Discontent about immigration contributed to an election result in May 2011 that was seen as a watershed, even though the pap as usual romped home, securing 60% of the popular vote and 93% of elected seats in parliament (see chart, next page). After more than half a century in continuous office, an incumbent government could have figuratively shrugged and asked where else in the world a ruling party could secure such a ringing endorsement in an unrigged vote. Instead it acknowledged the result-its worst since 1965-as a serious rebuke. Lee Hsien Loong promised some "soul-searching", and indeed the government seems to have listened to Singaporeans' biggest concerns, introducing some curbs on foreign labour and improved benefits for the less well-off and the elderly. It hopes this will help it at the next election, due by early 2017 but expected earlier, perhaps in September or October this year. The pap may hope that the lavish celebrations to mark its birthday, dubbed "SG50", will remind everyone what a good job it has done; and the patriotic glow that followed Lee Kuan Yew's death in March will not have faded yet.
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