Six new single seats created as five SMCs are removed

Six new single-member constituencies have been created, while five will be removed from the electoral map.

- Chin Soo Fang

The new SMCs in the latest report by the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee (EBRC) released on March 11 are Bukit Gombak, Jalan Kayu, Jurong Central, Queenstown, Sembawang West and Tampines Changkat.

The five that will be removed are Bukit Batok, Hong Kah North, MacPherson, Punggol West and Yuhua.

There will be a total of 15 SMCs for Singapore's upcoming general election, which is one more than the previous election in 2020.

The remaining SMCs are Bukit Panjang, Hougang, Kebun Baru, Marymount, Mountbatten, Pioneer, Potong Pasir, Radin Mas and Yio Chu Kang.

Based on the report's recommendations, the total number of MPs will increase from 93 to 97 - 15 per cent of whom will be elected from SMCs.

There will be an average of 28,384 electors per MP, a slight decrease from the 28,510 electors for each MP five years ago.

In all, 400,484 electors will be voting in the 15 SMCs.

With the removal of Punggol West SMC, the EBRC recommended that it be merged with Punggol estates in the growing Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC to form a new four-MP Punggol GRC.

Hong Kah North SMC has grown and will continue to expand due to housing developments in Tengah and Bukit Batok West. With 45,586 electors, it was deemed too big to remain as an SMC.