Seah Kian Peng facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Seah Kian Peng
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謝健平
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Official portrait, 2021
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| Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore | |
| Assumed office 2 August 2023 |
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| Prime Minister | Lee Hsien Loong Lawrence Wong |
| Deputy | Christopher de Souza Jessica Tan |
| Preceded by | Tan Chuan-Jin Jessica Tan (Acting) |
| Deputy Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore | |
| In office 17 October 2011 – 14 January 2016 Serving with Charles Chong (2011–2020)
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| Prime Minister | Lee Hsien Loong |
| Speaker | Michael Palmer (2011–2012) Halimah Yacob (2013–2017) |
| Preceded by | Matthias Yao |
| Succeeded by | Lim Biow Chuan |
| Member of the Singapore Parliament for Marine Parade–Braddell Heights GRC |
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| Assumed office 23 April 2025 |
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| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Majority | N/A (walkover) |
| Member of the Singapore Parliament for Marine Parade GRC |
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| In office 27 April 2006 – 15 April 2025 |
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| Preceded by | PAP held |
| Succeeded by | Constituency abolished |
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| Personal details | |
| Born | 5 December 1961 Colony of Singapore |
| Political party | People's Action Party |
| Spouse | Jean Yap |
| Children | 2 |
| Alma mater | University of New South Wales |
Seah Kian Peng (Chinese: 謝健平; pinyin: Xiè Jiànpíng; born 5 December 1961) is a well-known Singaporean politician. He has been the Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore since August 2023. Before that, he was the Deputy Speaker from 2011 to 2016.
Mr. Seah is a member of the People's Action Party (PAP), which is the ruling political party in Singapore. He has also been a Member of Parliament (MP) for the Braddell Heights area since 2006. This area is part of the Marine Parade GRC. A GRC is a group of areas that vote for a team of MPs together.
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Early Life and Education
Seah Kian Peng grew up in a family with six members. His father worked in a printing company, and his mother was a homemaker who also sewed to help the family. He is the third of four children.
He attended Raffles Institution for his studies. Later, he received a special scholarship called the Colombo Plan scholarship. This scholarship allowed him to study at the University of New South Wales in Australia.
Career Journey
Starting His Career
After finishing his university degree with top honors in building, Mr. Seah returned to Singapore. He completed his National Service, which is a period of military training for young men.
He then worked for a government-linked company called Indeco Engineers. After that, he joined the Singapore Civil Service, which means he worked for the government. He also worked with the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), helping to plan and start NTUC Healthcare's pharmacies.
From 1994 to 1996, he worked for a private engineering company. In 1996, he returned to the public sector. He led NTUC Healthcare and NTUC Media. In 2001, he became the chief operating officer of NTUC FairPrice, a large supermarket chain. He was promoted to chief executive officer of NTUC FairPrice in 2010.
Political Journey
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Becoming a Member of Parliament
Mr. Seah first became a candidate for the People's Action Party (PAP) in the 2006 Singaporean general election. He was elected as a Member of Parliament for the Marine Parade GRC. In that election, his team won without anyone running against them, which is called a walkover. This meant he became an MP for the 11th Parliament of Singapore.
He was re-elected as an MP for Marine Parade GRC in the general elections of 2011, 2015, and 2020. In these elections, the PAP team faced challenges from other political parties.
Roles in Parliament
From October 2011 to January 2016, Mr. Seah served as the Deputy Speaker of Parliament. This role involves helping the Speaker manage parliamentary meetings.
In 2010, he helped to create a new law called the Maintenance of Parents Act. This law helps parents who need financial support from their children. He worked with a group of ten people to develop the ideas for this law. The bill was passed in November 2010.
Mr. Seah was the CEO of NTUC Fairprice from 2010 to 2022. He also led the Social and Family Development Government Parliamentary Committee (GPC) in the 14th Parliament of Singapore. This committee looks at issues related to families and social welfare.
During the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2020, he helped out as a "safe distancing ambassador" during Singapore's "circuit breaker" lockdown. This role involved reminding people to keep a safe distance from each other.
Becoming Speaker of Parliament
On 21 July 2023, it was announced that Mr. Seah would be nominated to become the next Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore. This happened after the previous Speaker, Tan Chuan-Jin, resigned. Mr. Seah was officially elected as Speaker on 2 August 2023.
In his first speech as Speaker, he reminded all Members of Parliament to act properly and serve the people well.
On 23 April 2025, Mr. Seah was part of a team nominated to contest in the Marine Parade–Braddell Heights Group Representation Constituency. He became the main leader for this GRC team. Since no other teams ran against them, his team won by a walkover on Nomination Day. On 20 June 2025, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong renominated Mr. Seah to continue as the House Speaker.
Personal Life
Seah Kian Peng is married to Jean Yap. They have two children together.
