SINGAPORE, July 15 — In its first statement on the matter, the Workers’ Party (WP) said that it is “disappointed” at Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin’s use of unparliamentary language at an April sitting and stressed the need for confidence in the Speaker’s impartiality.

In a separate Facebook post yesterday, Progress Singapore Party (PSP) said that its two Non-Constituency Members of Parliament (NCMPs) have filed a motion to be debated at the next sitting, seeking to reaffirm the House’s commitment to an impartial, independent Speaker.

In its Facebook post, WP said that it is appropriate for public concerns over Mr Tan’s “audible outbust” to be addressed in Parliament.

“The Speaker is a referee for political debate at the highest level, maintaining order and providing guidance on parliamentary procedures,” the party said.

“It is paramount that everyone has confidence that the Speaker presides over Parliamentary debates in an impartial manner,” it added.

On Wednesday, Leader of the House Indranee Rajah announced that she will be addressing Mr Tan’s use of “unparliamentary language” at the next House sitting, which is expected to be in early August.

Mr Tan had issued an apology on his social media pages on Tuesday after a video emerged of him uttering “f****** populist” following a speech made by WP MP Jamus Lim on April 17.

In its post, PSP said the incident was “regrettable”.

Despite Mr Tan’s apology and Ms Indranee’s move, “the PSP believes that this serious matter deserves a full parliamentary debate as it touches on parliamentary privileges, professional ethics, and the impartiality and independence of the office of the Speaker”, the party added.

The motion filed by the party’s two NCMPs Leong Mun Wai and Hazel Poa seeks to reaffirm the House’s commitment that Parliament should be a “fair arena for all”, the party added.

“Ensuring the Parliament is fair to all starts with the Speaker. However, some parliamentary procedures and processes also need to be changed to facilitate more constructive and productive debates.

“Our NCMPs will share PSP’s views on what parliamentary reforms can be made to ensure that Parliament is a fair arena for all during the coming debate,” it added. — TODAY