No Deal Brexit is a gamble - but Singapore proves it could pay off
People who go badly wrong in Singapore can expect to be caned or even hanged, so the warm applause that greeted Jeremy Hunt’s speech on Brexit Britain will have been a welcome relief for the British Foreign Secretary.
Mr Hunt outlined a bright future for the UK while visiting the Southeast Asian powerhouse. He said Britain would do well to copy many aspects of a country that became an international success after being thrown out of Malaysia in 1965 due to political and economic strife.
The parallels with the UK about to leave the EU are tantalising for Brexiteers, especially since Singapore had only become part of Malaysia two years earlier following the end of 144 years of British rule on the island.
My time working in the Republic between 2010 and 2014 would lead me to agree with the Foreign Secretary’s best vision of what is possible. If tiny Singapore – with nearly six million people crammed into a space half the size of London – can become a serious player alone on the world stage then why not Britain, with its long history and existing clout?
Critics point to an authoritarian government that goes way beyond the usual liberal red flags of LGBT rights and a harsh criminal justice system.This clouds their driving force of real change – an ability to be nimble and adapt quickly to external factors, which is impossible when a nation state is tethered to a huge political and economic union such as the EU.
Singapore has positioned itself as an independent staging post between East and West, exemplified by President Trump’s meeting with Kim Jong-un last year. Mr Hunt wants to mirror this, and spoke of Britain becoming an “invisible chain” linking democracies, perhaps as a freewheeling state sandwiched between the USA and the EU. But this is not all that Britain can adapt from the Republic.
The Southeast nation is safe to live in, and crime is extremely low compared to Western societies. When I first arrived I asked my new boss if this was because of the discipline instilled during the two years of compulsory national service for every adult male. He replied that people in the West are scared of criminals but in Singapore the criminals are scared of the police. It is easy to scoff at such observations, but the absence of a strong grip is also noticeable in neighbouring countries, especially with a short trip across the Causeway to Johor Bahru in Malaysia. Those who voted Leave to stop Freedom of Movement may wish for an increase in that sentiment here.
The Singaporean government also controls housing effectively, with 80 per cent of the population living in public projects. New developments are erected quickly to meet demand, and an effective bureaucracy means confidence is high in their management.
While living there I also enjoyed the cheap and extensive public transport system, which makes a mockery of the expensive and unreliable rail service in the UK. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn’s vision of renationalisation could do well to focus on this type of service.
Yet there are grumbles behind the pristine mask. Mr Hunt put the spotlight on Singapore’s high educational attainment, but an ongoing debate in the Republic about the early focus on exams shows some believe that the price paid by students is too high.
Far too often, children are given extensive tutoring at a very young age to make sure they do not fall behind. I attended parents’ forums at my son’s school where locals asked why they couldn’t have more of the British model, which places extra focus on social development. On returning to the UK, parents trumpeted Singapore’s exam results as the gold standard. Clearly there is plenty to be learned on both sides, as Mr Hunt acknowledged.
For Singaporeans though, the notion of Brexit in its current state must seem confusing. The middle ground approach by Prime Minister Theresa May does not suggest a nation ready to embrace the world on its own terms, as Singapore had to in 1965.
Holding a referendum vote without a clear plan of what Leave entailed is also at odds with Singapore’s method of pragmatic progression. It must appear as though Britain is now trying to do Brexit backwards, filling in the gaps as it goes along.
If the UK really wants to match Singapore’s forward march, then a no-deal Brexit would provide a similar starting position. It was forced on the Southeast Asian nation, yet the UK’s squandering of the time after triggering Article 50 means it could become a reality.
Singapore Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew cried when announcing the separation from Malaysia and Brexiteers are hoping that the only genuine tears of anguish now will fall in Brussels because of the impact on the EU. It is a gamble, but Singapore shows that it could pay off. Mr Hunt’s new positive tone suggests there are some key forces in the British government that are starting to believe it too.