Prime Minister of Singapore - wikipedia Prime Minister of Singapore This article does not cite any sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( September 2016 ) Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore Perdana Menteri Republik Singapura ( Malay ) 新加坡 共和国 总理 ( Chinese ) சிங்கப்பூர் குடியரசின் பிரதமர் ( Tamil ) Prime Minister 's Crest Incumbent Lee Hsien Loong, MP since 12 August 2004 Style The Honourable Residence Sri Temasek Appointer President of the Republic of Singapore Term length 5 years or earlier, renewable. The Parliament of Singapore must be dissolved every 5 years or earlier by the Prime Minister. The leader of the majority party in the parliament will become the Prime Minister. Inaugural holder Lee Kuan Yew Formation 3 June 1959 Salary S $ 2.2 million annually Website www.pmo.gov.sg Singapore This article is part of a series on the politics and government of Singapore Constitution Executive President Halimah Yacob Government Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong Deputy PMs Teo Chee Hean Tharman Shanmugaratnam Cabinet Government organisations Legislature President Halimah Yacob Parliament Speaker : Tan Chuan - Jin Constituencies Members of Parliament ( MPs ) Non-constituency MPs Nominated MPs Political parties Judiciary Chief Justice : Sundaresh Menon Supreme Court Court of Appeal High Court State Courts Elections Presidential General Foreign relations Related topics OB marker Women in Singapore politics Other countries Atlas The Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore ( Malay : Perdana Menteri Republik Singapura ; Chinese : 新加坡 共和国 总理, pinyin : Xīnjiāpō gònghéguó zǒnglǐ ; Tamil : சிங்கப்பூர் குடியரசின் பிரதமர், Ciṅkappūr kuṭiyaraciṉ piratamar ) is the head of the government of the Republic of Singapore, and the most powerful person in Singapore. The President of Singapore appoints as Prime Minister a Member of Parliament ( MP ) who, in his or her opinion, is most likely to command the confidence of a majority of MPs. In practice, the Prime Minister is usually the leader of the majority party in the legislature. Under the Constitution of Singapore, executive power is vested in the President. However, the Constitution also vests `` general direction and control of the government '' in the Cabinet. The President is almost always bound to act on the advice of the Cabinet or any minister acting under Cabinet authority. Thus, in practice, most of the actual work of governing is done by the Prime Minister and Cabinet. The office of Prime Minister dates back to 1959 and was appointed at first by the Governor of Singapore then the Yang di - Pertuan Negara ( vice-regal head of state ), when Singapore achieved self - governance as the State of Singapore within the British Empire. The title of Prime Minister remained unchanged after the merger with the Federation of Malaya, Sarawak and North Borneo, while Singapore was a state in the Federation of Malaysia from 1963 to 1965, and after independence in 1965. The late Lee Kuan Yew was the first prime minister of Singapore from 1959 to 1990. Lee was succeeded by Goh Chok Tong and was conferred the title of Senior Minister in the Prime Minister 's Office. Goh retired on 12 August 2004 and was succeeded by Lee Kuan Yew 's son Lee Hsien Loong. Goh was appointed Senior Minister, and the elder Lee Minister Mentor. Lee and Goh resigned from the Cabinet in 2011 but remained as members of Parliament. Contents 1 List of Prime Ministers of Singapore ( 1959 -- present ) 2 Timeline 3 Living former Prime Ministers 4 List of Deputy Prime Ministers 5 See also 6 External links List of Prime ministers of Singapore ( 1959 -- present ) Portrait Name ( birth and death ) Constituency Term of office Party Time in Office Lee Kuan Yew 李光耀 லீ குவான் இயூ ( 1923 -- 2015 ) MP for Tanjong Pagar GRC, 1955 - 2015 5 June 1959 28 November 1990 People 's Action Party 31 years, 178 days 1959, 1963, 1968, 1972, 1976, 1980, 1984, 1988 The first Prime Minister of Singapore and the youngest to be elected in the office, at the age of 35. He is the longest - serving Prime Minister of Singapore. His