| Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore | |
|---|---|
| Parliament of Singapore | |
| Style |
|
| Type | Presiding officer |
| Nominator | Prime Minister of Singapore |
| Appointer | Parliament of Singapore |
| Term length | No term limit |
| Inaugural holder | George Oehlers |
| Formation | 5 June 1965 |
| Salary | S$550,000 annually (including S$192,500 MP salary) |
| Website | www.parliament.gov.sg |
| This article is part of a series on |
 |
|---|
 Singapore portal |
The Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore is the presiding officer of the Parliament of Singapore. The speaker is nominated by the prime minister before being appointed by the Parliament. The Speaker is also second in the presidential line of succession. The current Speaker is the People's Action Party MP for Marine Parade GRC, Seah Kian Peng.
The Speaker is assisted by two Deputy Speakers, Christopher de Souza and Jessica Tan, who both took office on 31 August 2020. In the event when the speaker is unavailable, the deputy speakers will preside over the parliamentary session.
Although Singapore is modelled after the Westminster system, unlike their counterpart in the United Kingdom—where the speaker must remain strictly non-partisan and renounce all affiliation with their former political parties when taking office and afterwards, the speaker of the Parliament of Singapore can choose to remain partisan.
Election
Parliament must elect a Speaker at the beginning of each new parliamentary term after a general election.[1] Parliament has the freedom to choose how to elect the Speaker. By recent tradition, the Prime Minister nominates a person for the role. The person's name is then proposed and seconded by the Members of Parliament (MPs), before being elected as Speaker.[2] The Constitution states that Parliament has the freedom to decide how to elect its Speaker.[3]
The Speaker may or may not be an elected MP, but must possess the qualifications to stand for election as an MP as provided for in the Constitution.[4] The Speaker cannot be a Cabinet Minister or Parliamentary Secretary,[3] and must resign from those positions prior to being elected as Speaker.
Once elected, a Speaker continues in office until the dissolution of Parliament, unless the speaker resigns, is appointed as a Cabinet minister, Minister of State or Parliamentary Secretary, or is disqualified from holding their seat as an MP.[5]
Role
The role of the Speaker in Singapore is similar to that in most Commonwealth legislatures. The Speaker presides over the sittings of Parliament, and enforces the rules prescribed in its Standing Orders for the orderly conduct of parliamentary business. In carrying out their duties, the Speaker must remain impartial and fair to all MPs.[4]
The Speaker regulates and enforces the rules of debate. They decide who has the right to speak, and put the question for Parliament to debate on and vote. The Speaker does not take part in the debates, but can abstain or vote for or against a motion if they have a vote, as an elected MP.[4]
As the guardian of parliamentary privileges, MPs look to the Speaker for guidance on procedures, and for rulings on any points of order.[4]
The Speaker is second in the line of succession for the office of President of Singapore. Should the President's office be vacant, and the chairman of the Council of Presidential Advisers is unable to take up the role, the Speaker will assume the duties of the President until a new President is elected.[6] In terms of state protocol, the Speaker sits at the same level as the Chief Justice of Singapore.[2]
The Speaker acts as Parliament's representative in its relations with other legislatures and outside bodies. The Speaker also welcomes visiting dignitaries, and represents Parliament at national events and during official visits abroad. The Speaker is overall in charge of the administration of Parliament and its Secretariat.[4]
The Speaker is one of the few public sector roles which allow its officeholder to automatically qualify as a candidate in the Singapore presidential elections.[7]
List of speakers
| No. | Portrait | Name (Birth–Death) |
Took office | Left office | Party | Parliament | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sir George Oehlers (1908–1968) |
22 April 1955 |
3 September 1963 |
Independent | 1st Legislative Assembly | ||
| 2nd Legislative Assembly | |||||||
| 2 | Edmund W. Barker MP for Tanglin (1920–2001) |
22 October 1963 |
30 October 1964 |
People's Action Party | 3rd Legislative Assembly | ||
| 3 | Arumugam Ponnu Rajah (1911–1999) |
2 November 1964 |
5 August 1966 |
Independent | |||
| 1st Parliament | |||||||
| 4 | Punch Coomaraswamy (1925–1999) |
17 August 1966 |
18 January 1970 |
Independent | |||
| 2nd Parliament | |||||||
| 5 | Yeoh Ghim Seng MP for Joo Chiat (1918–1993) |
27 January 1970 |
17 August 1988 |
People's Action Party | |||
| 3rd Parliament | |||||||
| 4th Parliament | |||||||
| 5th Parliament | |||||||
| 6th Parliament | |||||||
| 6 | Tan Soo Khoon MP for Brickworks GRC (until 1991) MP for Bedok GRC (1991–1996) MP for East Coast GRC (from 1996) (born 1949) |
9 January 1989 |
17 October 2001 |
People's Action Party | 7th Parliament | ||
| 8th Parliament | |||||||
| 9th Parliament | |||||||
| 7 | Abdullah Tarmugi MP for East Coast GRC (born 1944) |
22 March 2002 |
18 April 2011 |
People's Action Party | 10th Parliament | ||
| 11th Parliament | |||||||
| 8 |  |
Michael Palmer MP for Punggol East SMC (born 1968) |
10 October 2011 |
12 December 2012 |
People's Action Party | 12th Parliament | |
| – | Charles Chong MP for Joo Chiat SMC (born 1953) Acting |
12 December 2012 |
14 January 2013 |
People's Action Party | |||
| 9 |  |
Halimah Yacob MP for Jurong GRC (until 2015) MP for Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC (from 2015) (born 1954) |
14 January 2013 |
7 August 2017 |
People's Action Party | ||
| 13th Parliament | |||||||
| – | Charles Chong MP for Punggol East SMC (born 1953) Acting |
7 August 2017 |
11 September 2017 |
People's Action Party | |||
| 10 |  |
Tan Chuan-Jin MP for Marine Parade GRC (born 1969) |
11 September 2017 |
17 July 2023 |
People's Action Party | ||
| 14th Parliament | |||||||
| – |  |
Jessica Tan MP for East Coast GRC (born 1966) Acting |
17 July 2023 |
2 August 2023 |
People's Action Party | ||
| 11 |  |
Seah Kian Peng MP for Marine Parade GRC (born 1961) |
2 August 2023 |
Incumbent | People's Action Party | ||
List of deputy speakers
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See also
Notes
- ↑ Constitution, Art. 40(1).
- 1 2 Lee, Min Kok (8 January 2016). "Halimah Yacob to be renominated as Speaker of Parliament: 7 things you may not know about the post". The Straits Times. Archived from the original on 7 August 2017. Retrieved 7 August 2017.
- 1 2 Constitution, Art. 40(2).
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Speaker of Parliament". Parliament of Singapore. Retrieved 7 August 2017.
- ↑ Constitution, Art. 40(4).
- ↑ Constitution, Art. 22N.
- ↑ Constitution of the Republic of Singapore, Art. 19(3)(a).
