Sammyboy RSS Feed
10-11-2013, 12:30 AM
An honorable member of the Coffee Shop Has Just Posted the Following:
74238.1 (http://www.sammyboy.com/3in1kopitiam/messages?msg=74238.1)
Salary: SG politicians vs NZ politicians (http://www.tremeritus.com/2013/11/06/salary-sg-politicians-vs-nz-politicians/)
http://images.dmca.com/Badges/dmca_protected_sml_120n.png?ID=f11d7371-0ef1-483b-888a-04e8d2ba2e94http://www.tremeritus.org/wp-content/themes/WP_010/images/PostDateIcon.png November 6th, 2013 | http://www.tremeritus.org/wp-content/themes/WP_010/images/PostAuthorIcon.png Author: Editorial (http://www.tremeritus.com/author/editorial/)
http://www.tremeritus.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/SGvsNZ.pngSG PM Lee / NZ PM Key
Two weeks ago on 22 Oct, Fairfax NZ reported that New Zealand PM John Key did not think NZ MPs should be given any pay rise (‘Key not keen on MP pay rise (http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/9311576/Key-not-keen-on-MP-pay-rise)‘).
The NZ Remuneration Authority is currently consulting over the size of any pay rise for their MPs this year, and PM Key said he would prefer if NZ MPs received no extra cash.
He said at best, the pay increase should be the inflation rate.
“I don’t think they deserve any special treatment. I certainly don’t think they deserve anything above the inflation rate and I don’t think there’s an argument that can be put together that’s coherent that they could,” he said.
He also said that money should not be the motivating factor for politicians.
“If they came in for the money I strongly suggest they are looking in the wrong place,” PM Key said.
In fact, PM Key said that he does not have a problem with state chief executives (i.e. NZ civil servants) getting paid more than his ministers whom the civil servants report to, and he does not believe this wage gap should be closed.
For example, NZ Treasury Secretary Gabriel Makhlouf’s salary is between NZ$540,000 and NZ$550,000 while a minister is paid a base rate of NZ$257,800. NZ Deputy PM only receives NZ$291,800.
Labour MP Clare Curran agreed with PM Key. She did not believe a pay rise was a good idea.
“In line with the wage rises that ordinary people aren’t getting, I think it would be counter-productive for MPs to be getting a pay rise this year,” she said.
Another Labour MP Shane Jones, who had earned more in the private sector, said, “You don’t come into MP because of a profit and loss statement, you come in because of a mission, and it’s a vocation.”
The views on politicians’ salary are, of course, quite different in the Singapore camp.
During a debate on ministerial salary in Parliament in January last year, PM Lee said that it is vital for Singapore to have a pay system which “works for us”.
He implied that without a good pay system, Singapore will turn from a “little red dot” to a “black spot” [Link (http://news.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Singapore/Story/A1Story20120118-322591.html)]:And it’s vital for us to get a pay system which works for us. Because this is not just about how much money ministers will get, but it’s about Singapore’s future. It’s about ensuring that Singapore always has a good government, leaders who care for our people and our country, who have strong abilities to carry out the responsibility of ministers and the character to handle pressure and the mettle to provide steady leadership in a crisis. And if we can get that right, then we can protect what we have achieved and build better lives for all. If not, the little red dot will become the black spot.
He said that “proper salaries” have made it easier for him to build a team:
I don’t believe that salaries were a make or break issue for any of those who have come in, but I have no doubt that proper salaries have made it easier for me to build the team which I have today and to provide the best service which we can to Singaporeans to govern the country. But I also recognise that there were others too who might have been able to contribute but who declined when I asked them. Nobody will ever say, ‘Sorry, the pay is too low’, but we need to be honest with ourselves. For some of them, it must have been a consideration, especially the younger ones with young families and young children.
He also said that Singapore is different from other countries:
“Getting the best possible leadership for Singapore is vital for us because Singapore is different from other countries. Our survival and success will always be based on our ability to be extraordinary. We’re a little red dot, unlike the US, even unlike Finland or Switzerland. No one owes us a living. If we run into trouble, we’re not going to be as fortunate as Greece or Portugal. There’s no EU to be the uncle, you’re on your own.”