tenure led to the expansion of Singapore 's economy from a British Crown Colony into a first world country. He introduced the National Service ( NS ) scheme, with the help of his Defence Minister Goh Keng Swee. He introduced the Stop - At - Two child policy in 1960s, for fearing of over expansion of Singapore population. In the 1980s, he introduced the Graduate Mother Scheme to counter the effects of the previous policy, which received a huge backlash. The policy was withdrawn shortly thereafter. He led the PAP into 8 consecutive election victories. Goh Chok Tong 吴作栋 கோ சொக் தொங் ( b. 1941 ) MP for Marine Parade GRC, 1988 - 28 November 1990 12 August 2004 People 's Action Party 13 years, 258 days 1991, 1997, 2001 The second Prime Minister of Singapore. He introduced several major policies and policy institutions, such as Medisave, Non-constituency Members of Parliament, Government Parliamentary Committees, Group Representation Constituencies, Nominated Members of Parliament, the Vehicle Quota Scheme, the direct election of the President and Singapore 21. During his tenure Singapore experienced several crises, such as the 1997 Asian financial crisis, threats of terrorism including the 2001 Singapore embassies attack plot by Jemaah Islamiyah, the 2001 -- 2003 economic recession, and the 2003 SARS outbreak. He also introduced the Baby Bonus scheme in a bid to increase birth rates. Prior his appointment as PM, he served as Senior Minister of State for Finance, Minister for Trade and Industry, Minister for Health, Minister for Defence and first Deputy Prime Minister. Lee Hsien Loong 李显龙 லீ சியன் லூங் ( b. 1952 ) MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC, 1991 - 12 August 2004 Incumbent People 's Action Party 14 years, 17 days 2006, 2011, 2015 The third Prime Minister of Singapore. He introduced the five - day working week for civil servants, with the hope of increasing the birth rate. One of his major accomplishments was to propose the building of 2 Integrated Resorts ( IR ) in Singapore. It created a huge avenue for Singapore 's economy. Singapore hosted the inaugural summer Youth Olympic Games in 2010. He promoted the abolition of school ranking. In 2013, he presided over the worst haze crisis and worst Dengue epidemic in Singapore. Prior to his appointment as PM, he served as Deputy Prime Minister ( 1991 -- 2004 ), Minister of Finance, Minister of Trade and Industry. Timeline Living former Prime Ministers Name Term of office Date of birth Goh Chok Tong 1990 -- 2004 ( 1941 - 05 - 20 ) 20 May 1941 ( age 77 ) List of Deputy Prime ministers Main article : Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore The role of Deputy Prime Minister is the second - highest post and senior Cabinet Minister in Singapore. The holder will sometimes assume the role of Acting Prime Minister when the PM is temporarily absent. Since the mid-1980s, Singapore has usually had two Deputy Prime Ministers at a time. Only Ong Teng Cheong and Tony Tan served under more than one Prime Minister during their time as Deputy Prime Minister. In the cabinet of Goh Chok Tong in the 1990s to 2004, former President Tony Tan and current Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong were the deputy prime ministers too. Currently, the deputy prime ministers in office are Mr Teo Chee Hean and Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam. See also Prime Minister 's Office ( Singapore ) Cabinet of Singapore Politics of Singapore Spouse of the Prime Minister of Singapore External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Prime Ministers of Singapore. Prime Minister 's Office Prime Ministers of Singapore Lee Kuan Yew ( 1959 -- 1990 ) Goh Chok Tong ( 1990 -- 2004 ) Lee Hsien Loong ( 2004 -- present ) Constitution of the Republic of Singapore Text of the Constitution at Singapore Statutes Online General principles Exclusion of judicial review Remedies Representative democracy Rule of law Separation of powers Fundamental liberties Article 9 Article 10 Article 11 Article 12 Article 13 Article 14 Article 15 Article 16 Right to vote The Government President Cabinet Prime Minister