Wong was the co-chair of a multi-ministerial committee set up by the government in January 2020 to manage the COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore.[3] As Minister for Finance, he has overseen the gradual increase in Goods and Services Tax (GST) which Lee's government has advocated for – 8% in 2023 and 9% in 2024, up from 7% which had been set since 2007. In April 2022, he was chosen as the leader of the PAP's fourth generation team, placing him in line as Lee's apparent successor.[4] Wong assumed the office of Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore on 13 June 2022, serving alongside Heng Swee Keat.[5] On 26 November 2022, Wong was appointed to the newly created position of Deputy Secretary-General of the PAP.[6]
Wong was previously Chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) from 2023 to 2024 as well as Deputy Chairman between 2021 and 2023. He assumed Chairmanship of the Investment Strategies Committee of GIC from 7 July 2023 while he assumed Chairmanship of the International Advisory Council (IAC) of the Economic Development Board (EDB) from 8 July 2023 until his subsequent relinquishment to Gan Kim Yong on 1 June 2024.[7][8] Wong was also appointed Deputy Chairman of GIC's Board of Directors on 1 October 2023. On 15 May 2024, Wong was sworn in as the fourth prime minister of Singapore, becoming the first prime minister born after the establishment of modern-day Singapore.
Early life and education
Wong was born on 18 December 1972, in the eastern part of Singapore.[9][10] Growing up, Wong and his family lived in a public Housing and Development Board (HDB) flat in Marine Parade.[10] Wong's Hainanese father worked as a sales executive while his mother was a teacher at his primary school.[10] As a child, his father gave him a guitar and he developed a love for music.[11]
Wong began his career as an economist working in the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) in August 1997.[18] It was the beginning of the 1997 Asian financial crisis and his first assignment involved preparing a report on regional economies and their effects on Singapore. He described the experience by saying "nothing that I learned in school prepared me for such an assignment" and recounted having to learn on the job.[19]
Wong was posted to the Ministry of Finance (MOF) in January 2002 and then the Ministry of Health (MOH) in July 2004, where he served as Director of Healthcare Finance until May 2005. Wong served as the principal private secretary to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong between May 2005 and August 2008.[18]
In September 2008, Wong became deputy chief executive officer of the Energy Market Authority, rising to chief executive officer on 1 January 2009. He relinquished the role on 1 April 2011.[18]
Political career
Wong with Japanese Minister of Finance Shun'ichi Suzuki in May 2023
As Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, Wong was involved in the transformation of the Civic District[31]—the birthplace of modern Singapore which contained many institutions that have witnessed important turning points in Singapore's history.[32][31] In January 2016, he assumed office as Chairman of the PAP Community Foundation from 2016 until June 2022 where it was handed over to Minister Josephine Teo[33] In August 2016, the National Arts Council attracted criticisms over the high consultation fees paid for a bin centre, as flagged by the Auditor-General's Office. Wong addressed the issue in Parliament, saying that the project was at acceptable cost due to the need for extensive study of the location and technicality involved with the building of the refuse centre in the Civic District.[34] Under his charge, Wong also introduced the S$200 million Cultural Matching Fund, a dollar-for-dollar matching grant for cash donations to arts and heritage charities and Institutions of Public Character in Singapore.[35][36][37]
In the 2015 general election, Wong was part of a four-member PAP team contesting in the newly formed Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC.
[38] The PAP team won with 68.7% of the vote against the Singapore Democratic Party and Wong was elected as the Member of Parliament representing the Limbang ward of Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC.[39] Wong was also the Chairman of the Steering Committee for the 2015 Southeast Asian Games.[40] Wong had also announced several key initiatives to get more Singaporeans involved in sports.[41] This includes a national movement called ActiveSG, which gives all Singaporeans and permanent residents ActiveSG$100 to sign up for sports programmes, and enter into swimming pools and gyms at the various sports centres islandwide.[42] Wong also chaired the Singapore High Performance Sports Steering Committee, which provides strategic guidance on identifying and nurturing high performing sporting talents.[43] Wong said that the accomplishments of Singapore athletes at the 2015 Southeast Asian Games indicate that Singapore's investment in sports is paying off.[44] On 1 October 2015, Wong became the Minister for National Development.[17] He also chaired the steering committee for the development of Jurong Lake Gardens.[45] On 22 August 2016, Wong was appointed Second Minister for Finance,[46] in addition to being Minister for National Development.[47] On 29 August 2016, he stepped down from the board of directors of the Monetary Authority of Singapore and was replaced by Ong Ye Kung.[20][48]
During the COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore, Wong and Gan Kim Yong were appointed co-chairs of a multi-ministerial committee formed by the government in January 2020 to manage the situation. On 26 March 2020, while paying tribute to frontline workers helping in Singapore's fight against COVID-19, Wong turned emotional and teary-eyed while delivering his address in Parliament. He thanked healthcare workers, as well as those working in cleaning, transport and security sectors for providing much-needed services to keep Singapore going during this difficult time.[49] In the 2020 general election, Wong led a four-member PAP team to contest in Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC again. The PAP team won with 63.18% of the vote against the Singapore Democratic Party and Wong retained his seat as the Member of Parliament representing Limbang ward.[50] On 27 July 2020, following a Cabinet reshuffle, Wong succeeded Ong Ye Kung as Minister for Education.[51] On 8 November that year, Wong was elected into the PAP's Central Executive Committee for the first time after rising to prominence for leading the Government's fight against COVID-19.[52]
