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SINGAPORE: When Parliament meets on Monday (August 31), the new members of Parliament will have the first opportunity to put forward some of their priorities and concerns, and politicians on both sides will debate the president’s speech.
It would be the first session since President Halimah inaugurated Singapore’s 14th Parliament on Monday, when she outlined the government’s priorities as it tackles the COVID-19 health and economic crisis.
One of the first things on Parliament’s agenda will be the role of the opposition leader, with plans laid out to allow the head of the Workers’ Party, Pritam Singh, to speak for up to 40 minutes on any question.
This is equivalent to the speaking time allotted to office holders under the Rules of Parliament. Other deputies have the right to speak for up to 20 minutes.
House Leader Indranee Rajah will present a ministerial statement on her duties and privileges.
The Office of the Speaker of Parliament and the Office of the Leader of the House had said in a joint statement that Singh will take on more duties and be granted additional privileges as Leader of the Opposition.
These include the right to the first answer between the deputies and to ask the main question to the ministers. You will also be assigned an office, a secretary to support you in parliamentary affairs, and you will get double the assignment of an elected deputy.
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Singh leads nine other opposition MPs from the Workers’ Party, including four newcomers from Sengkang GRC: Ms. He Tingru, Mr. Jamus Lim, Mr. Chua Kheng Wee and Ms. Raeesah Khan.
For three WP MPs who were previously Non-Electoral MPs (NCMP), Mr. Dennis Tan, Mr. Gerald Giam and Mr. Leon Perera, will be in the House for the first time as elected MPs.
Together with two NCMPs from the Progress Singapore Party, Mr. Leong Mun Wai and Ms. Hazel Poa, this will be the largest number of opposition voices in the Singapore Parliament in decades.
They were sworn in on Monday along with deputies from the Popular Action Party (PAP).
In total, there are 93 elected deputies, four more than in the previous legislature.
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Nearly a third of the PAP contingent of 83 deputies are new faces as the ruling party renews its ranks and a fourth generation of leaders comes to the fore amid one of the worst crises the country has faced since independence.
The new House Leader, the Minister in Prime Minister Indranee Rajah’s office, replaced the Minister for Sustainability and Environment, Grace Fu. Ms Indranee is the second female leader of the Singapore Chamber.
Mr. Tan Chuan-Jin continues for a second term as Spokesperson.
A key speech to watch next week will be Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s speech, which replaces this year’s National Day Rally (NDR). Mr. Lee had said that he would deliver an “important speech” in Parliament instead of celebrating the NDR due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
The new incumbents will deliver their inaugural parliamentary speeches next week, including Dr Tan See Leng, a first-term MP who has been appointed minister in the office of the Prime Minister, Second Minister for Manpower and Second Minister for Trade and industry.
Others include Ms. Gan Siow Huang, Minister of State for Education and Human Resources, and Mr. Tan Kiat How, Minister of State in the Office of the Prime Minister and for National Development.
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Several ministers who have taken on new portfolios after the July cabinet shakeup are also expected to speak. Mr. Lawrence Wong had transferred to the Ministry of Education from National Development, and Mr. Ong Ye Kung, former Minister of Education, is now Minister of Transport.
President Halimah had said in her speech that she expected more differences of views and interests among Singaporeans, but that Parliament sets the tone for political discourse in Singapore and that it should be respectful and constructive.
