Singapore's government has announced a sweeping one-off increase to ministerial salaries, raising Prime Minister Lawrence Wong's annual benchmark pay by more than 60% — from S$2.2 million to S$3.6 million (approximately US$2.8 million). Cabinet ministers will receive between S$1.8 million and S$2.8 million depending on seniority and portfolio, while the deputy prime minister's benchmark rises from S$1.8 million to S$3 million. Existing officeholders will not move immediately to the new benchmarks, but will receive a one-off adjustment of up to 9% from 15 October, based in part on individual performance.

The increases, recommended by an independent committee, are the first adjustment to ministerial pay in 15 years. Even before the raise, Wong was already the highest-paid political leader in the world by a considerable margin. By comparison, the United States president earns US$400,000 per year and the British prime minister around US$230,000. Singapore, a wealthy city-state of around six million people at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, has long justified high ministerial salaries on the grounds that competitive pay attracts top talent from the private sector and deters corruption. The country consistently ranks among the world's least corrupt nations in Transparency International's annual index.

Acknowledging the political sensitivity of the announcement, Wong — whose People's Action Party (PAP), which has governed Singapore since independence, dominates parliament — said the sums involved