Peesai: Highest Living Cost, Lowest Quality of Life, Highest Paid Ministers!

[Sammyboy RSS Feed]

An honorable member of the Coffee Shop Has Just Posted the Following:

Rebutting ST letter: Good quality of life need not come at high
cost of living


July 10th, 2013 | Author: Ng Kok Lim




I refer to the 4 Feb 2013 Straits Times letter “High cost
of living comes with good quality of life” by Ms Tan Lin Neo [1].

Ms Tan found Singaporeans’ lament on high cost of living puzzling given the
hundreds and thousands who throng condominium show flats and travel
fairs. While hundreds and thousands may seem like large numbers, they are just
0.01% and 0.1% respectively of the Singapore population. The good life of the
0.01% or 0.1% should not be misconstrued as representing the good life of all
Singaporeans.

Ms Tan took issue with Singaporeans who complain about high HDB prices but
yet don’t mind selling their flats at high prices. But who in the first place
sold Singaporeans the asset enhancement drug that got Singaporeans hooked?

Ms Tan asserted that high cost of living comes with living in a First World
country with good quality of life while low cost of living means dirt roads,
poor housing and low quality amenities. But there are many countries and cities
that combine better quality life with lower cost of living.

For example, International Living’s 2011 Quality of Life Index listed 93 out
of 192 countries with better (or same) quality of life as Singapore but with
lower (or same) cost of living as Singapore.

CountryQuality of Life Final ScoreCost of Living (higher score means lower cost)United States8676New Zealand7669Malta7668Belgium7565France7558Monaco754 7Japan7461United Kingdom7460Austria7458Germany7450Portugal7372Andor ra7361Australia7355Italy7354Netherlands7352Hungary 7279Argentina7273Slovenia7266Norway7253South Korea7176Uruguay7167Iceland7165Spain7162Greece7159 Ireland7151Denmark7148Poland7067Czech Republic7064Canada7061Bulgaria6980Estonia6976Latvi a6967Finland6957Sweden6949Lithuania6870Croatia6854 Mexico6777Slovakia6770Israel6756Liechtenstein6750T aiwan6675Brazil6673Antigua & Barbuda6580Ecuador6578Costa Rica6573Romania6573Bahamas6566Cyprus (Greek)6561Panama6478Albania6475Saint Kitts & Nevis6464Barbados6457Paraguay6384Colombia6372Jamai ca6369Chile6368Cayman Islands6365Mauritius6274Serbia6270Bolivia6188Marsh all Islands6186Bosnia-Herzegovina6176Dominica6174Macedonia6170Turkey6168 Tunisia6079Dominican Republic6076Botswana6076Namibia6074Ukraine6067Moro cco6064South Africa6057Trinidad & Tobago6055Cuba5986Lesotho5984El Salvador5982Malaysia5980Guatemala5976Belize5975Mol dova5973Grenada5965Macau5947Kiribati5883Thailand58 77Georgia5876Bahrain5853Bhutan5786Suriname5778Cape Verde5778China5773Tonga5772Qatar5759Singapore5747

The Economist Intelligence Unit listed 18 cities that are simultaneously
better than Singapore in the Best City ranking and less expensive than
Singapore. Its list
of top 50 most liveable cities also does not include Singapore.

CityEIU 2012 Best City rankEIU 2012 top 10 most expensive citiesHong
Kong1#N/AAmsterdam2#N/AOsaka3#N/AParis46Sydney57Stockholm6#N/ABerlin7#N/AToronto8#N/AMunich9#N/ATokyo102Rome11#N/ALondon12#N/AMadrid13#N/AWashington DC14#N/AChicago15#N/ANew
York16#N/ALos Angeles17#N/ASan Francisco18#N/ABoston19#N/ASeoul20#N/AAtlanta21#N/ASingapore229

Mercer’s 2012 Quality of Living index and Cost of Living Index together show
23 cities that have simultaneously better quality of living and lower (or same)
cost of living than Singapore.

