De facto Law Minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar is seeking to modernise Parliament by getting rid of pre-Merdeka laws and rules, besides making the House independent from the executive.
His ministry will form a joint committee to ensure this can be executed swiftly.
In a statement today, he said three main issues had been discussed in a meeting with Dewan Rakyat speaker Azhar Azizan Harun and Senate president Rais Yatim yesterday.
The first was to revive the Parliamentary Service Act (PSA). The PSA was repealed by former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad in 1992.
Restoring it would give Parliament the ability to manage itself administratively and financially, instead of being under the purview of the executive as it is now.
This was previously one of Pakatan Harapan's reform promises, which was not fulfilled during its 22-months in power.
Wan Junaidi said there was also a proposal to create a new act of Parliament to replace the Houses of Parliament Privilege & Powers Act 1952.
"The existing act is completely obsolete, outdated, and no longer suitable for the political landscape in the 21st century.
"Instead of amending it, it is better to come up with a new act of Parliament which is more comprehensive, inclusive, and complete.
"This is to also follow what is currently being made by most Commonwealth countries such as Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and India," he said.
The minister said there was also a discussion to further amend the standing orders and rules for both houses of Parliament.
He said many of the rules were pre-independence relics and that amendments were needed to both modernise Parliament and empower it.
He said both Azhar and Rais took the proposals positively.
Wan Junaidi will be submitting a report on his proposals to the cabinet for endorsement.
Previously, Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob signed a joint statement with Pakatan Harapan leaders pledging to strengthen Parliament. - Mkini
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