State Banquet in Singapore, 17 March 2006
Published
The links between Britain and Singapore are as strong as ever, and our future relationship is bright indeed.
Your Excellency,
Thank you for your warm words of welcome and it is a pleasure for me to be in Singapore again. Today both Prince Philip and I have been able to see the immense changes since my last State Visit.
As in the past, we have enjoyed the warm and friendly hospitality of your people. Singaporeans young and old have been gracious and welcoming - we feel very much at home with you.
I have watched Singapore's development with admiration. Although only forty years old, your country already has a deserved reputation as a centre of excellence in Asia. Singapore has demonstrated an ability to develop and grow, while preserving the best of its traditions.
From inventive architecture and dynamic culture to cutting-edge technology, you have maintained solid foundations while always building for the future. I saw today your wonderful new National Library and Prince Philip visited your science centre at Biopolis. Both are world-class facilities.
Britain has been a close friend of Singapore for almost two hundred years. We are proud of our historical and Commonwealth links and as we look to the future we share a common vision of the societies we would like for our young people - safe, environmentally friendly and full of opportunity. I am pleased that over one hundred and twenty thousand of your young people are undertaking the National Youth Achievement Award.
Our political, defence and trading ties go from strength to strength. We have a shared belief in strengthening international action, including the fight against both terrorism and the spread of weapons of mass destruction, and our partnership in the Five Power Defence Arrangements remains relevant to the modern security concerns in the region.
Our respective economies are closely linked. Britain is the largest investor in Singapore and we in turn welcome the majority of your investment in the European Union. Britain trades more with Singapore than with many other far larger economies in the world.
And we have common interests in the challenges and opportunities of globalisation. This partnership is extending into new areas such as science, engineering and technology.
Your Excellency, I believe the real strength behind our relationship lies with our people. Many British and Singaporean citizens have first-hand experience of each other's country. We continue to benefit from thousands of Singaporeans studying at our universities.
Our young people share the same passions. Sport is one of these and I was pleased to see so many young Singaporean athletes earlier this week at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne.
I hope also that we will see many more of your athletes at the 2012 Olympic Games to be staged in London - a decision so memorably for us taken here in Singapore last summer. Prince Philip will meet some of these young sportsmen and sportswomen during his visit to the Singapore Sports School tomorrow.
These links between people are becoming even more important in our shrinking world. We both have multi-racial and multicultural societies and we value community cohesion.
In Toa Payoh Town today I saw how well this is working in Singapore, where people of different races and religions understand each other and live side-by-side. We can learn a great deal from each other.
Your Excellency, the links between Britain and Singapore are as strong as ever, and our future relationship is bright indeed. We are natural partners in so many ways and I firmly believe this will continue and strengthen in the years ahead.
Ladies and Gentlemen, it is in that spirit of partnership that I ask you to rise and drink a toast to:
His Excellency, the President and people of Singapore, and to the enduring friendship between our two countries.
Related content
Christmas Broadcast 1991
I am constantly amazed by the generosity of donors and subscribers, great and small, who give so willingly and often towards the enjoyment of others.
Christmas Broadcast 1990
I hope that all of us lucky enough to be able to enjoy such gatherings this Christmas will take time to count our blessings.
Christmas Broadcast 1989
Unlike all the other planets in the solar system, earth shimmers green and blue in the sunlight and looks a very pleasant place to live.
Christmas Broadcast 1988
May the Christmas story encourage you, for it is a message of hope every year, not for a few, but for all.
Christmas Broadcast 1987
I hope we will all help each other to have a happy Christmas and, when the New Year comes, resolve to work for tolerance and understanding between all people.
Christmas Broadcast 1986
There are many serious and threatening problems in this country and in the world but they will never be solved until there is peace in our homes and love in our hearts.
Christmas Broadcast 1985
These success stories are often pushed into the background but they are the guarantee of our future.
Christmas Broadcast 1984
But friendship, whether we are talking of continents or next door neighbours, should not need strife as its forerunner.
Christmas Broadcast 1983
I hope that Christmas will remind us all that it is not how we communicate but what we communicate with each other that really matters.
Christmas Broadcast 1982
Throughout history, seamen all over the world have shared a common experience and there is a special sense of brotherhood between merchant and naval seamen, fishermen...
Christmas Broadcast 1981
All around us we see these acts of selflessness, people putting the life of someone else before their own.
Christmas Broadcast 1980
I come across examples of unselfish service in all walks of life and in many unexpected places.
Christmas Broadcast 1979
Today we celebrate the birth of the child who transformed history and gave us a great faith.
Christmas Broadcast 1978
My grandfather, King George V, started the tradition of the Christmas Day Broadcasts back in 1932.
Christmas Broadcast 1976
Remember that good spreads outwards and every little does help.
Christmas Broadcast 1973
I believe that Christmas should remind us that the qualities of the human spirit are more important than material gain.
Christmas Broadcast 1971
The Christmas message is really one for all seasons and not just for one day of the year.
Christmas Broadcast 1970
Never before has there been a group of independent nations linked in this way by their common history and continuing affection.
Christmas Broadcast 1969
In a short time the 1960s will be over but not out of our memories. Historians will record them as the decade in which men first reached out beyond our own planet and set foot...
Christmas Broadcast 1968
At times it is almost hidden by the merry making and tinsel, but the essential message of Christmas is still that we all belong to the great brotherhood of man.
Christmas Broadcast 1967
Let there be no doubt that Britain is faced with formidable problems, but let there also be no doubt she will overcome them.
Christmas Broadcast 1966
The devotion of nuns and nurses, the care of mothers and wives, the service of teachers, and the conviction of reformers are the real and enduring presents which women have...
Christmas Broadcast 1965
A new army is on the march which holds out the brightest hopes for all mankind.
Christmas Broadcast 1964
You young people are needed; there is a great task ahead of you - the building of a new world.
Christmas Broadcast 1963
We know the reward is peace on earth, goodwill toward men, but we cannot win it without determination and concerted effort.