The Rhetoric
“If there is any theme that describes the Budget, it is: Preserving jobs, creating jobs.”
– Minister and labour chief Lim Boon Heng on the 2003 Budget, Straits Times, Mar 8, 2003The Reality
“Singapore’s unemployment rate hit a 17-year high in the third quarter, with the seasonally-adjusted jobless rate rising to 5.9 per cent…analysts warn that Singapore’s unemployment figure is likely to remain high unless economic recovery becomes more broad-based.”
– Financial Times, Oct 31, 2003