PM Lee to deliver National Day Rally speech from 6.45pm on Aug 20

SINGAPORE: Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will deliver his National Day Rally 2023 speech on Sunday (Aug 20) at the Institute of Technical Education headquarters in Ang Mo Kio.

Mr Lee will speak in Malay at 6.45pm, in Mandarin at 7pm and in English from 8pm, said the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) in a statement on Monday (Aug 14).

The National Day Rally will be broadcast on local TV channels and radio stations.

CNA will broadcast the speeches with subtitles in English. 

Mr Lee's speech will also be broadcast in English on Channel 5 and CNA938; in Mandarin on Channel 8, Channel U and Capital 95.8FM; in Malay on Suria and Warna 94.2FM; and in Tamil on Vasantham and Oli 96.8FM.

It will be streamed live on CNA and CNA YouTube, meWATCH.sg and 8world.com, as well as on PMO's YouTube channel and the Facebook pages of Mr Lee and REACH.

Live updates will also be provided on Mr Lee's Facebook, X (Twitter) and Threads accounts as the speech is delivered.

Those who miss the live broadcast can watch it on PMO's YouTube channel or on PMO's National Day Rally page from Aug 21.The National Day Rally is seen as the most important political speech of the year, when the Prime Minister addresses the nation and shares key policy matters.

TWEAKS TO PUBLIC HOUSING

In his National Day message last week, Mr Lee spoke about keeping public housing schemes inclusive and helping older workers who have not built up enough Central Provident Fund (CPF) savings for retirement - topics he will address in his upcoming National Day Rally.  

"The government must ... ensure that public housing is accessible and affordable for Singaporeans of all income groups ... and keep our housing schemes fair and inclusive for all," Mr Lee said on Friday.

Mr Lee also touched on Singapore's rapidly ageing population.

He noted that while the system had been progressively enhanced to ensure people save enough in their working years, some older workers in their 50s and early 60s "still have not built up enough CPF savings for retirement, and can do with some extra help".

According to the National Archives, there has been a National Day Rally every year since 1966, except for 2020, when Mr Lee made a speech in Parliament instead due to the COVID-19 outbreak.