of its first sitting, and once a parliament has been dissolved a general election must be held within three months. Following a general election, the President appoints as Prime Minister an MP who, in their judgment, is likely to command the confidence of the majority of the MPs. In practice, the Prime Minister is usually the leader of the political party holding the majority of the seats in Parliament. The President also appoints other Ministers from among the MPs, acting in accordance with the Prime Minister's advice. Ministries and responsibilities of Ministers The Prime Minister may, by giving written directions, charge any Minister with responsibility for any department or subject. In practice, this is done by issuing notifications that are published in the Government Gazette. For instance, the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore (Responsibility of Senior Minister and Co-ordinating Minister for National Security, Prime Minister's Office) Notification 2009 states: Ministers may be designated by the Prime Minister to be in charge of particular ministries, or as Ministers in the Prime Minister's Office. Such Ministers were formerly known as Ministers without portfolio. The Prime Minister may retain any department or subject in their charge. Some Ministers are appointed as Second Ministers for portfolios other than their own to assist the primary Minister in their duties. For instance, on 1 April 2009 during the 11th Parliament, Lim Hwee Hua, who was a Minister in the Prime Minister's Office, also held the posts of Second Minister for Finance and Second Minister for Transport. As of 25 July 2020, the ministries of the Government are the following: Prime Minister's Office (PMO) Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI) Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) Ministry of Education (MOE) Ministry of Finance (MOF) Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) Ministry of Health (MOH) Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) Ministry of Law (MinLaw) Ministry of Manpower (MOM) Ministry of National Development (MND) Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment (MSE) Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) Ministry of Transport (MOT) A ministry is usually composed of a headquarters and a number of departments, boards or other subordinate entities, and statutory boards. For instance, in May 2007 the Ministry of Law had three departments (the Chief Information Officer's Office, Insolvency and Public Trustee's Office and Legal Aid Bureau), three boards and tribunals (the Appeals Board for Land