KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 29): The Confederation of Malaysian Tobacco Manufacturers (CMTM) has described the expected move to re-table the Control of Tobacco Product and Smoking Bill 2022 in the coming session of Parliament, which starts next Monday (Oct 3), as an “undue rush”.
“The fundamental issues in the Bill should not be brushed aside, in favour of rushing to pass it in the upcoming parliamentary session. Stakeholder consensus is critical to ensure that the Bill is constitutional, implementable, enforceable and will achieve its intended health outcomes without unintended consequences,” CMTM said in a statement.
The Bill was originally scheduled to be voted on in the previous session of the Dewan Rakyat, but was in early August postponed to allow further scrutiny by a parliamentary special select committee.
CMTM said the select committee should have face to face consultations with the relevant stakeholders “in order to gain a fresh perspective and contribute to a holistic law-making process” for the Bill.
“Issues concerning constitutionality, wide enforcement powers, high penalties, consumer rights and implementation mechanisms of the GEG (generational endgame) have not been addressed,” claimed the manufacturers association which comprises British American Tobacco (Malaysia) Bhd, JT International Bhd and Philip Morris (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd.
“The GEG proposal, if passed, is only scheduled to take effect in 2025, i.e. when those born after Jan 1, 2007 will be 18 years old,” said CMTM, referring to the proposal in the Bill that seeks to ban smoking and vaping for those born in 2007 onwards.
“There is no immediate urgency to pass the GEG proposal because there is sufficient time in the next two years to resolve those issues,” it said.
Noting that Malaysia has a high black market, CMTM said: “New Zealand has a low illicit market (6% to 7%, while Malaysia is 57.7%) and announced their generation endgame after a comprehensive round of consultations and inputs from more than 5,200 stakeholders.
“Currently, New Zealand’s GEG proposal is undergoing a further six-month consultation process as part of its passage through the New Zealand Parliament — in contrast to the short two-month period given to the [select committee] for internal discussions and without any stakeholder or public consultations.”
Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin is expected to proceed to retable the Bill in the Dewan Rakyat next week for its second reading, and then its third, before the tabling of Budget 2023 on Oct 7. The upcoming parliamentary sitting is scheduled to last for 32 days, until Nov 29.
Under the Bill, anyone born in or after 2007 could face a fine of up to RM5,000 if caught buying tobacco or vape products. Currently, underage smokers caught smoking can be fined up to RM1,000.
The Bill was tabled for its first reading on July 27, and its second reading on Aug 1, at which point it was referred to the select committee for review, after the Health Ministry was criticised for proposing very strict enforcement measures, such as criminalising both consumers and retailers for possession of tobacco or vape products.
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