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All liquor duties have been raised by 25%—the first effective increase since 2004—so as to keep pace with inflation, Mr. Tharman added.
The revised duties are expected to add 120 million Singapore dollars (US$94.7 million) to government coffers every year.
Starting July 1, duties levied on lottery betting will rise to 30% of gross bets, up from 25% currently. The move affects Singapore Pools, a state-owned company that is the country’s only legal lottery operator, and is expected to increase government revenues to the tune of S$255 million a year.
In his budget speech Friday, Mr. Tharman said Singapore’s spending needs are likely to “grow significantly in the next 10 to 15 years,” driven by expenditures on health care, education and infrastructure.
For the fiscal year starting April 1, the government is planning to run a S$1.16 billion deficit—its first deficit since fiscal year 2009—partly to help fund more than S$9 billion in health care and other benefits to be provided to about 450,000 elderly citizens aged 65 or older.
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