Budget 2021: Opposition calls for bloc vote at committee stage

KUALA LUMPUR: Several Opposition lawmakers have called for a bloc vote at the committee stage debate for Budget 2021.

UPDATE: Budget 2021 passed at committee stage after Opposition's attempt at bloc vote fails

So far, allocations for all 27 ministries have been passed at the committee stage.

The Opposition had called for bloc voting on allocations for more than five ministries, including the Finance Ministry and Prime Minister's Department, but failed to garner sufficient votes so far.

The highest number of support the Opposition has achieved through a bloc vote was 104 against 110 votes following the debate on the International Trade and Industry Ministry's RM1.2bil allocation on Dec 2.

A defeat of the budget at this stage would not automatically mean the collapse of the government, but would be akin to a no-confidence vote against the Perikatan Nasional administration.