KUALA LUMPUR, July 16 — Matters relating to the proposal to bring English teachers from Singapore are expected to be the focus of today’s Dewan Rakyat sitting.

According to the Order Paper on the Parliament’s official website, Kalam Salan (PN-Sabak Bernam) will ask the education minister during the minister’s question-and-answer session to state her ministry’s specific plans regarding the proposal as announced recently and the measures to improve the teaching and learning approaches as well as the trainings for local English teachers.

Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal (Warisan-Semporna) will ask the public works minister about standard operating procedures (SOP) set for contractors to ensure that the construction of Sabah’s Pan Borneo Highway does not become the cause of natural disasters such as floods and landslides, while Datuk Mohd Isam Mohd Isa (BN-Tampin) will seek an answer from the finance minister about the effectiveness of the Special Voluntary Disclosure Programme (SVDP) 2.0, which ran from June 6, 2023 to May 31, 2024, the number of companies and individuals who had participated in it and the value of the proceeds collected.

Datuk Henry Sum Agong (GPS-Lawas) is expected to ask the home minister to state the government’s effort in determining the land and maritime boundaries between Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia, while Datuk Rosol Wahid (PN-Hulu Terengganu) will ask the domestic trade and cost of living minister to state the impact of diesel subsidy rationalisation on prices of goods and cost of living, even as consumers have to bear the impact of the increase in service tax rates, electric tariffs and water bill.

After the question and answer session, the Parliament sitting will continue with the tabling of seven Bills for the first reading — the Customs (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Excise (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Free Zones (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Sales Tax (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Services Tax (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Declaration of an Area in the Bintulu District to be a Federal Port (Repeal) Bill 2024 and the Bintulu Port Authority (Dissolution) Bill 2024.

The minister in the Prime Minister’s Department will table a motion proposing that Teresa Kok Suh Sim (PH-Seputeh) be chosen to replace Wong Shu Qi (PH-Kluang) as the Public Accounts Committee vice-chairman, before the resumption of the debate on the Malaysia Border Control and Protection Agency Bill 2024, which will be read for the second time. — Bernama