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Senior Minister of State for Communications and Information Tan Kiat How and Workers' Party (WP) Member of Parliament (MP) Leon Perera debated in parliament over government advertising and a Build-to-Order (BTO) advertisement in particular on Feb. 28.

Last year, the Government spent between S$175 million and S$200 million on advertising – about 0.2 per cent of total government expenditure.

Spending on advertising done prudently

In his Committee of Supply debate speech, Tan said that the government is not unique in spending on advertising to promote awareness to the public, as many companies do so to ensure that their brands reach their intended audiences.

"The Government has to ensure that our messages reach out to all Singaporeans", Tan said, adding that the government wants to "make sure that they fully benefit from all the government programmes and initiatives that we roll out".

Tan added that the government does its spending on advertising prudently.

He said that while Government’s advertising spend increased during Covid-19, it is expected to come down after Covid-19.

Perera thinks advertisements had "feel good" vibes

In his earlier speech, Perera said while he agreed that there is a legitimate public interest served in government advertising that serves to nudge citizens to do beneficial things, some advertising seems to not embody a nudging intent.

Rather, he pointed out that some advertising were aimed at fostering "feel good" vibes towards an agency or persuading the public to see the government in a good light.

He then took out a piece of newspaper advertisement about BTO flats.

The advertisement labelled "BTOgether" has the subheadings "Delivering homes to Singaporeans" and "Providing homes for every budget and need".

It shows BTO statistics for 2022 and has a QR code linked to HDB's website for more information on upcoming projects.

Perera questioned,

"But what is the public interest served here? To raise awareness, so people apply for BTOs? But is this necessary? The application rates for BTOs are already very high and rising. Is there a need to raise awareness? So what behaviour are we exactly nudging with this ad?"

He felt that the ad seemed more aimed at persuading people that the Government is doing a good job of keeping housing affordable and accessible.

Ad addressing the anxieties of S'poreans with facts

Tan said he fully empathised with Singaporeans feeling anxious about the availability and affordability of BTOs.

He explained,

"That is the reason why the Ministry of National Development (MND) proactively puts out facts and figures, including BTO launches, the median prices of BTO flats, so that all Singaporeans, especially young Singaporeans, know about the pipeline of BTO flats coming up, and make the best decision that they can based on available information."

He said there is no point made in the MND's infographic to get Singaporeans to feel good about the Government.

Tan subsequently emphasised that government ministries’ spending on advertising is guided by impartiality.

Moreover, he noted that government ministries are mindful that their advertising must not be towards a political end in Singapore, and they "take this seriously". 

Tan thanks Perera for feeling good about ad, Perera did not

Tan also said that it was the first time he was being told that Singaporeans feel good after looking at the advertisement.

Tan subsequently thanked Perera "for feeling that way", adding that he was sure his MND colleagues and HDB colleagues truly appreciate Perera's remarks. 

In his follow-up clarifications, Perera however said that the advertisement did not necessarily make him feel good.

In fact, he expressed his concerns again that government advertising should serve to drive certain behaviours among citizens, and not drive "a belief or a conviction".

Again, Perera cited the HDB BTO advertisement and said that the advertisement appeared to be aimed at changing Singaporeans' opinion of the government.

In reply, Tan said that these advertisements made sure that Singaporeans understand the facts, and also aim to encourage good behaviours among Singaporeans and benefit the communities.

Hence, he did not understand why Perera did not think that these examples are not good ideas.

On the MND advertisement in particular, Tan explained that it is about telling Singaporeans factually about some of the upcoming BTO launches, and some examples of how they can apply the CPF grants.

These facts help Singaporeans make the best decision that they can, Tan said.

Top image via MCI's YouTube