通漲之戰 第壹章 - 以毒攻毒
SINGAPORE: Transport Minister Raymond Lim has spoken against going for popular and quick fixes when seeking to address the concerns and anxieties of Singaporeans at times of economic stress, as these could worsen the underlying problems.
Speaking at the Berita Harian Achiever of the Year Award event on Wednesday, he said the key is to find better ways to address these problems.
He explained that helping those in need could be accomplished in ways other than to control prices and to keep out the competition.
He said: "The government’s approach is to provide targeted help to needy families to cope with these general cost pressures through measures such as Growth Dividends, GST Credits and Workfare Income Supplement.
"Unlike wage and price controls, such measures do not lead to a fall in production and help raise the standard of living of low income workers without discouraging firms from hiring them."
Mr Lim touched on the recent Parliament sitting, where he was asked whether the government could freeze Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) rates until the cost of living stabilised.
However, he warned that if Singapore’s roads are not priced correctly through the ERP, the overall costs to Singapore as a whole would go up and not down.
These costs would be hidden in the form of time lost and extra fuel consumed being stuck in traffic.
Mr Lim stressed that if Singapore froze the ERP rates, congestion on the roads would increase. This would not only affect individual motorists, who would spend more time in traffic, but all other road users like buses, taxis and commercial vehicles as well.
Mr Lim is confident that Singapore will ride out the current economic difficulties.
He said that is because the country has, through the years in good and bad times, steadfastly built a market economy that has the flexibility to absorb external shocks. — CNA/vm
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