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SINGAPORE : Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said the bold and comprehensive Budget developed this time was with a vision to move Singapore ahead faster.
He said this at a Post-Budget Dialogue with some 400 community leaders on Saturday.
Prime Minister Lee was flanked by several key ministers to further explain the various Budget initiatives to grassroots leaders and key businesses representatives.
This year's Budget had several major changes, like Workfare to encourage low-income Singaporeans to stay employed, the Central Provident Fund increase, and the rise in Goods and Services Tax.
Mr Lee said: "Each one of these is a big change by itself and usually, each one of these will be enough for one Budget speech and we do this over four or five years. But we brought them altogether, one budget speech, five, six major changes. And it's a bold and comprehensive package."
He added that when the government was planning the budget, they considered whether to relax and take things easy now in good times or use this opportunity to forge ahead.
He explained that if Singapore decided to coast along, it would lose momentum and run into difficulty soon.
Mr Lee said: "We can talk about distribution, I give him a bit more, I take from him and then distribute to her, but unless you can grow the economy, there's nothing for me to share. All I can do is to take your chips and shuffle around and give back to you. But if the economy is growing, then we have more chips, more ways to play, more ways to win and win for sure, not 'tikam, tikam' (betting)."
The subject of employment for older workers is also growing more popular with an ageing society.
But on whether there should be legislation requiring companies to employ older workers, Mr Lee said the government will think it over, but it is reluctant to implement it now.
Minister-in-Charge of Ageing Issues, Lim Boon Heng, agreed, saying other factors like removing the seniority-based wage system needs to be addressed first.
He said: "Legislating the retirement age is not going to solve the problem. There must be genuine willingness between employer and employee to engage in these issues, then only then it'll happen. Otherwise, the employer will be forced by other means of restructuring and the like to make his business in Singapore viable.
"And if it can't be done because it can't make all these changes, then the employer would be forced to move the operations out of Singapore, which I think, then we lose even more."
Mr Lee said he was happy the participants raised a number of issues like the impact on small businesses and the worry on low-income families.
But Mr Lee is confident the budget will enable the economy to grow and ensure that Singapore will have a brighter future. - CNA/ch
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