When the 15thParliament opens on Sept 5, there will be new chairpersons for all 12 government parliamentary committees (GPC). 

Among the 12 chairpersons, three have prior experience heading a GPC. 

MP for Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC Tin Pei Ling, who heads the Transport GPC, was the chair for the Digital Development and Information GPC, while MP for Sembawang GRC Vikram Nair moves from chairing the Defence and Foreign Relations GPC to Home Affairs and Law. Both of them are fourth-term MPs. 

Saktiandi Supaat, a third-term MP for Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC, will move from Transport to chair the Finance and Trade and Industry GPC. 

Alex Yam, another fourth-term MP and Mayor for Northwest Community Development Council, will head the Culture, Community and Youth GPC. He was formerly the deputy chair for the Digital Development and Information, and Defence and Foreign Relations GPCs. 

Among the eight other GPC heads, two of them —Daryl David and Henry Kwek — are in their third term. Henry Kwek and Daryl David will head the National Development and Education GPCs respectively. Daryl was the deputy chair for the same GPC in the 14th Parliament. 

The other six chairpersons are all MPs in their second term. 

Sembawang GRC MPs Mariam Jaafar and Poh Li San will head the Health and Sustainability and the Environment GPCs respectively, while MP for Pasir Ris-Changi GRC Sharael Taha will chair the Digital Development and Information GPC. 

Poh was formerly deputy chair in the same GPC.

Meanwhile, the Manpower and Social and Family Development GPCs will be led by Punggol GRC MP Yeo Wan Ling and Jurong Central SMC MP Xie Yao Quan respectively.

Completing the chairpersons line-up is Yio Chu Kang SMC MP Yip Hon Weng who will head the Defence and Foreign Affairs GPC. 

Of the 26 first-term PAP MPs, seven — Dinesh Vasu Dash, Goh Hanyan, Goh Pei Ming, Jasmin Lau, David Neo, Jeffrey Siow, and Syed Harun Alhabsyi — have either been, or will be appointed as political office holders.

The remaining 19, including Lee Hong Chuang and Victor Lye who were fielded in opposition wards in the 2015 and 2020 General Election, have been included in the GPCs.

The GPCs have between seven and nine members, with Education being the largest with nine members.

Introduced in 1987, GPCs were set up by the ruling party to scrutinise the legislation and programmes of all 16 ministries. 

Some committees have a portfolio corresponding to more than one ministry. For example, the GPC on Finance and Trade and Industry covers both the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Trade and Industry.

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editor@asiaone.com