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 president who in the president's judgment is likely to command the confidence of the majority of the Members of Parliament (MPs). The other Ministers in the Cabinet are Members of Parliament appointed by the president acting in accordance with the advice of the prime minister. Ministers are prohibited from holding any office of profit and from actively engaging in any commercial enterprise.
Sir William Cleaver Francis Robinson (1834–1897), the Governor of the Straits Settlements when the Executive Council of the Straits Settlements was introduced in 1877
Lee Kuan Yew, who was elected the first Prime Minister of Singapore in 1959, in a 2005 photograph
Image: Lee Hsien Loong 2016 (cropped)
Image: Lawrence Wong 20230526
The Government of Singapore is defined by the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore to consist of the President and the Executive. Executive authority of Singapore is vested in the President but exercised on the advice of the Cabinet led by the Prime Minister. The President, acting as the Head of State, may only act in their discretion in appointing the Prime Minister, acting as the Head of Government; as well as withholding consent for the dissolution of Parliament; along with performing key checks on the Government in addition to the ceremonial duties of the Head of State inherited from the Westminster system. The Cabinet, consisting of the Prime Minister and ministers appointed by the President on the Prime Minister's advice, is responsible for heading the Executive through ministries and other statutory boards. At the end of the term or at any time during the term, once the President has consented to a request made by the Prime Minister to dissolve Parliament, Parliamentary General Elections are held to elect members of Parliament for a new term. The President, in their discretion, then appoints a Prime Minister who is a member of Parliament representing any political party or coalition of political parties who in their judgement is likely to command the confidence of the majority of the members of Parliament. The Prime Minister then forms the Government and, along with the Cabinet, sets the general direction and control of the Government for the next term.
Parliament House with skyscrapers of the Central Business District in the background, photographed in 2002
William Farquhar (1774–1839), who served as Singapore's first Resident from 1819 to 1823
Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore's first Prime Minister, photographed in 2002
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the Istana on 3 June 2006