Senior Minister of Singapore

Cabinet position in the Government of Singapore

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|

Senior Minister of the
Republic of Singapore

Incumbent
Teo Chee Hean
since 1 May 2019
Lee Hsien Loong
since 15 May 2024

Prime Minister's Office
Style|

* Senior Minister
(informal)
* The Honourable
(formal)
* His Excellency
(diplomatic)

Abbreviation| SM
Appointer| Prime Minister of Singapore
Term length| At the Prime Minister's pleasure
Formation| 2 January 1985; 39 years ago (1985-01-02)
Website| www.pmo.gov.sg

Senior Minister of Singapore is a position in the Cabinet of Singapore. Holders of this office have previously served as either the prime minister or the deputy prime minister. Among the executive branch officeholders in the order of precedence, the position ranks after the prime minister and the deputy prime minister. Senior Ministers also serve as part of the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) and work at the Istana.

## Background

[edit]

S. Rajaratnam, Singapore's first Minister for Foreign Affairs, took on the newly created role of Senior Minister in 1985 before retiring in 1988.[1] Prior to that, he served as Deputy Prime Minister between 1980 and 1985.

Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore's first Prime Minister, was appointed as Senior Minister in 1990, after being succeeded by Goh Chok Tong as prime minister. He was ranked second in the order of precedence, superseding the incumbent Deputy Prime Ministers Lee Hsien Loong and Ong Teng Cheong.[2]

Goh Chok Tong was appointed Senior Minister in 2004 after handing over the office of Prime Minister to Lee Hsien Loong. As Senior Minister, he was ranked second in the order of precedence, while Lee Kuan Yew, who was appointed as Minister Mentor, ranked third in the order of precedence.[3]

S. Jayakumar relinquished his role as Deputy Prime Minister in 2009 and was appointed as Senior Minister before retiring from politics in 2011.[4]

After the 2011 general election, Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew and Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong left the Cabinet but remained as Members of Parliament. Goh accepted an honorary title of Emeritus Senior Minister (ESM); Lee was also offered a similar title but he declined and continued to serve as a Member of Parliament until his death on 23 March 2015.[5]

Between 21 May 2011 and 1 May 2019, the office of Senior Minister was vacant. After this eight-year gap, Teo Chee Hean and Tharman Shanmugaratnam were appointed after they relinquished their positions as Deputy Prime Minister. [6]

On 8 June 2023, Tharman Shanmugaratnam announced his intention to run for the 2023 presidential election and his scheduled resignation on 7 July 2023 from all his positions in the government and as a member of the People's Action Party, as the presidency is a non-partisan office.

Lee Hsien Loong was appointed Senior Minister on 15 May 2024 after handing over the office of Prime Minister to Lawrence Wong.[7]

## List of senior ministers

[edit]

The Senior Minister is appointed as part of the Cabinet of Singapore. The incumbent senior ministers are MP for Pasir Ris–Punggol GRC Teo Chee Hean (former Deputy PM) and MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC Lee Hsien Loong (former Prime Minister) from the People's Action Party.

Portrait  | Name
(Birth–Death) | Took office  | Left office  | Party  | Cabinet

|
|
|
|
|

| S. Rajaratnam
MP for Kampong Glam
(1915–2006) | 2 January
1985  | 13 September
1988  |  | PAP | Lee K. VII
Vacant
13 September 1988–28 November 1990 | Lee K. VIII
| Lee Kuan Yew
MP for Tanjong Pagar SMC & Tanjong Pagar GRC
(1923–2015) | 28 November
1990  | 12 August
2004  |  | PAP | Goh I
Goh II
Goh III
Goh IV
| Goh Chok Tong
MP for Marine Parade GRC
(born 1941) | 12 August
2004  | 21 May
2011  |  | PAP | Lee H. I
Lee H. II
| S. Jayakumar
MP for East Coast GRC
(born 1939) | 1 April
2009  | 21 May
2011  |  | PAP | Lee H. II
Vacant
21 May 2011–1 May 2019 | Lee H. III
Lee H. IV
| Tharman Shanmugaratnam
MP for Jurong GRC
(born 1957) | 1 May
2019  | 7 July
2023  |  | PAP | Lee H. IV
Lee H. V
| Teo Chee Hean
MP for Pasir Ris–Punggol GRC
(born 1954) | 1 May
2019  | Incumbent |  | PAP | Lee H. IV
Lee H. V

Wong I

| Lee Hsien Loong
MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC
(born 1952) | 15 May
2024  | Incumbent |  | PAP | Wong I

## See also

[edit]

* Prime Minister of Singapore
* Prime Minister's Office (PMO)
* Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore
* Minister Mentor

## References

[edit]

1. ^ National Library Board, Singapore. "S. Rajaratnam". nlb.gov.sg.
2. ^ Rachel Chang (9 August 2015). "New man at the helm: The first leadership handover, from Lee Kuan Yew". The Straits Times.
3. ^ National Library Board, Singapore. "Goh Chok Tong". nlb.gov.sg.
4. ^ "Valedictory Letter from Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to Prof S. Jayakumar". pmo.gov.sg.
5. ^ "SM Goh, MM Lee to leave Cabinet". Channel NewsAsia. Singapore. 14 May 2011.
6. ^ "Heng Swee Keat to be promoted to DPM in Cabinet reshuffle". Channel NewsAsia. 23 Apr 2019. Retrieved 23 Apr 2019.
7. ^ "PM Lee to stay on as Senior Minister; any major Cabinet changes will come after GE: Lawrence Wong". CNA. 16 April 2024. Retrieved 16 April 2024.

* v
* t
* e

Current members of the Cabinet of Singapore

Prime Minister|

* Lawrence Wong
* Finance

Deputy Prime Minister(s)|

* Gan Kim Yong
* Trade and Industry
* Heng Swee Keat

Senior Minister(s)|

* Lee Hsien Loong
* Teo Chee Hean
* National Security

Cabinet Minister(s)|

* Ng Eng Hen
* Defence
* Vivian Balakrishnan
* Foreign Affairs
* K. Shanmugam
* Home Affairs/Law
* Chee Hong Tat
* Transport
* Grace Fu
* Sustainability and the Environment/Trade Relations
* Chan Chun Sing
* Education
* Masagos Zulkifli
* Social and Family Development/Muslim Affairs
* Ong Ye Kung
* Health
* Josephine Teo
* Communications and Information/Smart Nation/Cybersecurity
* Desmond Lee
* National Development/Social Services Integration
* Edwin Tong
* Culture, Community and Youth
* Tan See Leng
* Manpower
* Indranee Rajah
* Prime Minister's Office
* Maliki Osman
* Prime Minister's Office

Effective from 15 May 2024
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