Speaking at a public forum, Minister Indranee Rajah claimed that there is little impact on the 30% water price increase on cost of goods and that prices “should not and ought not” go up:
“Regarding the trickle-down effect that the water price increase would have on the cost of other goods such as coffee and tea, the cost of such goods should not and ought not go up. Currently, firms are charged S$2.15 per cubic litre for the portable water that they use, and after the full water price hike kicks in next year, this will go up to S$2.74 cents, an increase of 59 cents. This would have very minimal impact on the price of coffee and tea.”
However, participants were actually referring to the overall price inflation aside from food and beverages.
The Senior Minister of Finance said that the poor should see little or no effect on the poor, especially those living in smaller housing apartments.
“Those living in one- and two-room flats will not, on average, see any increase in their monthly water bills, while families staying in three-room flats and above will see, on average, an increase of about S$2 to S$11 in their monthly water charges.”
The Minister also told Singaporeans to face “reality”, claiming that there has been increase in cost of water production but she failed to provide a breakdown to justify the 30% increase:
“There is a need to price water based on market realities, to take into account the cost of producing water, such as manpower and infrastructure cost.”
Minister Indranee Rajah earlier caused a public outrage when she commented on radio telling Singaporeans to increase their income to cope with the rising cost of living.