The Control of Tobacco Product and Smoking Bill has been referred to a parliamentary particular select committee (PSSC) for additional evaluate after its first presentation within the Dewan Rakyat. Health Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa said that the choice was made due to several recommendations from engagement periods held with government and non-governmental stakeholders that required additional consideration.
Dr Zaliha explained, “The Health Ministry has gotten the approval by the Cabinet to desk the Bill for its first reading. On your tables, you can see the blue Bill which proves the government’s dedication. However, considering the engagement session carried out with the Health PSSC on June 6, and in addition with MPs, professionals and non-governmental organisations, we found that there have been a few matters which have been requested for evaluation and finetuning.”
Building blocks emphasised the importance of the Bill and the necessity for full help from all events. The Health Ministry has suggested that the Bill be referred to the PSSC for additional scrutiny, as the committee features as a check-and-balance system that takes under consideration views from all events.
Dr Zaliha assured that the Health Ministry is committed to seeing the Bill through and ensuring its approval in the nearest time frame. After tabling the Bill, she referred it to the PSSC for further review.
The Control of Tobacco Product and Smoking Bill, which includes the Generational End Game (GEG) policy, was initially tabled in August final yr by Dr Zaliha’s predecessor, Khairy Jamaluddin. At that time, the Bill was also referred to the PSSC for review. However, its retabling was delayed because of the dissolution of Parliament on October 10 and the subsequent 15th common election..