Dewan Negara approves two bills

KUALA LUMPUR: The Dewan Negara today approved two bills namely the Supplementary Supply (2015) 2016 Bill and the Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM) Bill 2016.
The Supplementary Supply (2015) 2016 Bill was to seek for an additional expenditure of RM3.31 billion.
The Dewan Rakyat had passed the bill on April 7.
The bill tabled by Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Johari Abdul Ghani was unanimously approved by the Dewan Negara.
Meanwhile, the Forest Research Institute Malaysia Bill 2016 tabled by Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Datuk Hamim Samuri is aimed at making the institute a corporate body to promote research and development of the forestry sector.
With the new legislation, FRIM will be able to establish or develop companies to commercialise and manage programmes related to its field of research.
In his winding up speech, Hamim said the government did not want FRIM to be fully dependent on the government.
"To reduce dependence on government funding, FRIM needs to look for partners operating outside, including the private sector, in developing products and technologies which can be commercialised," he said.
The bill was also unanimously passed by the senators.
The Dewan Negara sits again tomorrow. — Bernama