Rendel Constitution

Constitution of the State of Singapore 1963 and its predecessors

After the Japanese Occupation, the Straits Settlements were dissolved in 1946 and Singapore became a Crown colony. Its new constitution, the Singapore Order in Council 1946, established an executive council and a legislative council which, for the first time, had a number of elected members. The constitution came into effect on 1 March 1948, and the first legislative elections in Singapore were held on 20 March that year. In 1953, a constitutional commission headed by Sir George Rendel was set up to recommend further changes in the constitutional system, with the aim of increasing widespread participation in the central and local government of Singapore. The British Government accepted most of the Rendel Commission's recommendations in its report of February 1954 and implemented them by way of the Singapore Colony Order in Council 1955, commonly known as the Rendel Constitution. While the new Legislative Assembly was a largely elected body, the colonial administration retained authority over administration, finance, internal security and law.