Lawrence Wong

Lawrence Wong (Chinese: 黄循财; pinyin: Huáng Xúncái; born 18 December 1972)[1] is a Singaporean politician who has served as minister for finance since 2021. A member of the governing People's Action Party (PAP), he is the Member of Parliament (MP) representing the Limbang ward of Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC since 2015. He is a member of the party's central executive committee and the chairman of the PAP's charity wing.[2]

Not to be confused with Lawrence Wong (actor).
In this Chinese name, the family name is Wong.
The Honourable
Lawrence Wong
黄循财
Minister for Finance
Assumed office
15 May 2021
Preceded byHeng Swee Keat
Minister for Education
In office
27 July 2020 – 14 May 2021
Preceded byOng Ye Kung
Succeeded byChan Chun Sing
Minister for National Development
In office
1 October 2015 – 26 July 2020
Preceded byKhaw Boon Wan
Succeeded byDesmond Lee
Minister for Culture, Community and Youth
In office
1 May 2014 – 30 September 2015
Acting: 1 November 2012 – 30 April 2014
Preceded byChan Chun Sing
Succeeded byGrace Fu Hai Yien
Member of the Singapore Parliament
for Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC
(Limbang)
Assumed office
11 September 2015
Member of the Singapore Parliament
for West Coast GRC
(Boon Lay)
In office
7 May 2011 – 24 August 2015
Personal details
Born
Lawrence Wong Shyun Tsai

(1972-12-18) 18 December 1972
Singapore
Political partyPeople's Action Party
EducationTanjong Katong Secondary School
Victoria Junior College
Alma materUniversity of Wisconsin, Madison (BS)
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (MA)
Harvard University (MPA)
Signature
Websitepmo.gov.sg

Prior to entering politics, Wong was a civil servant working in the ministries of trade and industry, finance and health. He was also principal private secretary to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong between 2005 and 2008, and chief executive officer of the Energy Market Authority between 2008 and 2011.

Wong made his political debut in the 2011 general election when he contested in West Coast GRC as part of a five-member PAP team and won. Since the 2015 general election, he has contested in Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC and retained his seat in the 2015 and 2020 general elections. He was the minister for culture, community and youth (2012–2015), national development (2015–2020) and education (2020–2021).[3]

Wong is a co-chair of a multi-ministerial committee set up by the government in January 2020 to manage the COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore.[4] In April 2022, he was chosen as the leader of the PAP's fourth generation leadership team, placing him in line to succeed Lee Hsien Loong as apparent prime minister.[5]

Education

A Chinese Singaporean of Hainanese descent,[6] Wong was educated at Haig Boys' Primary School, Tanjong Katong Secondary School and Victoria Junior College.[7][8] After graduating from junior college, he obtained a Public Service Commission scholarship to study at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he completed a Bachelor of Science in economics in 1993.[9][10] He subsequently completed a Master of Arts in economics at the University of Michigan–Ann Arbor, and a Master of Public Administration at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government.[11][12]

Career

Public career

Wong began his career as a civil servant at the Ministry of Trade and Industry, where he served as Assistant Director (Research and Planning) from 1997 to 1999. He then moved to the Ministry of Finance, where was Assistant Director (Fiscal Policy) from 1999 to 2001 and later Deputy Director (Budget) and Head of Economic Programmes. In 2004, he moved to the Ministry of Health to serve as Director of Healthcare Finance.

From 2005 to 2008, Wong served as Principal Private Secretary to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

In 2008, Wong became the Chief Executive Officer of the Energy Market Authority.[13]

Political career

Wong entered politics at the 2011 general election when he contested as part of a five-member People's Action Party (PAP) team in West Coast GRC. The PAP team won with 66.66% of the vote against the Reform Party, and Wong became a Member of Parliament representing the Boon Lay ward of West Coast GRC.

