Remuneration of Speaker

6.29 pm

Page: 1147

The Leader of the House (Dr Ng Eng Hen): Mr Deputy Speaker, I beg to move,

That, pursuant to Article 41 of the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore, the Speaker shall be paid with effect from 21 May 2011: (1) a monthly salary equal to half of 1/14 (or 7.14%) of the Ministerial Range 4 (MR4) benchmark; (2) a 13th-month bonus pegged at one month of the monthly salary; and (3) an Annual Variable Component pegged at the rates received by the general Civil Service.

Sir, on 18 January this year, this House passed a resolution to endorse the recommendations put forth in Paper Cmd 1 of 2012 on "Salaries for a Capable and Committed Government" as the basis for setting the salaries of the President, Prime Minister, Speaker and Deputy Speakers of Parliament, political appointment holders and Members of Parliament. As noted in that White Paper, the annual salary of the Speaker, if it were a full-time post, is pegged to the MR4 benchmark and comprises the monthly base salary, 13th month bonus and AVC. As the current Speaker is not a full-time post, he will receive 50% of this. On this basis, his current annual package, assuming one month AVC, in other words a 14-month norm package, will be 50% of the MR4 benchmark of $1.1 million, or $550,000. Mathematically, this works out to a monthly salary of half of 1/14 (or 7.14%) of the MR4 benchmark.

As Article 41 of the Constitution states that the Speaker shall be paid such salary as Parliament may from time to time determine, the House needs to pass a resolution to put into effect these salary revisions for the Speaker and Deputy Speakers.

On 16 January this year, the Speaker had informed this House that he accepted the salary revisions recommended in Paper Cmd 1 of 2012. The salary revisions would take effect retrospectively from 21 May 2011. Parliament is asked to approve this motion. Mr Deputy Speaker, I beg to move.

Question put, and agreed to.

Resolved,