President Halimah Yacob said in a Facebook statement that she has approved the Budget 2022, which includes the drawing of $6 billion for the Covid-19 costs.
Here is what she said
I gave my assent to the Supply Bill for FY2022 this morning, which includes approval for the draw of $6.0 billion from Past Reserves to fund a multi-pronged approach to continue to support COVID-19 public health expenditure. Even as we prepare to transit to the new normal, it is not time yet to spare efforts in areas such as testing, clinical management, vaccination and therapeutics.
This is the third consecutive financial year that we have had to draw on Past Reserves to battle COVID-19. These draws are inevitable because we must garner necessary resources to protect Singaporeans and bolster our economy. In his Budget Speech, the Minister for Finance Mr Lawrence Wong said that the cumulative expected draw on Past Reserves over FY2020 to FY2022 is up to $42.9 billion, which is less than the initial draw of $52 billion that was originally agreed to for FY2020. I take heart that the Government is prudent in the use of Past Reserves, rolling out measures that are critically needed for our people and businesses.
In giving assent to the Supply Bill for FY2022, I had the benefit of the recommendations by the Council of Presidential Advisers (CPA) after considering the information provided by the Ministry of Finance on the Budget 2022.
With perseverance and cooperation from everyone, I am confident that we will once again ride out the current COVID-19 Omicron wave, and further enhance our resilience as a nation.