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The
Parliament
of
the
Republic
of
Singapore
and
the
President
jointly
make
up
the
legislature
of
Singapore,
which
is
based
on
the
Westminster
system.
Parliament
is
unicameral
and
is
made
up
of
Members
of
Parliament
(MPs)
who
are
elected,
as
well
as
Non-constituency
Members
of
Parliament
(NCMPs)
and
Nominated
Members
of
Parliament
(NMPs)
who
are
appointed.
Following
the
2015
general
election,
89
MPs
and
three
NCMPs
were
elected
to
the
13th
Parliament.
Nine
NMPs
were
appointed
during
the
first
session
of
this
Parliament.
The
first
sitting
of
the
13th
Parliament
took
place
on
15
January
2016.
Between
1819,
when
modern
Singapore
was
founded,
and
1867,
the
lawmaking
authorities
were
the
British
government
in
India
and
the
Parliament
of
the
United
Kingdom.
After
the
Straits
Settlements
(Malacca,
Penang,
and
Singapore)
became
a
Crown
colony,
this
function
was
taken
over
by
the
Settlements'
Legislative
Council,
which
was
an
unelected
body.
Following
World
War
II
the
Straits
Settlements
were
dissolved
and
Singapore
became
a
colony
in
its
own
right
with
its
own
Legislative
Council.
In
1948
the
Constitution
was
amended
to
allow
for
six
seats
in
the
Council
to
be
elected;
the
country's
first
democratic
elections
were
held
that
year.
A
further
amendment
in
1955
increased
the
number
of
elected
seats
to
25,
and
in
the
general
elections
that
followed,
the
Labour
Front
won
the
majority
of
the
seats
in
the
Legislative
Assembly
of
Singapore
and
its
leader,
David
Saul
Marshall,
became
the
first
Chief
Minister
of
Singapore.
Self-government
was
negotiated
with
the
Colonial
Office
in
London
in
1956–1957,
and
became
a
reality
in
1959.
In
the
1959
general
elections,
the
People's
Action
Party
(PAP)
swept
to
power,
and
its
leader
Lee
Kuan
Yew
was
appointed
Prime
Minister
of
Singapore.
Singapore
gained
independence
from
Britain
by
joining
Malaysia
in
1963,
but
became
a
fully
independent
republic
on
9
August
1965.
Its
Legislative
Assembly
was
renamed
the
Parliament
of
Singapore.
The
Speaker
of
Parliament
has
overall
charge
of
the
administration
of
Parliament
and
its
secretariat,
and
presides
over
parliamentary
sittings.
The
Leader
of
the
House
is
an
MP
appointed
by
the
Prime
Minister
to
arrange
government
business
and
the
legislative
programme
of
Parliament,
while
the
unofficial
Leader
of
the
Opposition
is
the
MP
who
leads
the
largest
opposition
party
able
and
prepared
to
assume
office
if
the
Government
resigns.
However,
in
September
2011,
Low
Thia
Khiang,
the
Secretary-General
of
the
Workers'
Party
of
Singapore,
which
holds
the
most
opposition
seats
in
Parliament,
said
that
he
would
not
be
accepting
the
title.
Some
of
Parliament's
work
is
carried
out
by
select
committees
made
up
of
small
numbers
of
MPs.
Standing
Select
Committees
are
permanently
constituted
to
fulfil
certain
duties,
and
ad
hoc
Select
Committees
are
established
from
time
to
time
to
deal
with
matters
such
studying
the
details
of
bills.
In
addition,
selected
PAP
backbenchers
sit
on
Government
Parliamentary
Committees
that
examine
the
policies,
programmes
and
proposed
legislation
of
government
ministries.
The
main
functions
of
Parliament
are
lawmaking,
controlling
the
nation's
finances,
and
ensuring
ministerial
accountability.
Parliament
convenes
when
it
is
in
session.
The
first
session
of
a
particular
Parliament
commences
when
Parliament
meets
after
being
formed
following
a
general
election.
A
session
ends
when
Parliament
is
prorogued
(temporarily
suspended)
or
dissolved.
The
maximum
term
of
each
Parliament
is
five
years,
after
which
Parliament
automatically
dissolves.
A
general
election
must
then
be
held
within
three
months.
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