PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION (Remuneration of Chairman and Members)

2.52 p.m.

The Prime Minister (Mr Lee Kuan Yew): Mr Speaker, I rise to move the motion standing in my name as it appears in item 2 of the Order Paper.*

*That this Assembly, pursuant to subsection (1) of section 79 of the Singapore (Constitution) Order in Council, 1958, resolves that the remuneration of the Chairman and Members of the Public Service Commission established under section 76 of the aforementioned Order shall be as follows:-

(a) for the Chairman, an inclusive salary of $2,000 per month;

(b) for the Deputy Chairman, a retainer of $750 per month and in addition, $30 per day on which he attends a meeting of the Commission with a maximum of 20 days in any one month; and

(c) for other Members, a retainer of $500 per month and in addition, $30 per day on which they attend a meeting of the Commission with a maximum of 20 days in any one month.

Members of the Assembly will know that under section 79 (2) of the Singapore (Constitution) Order in Council, 1958, the terms of service of Members of the Public Service Commission shall either -

be prescribed by or under any law made under this Order; or

(in so far as they are not prescribed by or under any such law) be prescribed by the Yang di-Pertuan Negara.

Further, section 79 subsection (3)-

The terms of service of any member shall not be altered to his disadvantage during his continuance in office.

In keeping with the salary structure of the Government service, we have allowed a provision of $2,000 per month for the Chairman, $750 for the Deputy Chairman, and $500 for the three other Members of the Commission. In arriving at the sum of $2,000, we took into consideration the fact that the predecessor of the office had a total emolument of $2,300.

I think Members of the Assembly remember what happened to the variable allowances. And pan passu with these cuts in variable allowances, the salary of the Chairman of the Public Service Commission is now fixed at $2,000 per month. As for the Deputy Chairman and other Members, they have remained as before - at $750 and $500 - the only alteration being the drop in the allowance from $50 per meeting to $30 per meeting.

Sir, I beg to move.

The Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister (Mr Chan Sun Wing): Sir, I second the motion.

Question put, and agreed to.

Resolved,

That this Assembly, pursuant to subsection (1) of Section 79 of the Singapore (Constitution) Order in Council, 1958, resolves that the remuneration of the Chairman and Members of the Public Service Commission established under section 76 of the aforementioned Order shall be as follows:-

(a) for the Chairman, an inclusive salary of $2,000 per month;

(b) for the Deputy Chairman, a retainer of $750 per month, and, in addition, $30 per day on which he attends a meeting of the Commission with a maximum of 20 days in any one month; and

(c) for other Members, a retainer of $500 per month, and, in addition,

$30 per day on which they attend a meeting of the Commission with a maximum of 20 days in any one month.