THE government will begin the legislative process to separate the powers of the Attorney General (AG) and the Public Prosecutor (PP) next year, says Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said (pic).
She said a Federal Constitution (Amendment) Bill is scheduled for tabling during the Second Meeting of the Fifth Session of the 15th Parliament in 2026, marking the first legislative step towards the long-planned separation of roles.
“Once the constitutional amendment comes into force, it will be followed by the tabling of the Remuneration Bill and the Law Reform (Public Prosecutor) Bill, which will take the form of an omnibus Bill to amend various laws arising from the separation of the AG’s advisory functions and the PP’s prosecutorial powers,” she said in a written parliamentary reply.
Azalina said the decision was based on input from the AG’s Chambers and findings from empirical study visits to Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom, conducted by a special comparative study task force and subsequently presented to the Cabinet.
She added that the Cabinet had, on Sept 10, agreed to adopt a full separation model in which the AG and PP would be held by two different individuals of equal status.
Azalina stated that a final decision on whether both offices would be made directly accountable to Parliament to enhance transparency in prosecutions had yet to be reached.
“However, the government remains open to any views and proposals from Members of Parliament and stakeholders to ensure that forthcoming reforms strengthen the principles of transparency, accountability and public confidence in the country’s judicial system,” she said.
