Latest speeches by Workers’ Party
Members of Parliament in 14th Parliament
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MONITORING OF CLEAN ELECTRICITY IMPORTS FROM INDONESIA AND SAFEGUARDS AGAINST PRICE RENEGOTIATIONS AND POLICY CHANGES Ms He Ting Ru asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry (a) what is the projected cost differential between importing clean electricity from Indonesia as compared to alternative sources; (b) how... -
Mr Speaker, food safety and security are increasingly important concerns for our country. While I welcome the introduction of this Bill, I do have some questions for the Minister and would like to share some concerns. I welcome the change in law providing for the increased flexibility for Singaporeans to...
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Mr Speaker, The Food Safety and Security Bill is a refresh of our food-related legislation, with a strong focus on strengthening food safety regimes and installing safeguards for food security, and The Workers’ Party supports its implementation. Part 2 of the Bill is titled “Strengthening resilience of food supplies in...
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This Bill has been a long time in the making. After hesitation for several years, the government has heeded calls from several quarters, including from the Workers’ Party, to go beyond tripartite guidelines and to legislate against discrimination in the work place. Since the former Prime Minister announced the...
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Introduction Mr Speaker, when the Workers’ Party participated in the general elections in 2020 to seek a mandate from the Singaporeans, the call to introduce anti-discrimination legislation was an important proposal in the Workers’ Party’s manifesto. Separately, and for some years now, several MPs, on both sides of the House,...
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Mr Speaker, Today’s Workplace Fairness Bill is a long-awaited law that has clearly gone through many rounds of development since it was first announced in 2021, so I am happy we finally have it up for debate. The Workers’ Party’s 2020 manifesto calls for explicit anti-discrimination legislation. This is because we...
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EFFECTS OF MOTHER TONGUE LANGUAGE LEARNING OPTIONS ON STRESS LEVELS OF STUDENTS Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim asked the Minister for Education (a) whether there has been any study on the effects of Mother Tongue Language (MTL) options on stress levels for students who have been offered MTL options; (b)...
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Tuan, (Malay Speech) Rang undang-undang keadilan ditempat kerja yang dibentang dan yang sedang didebatkan ini amat dinanti-nantikan oleh Masyarakat Singapura terutama bagi golongan-golongan yang lebih mudah terdedah kepada diskriminasi dalam usaha mencari pekerjaan dan juga dalam menjalankan tugasan. Parti Pekerja telah sekian lama menyuarakan tentang perlunya diadakan undang-undang untuk mengatasi isu...
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The Road Traffic (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill today proposes to amend the Road Traffic Act 1961 and the Motor Vehicles (Third‑Party Risks and Compensation) Act 1960, and to repeal the School Crossing Patrols Act 1955. Mdm Deputy Speaker, I support the Bill but would like to speak on the proposal to...
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Mr Speaker, the Protection from Scams Bill is the government’s latest legislative salvo in its efforts to tackle the scourge of scams, which almost doubled between 2022 and 2023, and amounted to more than $650 million in losses. The key idea embedded in the Bill is the granting of...
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Mr Speaker, Scams are wreaking havoc on the lives and life savings of many Singaporeans. In just the first half of 2024, 26,587 scam cases were reported, with losses exceeding $385.6 million. Behind some of these numbers are residents of Aljunied GRC, a number of whom have sought my help...
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Sir, the Communicable Diseases Agency (CDA) Bill will establish a body to oversee communicable diseases. It was one of the key recommendations of the government’s COVID-19 White Paper, and its formation was already alluded to in Minister Ong’s speech during the related debate. I do not propose to revisit...
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Mr Speaker, I had previously spoken about our nation’s bankruptcy regime in the context of the 2020 amendments to the Insolvency, Restructuring, and Dissolution Act (IRDA). The Bill that is currently being debated seeks to render permanent the centerpiece of the previous amendments, the Simplified Insolvency Program (SIP). Along the...
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Introduction Mr Speaker, the journey towards equality is a long and arduous one. The Bill that this House is debating today is a much-needed and long-overdue one, if we pride ourselves on being an open and inclusive society. The passage of a Workplace Fairness Bill in Singapore is not just a...
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PROGRESS OF REVIEW OF F1 CONTRACTS AND TENDER PROCESSES, AND LAPSES UNCOVERED . Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry (a) whether the Ministry has completed the review of the Formula 1 contracts and tender processes as stated during the parliamentary...