CityMercer quality of living 2012 rankMercer cost of living 2012 rank (higher ranked means more costly)Vienna148Zurich26Auckland3#N/AMunich4#N/AVancouver5#N/ADüsseldorf6#N/AFrankfurt7#N/AGeneva85Copenhagen921Bern1014Sydney1011Amsterdam1 2#N/AWellington13#N/AOttawa14#N/AToronto15#N/ABerlin16#N/AHamburg17#N/AMelbourne1715Luxembourg19#N/AStockholm1946Perth2119Brussels22#N/AMontreal23#N/ANurnberg24#N/ASingapore256

Finally, the UBS Prices and Earnings report 2011 also listed Singapore
amongst the priciest of First World cities.

CityPrice level excluding rentCityPrice level including rentOslo139.1Oslo108.9Zurich135Geneva106.5Geneva13 3.1Zurich105.5Copenhagen118.4New York100Stockholm117.5Tokyo94.2Tokyo112.6Copenhagen 89.4Sydney107.7Sydney89.1Helsinki103.5Stockholm88. 5Toronto102.8Singapore88.3Singapore102.4Paris82.8Vienna102London82.5Paris100.9Toronto82.1L uxembourg100.1Helsinki81.5New York100Dublin78.8London99.8Montreal77.6Munich99.7L uxembourg77.1Montreal99.4Hong Kong76.5Frankfurt98Frankfurt76.3Dublin95.7Vienna75 .2Brussels93.3Munich75Rome92.8Brussels74.5Lyon92.2 Rome74.4Auckland91.7Auckland73Barcelona90.9Los Angeles72.7Amsterdam88.2Chicago72.3Los Angeles88.1Barcelona71.1Madrid88.1Miami69.2Tel Aviv87.6Milan68.9Berlin87.5Madrid68.7Milan84.5Amst erdam68.4Seoul84.5Seoul68.4Hong Kong82.3Lyon67.2Chicago82.3Tel Aviv66.5Athens80.1Berlin64.6Lisbon79.9Lisbon62.4Mi ami78.8Athens60.1Taipei73.2Taipei57.3

So this is the reality reflected in many international surveys: that there
are many cities and countries that have simultaneously better quality of living
and lower cost of living than Singapore. It is a truth larger than the one
advocated by Ms Tan which Ms Tan claimed to be the entirety. Singaporeans don’t
need the government to fulfil every whim and desire, only to face up with
reality entirely and responsibly.

Thank you



Ng Kok Lim

[1] Straits Times, High cost of living comes with good quality of life, 4 Feb
2013, Tan Lin Neo (Miss)


MANY Singaporeans lament the high cost of living here.
I find this rather
puzzling.
At almost every condominium launch, there would be hundreds of
Singaporeans thronging the showflats. This is so even after the recent round of
property cooling measures.
And at travel fairs, there are thousands of
Singaporeans thronging the booths and snapping up travel deals, with some
bookings sold out months ahead.
It seems that Singaporeans often complain
about the high cost of an HDB flat.
And yet, when they sell their flats and
pocket hundreds of thousands of dollars in gains and cash over valuation, they
do not mind the high prices.
Would Singaporeans prefer to buy HDB flats at a
low cost, and subsequently sell them at low prices?
Many seem to fail to
recognise that the high cost of living comes with living in a First World
country with a good quality of life.
Visitors to a country with a low cost of
living will find that it comes with poorly made dirt roads, poor housing
standards and low-quality amenities.
I urge my fellow Singaporeans to see
things in their entirety.
The Government has made the effort to listen and to
accommodate the wants of Singaporeans.
Singaporeans should not see the
Government as existing to fulfil our every whim and desire.
VN:F [1.9.22_1171]















Rating:
+26 (from 26 votes)


Click here to view the whole thread at www.sammyboy.com.