Josephine Teo

Career

Teo worked at Singapore's Economic Development Board (EDB) from 1992 to 2002. She began her career there in enterprise development, and was later posted to Suzhou, China, as part of EDB's pioneering team there. While on secondment to the China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park Pte Ltd, she was responsible for Marketing Resources. Upon her return to Singapore, Teo became the EDB's Head of Human Resources.

From 2002 to 2006, Teo served as the Head of Human Resources at the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR).

In November 2005, Teo also took on the role of Director of Human Resources at the Administration and Research Unit (ARU) of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC).

After her election to Parliament in 2006, Teo also took on additional roles within the NTUC and the labour movement. She served as the Executive Secretary of the Singapore Industrial Services Employees' Union (2006–11). At the ARU, she served as the Alignment Director (Youth Development) and Alignment Director (Organisation Development) (2007–11), and as the Centric Director (Staff) (2008–11). She also served as the NTUC's Assistant Secretary-General from 2007 to 2011.

From 2009 to 2011, Teo also served as the Chief Executive Officer of Business China, an organisation established to nurture an inclusive bilingual and bi-cultural group of Singaporeans through the use of Chinese language and to develop a cultural and economic bridge between China and the world.

Political career

Teo entered Parliament at the 2006 general election as an MP for the Bishan-Toa Payoh Group Representation Constituency (GRC).

In Teo's maiden speech in Parliament, she called on the Government to "rethink the way we teach our children our history, and that we preserve the evidence of our past through art and architecture so that, as a people, we will never forget." She believed that if Singapore focuses her attention on the non-negotiables, namely national security, economic survival and education, is careful to avoid deepening the potential divides in the society - the “young” versus the “old”, “local” versus “foreign”, “haves” versus “have-nots”, and avoid the three attitudes that can lead to Singapore's downfall, Singapore will, indeed, be able to build a more inclusive society.

During her first term in Parliament, she served as the Chair of the Government Parliamentary Committee (GPC) for Education, and as a member of the GPC for Defence & Foreign Affairs.

Following the 2011 general election, Teo was appointed a Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Transport on 18 May 2011, succeeding Ms Lim Hwee Hua. Teo was promoted to Senior Minister Of State at the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Transport on 1 September 2013.

She served as the Senior Minister Of State at the Ministry of Finance until 30 September 2015.

She was promoted to full minister and be appointed as Minister in the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), and Second Minister in the Ministry of Manpower and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 1 May 2017. She also oversees the National Population and Talent Division.

Controversies

Responding to suggestions for National Service (NS) men to be paid more at a post-budget forum in 2015, Teo remarked that service to the country "cannot be measured in dollars and cents". A huge public reaction ensued, with many Singaporeans criticising Teo for side-stepping the topic and avoiding the question.

In a media interview in October 2016, Teo responded to questions of whether Singaporeans are getting their HDB flats early enough in order to start a family, stating that one "does not need much space to have sex". Teo further added that "In France, in the UK, in the Nordic countries, man meets woman, tonight they can make a baby already." This drew much flak from the public, with many Singaporeans criticizing her for being insensitive and not being able to understand practical considerations such as the high costs of living. Others also accused Teo of trying to promote Western values, ways of life and promiscuity in Singapore.

In May 2017, Teo weighed in on the issue of high costs of milk powder in Singapore, declaring on her Facebook page that "milk is milk, however fancy the marketing". She further stated that she would buy whichever brand of milk powder that was cheapest on the supermarket shelves for her own kids. Teo's comments attracted widespread controversy among Singaporeans, with many criticizing her for not recognising that milk powder in Singapore was still much more expensive in other countries after factoring in inflation and real income. Members of the public also added that different babies may require additional supplements, or have certain allergies and preferences to milk powder.

Education

Teo was educated at Dunman High School and Raffles Junior College, before going on to the National University of Singapore where she was awarded a Bachelor of Arts in 1990 and a Bachelor of Social Science (Honours) in 1991. She was awarded several prizes, including the Rachel Meyer Book Prize, which is awarded to the best woman student in the Final Examinations of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. She was then awarded a postgraduate scholarship under the EDB-Glaxo Scholarship Programme and completed a Master of Science (Economics) degree at the London School of Economics in 1992.

Personal life

A Hakka Singaporean, Teo's maiden surname is Yong. She is married to a former top civil servant Teo Eng Cheong. The couple have three children.