Dewan Negara concludes eight days of sitting with 27 bills passed

KUALA LUMPUR: The Dewan Negara concluded its session on Thursday (Aug 1) after eight days of sittings over two weeks, beginning on July 22, during which 27 bills were passed.

“Congratulations to everyone involved, especially the senators who actively participated in debating the proposed Bills,” said Dewan Negara President Datuk Awang Bemee Awang Ali Basah.

“The highly active participation is commendable, and the commitment enhances the credibility of this esteemed House,” he said during the closing speech of the Second Meeting of the Third Session of the 15th Parliament before adjourning to a date to be determined later.

The Bills passed are as follows: the Penal Code (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Criminal Procedure Code (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Employment Insurance System (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Workers’ Social Security (Amendment) Bill 2024, and the Evidence of Child Witness (Amendment) Bill 2024, Sexual Offences Against Children (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Evidence (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Oaths and Affirmations (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Security Offences (Special Measures) (Amendment) Bill 2024, and the Armed Forces (Amendment) Bill 2024.

Also passed were the Audit (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Arbitration (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Construction Industry Payment and Adjudication (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Customs (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Excise (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Free Zones (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Sales Tax (Amendment) Bill 2024, and the Services Tax (Amendment) Bill 2024, as well as the Medical (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Bintulu Port Authority (Dissolution) Bill 2024, the Declaration of an Area in the Bintulu District to be a Federal Port (Repeal) Bill 2024, the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (Amendment) Bill 2024, and the Malaysian Aviation Commission (Dissolution) Bill 2024.

Also passed were the Personal Data Protection (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Limited Liability Partnerships (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Drug Dependants (Treatment and Rehabilitation) (Amendment) Bill 2024, and the Malaysia Border Control and Protection Agency Bill 2024.

The session included a motion from Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan, clarifying Malaysia’s stance on solidarity with the Palestinian people and condemning the brutal slaying of Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh.

The session also saw the swearing-in of a new Senator, Datuk Salehuddin Saidin, who was the former head of the Classified/Public Interest Cases Unit of the Attorney General’s Chambers.- Bernama