Yeo Bee Yin

Summary

Yeo Bee Yin is the DAP Member of Parliament for Puchong, Selangor, and a former Minister of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change in the 2018–2020 Pakatan Harapan government. A chemical engineer by training, with degrees from Universiti Teknologi Petronas and Cambridge University, she entered politics through the Selangor state assembly in 2013 and rose to federal cabinet rank by 2018. She currently holds senior DAP positions including National Publicity Secretary and Selangor DAP State Secretary, and chairs the Parliamentary Special Select Committee on Women, Children, and Community Development.

Biography

Yeo Bee Yin (born 26 May 1983) is a Malaysian politician and member of the Democratic Action Party (DAP) who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Puchong, Selangor, since November 2022 [1]. She grew up in Gomali Estate before moving to Batu Anam, Segamat, Johor, and attended Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan (C) Hwa Nan, Batu Anam [1]. She graduated from Universiti Teknologi Petronas (UTP) with First Class Honours in Chemical Engineering under the Petronas Scholarship in 2006, and subsequently completed an MPhil in Advanced Chemical Engineering at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, under the Gates Cambridge Scholarship by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, with a Commendation [1]. She worked with Schlumberger as a field engineer before entering politics, and began volunteering for DAP in February 2012, joining the party permanently in August 2012 [1]. In GE13 (2013), she won the Damansara Utama state seat with 83.6% of the vote and a 30,689-vote majority, at the time the highest majority for a state seat in Malaysia, becoming the youngest member of the Selangor State Legislative Assembly [1]. She won the Bakri parliamentary seat in GE14 (2018) with a majority of over 23,000 votes [2] and was appointed Minister of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change on 2 July 2018 under Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad [1], a position she held until the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan government in February 2020. In GE15 (2022), she moved to contest and won the Puchong parliamentary seat with 74,425 votes and a majority of 57,957 [3]. Within DAP, she has served as National Publicity Secretary since March 2025, Deputy Women Chief since September 2023, and State Secretary of Selangor DAP since November 2024 [1]. She also chairs the Parliamentary Special Select Committee on Women, Children, and Community Development [1].

Known for

Yeo Bee Yin is primarily associated with her tenure as Minister of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change (2018–2020), during which she pursued policies including increasing renewable energy targets, a nationwide plastic waste import ban, and a 12-year roadmap to eliminate single-use plastics [1]. As MP for Puchong, she has focused on community-level child nutrition through the Kiddo Foodbank project and has advocated for performance-based transparency in public healthcare delivery [4]. She topped the Selangor DAP committee election in November 2024 with 1,180 votes, the highest among all candidates [3].

Political positions

On energy and environment, Yeo has publicly advocated for raising Malaysia's renewable energy targets and during her ministerial tenure published a 12-year single-use plastics elimination roadmap [1]. She supports a performance-based approach to public service delivery, having called on the Ministry of Health to publish weekly emergency department waiting times for every government hospital to improve transparency and accountability [4]. On child welfare, she has raised Malaysia's child stunting rate as a national crisis in Parliament, citing Malaysia as the only ASEAN country where stunting rates have been increasing over the past two decades [4]. She has also publicly supported a 30 per cent women's quota in politics as a step toward inclusive political reform [5]. In December 2025, a social media post by Yeo responding to the High Court's dismissal of former prime minister Najib Razak's house arrest bid drew public criticism from senior Umno leaders within the unity government coalition, with BN chairman Ahmad Zahid Hamidi urging calm [5].

Education

1. 2006Graduated from Universiti Teknologi Petronas (UTP) with First Class Honours in Chemical Engineering under the Petronas Scholarship.⛓
2. Late 2000sCompleted an MPhil in Advanced Chemical Engineering at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, under the Gates Cambridge Scholarship, with a Commendation.⛓

Before politics

1. 2006–2008Worked as a field engineer with Schlumberger for approximately two years after graduating from UTP.⛓
2. August 2012Joined DAP permanently after volunteering since February 2012; served as social media strategic advisor to the party and special assistant to Tony Pua, MP for Petaling Jaya Utara.⛓

