Rebates and vouchers resonate the most with Singaporeans from Budget 2021, while the Goods and Services Tax (GST) increase was deemed to be resounded the least, according to Blackbox Research’s survey released on Friday (19 Feb).
The survey revealed that among all the key announcements in Budget 2021, the service and conservancy charge rebates for HDB residents resounded the most with Singaporeans.
This is followed by the S$100 Community Development Council (CDC) voucher per household for use at heartland shops and hawkers, the special cash payment of S$200 for those eligible for the GST voucher, the S$120 to S$200 in utility rebates for HDB households, and the Wage Credit Scheme extension.
Blackbox observed that the GST increase, which slated to take place between 2022 to 2025, resounded the least with Singaporeans.
Others include the announcements about the GST to be applied on low-cost purchases from overseas and online, as well as the petrol duty increase being offset by a one-year road tax rebate for certain vehicles.
Commenting on the results, CEO of Blackbox Research David Black said that Budget 2021 will be the “true litmus test” on Singapore’s recovery strategy, and so it remains critical to ensure the public’s voice is heard throughout this challenging year.
“While last year’s Budget was seen as a mammoth effort to bring Singapore back on track, Singaporeans continue to respond well to the new schemes and initiatives announced this year,” said Mr Black.
Blackbox said Budget 2021 was rated 6.9 out of 10 amongst Singaporeans, which is a marked increase from 6.7 in 2020 and 5.8 in 2019.
Out of this, 33 per cent of Singaporeans consider themselves emerging as “winners” from Budget 2021, as this year’s initiatives are largely geared towards providing broader, across-the-board community support.
The survey also revealed that 80 per cent of Singaporeans believe Budget 2021 will help improve Singapore’s economic outlook, with 30 per cent thinking it will achieve this by “a lot”, while nearly half of the respondents believe that 2021 will be a better year economically.
Singaporeans also indicated their confidence in the country’s trajectory, with 85 per cent believing that Singapore is on the right track to post-pandemic recovery.
It also found that the majority of Singaporeans agrees the Budget will have a positive impact on everyone’s lives, especially the disadvantaged.
Additionally, 32 per cent of respondents believe that Budget 2021 benefits all Singaporeans, and 20 per cent think it will have the most positive impact on lower-income families specifically.
