Singapore's government has announced a significant salary increase for its ministers and other office holders, including Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, whose annual pay package will rise by 1.4 million Singapore dollars (around $1.1 million or £818,000). Wong has pledged to donate the entire increase to charity over the next five years. The government argues that higher salaries are essential to attract high-caliber talent and reduce the risk of corruption by making public service more financially attractive than private sector jobs. However, the decision has sparked debate, with critics expressing concerns about job security and the rising cost of living in the city-state. Wong, who is currently the highest-paid political leader globally, will see his salary increase from 2.2 million Singapore dollars to 3.6 million Singapore dollars annually—a rise of over 60%. This places him well ahead of other top leaders, such as Hong Kong's chief executive John Lee, who earns around $719,000, and Switzerland's president Guy Parmelin, who earns $606,000. For comparison, the U.S. president earns $400,000 a year, while the British prime minister earns approximately $230,000. Wong has acknowledged that ministers' salaries have come under scrutiny, given that they far exceed what most citizens earn. The median monthly income in Singapore is about 5,775 Singapore dollars. He explained that attracting business leaders and top civil servants to politics has been challenging, and the government should not make it unnecessarily difficult for them to join. Wong believes this move will help build a stronger leadership team capable of addressing Singapore's complex challenges. Under the new pay scheme, the base salary for ministers will increase from around 1.1 million Singapore dollars to 1.2 million Singapore dollars. Most ministers are expected to receive about 1.35 million Singapore dollars by the end of the current government term, with raises tied to performance and the country's progress on key economic indicators such as unemployment rates, income growth, and GDP growth. The issue of high ministerial salaries has long been a point of criticism for Singapore's ruling People's Action Party (PAP), which has governed the country since independence. In the 2011 general election, the PAP saw its lowest vote share in decades, partly due to public dissatisfaction with ministers' pay and immigration policies. In response, the government reduced ministers' salaries the following year. Wong's predecessor, Lee Hsien Loong, had also committed to donating his salary increase to charity in 2007. Despite the government's argument that Singapore's low corruption levels—reflected in its high ranking on Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index—support the effectiveness of the current pay system, the issue remains contentious. Many online commenters criticized the latest raise as "tone deaf" amid rising inflation and concerns over job security and employment for graduates. However, some supporters argue that the move is necessary to ensure the country is led by the "best of the best."