S'pore small but 'far from powerless' in unpredictable world: Seah Kian Peng

Global disruptions in trade, technology and security will impact Singapore, but the Republic is "far from powerless" despite its small size, said Speaker of Parliament Seah Kian Peng on March 10.

- Anjali Raguraman

He noted that Singapore, like every other country, must brace itself for unpredictability and volatility.

But "our economic strength, our reserves, our strong defence, and our unity as a people give us an edge in an increasingly unpredictable world", he said, capping off nine days of parliamentary debate on the Budget.

Mr Seah noted that Singapore had very few, "weak" cards to play 60 years ago, but today has a stronger hand of cards.

"Today, we have more and stronger cards, which we need to use wisely and carefully, and always safeguard our national interests," he said after the House unanimously voted to support the Government's $143.1 billion spending plan for this financial year.

Singapore's were boosted by better-than-expected revenue in the 2024 fiscal year, with a surplus of $6.4 billion.