'Different positions at different times': PM Wong on WP's housing, manpower policy positions

It is easier to argue for a particular policy position when one does not have to reconcile all the competing demands, or take responsibility for the outcome, said Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on his observations of opposition politics.

"The opposition has taken different positions at different times, depending on the concerns of the day, or what they believe will be popular," said PM Wong at the People's Action Party's (PAP) awards and convention at the Singapore Expo on Sunday (Oct 25).

But these positions do not always add up to a coherent approach that takes account of the trade-offs and longer-term consequences, he added.

He pointed to the Workers' Party's (WP) position on housing and foreign manpower as examples, noting that they are not always consistent or coherent.

Housing and manpower

WP had in 2019 argued that fewer flats should be built when HDB resale prices were falling.

Then, in 2023, it said the government was not building enough flats after the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted construction, which resulted in a shortfall in new flats following delays to 92 projects .

"Yet there was no acknowledgement of what it had advocated just a few years earlier," PM Wong noted

The final two pandemic-delayed Built-to-Order (BTO) projects were completed in 2025 .

Even so, more new flats will be needed to meet the needs of different groups of Singaporeans, including singles, the prime minister pointed out.

This, in turn, will have to be balanced against protecting and growing green spaces.

"So every new development involves difficult choices. When MND considers sites like Sunset Way or Gillman Barracks , it has to weigh these competing demands carefully.

"There is no option that will satisfy everyone. But we must make a choice. And we will choose what best serves Singapore’s wider and long-term interests."

'We cannot offer easy promises'

On foreign manpower, PM Wong highlighted how the WP had called for greater flexibility across industries when the government moved to tighten foreign manpower policies in 2012, but later during the debate on population policy had proposed zero growth in the foreign workforce.

Then, when small and medium enterprises faced manpower shortages recently, the WP called for the easing of foreign worker quotas.

"So you can see how the WP’s position seems to shift with the political winds," PM Wong said. "But foreign manpower policy cannot simply shift back and forth with the pressures of the moment."

He explained that even relatively small adjustments to Work Permit and S Pass rules can lead to substantial increases in foreign worker numbers across the economy, posing wider consequences.

The prime minister cautioned against populist politics, emphasising that governing is different.

"We cannot just offer what sounds attractive today, or offer easy promises. We have to make difficult choices that will stand the test of time," he said.

PM Wong added that Singapore must never allow its politics to become so divided that the ability to work for Singapore's future is lost.

"We must also guard against populism – the temptation to offer simplistic solutions instead of confronting difficult realities," he said.

总理黄循财在观察反对派政治时表示，如果不必协调所有相互冲突的要求，也不必承担结果责任，那么就更容易为某个特定的政策立场辩护。

黄循财总理周日（10月25日）在新加坡博览中心举行的人民行动党（PAP）颁奖典礼暨大会上表示：“反对党在不同的时期采取了不同的立场，这取决于当时的关注点，或者他们认为什么会受到欢迎。”

但他补充说，这些立场并不总是能形成一个连贯的方法，考虑到权衡利弊和长期后果。

他以工人党在住房和外籍劳工问题上的立场为例，指出这些立场并不总是前后一致或连贯的。

住房和人力资源

工人党曾在 2019 年提出，在组屋转售价格下跌的情况下，应该减少组屋的建设。

随后，在 2023 年，该机构表示，由于新冠疫情扰乱了建筑业，导致 92 个项目延期，政府建造的公寓数量不足，因此政府没有建造足够的公寓。

“然而，它却丝毫没有承认自己几年前所倡导的理念，”黄总理指出。

最后两个因疫情延误的按订单建造 (BTO) 项目于 2025 年竣工。

即便如此，总理指出，仍需要建造更多新组屋来满足包括单身人士在内的不同新加坡人群体的需求。

反过来，这又必须与保护和扩大绿地面积相平衡。

“因此，每一项新的开发项目都涉及艰难的选择。当国防部考虑像日落大道或吉尔曼军营这样的地点时，它必须仔细权衡这些相互冲突的需求。”

“没有哪个选项能让所有人满意。但我们必须做出选择。我们将选择最符合新加坡更广泛、更长远利益的选项。”

“我们不能轻易做出承诺。”

关于外籍劳工问题，黄英贤总理强调，2012年政府收紧外籍劳工政策时，工人党曾呼吁各行业提高灵活性，但后来在人口政策辩论中，工人党却提议外籍劳动力零增长。

随后，当中小企业近期面临人力短缺问题时，工人党呼吁放宽外籍劳工配额。

“所以你可以看出，工人党的立场似乎会随着政治风向而改变，”黄循财总理说。“但外籍劳工政策不能仅仅因为一时的压力而摇摆不定。”

他解释说，即使对工作许可证和S准证规则进行相对较小的调整，也可能导致整个经济中外国工人数量大幅增加，从而产生更广泛的影响。

首相告诫人们要警惕民粹主义政治，并强调执政与民粹主义截然不同。

“我们不能只提供今天听起来有吸引力的东西，或者做出轻易的承诺。我们必须做出经得起时间考验的艰难抉择，”他说。

黄英贤总理补充说，新加坡绝不能允许其政治分裂到如此地步，以至于丧失为新加坡未来而努力的能力。

“我们还必须警惕民粹主义——那种为了迎合民粹主义而提出简单化解决方案，而不是直面艰难现实的诱惑，”他说。