PUTRAJAYA: The Housing and Local Government Ministry is awaiting the Cabinet’s consensus on the proposed Urban Renewal Act (URA) and is fully prepared for its second tabling in Parliament, said its Minister Nga Kor Ming.
Nga reiterated that although the second tabling of the URA was interrupted last year, it does not diminish the fact that the Act is crucial for the future of urban development.
"Urban development is an agenda of nation development. This is important to guarantee and assist the B40 and urban poor. My intentions are noble - to assist urbanites who have been affected by dilapidated and dangerous buildings.
"Although our wish has yet to be achieved, we will continue to push for a consensus to enable harmonisation and uniformity. This is because we depend on the collective decision of the Cabinet.
"If the Cabinet agrees, my message is that we are ever ready. We are ever ready to continue the second reading of the URA because we believe this is crucial to the future of urban development," said Nga after the 2026 Majlis Amanat with the Housing and Local Government Ministry staff and local authorities on Tuesday (Jan 20).
On Jan 17, Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani warned Nga on losing votes as the party would not support the proposed Urban Renewal Bill in Parliament if the resolutions from the Urban Renewal Convention were not reflected in the legislation.
Among the resolutions adopted at the Urban Renewal Convention organised by Umno was that the government has a duty to ensure the credibility of developers, and that a mechanism must be established to guarantee fair and comprehensive compensation.
On Dec 1 last year, Nga said that the proposed URA is ready to be tabled in Parliament but pending a date by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
Last year, the Urban Renewal Bill was first introduced for its initial reading on Aug 21, with the second reading scheduled for Aug 28.
No debates or voting took place then and the Bill was deferred.
The postponement came after calls for further scrutiny from various quarters, including opposition and government MPs.
Among the concerns raised were the 80% residents’ consent threshold and the 30-year age threshold for buildings eligible for urban revitalisation.
