The Pre-Budget Roundtable is part of the Institute's feedback platform which engages different segments of the community to gather views and provide relevant feedback to the Government.

The inaugural event brought together key figures from the business community, government and academia to discuss the effectiveness of the 2009 Budget and what an Expansionary 2010 Budget should include.

Singapore Accountant presents a snapshot of the discussion at the closed door event. Co-chaired by Dr Ernest Kan, ICPAS President and Ms Jessica Tan, Chairman of Government Parliamentary Committee (GPC) for Finance and Trade & Industry, the panelists engaged in lively debate on a range of topics - from the Jobs Credit scheme to the need for incentives to help SMEs move up the value chain.

Looking back at 2009, the panelists agreed that the measures in the 2009 Budget have helped companies save jobs and train workers during the downturn, and assisted viable firms to gain access to much-needed credit.

The Government has indicated that Budget 2010 will continue to be expansionary and business leaders have been quick to express their views on what they hope to see as the Singapore economy continues to recover. The general consensus garnered from the participants is that the Singapore economy has performed better than expected last year, in large part due to the massive $20.5 billion government stimulus package.

The panelists also recognised that raising output and productivity will be critical to ensuring sustainable economic growth for Singapore in the long term and that Budget 2010 should target its measures and initiatives to help companies and businesses improve productivity and capabilities. Dr Kan highlighted that "in today's inter-connected world, the CPA Singapore community faces many challenges, of which the current global crisis is just one. Although this global crisis is showing signs of recovery, we cannot be complacent in the light of these reports, but should, as the Prime Minister said, 'Keep in mind a less benign scenario' and continue to brave ahead." Mr Ajit Prabhu kicked off the discussion with a debrief of the 2009 Budget and its highlights.

Participants also expressed their wish list for the 2010 Budget. Job security and tax incentives for the services industries, increased measures to offer assistance to SMEs and having competitive personal income tax rates were among some of the topics brought up.


View the summary of the budget 2009 presentation by Mr Ajit Prabhu, Head of Tax, Deloitte Southeast Asia and Singapore