On 21 May 2011, Wong was appointed Minister of State at the Ministries of Defence and Education. He was also appointed to the board of directors of the Monetary Authority of Singapore on 10 June 2011.[14] On 1 August 2012, he was promoted to Senior Minister of State at the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts and Ministry of Education. On 1 November 2012, he was appointed Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth and Senior Minister of State at the Ministry of Communications and Information.[15]

Wong led a team to bid for the Singapore Botanic Gardens to be recognised as Singapore's first UNESCO World Heritage Site.[16][17][18] Wong also spearheaded the free museum entry policy for all Singaporeans and permanent residents, to all national museums and heritage institutions from 18 May 2013.[19] In 2013, Wong also announced the setting up of a new S$100 million National Youth Fund for youth to champion community and social causes.[20]

On 1 May 2014, Wong was promoted to full Minister with the portfolios Minister for Culture, Community and Youth and Second Minister for Communications and Information.[21] He is also a member of the PAP's Central Executive Committee.[22] Wong was also appointed as the Head of the SG50 Programme Office that coordinates the work of five committees for Singapore's Golden Jubilee Year celebrations.[23] Wong is also the co-chair for the SG50 Culture and Community Committee.[24]

As Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, Wong was involved in the transformation of the Civic District – the birthplace of modern Singapore which contained many institutions that have witnessed important turning points in Singapore's history.[25][26] 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.[27]

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.[28][29][30]

In the 2015 general election, Wong was part of a four-member PAP team contesting in the newly formed Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC. [31] The PAP team won with 68.7% of the vote against the Singapore Democratic Party and Wong became a Member of Parliament representing the Limbang ward of Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC.

Wong was also the Chairman of the Steering Committee for the 2015 Southeast Asian Games.[32] Wong had also announced several key initiatives to get more Singaporeans involved in sports.[33] 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.[34]

Wong also chaired the Singapore High Performance Sports Steering Committee, which provides strategic guidance on identifying and nurturing high performing sporting talents.[35] Wong said that the accomplishments of Singapore athletes at the 2015 Southeast Asian Games indicate that Singapore's investment in sports is paying off.[36]

On 1 October 2015, Wong's portfolio changed to Minister for National Development.[12] He also chaired the steering committee for the development of Jurong Lake Gardens.[37]

On 22 August 2016, Wong was appointed Second Minister for Finance,[38] in addition to being Minister for National Development.[39] On 29 August 2016, he stepped down from the board of the Monetary Authority of Singapore and was replaced by Ong Ye Kung.[14][40]

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.[41]

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.[42]

On 27 July 2020, following a Cabinet reshuffle, Wong succeeded Ong Ye Kung as Minister for Education.[43] On 8 November that year, Wong was elected into the PAP's Central Executive Committee for the first time after taking up various roles during the COVID-19 pandemic.[44]

On 15 May 2021, following another Cabinet reshuffle, Wong relinquished his portfolio as Minister for Education and became Minister for Finance.[45] On 28 May 2021, he was reappointed to the board of the Monetary Authority of Singapore as Deputy Chair, replacing Lim Hng Kiang.[46][47]

In February 2022, Wong announced a SG$500 million ($372M) stimulus package to create jobs and support businesses impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. Wong also said the government would set aside SG$560 million to help Singapore citizens deal with the rising cost of living.[48]

Selection as 4G leader

On 14 April 2022, Wong was selected as the leader of the PAP's fourth-generation (4G) team, succeeding deputy prime minister Heng Swee Keat, who had stepped down as 4G leader on 8 April 2021.[49] 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 Singapore cabinet, aimed at garnering their individual views regarding the selection of a new 4G leader.[50] However, both Lee and the two senior ministers of the cabinet, Tharman Shanmugaratnam and Teo Chee Hean, abstained from participating in the process.[51]

Wong received an "overwhelming majority" of support in the consultation process, surpassing that of Chan Chun Sing and Ong Ye Kung, his cabinet colleagues and co-contestants in the 4G leadership race.[52] His candidature was unanimously endorsed by the cabinet and subsequently, by the PAP MPs at a party caucus on 14 April.[53] His appointment was announced by Lee in a Facebook post the same day.[53]

As the new 4G leader, Wong subsequently emerged as Lee's apparent successor to the position of prime minister; the latter's initial plans to step down at the age of 70 had been thwarted by Heng's withdrawal.[54]

Personal life

Wong's father was a sales executive and his mother was a teacher at his primary school. His elder brother is an aerospace engineer. Wong married at 28 but divorced his first wife after three years due to "incompatibility",[55][56][57] and he has since remarried.[58]

References
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