7 in 10 support Budget measures, but only half support moves to help businesses: Survey

SINGAPORE - Seven in 10 Singaporeans support this year's Budget, according to an annual poll.

And while close to two in three respondents backed measures to help families with children better cope with the cost of living, only about half of those interviewed supported schemes to help businesses.

These are some of the key findings of the annual post-Budget poll conducted by government feedback unit Reach. A total of 1,327 Singaporeans aged 20 years and above were surveyed over the telephone from March 28 to April 7.

The sample was weighted so that it would be representative of the national population in terms of age, gender and ethnicity, said Reach in a press release.

The Budget announcement which garnered the highest approval was the Workfare Income Supplement Scheme, which 70 per cent agreed would provide significant help to low-wage workers.

Also popular were support for children from low-income families, quarterly payouts for needy seniors and schemes to encourage employers to hire workers with disabilities. All these scored above 65 per cent.

Mr Sam Tan, chairman of Reach, noted that there was less feedback on the measures supporting businesses, compared to feedback on initiatives targeting families, households and seniors.

"We need to explain that the success of our businesses has an impact on Singaporeans holding good jobs as well as creates more opportunities and a better life for their families," he said.

Some 59 per cent of those polled were also supportive of maintaining the current property cooling measures, while 58 per cent agreed that the one-off Goods and Services Tax Voucher and rebates for Service & Conservancy charges would help households cope better.

See also: AsiaOne's Singapore Budget 2016 special

This article was first published on April 25, 2016.
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