4G leaders prepared to revisit assumptions to slay sacred cow, Wong says

Enhanced policies will be introduced under the new administration.

Singapore’s next Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has said the government is ready to review its assumptions and implement improved measures under his leadership.

Wong will be inaugurated on Wednesday, replacing Lee Hsien Loong after two decades of leading the country.

“We are prepared to relook everything; it is not so much that we are going to slay a sacred cow for the sake of doing so, but we are prepared to re-examine all our assumptions and consider under different circumstances, different societal expectations and needs,” he told the media ahead of his swearing-in as Singapore’s new Prime Minister.

Wong said this process has started through the Forward Singapore programme, which he launched in June 2022. 

He noted updating the definition of public housing was a “big move.”

Furthermore, “significant and substantial improvements” in the SkillsFuture have been put in place, he said. 

Wong said the government will soon announce new details of the unemployment benefit scheme.

“Now under different circumstances, recognising that the economic environment is going to be more volatile, that the pace of change will be faster, technological advancements are continuing and therefore jobs will be disrupted more and more, we feel it is necessary to have some support system in place,” he explained. 

Wong said authorities are designing it in a way that will allow the unemployed to acquire new skills to give them a second boost in their careers.

“So it is one illustration of how we are prepared to re-examine all our fundamental assumptions and consider ultimately what is the best way to take Singapore forward,” Wong said.

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Wong is among the fourth generation of politicians picked by the ruling People's Action Party to lead Singapore.

Aside from being Prime Minister, Wong will retain his current position as finance minister.