Political career

1. May 2013Won the Damansara Utama Selangor State Legislative Assembly seat in GE13 with 83.6% of votes and a 30,689-vote majority — the highest majority for a state seat in Malaysia at the time — becoming the youngest member of the Selangor State Assembly.⛓
2. May 2018Won the Bakri parliamentary seat in Johor in GE14 on a DAP/Pakatan Harapan ticket with a majority of over 23,000 votes.⛓
3. 2 July 2018Appointed and sworn in as Minister of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change in Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's cabinet.⛓
4. February 2020Ministerial tenure ended with the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan government during the 2020 Malaysian political crisis.⛓
5. 2 March 2021Defamation suit against Jamal Md Yunos settled after Jamal publicly apologised to Yeo at the Kuala Lumpur Court Complex.⛓
6. November 2022Won the Puchong parliamentary seat in GE15 with 74,425 votes and a majority of 57,957.⛓
7. 11 October 2023Appeal in the Chew Mei Fun defamation case withdrawn before the Court of Appeal, affirming the High Court's order for Yeo to pay RM150,000 in damages.⛓
8. September 2023Appointed Deputy Women Chief of DAP.⛓
9. November 2024Topped the Selangor DAP committee election with 1,180 votes and was elected Selangor DAP State Secretary.⛓
10. March 2025Appointed DAP National Publicity Secretary.⛓

Election history

• 2022Puchong (P103)Won⛓
• 2018Bakri (P156)Won⛓
• 2013Damansara Utama (Selangor State Assembly)Won83.6%⛓

Perspectives on key issues

• OppositionUmno secretary-general Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki described Yeo's December 2025 social media post on Najib Razak's house arrest bid as 'very rude and inhumane', and suggested Umno may need to review its cooperation with parties that do not appreciate its contributions to the unity government. According to Free Malaysia Today, Asyraf said: "If you are unable to offer any sympathy, do not issue such rude and offensive statements."⛓
• GovernmentBN chairman and Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi urged calm within the coalition following public criticism of Yeo's post on Najib's house arrest decision, as reported by Malay Mail in December 2025, reflecting the sensitivity of intra-coalition relations on the matter.⛓
• ExpertFormer MCA vice-president Ti Lian Ker commented that Yeo's 57,957-vote majority in Puchong means internal coalition friction poses no meaningful threat to her position as MP, describing Puchong Umno's move to cut ties as "politically irrelevant". According to Free Malaysia Today, Ti said the boycott "will not impact DAP or Yeo in any way."⛓
• VerifiedFactsYeo won the Puchong seat in GE15 (2022) with 74,425 votes and a majority of 57,957 (Source: thestar.com.my). She topped the Selangor DAP committee election in November 2024 with 1,180 votes (Source: thestar.com.my). She has served as DAP National Publicity Secretary since March 2025 and Selangor DAP State Secretary since November 2024 (Source: en.wikipedia.org).⛓

Business interests (publicly reported)

Malay Mail reported in March 2019 that Yeo married Lee Yeow Seng, who is the chief executive officer of IOI Properties Group Bhd (Source: malaymail.com). In November 2022, the anti-corruption advocacy group C4 raised questions publicly about the property interests of her husband's family in areas associated with the Puchong name, to which Yeo responded that the properties in question fell outside the Puchong parliamentary constituency boundaries following a 2018 electoral redelineation exercise (Source: freemalaysiatoday.com).

Notable legal history

In November 2022, the Shah Alam High Court ruled that Yeo and former Damansara MP Tony Pua had defamed former MCA vice-president Datin Paduka Chew Mei Fun over allegations relating to a land transaction in Petaling Jaya, ordering Yeo to pay RM150,000 in damages. Yeo and Pua filed an appeal to the Court of Appeal, but on 11 October 2023 both parties withdrew their respective appeals and cross-appeals before a three-member Court of Appeal bench. With the withdrawal, the High Court ruling was affirmed and Yeo was required to pay RM150,000 in damages to Chew (Source: theedgemalaysia.com). Separately, Yeo had filed a defamation suit against Sungai Besar UMNO division chief Datuk Seri Jamal Md Yunos in relation to allegations about the Yayasan Warisan Anak Selangor (Yawas) fund. On 2 March 2021, Jamal publicly apologised to Yeo at the Kuala Lumpur Court Complex, settling that suit (Source: thestar.com.my).