{
  "id": 6704925,
  "title": "Glad to have ‘substantial consensus’ from both sides of the House on political salaries: SM Lee",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/10/glad-to-have-substantial-consensus-from-both-sides-of-the-house-on",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-10T19:30:48.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Mothership",
    "slug": "mothership",
    "url": "https://mothership.sg/2026/09/lee-hsien-loong-ministerial-salaries/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "SM Lee expressed satisfaction on social media following the completion of parliamentary discussions on political salaries on September 10. He highlighted that there was a substantial consensus from both sides of the House in favor of the government's initiative. Lee emphasized that by maintaining realistic civil service and political salaries, Singapore has managed to establish a high-quality civil service and gather a robust team of capable ministers to serve the nation effectively. He further warned that allowing these public sector salaries to fall out of line could result in a gradual decline in the quality of administration and political leadership.\n\nIn addition to appreciating the consensus among lawmakers, SM Lee called on Singaporeans to continue backing \"realistic and practical policies\" that will ensure Singapore remains exceptional for years to come. Lee also shared PM Lawrence Wong's Facebook post, which thanked the Members for their debate participation and suggestions. Wong reiterated the government's stance that they do not view higher pay as a means to attract individuals into politics. Instead, they seek individuals with a genuine desire to serve their community.",
  "summary": "Keeping civil service and political salaries realistic allows for \"high quality civil service\", 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."
}