Attorney - General The Legislature President Parliament Speaker Elections Presidential Parliamentary By - elections Group Representation Constituency Non-constituency Member of Parliament Nominated Member of Parliament The Presidential Council for Minority Rights Presidential Council for Minority Rights The Judiciary Supreme Court Court of Appeal High Court State Courts Chief Justice Judicial officers Judicial independence The Public Service Singapore Civil Service Singapore Legal Service Citizenship Singaporean nationality law Special powers against subversion and emergency powers Internal Security Act Constitution of the Republic of Singapore Tribunal Law of Singapore Constitutional law Executive branch President Government Cabinet Prime Minister Attorney - General Legislative branch President Parliament Judicial branch Judicial system Judicial independence Judicial officers Constitution of the Republic of Singapore Tribunal Supreme Court Court of Appeal High Court State Courts Constitution Elections Human rights Internal Security Act Presidential Council for Minority Rights Singaporean nationality law Administrative law General Exclusion of judicial review Remedies Threshold issues Illegality Fettering of discretion Precedent fact errors Relevant and irrelevant considerations Substantive legitimate expectation Irrationality Wednesbury unreasonableness Procedural impropriety Bias Procedural legitimate expectation Alternative dispute resolution Singapore International Mediation Centre Singapore Mediation Centre Criminal law Criminal Law ( Temporary Provisions ) Act Misuse of Drugs Act Penal Code Section 377A of the Penal Code Sedition Act Vandalism Act Family law Matrimonial law Women 's Charter Religious law Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act Charities Act Procedure Electronic Filing System Integrated Electronic Litigation System Sources of Singapore law List of Acts of Parliament in Singapore Singapore articles History Early history ( pre -- 1819 ) Founding of modern Singapore ( 1819 -- 1826 ) Straits Settlements ( 1826 -- 1942 ) Japanese occupation ( 1942 -- 1945 ) British Military Administration ( 1945 -- 1946 ) Post-war Singapore ( 1946 -- 1955 ) Self - governance of Singapore ( 1955 -- 1962 ) Merger with Malaysia ( 1962 -- 1965 ) Republic of Singapore ( 1965 -- present ) Geography Beaches Conservation Environmental issues Geology Islands Parks Reservoirs Rivers Urban planning Urban renewal Waterways Wildlife Politics Administrative divisions Constitution Elections Foreign relations Government Cabinet Prime Minister Human rights Law Chief Justice Military Parliament Police Political parties President Economy Economy Statistics Agriculture Aviation Monetary Authority China -- Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park Dollar ( currency ) Energy Labour Proposed developments Singapore Exchange Telecommunications Tourism Transport Society Communitarianism Caning Crime Women Education Demographics Eat Frozen Pork Five Cs Health Long hair in Singapore National Courtesy Campaign National Day Parade No U-turn syndrome OB marker Population planning Public housing Public holidays Religion Smoking Social fund Water supply and sanitation Culture Architecture Cinema Cuisine Languages Literature Media Music Sports Wushu in Singapore Symbols Anthem Coat of arms Flag Flower Lion head Merlion Pledge Outline Index Bibliography Portal Leaders of Southeast Asian countries Heads of state Brunei ( Monarch ) Cambodia ( Monarch ) East Timor ( President ) Indonesia ( President ) ( list ) Laos ( President ) Malaysia ( Monarch ) Myanmar ( President ) ( list ) Philippines ( President ) ( list ) Singapore ( President ) Thailand ( Monarch ) ( list ) Vietnam ( President ) ( list ) Heads of government Brunei Cambodia ( list ) East Timor Indonesia ( list ) Laos Malaysia Myanmar Philippines ( list ) Singapore Thailand ( list ) Vietnam ( list ) Defunct heads of state and government Burma ( Monarch ) Dutch East Indies ( Governor - 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Question: who is the first prime minister of singapore
Answer: Lee Kuan Yew