PM Lee to talk about Singapore’s response to climate change at National Day Rally

SINGAPORE — Stressing Singapore’s vulnerability to rising sea levels, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Thursday (Aug 15) that he will be talking about Singapore’s response to climate change in his National Day Rally this coming Sunday.

Touching on a subject that he had raised in his recent National Day message, Mr Lee said in a Facebook post: “We must treat climate change very seriously. As a low-lying island, Singapore is particularly vulnerable to rising sea levels.”

In his post, Mr Lee cited a BBC News article that he said gives a “sobering analysis” of how temperatures in 1,000 cities around the world have increased since 1900.

“It shows the projected further warming from now till 2100. If you pick the chart for Singapore, in the worst-case, temperatures for July will rise from 27.8°C now to 31.1°C by 2100,” Mr Lee said.

“Those are monthly averages. Maximum temperatures during the day will be much higher. Today, we are already hitting daytime highs of 32°C and even 34°C, so by 2100 Singapore could see 37°C days!”

Set to deliver his 16th National Day Rally since he became Prime Minister in 2003, Mr Lee previously stated that he will also address other national issues, which include making preschool and tertiary education more affordable for lower- and middle-income families, as well as raising the retirement and re-employment ages for those who wish to work longer.