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Parliament House, Singapore

1999 establishments in SingaporeDowntown Core (Singapore)Government buildings completed in 1999Government buildings in SingaporeLegislative buildings
Parliament of SingaporeSeats of national legislatures
Parliament House Singapore
Parliament House Singapore

The Parliament House is a public building and a cultural landmark in Singapore. It houses the Parliament of Singapore, and is located in the Civic District of the Downtown Core within the Central Area. Within its vicinity is Raffles Place, which lies across from the Parliament House from the Singapore River, and the Supreme Court's building across the road. The building was designed to represent a contemporary architectural expression of stateliness and authority. The prism-shaped top, designed by President Ong Teng Cheong, was similarly a modernist take on the traditional dome.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Parliament House, Singapore (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Parliament House, Singapore
Parliament Place, Singapore Downtown Core

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Wikipedia: Parliament House, SingaporeContinue reading on Wikipedia

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Latitude Longitude
N 1.2891 ° E 103.8504 °
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Front Hall

Parliament Place 1
178880 Singapore, Downtown Core
Singapore
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Parliament House Singapore
Parliament House Singapore
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Parliament of Singapore
Parliament of Singapore

The Parliament of Singapore and the president jointly make up the legislature of Singapore. Largely based from the Westminster system, the 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 2020 general election, 93 (now 92) MPs and two NCMPs were elected to the 14th Parliament. Nine NMPs will usually be appointed by the president. 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 Leader of the Opposition is the MP who leads the largest political party not in the government. 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 backbenchers of the ruling People's Action Party 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. The quorum for a Parliamentary sitting is one quarter of the total number of MPs, not including the Speaker. An MP begins a debate by moving a motion and delivering an opening speech explaining the reasons for the motion. The speaker (or chairman, if Parliament is in committee) then puts the motion in the form of a question, following which other MPs may debate the motion. After that, the mover may exercise a right of reply. When the debate is closed, the Speaker puts the question on the motion to the House and calls for a vote. Voting is generally done verbally, and whether the motion is carried depends on the speaker's personal assessment of whether more MPs have voted for than against the motion. MPs' votes are only formally counted if an MP claims a division. Parliament convened at the Old Parliament House between 1955 and 1999, before moving into a newly constructed Parliament House on 6 September 1999.

Court of Appeal of Singapore
Court of Appeal of Singapore

The Court of Appeal of Singapore is the nation's highest court and court of final appeal. It is the upper division of the Supreme Court of Singapore, the lower being the High Court. The Court of Appeal consists of the chief justice, who is the president of the Court, and the Judges of Appeal. The chief justice may ask judges of the High Court to sit as members of the Court of Appeal to hear particular cases. The seat of the Court of Appeal is the Supreme Court Building. The Court exercises only appellate jurisdiction in civil and criminal matters. In other words, it possesses no original jurisdiction – it does not deal with trials of matters coming before the court for the first time. In general, the Court hears civil appeals from decisions of the High Court made in the exercise of the latter's original and appellate jurisdiction, that is, decisions on cases that started in the High Court as well as decisions that were appealed from the State Courts of Singapore to the High Court. However, this rule is subject to various restrictions. Some types of High Court decisions are not appealable to the Court of Appeal, while others are only appealable if the Court grants leave (permission). Where criminal matters are concerned, the Court only hears appeals from cases originating in the High Court. Matters heard by the High Court on appeal from the State Courts cannot be further appealed to the Court of Appeal, though questions of law may be submitted to the Court for determination. Under the principles of stare decisis (judicial precedent), Court of Appeal decisions are binding on the High Court and the State Courts. As Singapore's final appellate court, the Court of Appeal is not required to follow its own previous decisions and the decisions of predecessor courts such as the Supreme Court of the Straits Settlements and the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, and may depart from or overrule such decisions if it thinks fit. However, it will generally not do so without a strong reason. The Court of Appeal is required, however, to abide by decisions of the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore Tribunal in certain situations. The Constitution of Singapore states that where the President has referred to the Tribunal a question concerning the Constitution's effect on a bill, no court – including the Court of Appeal – may subsequently question the Tribunal's opinion on the bill or, assuming the bill is found to be constitutional, the validity of any law based on the bill.