Jamus Lim Addresses Rising Living Costs: Residents Feel the Squeeze from Rapid Price Hikes

SINGAPORE: Cost of living concerns continue to be on the top of residents’ minds, Workers’ Party Jamus Lim (Sengkang GRC) wrote in a Monday morning (Oct 2) Facebook post, with prices of goods, services, and utilities rising one after another.

Assoc Prof Lim wrote that he and the WP team visited different blocks at 288B and 289A Compassvale and 301D Anchorvale last week. The blocks were different as younger families tended to live in the Compassvale blocks and more elderly ones in the Anchovale blocks, and yet, the households spoke of the same experiences.

“There was a common theme, however: that the recent price increases—postal, water, gas, and electricity—were all coming on the back of already-substantial spikes in the cost of food. Their proximity and size led one resident to exclaim that these were ‘too close, too many, can’t breathe’,” wrote the MP.

Assoc Prof Lim noted that inflation, however, which peaked at almost 8 per cent in 2022, has slowed down to half of that.

But he added that the slowdown in inflation isn’t enough to bring relief since wages have “barely kept up, and for many staples in our spending—food, transport, housing—the rate of inflation is actually higher than what the headline rate suggests. And the price of utilities—which had mercifully moderated due to a global drop in energy prices—is set to rise soon, with recent announcements of impending price increases.”

Assoc Prof Lim noted that prices will be raised soon despite reports of profitable operations from a number of utilities.

National grid operator SP Group announced on Friday (Sep 29) that the electricity tariff will go up by an average of 3.7 per cent from October to December.

The MP acknowledged that the companies’ earnings might dissipate quickly in the face of higher costs; however, “one still wonders if now is the best time for the people to tolerate tariff hikes.”

“In the meantime, it makes sense for the government to step in, by rebating as much of its higher tax take (higher mainly because a fixed tax percentage applied to a higher base automatically generates more nominal revenue) back as possible.

This isn’t generosity or a giveaway; it is just making sure that the government doesn’t make money, through no effort of its own, while the people are suffering. #SengkangGRC,” he added. /TISG

Read also: 

Jamus Lim: Resident shares concerns over migrant professionals crowding out locals – Singapore News 

Resident talks to Jamus Lim about challenges singles face in Singapore

Jamus Lim: Residents frustrated with living costs in SG