He even defended Grace Fu’s famous statement that if politicians’ pay is cut further, it will be hard for anyone to consider political office. This is what Ms Fu posted on her Facebook page:
When I made the decision to join politics in 2006, pay was not a key factor. Loss of privacy, public scrutiny on myself and my family and loss of personal time were. The disruption to my career was also an important consideration. I had some ground to believe that my family would not suffer a drastic change in the standard of living even though I experienced a drop in my income. So it is with this recent pay cut. If the balance is tilted further in the future, it will make it harder for any one considering political office.
https://www.facebook.com/gracefu.hy/...27076997368383 (https://www.facebook.com/gracefu.hy/posts/227076997368383)
Defending Grace Fu, PM Lee said:
Grace Fu was completely right in this point when she posted on her blog to say that this salary revision is okay, but if you go too far, I think that’s going to be a problem for many Singaporeans. She got flamed online, but she was right, and she was honest to point this out.
Of course, we are not talking about getting a pay cut from, say, $5,000 to $2,000. We are talking more than a million dollars here (at least S$1,100,000), even after a reluctant pay cut instituted after the 2011 general election when PAP’s share of votes fell from 66.6% to 60.1%.
S$1,100,000 is the new benchmark for MR4 entry grade Singapore ministers [Link (http://www.psd.gov.sg/content/psd/en/white_paper/white_paper.html)]. There are 4 grades for the ministers ranging from MR4 to MR1 (not including bonuses).
If bonuses are included, a junior minister’s pay can easily exceed S$1,500,000 a year:
Annual Salary = Fixed (13 months) + Annual Variable Component (AVC) (typically 1 month) + Individual Performance Bonus (typically 3 months for good performance) + National Bonus (typically 3 months if targets are met)
= 20 months in a typical year
National Bonus with equal weightage:
• Real median income growth rate of Singapore Citizens (25%);
• Real growth rate of the lowest 20th percentile income of Singapore Citizens (25%);
• Unemployment rate of Singapore Citizens (25%); and
• Real GDP growth (25%).
PM Lee’s own pay is pegged to two times MR4 salary or S$2,200,000. He does not get any Individual Performance Bonus but is paid a larger National Bonus in lieu of this salary component.
Coming back to Minister Grace Fu’s assertion that “if the balance is tilted further in the future, it will make it harder for any one considering political office”, would she not continue to serve Singaporeans if she is getting what a NZ minister is getting, which is only NZ$257,800 a year?
Click here to view the whole thread at www.sammyboy.com (http://www.singsupplies.com/showthread.php?167983-Salary-SG-politicians-vs-NZ-politicians&goto=newpost).
74238.1 (http://www.sammyboy.com/3in1kopitiam/messages?msg=74238.1)
Salary: SG politicians vs NZ politicians (http://www.tremeritus.com/2013/11/06/salary-sg-politicians-vs-nz-politicians/)
http://images.dmca.com/Badges/dmca_protected_sml_120n.png?ID=f11d7371-0ef1-483b-888a-04e8d2ba2e94http://www.tremeritus.org/wp-content/themes/WP_010/images/PostDateIcon.png November 6th, 2013 | http://www.tremeritus.org/wp-content/themes/WP_010/images/PostAuthorIcon.png Author: Editorial (http://www.tremeritus.com/author/editorial/)
http://www.tremeritus.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/SGvsNZ.pngSG PM Lee / NZ PM Key
Two weeks ago on 22 Oct, Fairfax NZ reported that New Zealand PM John Key did not think NZ MPs should be given any pay rise (‘Key not keen on MP pay rise (http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/9311576/Key-not-keen-on-MP-pay-rise)‘).
The NZ Remuneration Authority is currently consulting over the size of any pay rise for their MPs this year, and PM Key said he would prefer if NZ MPs received no extra cash.
He said at best, the pay increase should be the inflation rate.
“I don’t think they deserve any special treatment. I certainly don’t think they deserve anything above the inflation rate and I don’t think there’s an argument that can be put together that’s coherent that they could,” he said.
He also said that money should not be the motivating factor for politicians.
“If they came in for the money I strongly suggest they are looking in the wrong place,” PM Key said.
In fact, PM Key said that he does not have a problem with state chief executives (i.e. NZ civil servants) getting paid more than his ministers whom the civil servants report to, and he does not believe this wage gap should be closed.
For example, NZ Treasury Secretary Gabriel Makhlouf’s salary is between NZ$540,000 and NZ$550,000 while a minister is paid a base rate of NZ$257,800. NZ Deputy PM only receives NZ$291,800.
Labour MP Clare Curran agreed with PM Key. She did not believe a pay rise was a good idea.
“In line with the wage rises that ordinary people aren’t getting, I think it would be counter-productive for MPs to be getting a pay rise this year,” she said.
