Singapore’s Leader of the Opposition has new resources. Will they help with alternative policies?

The Workers’ Party chief receives staffing allowances and a bump in salary for the position, and will be privy to confidential government briefings

While analysts say the new role signals a maturing of the island nation’s politics, they also flag its funding limitations and the need for full access to data

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Pritam Singh led the Workers’ Party to the highest number of seats won by an opposition party for five decades. Photo: The Workers’ Party/Facebook

Published: 10:49pm, 28 Jul 2020Updated: 5:28am, 29 Jul 2020

Singapore’s government on Tuesday unveiled the perks and privileges it will accord to the country’s first-ever official Leader of the Opposition, Pritam Singh, after he led the Workers’ Party to the highest number of seats won by an opposition party for five decades.

Along with doubling the salary he currently receives as a member of parliament, Singh will also be given allowances for staffing, and access to confidential briefings by the government on “select matters of national security and external relations, and in the event of a national crisis or emergency”.

Though analysts largely lauded the new role, saying it pointed to the maturing of the city state’s politics, others noted constraints that could come with the position, such as whether the government would share data in its entirety with the opposition.

A Tuesday statement by the offices of the Speaker of Parliament and Leader of the House noted that Singh will earn an annual salary of S$385,000 (US$279,000) in his new role, inclusive of the annual allowance of S$192,500 that all MPs receive.

Pritam Singh (centre) with former Workers’ Party chief Low Thia Khiang (fourth from right) and party members at their Aljunied stronghold in the lead-up to the July 10 election. Photo: Dewey Sim

By comparison, a junior minister has a basic annual salary of S$607,750 that can increase to S$935,000 with variable bonuses, according to the Public Service Division’s website. This excludes the annual MP allowance.

The Workers’ Party chief will also be given the right of first response among MPs, and will be able to ask ministers the lead question on policies, bills and motions. He will also have a longer duration for speeches, equivalent to political office holders who are entitled to speak for up to 40 minutes.