The Fourth Schedule of the Constitution sets out the process for the appointment of NMPs. A Special Select Committee chaired by the Speaker of Parliament and consisting of seven other MPs nominates not more than nine persons to be appointed as NMPs by the President. The Committee may nominate persons who have rendered distinguished public service or who have brought honour to Singapore, and also invites the general public and groups in the community to submit the names of persons who may be considered for nomination by the Committee. These community groups are in the fields of arts and letters, culture, the sciences, business, industry, the professions, social or community service, and the labour movement. In 2009, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong proposed in Parliament that the Committee should also invite nominations from the people sector such as candidates from the environmental movement, young activists, new citizens, and community and grassroots leaders. He felt that "his will give civil society a voice in Parliament and encourage civil society to grow and to mature further". In addition, nominees may be persons who have rendered distinguished public service or who have brought honour to Singapore, and the Committee must have regard to the need for NMPs to reflect as wide a range of independent and non-partisan views as possible. However, a person appointed as an NMP is not required to resign from any political party that he or she is a member of. When this issue was considered by a select committee of Parliament, it took the following view: