Senior Minister of Singapore is a position in the

Cabinet of Singapore The Cabinet of Singapore forms the executive branch of the Government of Singapore together with the President. It is led by the Prime Minister who is the head of government. The prime minister is a Member of Parliament (MP) appointed by the ...

. Holders of this office have served as either the

prime minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

or the

deputy prime minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...

. Among the

executive branch The Executive, also referred as the Executive branch or Executive power, is the term commonly used to describe that part of government which enforces the law, and has overall responsibility for the governance of a State (polity), state. In poli ...

officeholders in the

order of precedence An order of precedence is a sequential hierarchy of nominal importance and can be applied to individuals, groups, or organizations. Most often it is used in the context of people by many organizations and governments, for very formal and state o ...

, the position ranks after the prime minister and the deputy prime minister. They also serve as part of the Prime Minister's Office and work at

The Istana The Istana ( eng, The Palace) is the official residence and office of the president of Singapore. The palace is open to the public and is where the president receives and entertains state guests. The Istana is also the office of the prime mi ...

Background

S. Rajaratnam Sinnathamby Rajaratnam ( ta, சின்னத்தம்பி ராஜரத்னம்; 25 February 1915 – 22 February 2006), better known as S. Rajaratnam, was a Singaporean politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister of Singapo ...

, Singapore's first

Minister for Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between coun ...

, took on the newly-created role of Senior Minister in 1985 before retiring in 1988. Prior to that, he served as

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...

between 1980 and 1985.

Lee Kuan Yew Lee Kuan Yew (16 September 1923 – 23 March 2015), born Harry Lee Kuan Yew, often referred to by his initials LKY, was a Singaporean lawyer and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1959 and 1990, and Secretary-General o ...

, Singapore's first

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

, was appointed as Senior Minister in 1990, after being succeeded by

Goh Chok Tong Goh Chok Tong (; born 20 May 1941) is a Singaporean former politician who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1990 and 2004, and Secretary-General of the People's Action Party between 1992 and 2004. He was the Parliament of Singapore, ...

as prime minister. He was ranked second in the

, superseding the incumbent Deputy Prime Ministers

Lee Hsien Loong Lee Hsien Loong (; born 10 February 1952) is a Singaporean politician and former brigadier-general who has been serving as Prime Minister of Singapore and Secretary-General of the People's Action Party since 2004. He has been the Member of Par ...

and

Ong Teng Cheong Ong Teng Cheong ( zh, c=王鼎昌, p=Wáng Dǐngchāng; 22 January 1936 – 8 February 2002) was a Singaporean politician who served as the fifth president of Singapore between 1993 and 1999. He was also the first elected president in Singapor ...

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 Minister Mentor was a position in the Cabinet of Singapore created in 2004 as part of a transition in political leadership. The only person to hold the post, between 2004 and 2011, was Lee Kuan Yew. Background On 12 August 2004, when Lee Hsien L ...

, ranked third in the order of precedence. S. Jayakumar relinquished his role as Deputy Prime Minister in 2009 and was appointed as Senior Minister before retiring from politics in 2011. After the 2011 general election, Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew and Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong left the

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

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. Between 21 May 2011 and 1 May 2019, the office of Senior Minister was vacant. After this eight-year gap, two former Deputy Prime Ministers

Teo Chee Hean Teo Chee Hean ( zh, s=张志贤, poj=Tiuⁿ Chì-hiân, p=Zhāng Zhìxián; born 27 December 1954) is a Singaporean politician and former two-star rear-admiral who has been serving as Senior Minister of Singapore since 2019 and Coordinating Min ...

and

Tharman Shanmugaratnam Tharman Shanmugaratnam (Tamil: தர்மன் சண்முகரத்தினம்; born 25 February 1957) is a Singaporean politician and economist who has been serving as Senior Minister of Singapore since 2019 and has also been C ...

was appointed as Senior Ministers, after being succeeded by

Heng Swee Keat Heng Swee Keat (; born 15 April 1961) is a Singaporean politician, former police officer and civil servant who has been serving as Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore since 2019 and Coordinating Minister for Economic Policies since 2020 and als ...

as Deputy Prime Minister.

List of senior ministers

The Senior Minister is appointed as part of the

. The incumbent ministers are

and

References

{{Current Cabinet of Singapore 1985 establishments in Singapore Government ministers of Singapore zh:國務資政

Background

List of senior ministers

See also

References