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Income gap will be tackled: Lee

BUOYANT MOOD: Fireworks light up the skyline of Singapore's financial district during celebrations of the 42nd year of independence on Thursday. - PHOTO: AP

SINGAPORE: China and India “are powering ahead” in the economic domain, and Asia “has become more developed and dynamic” in the 10 years since a financial crisis hit the region. Presenting this reality as the increasingly dominant backdrop for Singapore, its Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Thursday urged the City-State to “seize the moment and sail ahead into the bright and exciting future.” Other factors favouring Singapore, “at the heart of this rising Asia,” were the revival of Japan’s economy and the fact that Southeast Asia had, by and large, “regained its balance.”

In his National Day message, Mr. Lee portrayed a rosy picture of Singapore’s recent achievements and expressed political resolve to address the challenges of a “widening income gap” and an ageing population.

He identified ageing population as a key factor in the disparities between the high earners and those at the other end of the spectrum.

The prime focus of Mr. Lee’s message was that Singapore, on the whole, was in “a happy mood” now because of “four good years of growth”.

To match this buoyant mood at the macro economic level, marked by an anticipated growth of seven to eight per cent this year, Singapore was celebrating the National Day in a unique fashion, he said.

The parade was being held on what he proudly described as “the largest floating stage in the world”. An unusual venue on water was chosen to celebrate the “buzz and excitement in the air”.

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