PM proposes 9% increase on salaries to ‘attract top talent’
Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (pic) said his government has accepted an independent committee’s recommendations for a sharp increase in ministerial salaries, which are already the highest in the world.
Singapore pays its political leaders high salaries to attract talent and ensure good governance, and Wong told parliament a junior minister would now earn up to S$1.8mil (RM5.7mil) and his own salary would rise to S$3.6mil (RM11.5 million).
High ministerial salaries are a sensitive issue among the population, where the median monthly income was just S$5,775 in 2025.
Wong said political office holders’ salaries will start with a one-off adjustment of up to 9% rather than immediately hitting the S$1.8mil benchmark.
A 9% adjustment brings the salary of a junior minister to about S$1.2mil (RM3.8mil), and there will be no further “special adjustments” to reach S$1.8 million, said Wong, adding that subsequent changes would be based on individual performance and responsibilities.
For the next five years, Wong will donate the full increase in his salary to charity, which amounts to S$1.4mil (RM4.47mil).
The high salaries are meant to attract top talent and prevent corruption in a city-state that prides itself on its image of clean governance. Cases of graft by senior officials have been rare.
“This is not just a matter of pay. It is ultimately about whether Singapore will continue to have the quality of political leadership we need to take our country forward and serve Singaporeans well in the years ahead,” Wong said in a ministerial statement to parliament before announcing the proposal.
Singapore last adjusted salaries in 2012, when ministers took a 36% pay cut to allay public discontent about how much they earned.
Salaries were reviewed again in 2017, but the government chose not to adopt a committee recommendation to hike.
Singapore uses the salary of the top 1,000 Singaporean earners as a benchmark for ministerial pay, saying the qualities and abilities of the top 1,000 “reflect the desired calibre of the people whom Singapore needs for good government”, according to its Public Service Division.
The Singapore premier’s salary compares to the Hong Kong chief executive’s US$719,000 (RM2.9mil) annually, the Swiss president’s US$606,000 (RM2.4mil), the British prime minister’s US$230,000 (RM930,145) and US President Donald Trump’s US$400,000 (RM1.6mil), according to data from non-profit PoliticalSalaries.com. — Reuters
