EDUCATION FACTSHEET: WHAT IS PARLIAMENT?
Produced by Education & Publicity Department, Parliament of Singapore
The word "parliament" comes from a very old French word "parley" which means "to discuss".
The word was first used to describe a meeting between the king of England and his bishops
and lords known as the King’s Council. At such meetings, the king would ask the bishops and
the lords for their advice and for money. Through the years, the body was enlarged and
separated into the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The role of the Houses
evolved through time and historical events to the present-day parliament.
As Singapore was a British colony for many years, we have inherited some British institutions
such as the Westminster parliamentary system of government. Other countries which share a
similar system are Australia, Canada, India and Malaysia.
PARLIAMENT AND THE GOVERNMENT
Parliament is one of three organs of the State. The
other two are the executive and the judiciary.
Parliament makes the laws, the executive
exercises it powers according to the law and the
judiciary interprets the law. These powers and
functions are found in a supreme law called the
Constitution.
The Singapore Legislature comprises the President,
elected Members of Parliament or "MPs",
Nominated MPs and Non-Constituency MPs.
In a parliamentary system of government, the party which wins more than half the seats in
Parliament at the General Election will form the government. Sometimes two or more parties
may form partnerships to have the majority of seats in Parliament. They are called a coalition
government. The Prime Minister, appointed by the President, is usually an elected Member of
Parliament who is likely to command the confidence of the majority of the Members of
Parliament. The President shall appoint other Ministers from among the Members of
Parliament upon the advice of the Prime Minister. Collectively, they are referred to as the
government or executive.
Members of the political party which forms the executive are sometimes known as
government MPs whilst the members belonging to the other parties are known collectively as
opposition MPs.
In a parliamentary system of government, the Prime Minister and his Cabinet remain in office
only while they have the support of the majority of MPs in Parliament. His government is
answerable and accountable to Parliament for all its actions. In Parliament, you can hear MPs
asking Ministers questions and for explanations. If a government does not have the support
of Parliament, Parliament may pass a vote of no confidence and force the government to
resign.
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Besides debates in Parliament, many discussions are held "behind the scenes", for example,
at party meetings, through party bodies such as the Government Parliamentary Committees
and through informal channels.
The President is constitutionally a part of the Legislature. This fusion of power is the result of
our historical heritage from Britain where the legislative power is exercised by Parliament in
the name of the Queen and on her behalf. The President is also the Head of State of
Singapore. The executive powers of the state are vested in him and exercised by the Prime
Minister and the Cabinet on his behalf.
In practice, the President acts on the advice of the Cabinet except on certain matters set out
in the Constitution. The President is elected by the people for a term of six years. The
President can prevent Parliament from amending the Constitution to affect his powers and
have it referred to a national referendum. In a national referendum, the matter is referred to
the people to vote.
WHY IS PARLIAMENT IMPORTANT TO US?
The formation of the government is dependent on the outcome of the General Elections.
When we vote for a candidate to be our MP, we are also giving that candidate’s political party
a mandate or right to form the government. This is because the party or parties with the
support of the majority of Parliament forms the government.
As an elected body, Parliament represents the people. The government is answerable to the
people through Parliament for its actions. Through questions and debates, Parliament raises
issues which affect our everyday lives from length of school hours and amount of homework
to cost of living and international relations. MPs also raise problems faced by his constituents
or constituency. During such debates, the government will have to explain and justify its
actions to the people.
The government must pass or amend laws to carry out their policies or programmes. As
Parliament makes the law, the government must introduce the proposed legislation to
Parliament and explain the reasons for the law. These laws are called Bills when they are first
presented in Parliament. Much of Parliament’s time is spent considering Bills.
The Bills are closely scrutinised by MPs. Parliament can make changes to the Bill if it chooses
to. Where the majority of MPs present do not support the Bill, it cannot become a law. Bills
which become laws are called Acts of Parliament. Besides the Minister, an MP can also
introduce his own Bill in Parliament. This is known as a Private Member's Bill.
Parliament also scrutinises the government’s Budget. Every year, the government must seek
Parliament’s approval for money to pay for expenditure such as the construction of public
housing, repair of roads and payment of teachers’ salaries. Parliament can question the
government on its policies and propose cuts to the Budget. This process is referred to as the
Budget debates. Parliament, through its Committees, will also examine the budget and
accounts of government departments to ensure that there is no wastage and that the funds
are properly spent.
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Last but not least, parliamentarians represent the people by looking after their constituents'
interests. MPs spend a large proportion of their time in community projects, meeting their
constituents and grassroots leaders and are involved in the running and improvement of
public housing estates in their constituencies through the town councils. If a constituent has
any problem with the authorities, his MP will appeal to them on his behalf.
So you can see what an important role Parliament plays and how its work affects all of us in
one way or another.
THE CONSTITUTION
Our Parliament derives its authority and power from a supreme law called the Constitution.
The Constitution states who can qualify to be an MP, the life of a Parliament and how the
powers of Parliament are to be exercised. There are also other provisions relating to
individual rights, the powers and functions of the President, the Prime Minister, the Courts,
etc.
The Constitution is often referred to as the supreme law. This is because any law made by
Parliament which is inconsistent with the Constitution will not have any effect. Most of the
provisions of the Constitution can be changed by Parliament. However, unlike other laws
which only require a majority vote in Parliament, at least two-thirds of all the elected MPs
must agree to the changes (or amendments). There are some provisions in the Constitution
that cannot be changed by Parliament alone, but must be subject to a national referendum.
PRESIDENTIAL COUNCIL FOR MINORITY RIGHTS
Although Singapore does not have a bicameral parliament, there is another body that
scrutinises most of the Bills passed by Parliament. This body is known as the Presidential
Council for Minority Rights.
One of the functions of the Council is to ensure that the proposed law does not discriminate
against any race, religion or community. If the Council feels any provision in the law is biased,
it will report its findings to Parliament and the Bill will be referred back to Parliament for
reconsideration. The Council is currently headed by the Chief Justice of Singapore and its
members are representatives of the main races and religions in Singapore.
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