{
  "id": 6376936,
  "title": "Cost of mediocre leadership vastly greater than paying political leaders properly: SM Lee says he strongly supports PM Wong's salary review decision",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/08/cost-of-mediocre-leadership-vastly-greater-than-paying-political",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-08T17:38:57.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Mothership",
    "slug": "mothership",
    "url": "https://mothership.sg/2026/09/lee-hsien-loong-minister-salary-review/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong emphasized that the expense of subpar leadership far outweighs the expense of compensating political leaders appropriately, in response to the government's endorsement of an independent review committee's suggestions to increase ministerial salaries to match benchmarks. Prime Minister Lawrence Wong had previously stated in parliament that the proposed adjustments would not be implemented all at once. Existing political appointment holders (PAHs) will experience a one-time adjustment of up to 9 percent from October 15, 2026, contingent upon performance.\n\nSM Lee expressed his endorsement of the PM's decision on September 8, acknowledging that the discussion about political salaries is never an easy one and that he understands why Singaporeans are deeply concerned. He highlighted that during his time as Prime Minister, the issue was often at the forefront of his mind due to its critical importance in maintaining good political leadership and a robust government in Singapore. He noted that while passion is vital, it cannot sustain a system over generations; practicality is also key. Singapore's outstanding performance, according to Lee, hinges on having clean, honest, and capable political leaders.\n\nLee emphasized that passion alone is insufficient to sustain a system over time. Singapore's success relies fundamentally on having strong, capable leaders, even if they commit to a demanding career with little guarantee of success and subject themselves and their families to intense public scrutiny. If this commitment proves too financially burdensome, capable individuals may decline to enter the political arena, leading to a decline in the quality of political leadership. The recruitment pool would shrink, and the standard of leadership would deteriorate over time, ultimately harming the quality of our government.\n\nThe salary adjustment is a necessary strategic move to ensure Singapore can continue to field the strongest possible leadership team, according to Lee. He reiterated that the salary formula, established in 2012, will not be altered, but the government should not postpone updating the calculation any longer. SM Lee also mentioned that there will be a 40 percent discount to the private sector benchmark to reflect the public service ethos. Lee concluded by stating that strong leadership is particularly crucial in a challenging and turbulent world, and the cost of mediocre leadership would be significantly greater than the cost of properly compensating political leaders. He urged all Singaporeans to support this salary revision.",
  "summary": "Passion alone cannot sustain a system over generations, he said.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}