DPM Gan, three coordinating ministers to form core of PM Wong’s Cabinet

SINGAPORE – Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong and the three new coordinating ministers in his Cabinet will form a core team to assist and advise him, as well as provide guidance and mentorship to younger ministers.

The three ministers who will be appointed coordinating ministers are Mr K. Shanmugam, who will be Coordinating Minister for National Security; Mr Chan Chun Sing, who will be Coordinating Minister for Public Services; and Mr Ong Ye Kung, who will be Coordinating Minister for Social Policies.

DPM Gan will be Acting Prime Minister in PM Wong’s absence. In the event that neither of them are around, one of the three coordinating ministers will be appointed, said PM Wong on May 21 at

a press conference to announce his new Cabinet line-up.

There have typically been two deputy prime ministers in the Cabinet.

Asked why he did not appoint one of the fourth-generation leaders as deputy prime minister, PM Wong said having these four senior leaders in his team is “a good arrangement for now”.

“They are key ministers who will help me, assist me in the work, and they will also advise, guide the younger ministers,” he added.

“Along the way, there may be changes, but as we start this new term, I am happy with this configuration.”

Mr Chan will be appointed Defence Minister and will relinquish his role as Education Minister, besides taking on his coordinating minister role. He continues as Minister-in-charge of the Public Service, a role he has held since 2018.

Mr Shanmugam will remain Minister for Home Affairs and relinquish his Law Ministry portfolio to Mr Edwin Tong.

Mr Ong will stay on as Health Minister and Minister-in-charge of Ageing Issues.

Bringing together different government services

Of the three coordinating minister roles, Mr Chan’s public services portfolio is new.

President Tharman Shanmugaratnam was Coordinating Minister for Social Policies between 2015 and 2023, while Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean,

who is retiring after 33 years in politics,

has been Coordinating Minister for National Security since 2011.

Asked what Mr Chan’s role as Coordinating Minister for Public Services entails, PM Wong said the role is renamed from the Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure portfolio previously held by former transport minister Khaw Boon Wan to give it a “new focus and priority”.

That role entailed strengthening internal coordination within the Government for urban planning and major infrastructure projects, such as housing and rail lines.

PM Wong said he decided on the new role, as he saw two areas for improvement that are “more about public services than large-scale infrastructure planning”.

The first pertains to last-mile public services, or “how we bring together a whole range of different government services in order to better service residents and Singaporeans”.

PM Wong said the introduction of the ServiceSG one-stop platform for citizens to access government services is one improvement made under this scope, but more can be done.

The second area is in coordinating and implementing amenities, facilities and services for newer residential estates.

“It’s not easy, because you get the buildings and the housing delivered already, but sometimes, the bus services are not there, the amenities are not all ready, so how can we put all of that and roll them out in a more coordinated and timely fashion?” PM Wong said.

Mr Chan said the new focus under his role also encompasses the execution and planning of digital services beyond physical ones.

This entails putting together new processes to transform the way public service can be delivered, he noted.

There is also a forward planning element to plan upfront the way the Government builds its digital services infrastructure, to “minimise the downstream remediation that we may need to do”, he said.

“The better we do with upfront planning, the less we need to do downstream,” he added.

Asked about helming the Defence Ministry, Mr Chan said Singapore will need to evolve new capabilities to be prepared for new scenarios in a changed world.

This entails re-examining some fundamental assumptions on the kind of environment the country will face in the coming years, and asking what new capabilities must be built ahead of time “so that our defence force can remain ready, relevant and resilient”, added Mr Chan, who was Chief of Army before entering politics in 2011.

Another newly created role in this round of Cabinet changes is Minister-in-charge of Energy and Science & Technology under the Ministry of Trade and Industry.

Dr Tan See Leng, who will continue as Manpower Minister, will take on this role. He is currently also Second Minister for Trade and Industry.

PM Wong said the new role covers key areas for Singapore’s economy. Science and technology are key drivers of growth, while energy – especially clean energy – will be an important part of his Government’s agenda, he added.

With the new role, the Government will consider how it can better organise itself to accelerate its transition to clean energy, he added.

Preparing for an ageing Singapore

At the press conference, Mr Ong also set out his priorities for his Coordinating Minister for Social Policies role.

They include carrying on the work of Forward Singapore, a nationwide engagement exercise headed by PM Wong that has involved more than 200,000 Singaporeans since

it kicked off in June 2022.

Mr Ong will constantly review Singapore’s policies amid the changing economic environment to ensure that the needs of the population are met.

“As the PM said, at every stage of life, and every age, there should be a social safety net to guide us through life. We need to constantly review our policies, to refresh, update those policies, and strengthen our social compact,” he said.

Another priority is to ensure that Singaporeans from “very vulnerable backgrounds” also get a chance to excel.

Mr Ong said Singapore’s inclusive economic model and system of meritocracy cannot be taken for granted and have to “constantly evolve”.

“So long as someone is prepared to work hard, prepared to seize opportunities, we must continue that spirit of social mobility. No matter how hard your background is in Singapore, you must be able to succeed,” he said.

Tackling an ageing population is another priority, with it being “the single largest social development (Singapore) will see in the next decade”, Mr Ong added.

This was why he had requested to continue as Health Minister, 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.”

On Mr Shanmugam’s appointment as Coordinating Minister for National Security, PM Wong said it is a “critical role with far-reaching responsibilities”.

Security threats are constantly evolving, and safeguarding Singapore’s safety and survival is essential, he noted.

“I can think of no one better than Shanmugam to take over from Teo Chee Hean for this far-reaching function of national security,” PM Wong said.

Correction note: In an earlier version of the story, we said that Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean has been Coordinating Minister for National Security since 2015 instead of 2011. This has been corrected.