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SINGAPORE: Singapore\u2019s government will look into how it can broaden indicators on the quality of life in the country, but does not want to set the wrong goals that may \u201cdrive the wrong behaviour\u201d, said Coordinating Minister for Public Services Chan Chun Sing on Thursday (Sep 10).<\/p>\n
He was speaking in parliament during a debate on the government\u2019s response to a review committee\u2019s recommendations on salaries for political appointment holders and Members of Parliament (MPs).<\/p>\n
The committee had recommended that a quality of life measure be included in the national bonus framework, which determines part of the variable pay component for political appointment holders.<\/p>\n
The national bonus is currently tied to four indicators: the unemployment rate, real income growth rate at the median level, real income growth rate at the bottom 20 per cent and real gross domestic product growth rate.<\/p>\n
During the debate, Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) Kenneth Poon said a quality of life indicator would ask a broader question on whether Singaporeans are doing well.<\/p>\n
He suggested four dimensions of social progress for consideration: material adequacy, access to essential services, social connectedness to Singapore and subjective well-being.<\/p>\n
Another NMP, Dr Haresh Singaraju, asked who would build the quality-of-life measure, when it would be presented to parliament and whether it would be published, even if it does not count toward the national bonus.<\/p>\n
Mr Chan said the government wants to broaden the indicator, but there has to be data that can be collected and organised into a stable series before targets can be set.<\/p>\n
It is not easy to set such indicators because they may be qualitative rather than quantitative, and some factors should be measured over multiple years, rather than a single year, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe certainly do not want to set the wrong KPI (key performance indicators) to encourage or drive the wrong behaviour,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Mr Chan said some important things in life cannot be measured, and Singapore must be careful not to only value the things that can be measured.<\/p>\n
He said the Public Service Division will look into this and come up with a proposal on what is feasible and possible.<\/p>\n
Mr Chan, who is also defence minister, responded to a question on whether the government would consider including indicators that reflect Singapore\u2019s capacity to thrive in the medium- and long-term, beyond the immediate social and economic performance.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe job of the Cabinet, the job of the leadership team, is not just about meeting the KPIs on a yearly basis, and the here and now,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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