Welcome to Hard Talk on the BBC World Service with me, Stephen Sacker. My guest today is a lawyer

turned politician who's been a minister in the Singaporean government for 14 years. First, as

law minister, a portfolio he now combines with home affairs. In court, Kay Shanmugam had a reputation

for being a brilliant and daunting operator, and his years in politics haven't softened his image.

He's seen as a staunch defender of Singapore's tough criminal code, which includes the death sentence for drugs offenders.

He recently defended the execution of a Malaysian convicted of drug smuggling,

despite defence lawyers' claims that he was mentally impaired. The UN has expressed concern

about Singapore's use of the death penalty and the issue is unlikely to go away with as many as

60 individuals currently on death row. Singapore's famed conservatism has stirred controversy in other areas too.

Homosexuality remains illegal, though gay sex is generally not prosecuted.

And there is persistent evidence of race-based discrimination in housing and the workplace.

Central to the territory's future is its ability to remain a hub economy in the fast-growing Asia region. In the past, it's been careful to maintain

positive relations with both the US and China. But in the current geopolitical climate, that is becoming

more difficult. If globalization

is in retreat, could the city-state of Singapore find itself stranded? Well, Minister Kaye Shanmogam

joins me now on the line from Singapore. Welcome to Hardtour. Thank you, Mr. Saker. Let me ask you

about Singapore's model.

It was sort of set up by Lee Kuan Yew.

It's been in effect for well over six decades.

It combines economic openness with a real sense of political control and social control.

Do you think that model needs to change? Well, I'll disagree with the assumptions

in your question about political control and economic control. You know, in the last elections,

...