KUALA LUMPUR: The Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill may be presented to the Cabinet at its upcoming meeting.
A source said the Bill would likely be discussed in this week’s Cabinet meeting.
“The draft Bill is already in Parliament, but it will be brought to the Cabinet again,” said the source.
When Parliament is in session, Cabinet meetings, usually held on Wednesday, are pushed to Friday.
Another source said there is still resistance from industry players, who even sought political backing to block the Bill.
“For now, it seems like the Bill is in limbo. It also remains to be seen whether the ministry will be able to table it in the last three days of this Dewan Rakyat sitting, which ends on Nov 30,” the source said.
The Control of Tobacco Products and Smoking Bill was initially slated to be tabled for a second reading on Oct 10, but it has since been postponed to make way for government affairs in Parliament.
On Oct 22, Health Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa said the ministry was still trying to get the date for the Bill.
“We want to get the date (to table the second reading). On whether to review (the Bill) or not, we will look at it in detail,” she said when asked whether the Bill will be reviewed once again.
She added that the Bill had already been laid before Parliament, and the parliamentary special select committee (PSSC) had also released the statement of its findings and recommendations after reviewing the bill for the second time.
On Oct 9 and 12, The Star reported in two separate reports that the Bill will be pushed back to make way for the House’s order of business about Budget 2024, which was tabled on Oct 13.
