Only one bill passed in first week of Dewan Rakyat sitting

KUALA LUMPUR - The Road Transport (Amendment) Bill 2026 was the only Bill passed during the first week of the Second Meeting of the Fifth Session of the 15th Parliament.

Transport Minister Anthony Loke said the Bill introduces Section 42A, which allows enforcement action to be taken earlier against illegal racing activities, without waiting for an accident, injury, or death to occur.

This closes an existing legal loophole that previously made enforcement difficult, as authorities were required to prove elements of danger or actual consequences before taking action.

Loke added that his ministry will table another amendment to the Road Transport Act (Act 333) later this year, to introduce compensation for accident victims, or their families, caused by drink- or drug-impaired drivers, on top of existing fines and jail terms.

Meanwhile, the Prison (Amendment) Bill 2026, which among other things aims to provide for the use of electronic monitoring devices and the appointment of volunteers for prisoner rehabilitation programmes, has been postponed and referred back to the Parliamentary Select Committee for further review.

The following bills were also tabled for first reading during the same session: the Sexual Offences Against Children (Amendment) Act 2026, Competition (Amendment) Bill 2026, Competition Commission (Amendment) Bill 2026, and Cybercrime Act 2026, which seeks to repeal the Computer Crimes Act 1997 (Act 563).

Meanwhile, Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul confirmed that Larut MP Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin has been reinstated as opposition leader, effective June 18.

He also confirmed the casual vacancies for the Pandan and Setiawangsa seats, following the resignation of Datuk Seri Rafizi Ramli and Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad on May 18. The Election Commission has been notified of the vacancies, as required under Article 54(1) of the Federal Constitution.

In addition, Minister's Question Time, scheduled for Tuesdays and Thursdays and originally set aside for Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, was instead handled by the relevant ministers, as Anwar was occupied with other commitments.

Several Parliamentary Select Committees were also given time to present and debate their reports in the Dewan Rakyat, reflecting Parliament's ongoing push to reinforce the committees' roles and functions.

Key issues that dominated parliamentary debates and discussions this week included unemployment, the impact of the global energy supply crisis, online safety and border security.

Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri R. Ramanan reported that 42,807 workers were retrenched between January and June 12, with company closures and downsizing identified as the main contributing factors.

Economy Minister Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir, however, reassured that the labour market remains resilient, with job losses in June dropping 20 per cent from May, while the labour force participation rate stayed at 70.9 per cent.

On border security, Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail announced that the government has approved RM22 million to equip the Malaysia Border Control and Protection Agency with firearms and other essential equipment.

Amid ongoing global supply disruptions, the Ministry of Plantation and Commodities said it will evaluate the viability of rolling out B50 biodiesel, as existing blending depots would require costly upgrades.

Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil said the Child Protection Code and Risk Mitigation Code, effective June 1, require social media platforms to implement age-verification measures to protect digital users, particularly children. Non-compliant platforms face penalties of up to RM10 million under the Online Safety Act 2025.

The current Dewan Rakyat sitting runs for 16 days, from June 22 to July 16. - BERNAMA