from vulnerable families as early as even before they are born), and the enhancement of schemes such as the enhanced Baby Bonus, Workfare, Silver Support and the Matched Retirement Savings Scheme.
New measures introduced include:
- The ITE Progression Award
- The SkillsFuture Level-Up Programme to provide greater structural support for mid-career Singaporeans aged 40 years and above to pursue a substantive skills reboot and stay relevant in a changing economy. This includes a SkillsFuture Credit (Mid-Career) top-up of $4,000, to further offset out-of-pocket course fees for selected courses that have better employability outcomes.
- The ComLink+ Progress Packages. This pilot scheme provides incentives for parents to send their children to preschool.
- The Majulah Package
- Healthier SG
- Age Well SG
- The SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support scheme which provides financial assistance for the involuntarily unemployed.
