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The Workers' Party (WP) has responded to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's National Day Rally (NDR) announcement that Section 377A will be repealed, stating that it will participate in the upcoming Parliamentary debate on the issue.

Workers' Party response did not reveal position

During his NDR speech on Aug. 21, 2022, PM Lee revealed that the government will repeal Section 377A of the penal code, a colonial-era law that criminalises sex between men.

At the same time, the government would also take steps to constitutionally protect the legal definition of marriage as between one man and one woman from court challenges.

PM Lee said that attitudes towards homosexuality has changed, and even some supporters of the law do not want gay men to be criminalised. At the same time, some supporters of repeal do not want the definition of marriage to be changed.

In response, WP said that it recognises the fundamental right of people to live free from fear and discrimination and to be treated equally under the law.

It also respects the right of different groups to hold and discuss positions according to their conscience.

This is WP's full statement on Aug. 21 evening, following PM Lee's speech:

"The Workers’ Party recognises the fundamental right of people to live free from fear and discrimination and to be treated equally under the law. By the same token, we also respect the right of different groups to hold and discuss positions according to their conscience.

Singapore is a pluralistic society that consists of multiple religions, ethnicities, cultures, and languages. Mutual accommodation and tolerance are critical considerations for legislation in our context.

We will participate in the debate in Parliament on the repeal of Section 377A of the Penal Code and the proposed change to the Constitution relating to marriage, in light of the amendments that the government will table."

WP did not immediately reveal its position on whether it agrees to repeal 377A and to support the proposed change to the Constitution relating to marriage.

During this year's LGBT-friendly Pink Dot event, both Members of Parliament from the PAP and the WP were spotted in attendance.

Inflation, cost of living and the Singapore dollar

In addition to its response to the news of the repeal, the WP also highlighted inflation and cost of living issues.

"While the issues of 377A and the definition of marriage are very important issues for our society, there are other issues facing the nation. This is a time when high levels of inflation and cost of living continue to affect Singaporean households, especially those on fixed incomes and low-to-middle incomes. We repeat the calls we have made in Parliament for specific reforms to address these bread and butter concerns.

On inflation, there is room to strengthen the Singapore dollar further to make our imports cheaper and sell long bonds to dampen speculative investment. In addition, we have to keep a lid on asset prices; spend to support those among us who are hurting most for a temporary period; and finance this by rebating any windfall tax gains, while saying “No” to the GST hike, as it adds to inflation at a time when it is wholly unnecessary."

PM Lee did mention inflation and cost of living in his speech, highlighting the measures the government has taken to support lower and middle-income families, including cash payouts, rebates, vouchers and MediSave top-ups.

He also mentioned the strong Singapore dollar in his speech, after the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) tightened exchange rate policy.

While the strong Singapore dollar makes travelling overseas easier, and makes imported goods cheaper, there is a "limit" to this.

"A stronger Sing dollar also makes our exports more expensive, and we lose competitiveness against other countries. So we have to be very careful not to overdo things," he said.

Top image from WP and Pink Dot Facebook pages.