The Singapore Progressive Party (
abbreviation
An abbreviation (from Latin ''brevis'', meaning ''short'') is a shortened form of a word or phrase, by any method. It may consist of a group of letters or words taken from the full version of the word or phrase; for example, the word ''abbrevia ...
: PP), or simply the Progressive Party, was a
political party
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology ...
that was formed on 25 August 1947. It won the
1948 Legislative Assembly general elections with half of the contested seats in the
Legislative Assembly, 3 out of 6. At that time, the self-government power of the Legislative Assembly was still rather limited.
History
The party was founded by three lawyers, namely
Tan Chye Cheng
Tan Chye Cheng (; 1911 – 6 March 1991), also known as C. C. Tan, was a Singaporean lawyer and politician.
Biography
Born in Singapore, Tan was the only child of Tan Guan Chua, a member of the Chinese Advisory Board and the Singapore Chinese C ...
,
John Laycock
Christopher John Laycock (1887 – 3 December 1960) was a British lawyer, the founder of one of Singapore's earliest law firms, Laycock and Ong. He was also one of the founders of the Singapore Progressive Party.
Early life
Laycock grew up in ...
and Nazir Ahmad Mallal. All three were educated at the
University of London
The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...
and were three of the six first ever elected legislative councillors in Singapore. The party was Singapore's first political party.
Party ideology
The Progressive Party was heavily backed by and made up of English-speaking upper class professionals. Its campaign ideology was to advocate progressive and gradual reforms, rather than sudden, quick, radical ones, which fell in line with
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
policy at the time, to slowly let Singapore gain full self-government. This approach was criticised vehemently by
David Saul Marshall
David Saul Marshall (12 March 1908 – 12 December 1995), born David Saul Mashal, was a Singaporean lawyer and politician who served as Chief Minister of Singapore from 1955 until his resignation in 1956, after his delegation to London regarding ...
, leader of the
Labour Front
The Labour Front is a defunct political party in Singapore that operated from 1955 to 1960.
History
The Labour Front was founded to contest the 1955 legislative elections by David Saul Marshall, Singapore's first chief minister and Lim Yew Ho ...
who instead wanted rapid reform.
Legislative Council
In the Legislative Council, the SPP worked closely with the British Government. The SPP fought for equal treatment with both local and European civil servants, but this did not please the Chinese-educated locals, who were very unhappy with the SPP's Pro-British stance.
Central Provident Fund
In 1951, PP drafted a law for the setting up of a
Central Provident Fund
The Central Provident Fund Board (CPFB), commonly known as the CPF Board or simply the Central Provident Fund (CPF), is a compulsory comprehensive savings and pension plan for working Singaporeans and permanent residents primarily to fund thei ...
,
and it was approved by the British government in 1954, this CPF scheme provides financial security for workers in their retirement or for workers who were unable to work, this scheme came into effect in 1955, when David Marshall took office, and even after so many years, the CPF scheme despite having a few revisions and changes, remains in Singapore.
Election Results
Legislative Council
; Legislative Council By-Elections
Legislative Assembly
Municipal Council(till 1951) / City Council(since 1951)
References
Background of Progressive Party
{{Singaporean political parties
Conservative parties in Singapore
Defunct political parties in Singapore
Political parties established in 1947
Political parties disestablished in 1956
1947 establishments in Singapore
1956 disestablishments in Singapore