On 15 May 2021, following another Cabinet reshuffle, Wong relinquished his portfolio as Minister for Education and became Minister for Finance after Heng relinquished his Cabinet portfolio.[53] On 28 May 2021, he was reappointed to the board of directors of the Monetary Authority of Singapore as deputy chair, replacing Lim Hng Kiang.[54][55] In February 2022, Wong announced a S$500 million stimulus package due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore. Wong also said the government would set aside an additional S$560 million to "help Singaporean citizens deal with the rising cost of living".[56] Later in June 2022, Wong announced another $1.5 billion support package to provide targeted relief for lower-income and vulnerable groups.[57] At Budget 2023, Wong announced that the Assurance Package was enhanced from $6.6 billion, announced in 2022, to $9.6 billion. This was to offset additional GST expenses for the majority of Singaporean households for at least five years.[58] In September 2023, Wong announced an additional $1.1 billion Cost-of-Living (COL) Support Package to provide more relief for Singaporean households, especial lower- to middle-income families.[59]
On 14 April 2022, Wong was selected as the leader of the PAP's fourth-generation (4G) team, succeeding Deputy Prime MinisterHeng Swee Keat, who had stepped down as 4G leader on 8 April 2021.[60] Prior to his appointment, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong delegated former PAP chairman Khaw Boon Wan to initiate a consultation process among the fourth-generation ministers of the Cabinet, aimed at garnering their individual views regarding the selection of a new 4G leader.[61] Lee and Senior MinistersTharman Shanmugaratnam and Teo Chee Hean abstained from participating in the process.[62]
Wong received an "overwhelming majority" of support in the consultation process, surpassing that of Ong Ye Kung and Chan Chun Sing, his cabinet colleagues and co-contestants in the 4G leadership race.[63] He received 15 out of the 19 votes from the stakeholders polled, and as no candidate is allowed to vote for himself, this meant that only three other individuals did not vote for him as their first choice.[64] His candidature was unanimously endorsed by the Cabinet and subsequently, by the PAP MPs at a party caucus on 14 April.[65] His appointment was announced by Prime Minister Lee in a Facebook post the same day.[65]
On 6 June 2022, a Cabinet reshuffle was announced where Wong was promoted to Deputy Prime Minister, which further cemented his position as Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's successor. In addition to becoming Deputy Prime Minister, he was also named "Acting Prime Minister" in Lee's absence. He had also taken over responsibility of the Strategy Group in the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) from Heng Swee Keat.[66][67] On 28 June 2022, Wong launched the "Forward Singapore" movement[68] as part of his vision for a society that "benefits many, not a few".[69] The Forward Singapore report was released on 27 October 2023.[70] Following the resignation of former Senior Minister and current President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Wong was appointed to several positions such as Chair of the GIC Investment Strategies Committee,[71] Chair of the EDB International Advisory Council[72] until his subsequent relinquishment of the Chairmanship to Gan Kim Yong[73] and Deputy Chairman of the GIC.[74] On 5 November 2023, Lee Hsien Loong announced that he would be passing his ministerial role to Wong in November 2024, before the next general election, "if all goes well".[75]
Wong subsequently emerged as Lee's apparent successor to the position of prime minister; the latter's initial plan to step down at the age of 70 had been complicated by Heng's withdrawal.[76] On 15 April 2024, the Prime Minister's Office issued a press statement confirming that Lawrence Wong would succeed Lee Hsien Loong as prime minister.[77]
At his swearing-in ceremony, during his first speech as Prime Minister, Wong stated "This is my promise to all Singaporeans: I will serve you with all my heart. I will never settle for the status quo. I will always seek better ways to make tomorrow better than today." He also stated that his mission as Prime Minister was "to continue defying the odds and to sustain this miracle called Singapore."[81] On 12 June 2024, it was announced that Gan Kim Yong had taken over as Chairman of the Economic Development Board's International Advisory Council since 1 June from Wong, who previously took over from Tharman in July 2023.[7]
Wong made his first overseas visits as Prime Minister from 11 June to 12 June 2024 where he made his introductory visits to Brunei and Malaysia as Prime Minister.[82][83] Wong attended his first ASEAN Meeting as Prime Minister from 9 to 12 October[84] and first Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting from 23 to 26 October.[85] He is expected to attend his first APEC Leaders’ Meeting from 12 to 16 November and first G20 Summit as an Invited guest from 18 to 19 November.
Personal life
Wong previously married at the age of 28 but divorced his first wife after three years because of "incompatibility".[86][87] His second wife is Tiffany Loo Tze Lui, a former banker currently working in wealth management and who served on the board of directors of YMCA Singapore.[88] He has no children[89] and is a MethodistChristian.[10][90] His elder brother is an aerospace engineer at DSO National Laboratories.[91] His hobbies include playing the guitar and riding motorcycles.[92][93]
Notes
^Second wife. The name of his first wife is not publicly known.
^"Steering Committee". SEA Games 2015. SingTel. Archived from the original on 2 July 2015. Retrieved 18 August 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
The party affiliation of each member is indicated right after the constituency/seat he or she represents. PAP: People's Action Party; WP: The Workers' Party; PSP: Progress Singapore Party All of the leaders of the respective GRCs are in underline. MP(s) who is go on a leave of absence is in italic. NMPs do not belong to any party.
The party affiliation of each member is indicated right after the constituency he or she represents. PAP: People's Action Party; WP: The Workers' Party NMPs do not belong to any party. There were two terms of NMPs in this parliament, with nine NMPs in each term.
The party affiliation of each member is indicated right after the constituency he or she represents. PAP: People's Action Party; SPP: Singapore People's Party; WP: The Workers' Party For NCMPs, Gerald Giam and Yee Jenn Jong are from the WP, while Lina Loh is from the SPP. NMPs do not belong to any party. There were two terms of NMPs in this parliament, with nine NMPs in each term.
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