KUALA LUMPUR — Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has announced his first full Cabinet, unveiling a sweeping reshuffle that includes three coordinating ministers and confirms Gan Kim Yong as the country’s sole deputy prime minister.
This marks the first complete Cabinet formed under Wong’s leadership since taking over from Lee Hsien Loong last year. The new line-up includes 15 full ministers and two acting ministers across the Prime Minister’s Office and 16 ministries.
Wong, who retains his finance portfolio, also brought in nine new political office holders, comprising backbenchers and first-term Members of Parliament — a move he described as “one of the highest in recent history”, Channel News Asia reported.
“I have a solid team behind me,” he said during a press conference, emphasising the presence of four senior leaders — one deputy and three coordinating ministers — whom he described as part of his core team to advise, assist and mentor the younger ministers.
Among the key changes, Gan Kim Yong will continue to helm the Trade and Industry Ministry while serving as deputy prime minister. Chan Chun Sing will take over as defence minister and will also be appointed as coordinating minister for public services.
Ong Ye Kung remains health minister and takes on an additional role as coordinating minister for social policies. K Shanmugam will relinquish the law portfolio but continue as home affairs minister and coordinating minister for national security. Edwin Tong is set to assume the law portfolio while also being appointed as second minister for home affairs.
Desmond Lee will succeed Chan at the Education Ministry, while Chee Hong Tat will replace Lee as minister for national development. Chee will relinquish his position as second minister for finance.
In other notable appointments, Faishal Ibrahim becomes the acting minister-in-charge of Muslim affairs and senior minister of state for home affairs. Newly elected MP David Neo will serve as acting minister for culture, community and youth, as well as senior minister of state for education. Another first-term MP, Jeffrey Siow, takes on the role of acting minister for transport and senior minister of state for finance.
Several ministers will retain their existing portfolios. Josephine Teo remains at the Ministry for Digital Development and Information, while Tan See Leng continues as manpower minister and will also take on oversight of energy and science and technology under the Trade and Industry Ministry. Grace Fu remains at the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment, Masagos Zulkifli continues as social and family development minister, and Vivian Balakrishnan stays on as foreign affairs minister. Indranee Rajah will continue her role in the Prime Minister’s Office.
The role of coordinating ministers is not new to Singapore’s Cabinet. Wong pointed to former holders of such posts, including Teo Chee Hean for national security, Tharman Shanmugaratnam for social policies, and Khaw Boon Wan for infrastructure.
Wong noted that Khaw had played a key role in integrating urban planning and infrastructure projects like housing and MRT expansion. He said Chan Chun Sing, as coordinating minister for public services, would now focus on improving service delivery, particularly in newer housing estates.
Chan said he would coordinate improvements across both digital and physical services, ensuring there are no gaps in delivery. While ministries would continue managing their respective areas, he said there remained room for improvement, particularly in adopting a citizen-centric approach and offering one-stop services.
On the area of social policy, Wong said inter-ministry coordination continued after Tharman’s departure from Cabinet, led by Wong himself during his tenure as deputy prime minister. Though he did not hold the coordinating minister title at the time, he chaired relevant processes to review policies for the Forward Singapore initiative, including the Jobseeker Support Scheme and parental leave.
Now that he is prime minister, those responsibilities have been passed to Ong Ye Kung. Ong said he had asked to remain in the Health Ministry to continue work on Singapore’s ageing population, which he described as the most significant social development of the next decade.
“We’ve done some major moves, but I think ageing will be the single largest social development we will see in the next decade,” he said. “We need to adapt to it in the way we learn, we work, we play, or live through our silver years. So I think that still requires a lot of work.”
As coordinating minister for social policy, Ong said his priorities include advancing Forward Singapore’s work and strengthening social safety nets. He stressed that Singapore must not take its inclusive economic model or meritocratic system for granted.
Other appointments in the Cabinet reshuffle include Sim Ann as senior minister of state for home affairs, continuing her role in foreign affairs. Murali Pillai will be promoted to senior minister of state, retaining his law and transport portfolios.
Sun Xueling will become senior minister of state for national development and transport, stepping away from her roles in home affairs and social and family development. Baey Yam Keng will take on duties in transport and culture, community and youth, while also serving as mayor of the North East District.
Janil Puthucheary, Koh Poh Koon and Tan Kiat How will continue in senior minister of state roles across education, sustainability, health, manpower and digital development.
New senior parliamentary secretary appointments include Shawn Huang (manpower and finance), Gan Siow Huang and Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim (foreign affairs), with Gan also taking on trade and industry, and Zhulkarnain covering social and family development.
Zaqy Mohamad, Desmond Choo, Alvin Tan and Eric Chua are also among those who will hold new or continuing roles across various ministries, including sustainability, defence, national development, and law.
Five newly elected People’s Action Party MPs — Dinesh Vasu Dash, Jasmin Lau, Goh Pei Ming, Goh Hanyan and former Nominated MP Syed Harun Alhabsyi — will take up political office. Dinesh will also serve as mayor of the South East District. — May 21, 2025