In brief
Singapore’s government has announced a new salary structure for its ministers that raises the annual pay of prime minister Lawrence Wong by 1.4 million Singapore dollars (around $1.1 million). The premier pledged to donate the raise to charity over the next five years. Wong said higher pay is needed to attract talent and deter corruption, but the move sparked criticism amid rising cost of living and job security concerns. With the raise, Wong remains the world’s highest‑paid political leader, followed by Hong Kong’s chief executive and Switzerland’s president.
Singapore’s government announced that it will increase the annual salaries of its ministers and other senior officials, including the prime minister – who is the highest‑paid political leader worldwide – by roughly 1.4 million Singapore dollars ($1.1 million).
The move will boost the PM’s current salary of S$2.2 million to about S$3.6 million (roughly $2.8 million). He has pledged to donate the raise to charity over a five‑year period.
Wong said higher pay is needed to bring more talent into public office and to reduce the temptation for ministers to accept bribes. The government has long tied ministerial salaries to anti‑corruption arguments, citing Singapore’s high rankings on Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index.
The announcement was not without backlash. Critics argued that the raise comes at a time when Singapore faces job cuts, inflation and worries about job security for fresh graduates. Social media posts slammed the pay hike as “tone‑deaf” in a society grappling with rising living costs.
With the new figure, Wong remains the world’s highest‑paid leader: next are Hong Kong’s chief executive John Lee (about $719 k) and Swiss president Guy Parmelin ($606 k). The US president, Donald Trump, earns about $400 k, while UK prime minister Rishi Sunak (corrected) receives roughly $230 k.
The public salary of ministers—currently around S$1.1 million—will rise to about S$1.2 million under the new scheme, with most ministers expected to earn closer to S$1.35 million by the end of the current term, based on performance metrics linked to unemployment, income and GDP growth targets.
The issue of ministerial pay has long been a lightning rod in Singapore, dating back to a fall in 2011 when the ruling PAP faced its lowest vote share partly due to public anger over high salaries. In 2012, the PAP slashed these pay rates, but the policy has since been re‑evaluated.
While the PM’s generous donation pledge has been met with some support, many Singaporeans remain wary that a singularly high salary is out of line with a median monthly income of S$5,775.
