TVET direction, Labuan’s water, power woes among focus of Parliament today

KUALA LUMPUR: The Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) direction, water and electricity supply issues in Labuan and the government’s willingness to introduce more progressive taxation alternatives will be among the focus of the Dewan Rakyat sitting on Tuesday (March 5).

According to the Order Paper on the Parliament’s website, Datuk Seri Sh Mohmed Puzi Sh Ali (BN-Pekan) will ask the Rural and Regional Development Minister about the government’s new initiatives and approaches to further strengthen the direction of TVET to produce more viable professionals and technicians, during the Minister’s Question Time.

Datuk Dr Suhaili Abdul Rahman (PN-Labuan) will ask the Prime Minister when the worsening issue of water and electricity supply in Labuan will be resolved as it is affecting the investors’ interest.

Rodziah Ismail (PH-Ampang) will ask the Finance Minister about the Federal Government’s willingness to introduce more progressive taxation alternatives, such as Inheritance Tax and Capital Gains Tax, first before re-implementing GST, to diversify and increase the national income while addressing the deficit.

The Dewan Rakyat sitting is also scheduled to discuss the mechanism used to enable the price of essential goods to be lowered in the Madani Agro Sales Programme through a question from Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein (BN-Sembrong) to the Agriculture and Food Security Minister during the question and answer session.

There will also be a question from Mohd Syahir Che Sulaiman (PN-Bachok) to the Economy Minister regarding the government’s recommendation to introduce a new household income classification based on nett spendable income classification compared to the one that is based on household income currently being used.

Lee Chuan How (PH-Ipoh Timor) will ask the Health Minister to state the number of medical officers, especially in the field of cardiothoracic surgery and family medicine, who are currently in training and the amount of government’s funds spent on scholarships and the provision of training infrastructure for this purpose.

Also listed is a question from Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar (PN-Kemaman) to the Works Minister about the approval status of the allocations for the construction of the East Coast Highway 3 (LPT3).

After the session, the sitting will continue with the debate on the Motion of Thanks for the Royal Address.

According to the calendar on Parliament’s website, the current Dewan Rakyat sitting will last for 19 days, with the debate on the Royal Address by Members of Parliament from Feb 27 to March 7, followed by responses from the relevant ministries for four days beginning March 11.

The tabling and debates on Bills and other government matters will be held from March 18 to 27. – BK