- Joined
- Jul 24, 2008
- Messages
- 33,627
- Points
- 0
Singapore
Home > Breaking News > Singapore > Story
Feb 19, 2010
Boost productivity or else...
S'poreans could end up with fewer jobs and lower salaries and asset prices, he warns
<!-- by line -->By Kor Kian Beng
<!-- end by line -->
<!--background story, collapse if none-->MM Lee on...
Resorts World Sentosa
(speaking in Mandarin)
'Go to Sentosa and take a look. They want to gamble... I don't understand why. They definitely will not win! They feel their luck is good during the festive season. In the end? On the first day, the House earned $3.5 million. The second day, the House earned $3.7 million...
They said, why not open more casinos?
No, two is enough.'
The importance of grassroots organisations
'Without grassroots organisations, Singapore would not be what it is. It is the grassroots organisations which keep the community alive and united. That's why our housing estates are lively and progressive.'
The role of racial and religious harmony in S'pore's development
'How did we get here? From a backwater expected to fail, we have become one of the most successful countries, not just in Asia but the world... ranking about number three (in GDP) per capita.
The reason is, we took bold decisions which were correct. We worked together in the community regardless of race, values and religion. No inter-communal strife. Together we made the effort.'
Singapore's linguistic evolution
'Fifty years ago, we spoke many dialects. Many Malay and Indonesian dialects; many Indian dialects. When I had to make a speech, to get elected, I spoke in three or four languages. Very exhausting. Now I speak in two - English and Mandarin. Without English, we would not be here because we would not have been connected to the world.'
The danger of slowing down the intake of foreigners by too much
'We're going to slow down the intake (of foreigners). But let me tell you what happens if we slow down too much. You get the reverse: low growth, maybe even zero growth... prices go down, property prices go down, incomes go down. You can't refurbish your houses, no new lifts, no new SERS, no upgrading... and the country goes down.
Between the two, growth as against no growth? I have no doubt we made the right decision: growth, whatever the inconveniences or competition of space, buses, MRTs, even schools - but we always give preference to our own citizens.'
<!--end background story-->
<!-- end left side bar -->
Productivity featured prominently in Mr Lee's 10-minute speech to residents of Tanjong Pagar GRC at a Lunar New Year dinner last night.
View more photos http://www.straitstimes.com/STI/STIMEDIA/image/20100219/a10-2.jpg
<!-- story content : start -->
MR LEE Kuan Yew last night painted a stark picture of what failure to boost productivity growth could mean for Singapore.
To continue to grow and prosper while slowing the intake of foreign workers, the same number of Singaporean workers must produce more, said the Minister Mentor.
Otherwise, there will be a deflating economy, and knock-on effects on jobs and asset values, he said.
'Instead of many job opportunities and rising asset values, including prices for resale HDB flats, the reverse will happen... fewer jobs, lower salaries, lower asset prices... pay will fall and so will the number of jobs and promotion.
'When this happens, many of our own talents will leave for greener pastures, which will exacerbate the downward spiral and eventually lead to Singapore's decline,' said Mr Lee.
To avert this, the Government, unions and employers must work together to raise the skills of workers and restructure industries to make them more productive and innovative, he said.
Home > Breaking News > Singapore > Story
Feb 19, 2010
Boost productivity or else...
S'poreans could end up with fewer jobs and lower salaries and asset prices, he warns
<!-- by line -->By Kor Kian Beng
<!-- end by line -->
<!--background story, collapse if none-->MM Lee on...
Resorts World Sentosa
(speaking in Mandarin)
'Go to Sentosa and take a look. They want to gamble... I don't understand why. They definitely will not win! They feel their luck is good during the festive season. In the end? On the first day, the House earned $3.5 million. The second day, the House earned $3.7 million...
They said, why not open more casinos?
No, two is enough.'
The importance of grassroots organisations
'Without grassroots organisations, Singapore would not be what it is. It is the grassroots organisations which keep the community alive and united. That's why our housing estates are lively and progressive.'
The role of racial and religious harmony in S'pore's development
'How did we get here? From a backwater expected to fail, we have become one of the most successful countries, not just in Asia but the world... ranking about number three (in GDP) per capita.
The reason is, we took bold decisions which were correct. We worked together in the community regardless of race, values and religion. No inter-communal strife. Together we made the effort.'
Singapore's linguistic evolution
'Fifty years ago, we spoke many dialects. Many Malay and Indonesian dialects; many Indian dialects. When I had to make a speech, to get elected, I spoke in three or four languages. Very exhausting. Now I speak in two - English and Mandarin. Without English, we would not be here because we would not have been connected to the world.'
The danger of slowing down the intake of foreigners by too much
'We're going to slow down the intake (of foreigners). But let me tell you what happens if we slow down too much. You get the reverse: low growth, maybe even zero growth... prices go down, property prices go down, incomes go down. You can't refurbish your houses, no new lifts, no new SERS, no upgrading... and the country goes down.
Between the two, growth as against no growth? I have no doubt we made the right decision: growth, whatever the inconveniences or competition of space, buses, MRTs, even schools - but we always give preference to our own citizens.'
<!--end background story-->
<!-- end left side bar -->
<!-- story content : start -->
MR LEE Kuan Yew last night painted a stark picture of what failure to boost productivity growth could mean for Singapore.
To continue to grow and prosper while slowing the intake of foreign workers, the same number of Singaporean workers must produce more, said the Minister Mentor.
Otherwise, there will be a deflating economy, and knock-on effects on jobs and asset values, he said.
'Instead of many job opportunities and rising asset values, including prices for resale HDB flats, the reverse will happen... fewer jobs, lower salaries, lower asset prices... pay will fall and so will the number of jobs and promotion.
'When this happens, many of our own talents will leave for greener pastures, which will exacerbate the downward spiral and eventually lead to Singapore's decline,' said Mr Lee.
To avert this, the Government, unions and employers must work together to raise the skills of workers and restructure industries to make them more productive and innovative, he said.