Another Labour MP Shane Jones, who had earned more in the private sector, said, “You don’t come into MP because of a profit and loss statement, you come in because of a mission, and it’s a vocation.”
The views on politicians’ salary are, of course, quite different in the Singapore camp.
During a debate on ministerial salary in Parliament in January last year, PM Lee said that it is vital for Singapore to have a pay system which “works for us”.
He implied that without a good pay system, Singapore will turn from a “little red dot” to a “black spot” [Link (http://news.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Singapore/Story/A1Story20120118-322591.html)]:And it’s vital for us to get a pay system which works for us. Because this is not just about how much money ministers will get, but it’s about Singapore’s future. It’s about ensuring that Singapore always has a good government, leaders who care for our people and our country, who have strong abilities to carry out the responsibility of ministers and the character to handle pressure and the mettle to provide steady leadership in a crisis. And if we can get that right, then we can protect what we have achieved and build better lives for all. If not, the little red dot will become the black spot.
He said that “proper salaries” have made it easier for him to build a team:
I don’t believe that salaries were a make or break issue for any of those who have come in, but I have no doubt that proper salaries have made it easier for me to build the team which I have today and to provide the best service which we can to Singaporeans to govern the country. But I also recognise that there were others too who might have been able to contribute but who declined when I asked them. Nobody will ever say, ‘Sorry, the pay is too low’, but we need to be honest with ourselves. For some of them, it must have been a consideration, especially the younger ones with young families and young children.
He also said that Singapore is different from other countries:
“Getting the best possible leadership for Singapore is vital for us because Singapore is different from other countries. Our survival and success will always be based on our ability to be extraordinary. We’re a little red dot, unlike the US, even unlike Finland or Switzerland. No one owes us a living. If we run into trouble, we’re not going to be as fortunate as Greece or Portugal. There’s no EU to be the uncle, you’re on your own.”
He even defended Grace Fu’s famous statement that if politicians’ pay is cut further, it will be hard for anyone to consider political office. This is what Ms Fu posted on her Facebook page:
When I made the decision to join politics in 2006, pay was not a key factor. Loss of privacy, public scrutiny on myself and my family and loss of personal time were. The disruption to my career was also an important consideration. I had some ground to believe that my family would not suffer a drastic change in the standard of living even though I experienced a drop in my income. So it is with this recent pay cut. If the balance is tilted further in the future, it will make it harder for any one considering political office.
https://www.facebook.com/gracefu.hy/...27076997368383 (https://www.facebook.com/gracefu.hy/posts/227076997368383)
Defending Grace Fu, PM Lee said:
Grace Fu was completely right in this point when she posted on her blog to say that this salary revision is okay, but if you go too far, I think that’s going to be a problem for many Singaporeans. She got flamed online, but she was right, and she was honest to point this out.
Of course, we are not talking about getting a pay cut from, say, $5,000 to $2,000. We are talking more than a million dollars here (at least S$1,100,000), even after a reluctant pay cut instituted after the 2011 general election when PAP’s share of votes fell from 66.6% to 60.1%.
S$1,100,000 is the new benchmark for MR4 entry grade Singapore ministers [Link (http://www.psd.gov.sg/content/psd/en/white_paper/white_paper.html)]. There are 4 grades for the ministers ranging from MR4 to MR1 (not including bonuses).
If bonuses are included, a junior minister’s pay can easily exceed S$1,500,000 a year:
Annual Salary = Fixed (13 months) + Annual Variable Component (AVC) (typically 1 month) + Individual Performance Bonus (typically 3 months for good performance) + National Bonus (typically 3 months if targets are met)
= 20 months in a typical year
National Bonus with equal weightage:
• Real median income growth rate of Singapore Citizens (25%);
• Real growth rate of the lowest 20th percentile income of Singapore Citizens (25%);
• Unemployment rate of Singapore Citizens (25%); and
• Real GDP growth (25%).
PM Lee’s own pay is pegged to two times MR4 salary or S$2,200,000. He does not get any Individual Performance Bonus but is paid a larger National Bonus in lieu of this salary component.
Coming back to Minister Grace Fu’s assertion that “if the balance is tilted further in the future, it will make it harder for any one considering political office”, would she not continue to serve Singaporeans if she is getting what a NZ minister is getting, which is only NZ$257,800 a year?
Click here to view the whole thread at www.sammyboy.com (http://www.singsupplies.com/showthread.php?167983-Salary-SG-politicians-vs-NZ-politicians&goto=newpost).