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Mr Speaker, this House had, on two previous occasions, raised separate motions on stepping up our nation’s efforts to tackle the climate emergency. Following these debates, the government announced revised targets for our long-term carbon footprint, peaking at 65 megatons of carbon dioxide emissions (MtCO2e) over the next few...
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Introduction Mr Speaker, it is without a doubt that Singaporeans love our hawker food, and it is something which we all hold dear and close to our hearts. Our hawker centres are deeply ingrained in our cultural identity and our collective memories, and these familiar communal spaces and their associated...
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My understanding is that this Bill was motivated by certain matters that came before our courts. Two matters come to mind. First, there were the two claims filed by a spurned boyfriend, which a court found were commenced with the ulterior motive of pressuring a girlfriend not to terminate...
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Introduction Mr Speaker, this Bill enshrines into law enhancements to Singapore’s statutory parental leave benefits which were articulated by PM Lawrence Wong during this year’s National Day Rally. The initial Government-paid paternity leave structure of 2 weeks’ mandatory and 2 weeks’ voluntary paternity leave would now become 4 weeks of...
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ORAL PQS NUMBER OF FOREIGN MOTHERS WITH SINGAPOREAN CHILDREN WHO REMAIN LTVP HOLDERS AFTER YEARS OF MARRIAGE TO SINGAPOREAN SPOUSES Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) what is the current share of foreign mothers with Singaporean children who remain holding Long-Term Visit Passes (LTVPs)...
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Does Our Status as a Global Financial Center Benefit the Average Singaporean Business? Sir, I understand that this motion—which seeks an increase of the limit on the face value of government debt to $1.5 trillion—is, despite its staggering headline number, somewhat routine. I had previously spoken on an analogous motion...
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Usaha Kementerian mempertingkat dan memperketatkan akta Huraian Pertikaian Masyarakat (CDR) dialu-alukan oleh ramai pihak dan masyarakat am. Saya serta Parti Pekerja menyokong pindaan rang undang-undang ini. Tuan, saya ingin mengajukan penjelasan dan mendapatkan pencerahan bagi beberapa perkara yang berkaitan dengan pindaan rang undang-undang ini. Pertama, salah satu usaha baru yang akan diadakan...
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Those of our residents who have long-standing neighbour disputes have been looking forward to this Bill for a few years. In HDB estates, the usual route for dispute management has been to activate HDB or the Town Council, thereafter to recommend mediation. If mediation is not possible or does...
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The Community Disputes Management Framework (CDMF) was started in 2014 to facilitate effective resolutions and foster a more gracious and harmonious living environment for all Singaporeans. Mr Speaker, this Bill brings in new and much needed enhancements to the framework. I have been looking forward to this Bill for...
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ESTIMATED HDB BTO UNITS LAUNCHED IN 2025 FOR ELIGIBLE SINGLES Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis asked the Minister for National Development in view of the overwhelming demand from first-time single home buyers in the recent October 2024 HDB BTO exercise, what is the projected number of HDB BTO units to...
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Mr Speaker, The MediShield Life Scheme (Amendment) Bill 2024 introduces several changes to the MediShield Life framework to adjust premium structures, enhance administrative powers and improve the affordability of healthcare coverage. I would like to seek clarification on several areas that may impact Singaporeans financially and administratively. Ministerial Powers for Regulation...
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Helping our SMEs with Their Tax Burden Sir, this Bill is a reprise of the theme of making our corporate tax environment more competitive in the aftermath of the BEPS 2.0 rollout, which was debated last month in Parliament. I spoke on the joint debate on the Multinational Enterprise (MNE)...
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Mr Deputy Speaker Retrospective legislation, and the principle of certainty Passing legislation which has or is seen to have retrospective effect must not be taken lightly. This is especially so when it adversely affects the rights and interests of persons, and has the potential to hurt Singapore’s reputation for certainty, stability...
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What Have We Learned from the Rejection of Allianz’s Bid for Income? Mr Speaker, in light of the emerging information on the Allianz-Income deal, the Workers’ Party believes that it is a sound decision to withhold approval, in its current form. If the deal is bad for Singapore, it should...
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Rewarding Our Sportsmen and Women Equally Let me begin, like others in this House, by expressing my appreciation and admiration to all our national athletes, regardless of whether they may have medaled in these most recent Games. This extends, of course, to our most recent medalists in Paris: Jeralyn Tan...