THE amount exceeded many people’s expectations! I had hoped for such a large amount but didn’t think they would actually do it.
11% of the GDP is no small amount and the Minister even added a caveat that more would be doled out if necessary.
Super glad to see the government finally taking care of the more economically challenged with direct funding. They previously kept calling cash handouts a slippery slope but here they are with outright socialist measures.
Really happy with Job Support Scheme but I feel the retail sector was left out of the mix.
Many of my suppliers of the interesting, less commercial and high-quality stuff are sole proprietors so they have been left out in the cold as well.
This budget, like the previous one, is focused on the tourism and airline sectors. Great news for them.
Based on a Singapore Business Federation poll, apparently 86% of SMEs here said they have reserves to last 6 months.
Maybe my perspective is very narrow but I find that pretty hard to believe.
Or maybe all the struggling F&B and retail owners I know of make up the crappy 14%. Perhaps the medium businesses are really doing very well in Singapore.
Besides the lack of support for retailers, it was a little disappointing that almost nothing is done to help out with rents, loans and mortgages. The property tax rebates are to landlords and there has been no mandate for the burden to be shared by the landlords as well. This leaves every tenant at the losing end.
Maybe the government wants this opportunity to cull non-viable businesses.
I know you can never please everyone and, all in all, it’s a very generous package rolled out. I just hope that the banks and landlords get into the #sgunited spirit and play ball with rents and loans. With everyone cooperating, we can get thru this.
Otherwise, we’re still screwed.
Jeremy Cheok is a restaurateur. He is the Co-Founder of JAM & Toast Group
Here are the links to all the Friday Focus articles on The Resilience Budget:
