Singapore's Ministers Are Getting a Pay Raise — But Will It Help Find Better Leaders?

Singapore's top government leaders will soon be earning more money. On September 8, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong announced a one-time pay increase of up to 9 percent for ministers and other political office-holders. The raise will take effect on October 15. This news has started a big conversation about whether higher pay is the right way to attract talented people to public service.

An entry-level minister — known as an MR4 grade minister — will see his annual salary rise from $1.1 million to $1.2 million. The government also updated the long-term pay benchmark for MR4 ministers from $1.1 million to $1.8 million. A benchmark is a target used as a guide when setting pay. It is meant to compare ministers' salaries to what top earners in the private sector make.

The pay changes came after the government accepted advice from a special committee formed to study political salaries. Committees like this are set up to review how much leaders should be paid and to make sure the process is fair. Ministers' salaries will still go up or down based on their job performance. Prime Minister Wong said he expects most MR4 ministers to earn around $1.35 million — the lower end of the new pay range — by the end of this term.

Not everyone agrees that raising ministers' salaries is the right move. Some people worry the pay hike could cost the ruling People's Action Party, known as the PAP, votes in the next General Election. Others believe that competitive salaries are needed to persuade talented people to leave well-paying private-sector jobs and enter public service. This debate has gone on in Singapore for many years and shows no sign of ending soon.

To explore these questions, The Straits Times podcast 'The Usual Place' brought together two experts. Senior columnist Bhavan Jaipragas, who wrote about why the ministerial salary debate can never be fully settled, joined the discussion. Rebecca Grace Tan, a senior lecturer in Political Science at the National University of Singapore, also took part. Together, they asked whether there is a 'right' formula for ministers' pay and whether new ways of measuring performance are needed to explain the raises to the public.