Asia · updated 1h ago · 3 min read
Singapore Raises Ministerial Salaries From October 15, Boosting PM Lawrence Wong Pay 64%
MR4 ministerial pay rises to 1.8 million SGD annually from Oct 15. Prime Minister Wong's pay climbs to 3.6 million SGD annually (64% increase).
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Pay rise approved
Singapore will raise ministerial salaries from October 15, boosting the prime minister’s annual pay by 64% to S$3.6 million ($2.85 million) from S$2.2 million, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said on Tuesday.
“boosting the prime minister's annual pay by 64% to S$3.6 million ($2.85 million) from S$2.2 million”
Wong said the changes follow an independent committee’s recommendations and that political officeholders will receive a one-off salary adjustment of up to 9 percent, depending on factors including individual performance and when their salaries were last revised.
The benchmark for a Ministerial Grade 4 was set to move from S$1.1 million to S$1.8 million, and MPs’ monthly allowance will rise to S$18,500 ($14,603) from S$13,750 from Oct 15.
Reuters said the government uses the salary of the top 1,000 Singaporean earners as a benchmark for ministerial pay, and Wong acknowledged the issue’s sensitivity in parliament.
In parliament, Wong said, "The sums involved are more than what most citizens earn, so I understand why Singaporeans scrutinise them closely" as lawmakers prepared to debate the issue on Thursday.
Donation and debate
Wong said he would donate his increment to charity for the next five years, and he told parliament, "I don't expect other officeholders to do the same" as he described his personal approach to the increase.
The BBC reported that Wong’s annual pay package would rise by 1.4 million Singapore dollars to a total of S$3.6m, while his base pay package of ministers would move from about S$1.1m to around S$1.2m.
The BBC also said Wong acknowledged ministers’ salaries have attracted scrutiny because they are much more than what most citizens earn, with the median monthly income in the country at 5,775 Singapore dollars.
In the Reuters account, Wong said he could have left salaries unchanged but that doing so would not be "the right thing to do" because salaries in the private sector, civil service, judicial service and public sector had moved higher since 2012.
The Straits Times framed the policy as the first adjustment since 2011, saying political office-holders would get a one-off pay increase of up to 9 per cent as the government accepted the committee’s recommendations.
Framework and benchmarks
Singapore’s government said it would adopt the independent review committee’s recommendations to refine the salary structure and update for today’s context, with existing political appointment holders receiving a one-off adjustment of up to 9 per cent from 15 October 2026.
“Existing political appointment holders will receive a one-off adjustment of up to 9 per cent from 15 October 2026”
The Prime Minister’s Office release said the current political salary framework was established by an independent review committee formed in 2011, with a subsequent review committee formed in 2017 that affirmed the framework remained sound.
It also said the reference salary for MR4 band is benchmarked to the median annual income of the top 1,000 Singaporean earners, with a 40 per cent discount applied, and that the MR4 benchmark reference salary would align with the median income pool from $1.1 million to $1.8 million.
The Straits Times reported that beyond the one-off increase, ministers’ salaries would continue to be adjusted based on performance, and it said Wong expected most MR4 ministers to earn about $1.35 million by the end of this term.
Wong told parliament, "Restraint cannot become neglect," as he argued the government could not affirm a framework in principle but disregard it indefinitely in practice.