Law Minister seeks two-thirds support for AG-prosecutor split

THE Government is looking at major legal and institutional reforms, including separating the Attorney-General and Public Prosecutor's roles and introducing a debt rescue mechanism for viable businesses, as part of efforts to strengthen accountability and improve the country's legal and commercial framework.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said said the proposed separation of the Attorney-General and Public Prosecutor's roles required support from at least 148 MPs to ensure it was recognised as a national reform rather than a political agenda.

She said bipartisan backing was essential to prevent future prosecutions from being questioned as politically motivated whenever there was a change of government.

The Bill to separate the two roles was tabled for its first reading in the Dewan Rakyat on Feb 23 before being referred to a Parliamentary Special Select Committee for further scrutiny following objections and feedback from MPs.

Azalina also said the proposed separation and a 10-year limit on the prime minister's tenure should be included in the Confidence and Supply Agreement (CSA).

Separately, she said the Insolvency Department would study from 2027 a financial restructuring framework modelled on Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States.

The proposed mechanism would give financially distressed small businesses with viable operations and commercial potential an opportunity to restructure their debts and continue trading instead of shutting down.

She said the framework would need to balance business recovery with creditors' rights, job preservation and accountability.

Five areas would be examined, including earlier intervention, commercially practical restructuring arrangements, creditor protection and stronger institutional capacity among courts, regulators and insolvency practitioners.

Azalina stressed that the objective was not to rescue every struggling company regardless of cost, but to distinguish viable businesses from those requiring an orderly resolution. - November 4, 2026