BUDGET MARKSMANSHIP
Several MPs on both sides of the aisle also spoke about budget marksmanship, which refers to the accuracy of budget projections compared to actual fiscal outcomes.
Workers’ Party’s Ms Lim said that the government had projected a surplus of S$0.78 billion for the 2024 financial year, but that revised figure revealed an S$8 billion increase in total operating revenues.
She asked: “Should an updated estimate have been provided? Why was this discrepancy not identified earlier?”
Echoing points made on Wednesday by the Leader of the Opposition, she added that the higher-than-expected Certificate of Entitlement (COE) and GST collections reflect financial pressures, which are “outcomes of domestic policies”.
Mr Singh had questioned the necessity of raising the Goods and Services Tax in 2023 and 2024, given the country’s “exceedingly healthy” fiscal position.
Agreeing, Non-Constituency MP Leong Mun Wai from the Progress Singapore Party said the PAP government has “always claimed that there is tight fiscal headroom”.
“But if year after year, surpluses are always bigger than what is estimated, then it really calls into question why the government decided to inflict so much pain on Singaporeans by raising GST in 2023 and 2024 amid high global inflation,” he said.
PAP MPs defended the move by the government to have surpluses in its budget.
Mr Xie Yao Quan (PAP-Jurong) said that these surpluses should not be seen as potentially fomenting cynicism amongst Singaporeans “that somehow, the government has been collecting more taxes and monies than the nation needs”.
“I think Singaporeans can, instead, draw confidence – that these surpluses represent this PAP government’s consistency and the will to maintain fiscal prudence, over its entire term of government … and well into future terms of government, if the PAP were to continue receiving the mandate to form the government of Singapore,” he said.
He added that five years ago during the COVID-19 pandemic, an “unprecedented deficit” of more than S$50 billion was incurred.
Subsequently, the financial years 2021, 2022 and 2023 ended “more or less balanced”, he said.
He said that excluding the drawdown from past reserves, the surplus in this and last financial year will “really just allow the government to finish its five-year term of government more or less balanced”.
“And this is also what successive PAP governments have committed to do.”
Agreeing, Mr Derrick Goh (PAP-Nee Soon) said that the GST increase “remains necessary”.
“To criticise the GST increase because of recent fiscal surpluses misses this fundamental point, and takes only a limited view of the overall GST scheme,” he said.
“The fiscal surplus, whether expected or unexpected, speaks to a prudent and conservative approach, which I believe all sensible financial experts with a heavy responsibility of a stewardship role would adopt … It is the basic value system of not spending more than one has.”
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