Singapore — The Electoral Boundaries Review Committee (EBRC) released its much-anticipated report on Friday (March 13) and it had some major changes for the next General Election, which must be called by April next year.
The report was submitted to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Wednesday (March 11) and the Government has accepted all its recommendations.
There will be four more Members of Parliament (MPs), bringing the total to 93. There will also be one more Group Representation Constituency (GRC), bringing the total to 17, and another Single-Member Constituency (SMC), for a total of 14.
The new GRC at Sengkang, composed of four members, is made up of Sengkang West SMC and Punggol East SMC, as well as areas from Pasir-Ris Punggol GRC.
Three former SMCs have been replaced — Punggol East, Sengkang West and Fengshan. Fengshan will be incorporated into East Coast GRC.
There four new single seats: Punggol West (now part of Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC), Yio Chu Kang (now part of Ang Mo Kio GRC), Kebun Baru (now part of Nee Soon GRC) and Marymount (now part of Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC).
The large six-member GRCs will become smaller and will have five members each, including Ang Mo Kio and Pasir Ris -Punggol, making a total of 11 GRCs of five members. There are six GRCs with four members each.
East Coast GRC and West Coast GRC, both of which are expected to be tough battlegrounds in the next GE, now have five members each.
The East Coast GRC, which will incorporate Fengshan, is where the opposition Workers’ Party is expected to contest strongly, according to straitstimes.com.
The West Coast GRC is expected to be contested strongly by the country’s newest political party, the Progress Singapore Party. PSP is headed by former longtime PAP MP Dr Tan Cheng Bock.
The boundaries of Aljunied GRC and Hougang SMC, which are held by the WP, remain unchanged.
According to the report: “The Committee reviewed the boundaries of the current electoral divisions, taking into account the current configurations, changes in the number of electors due to population shifts and housing developments.”
With the release of the EBRC report, it remains to be seen when Parliament is dissolved and the Writ of Election issued.
The last GE in 2015 took place 32 days after the EBRC report was released. /TISG
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