Speech by MOS Rahayu Mahzam at the Second Reading of the Electronic Gazette and Legislation Bill

OPENING SPEECH BY MINISTER OF STATE RAHAYU MAHZAM AT THE SECOND READING OF THE ELECTRONIC GAZETTE AND LEGISLATION BILL

SECOND READING OPENING SPEECH BY MINISTER OF STATE RAHAYU MAHZAM ON THE ELECTRONIC GAZETTE AND LEGISLATION BILL, 7 JAN 2025

1. Mr Speaker, on behalf of the Minister for Digital Development and Information, I move that the Bill be now read a second time.

2. Sir, the Government Gazette is the official public record of legislation, appointments, and other official acts by the Government and other public bodies. It is also used by private entities to issue notices in fulfilment of statutory requirements. The Gazette is published by the Government Printer on the authority of the Government or pursuant to statutory requirements. In a way, one can think of the Gazette as a “public noticeboard”.

3. Digitalisation has transformed the manner through which we publish, obtain and access information. The Gazette is no exception.

a. The electronic Gazette was first created in 1998. Today, it is published every working day, while the print Gazette is published only once a week. In other words, the electronic Gazette is published earlier and more frequently than the print Gazette.

b. The electronic Gazette has become the main form of the Gazette used by most of us today. From October to December 2024, the electronic Gazette website saw a monthly average of over 8,000 unique visitors, whereas the print Gazette only has 15 subscribers.

4. Recognising the public’s greater reliance on the electronic Gazette, the Government has been leveraging digital technology to improve and enhance the Gazette. In this regard, I am pleased to share with Members that we rolled out a new electronic Gazette website last September, with significant improvements in usability, reliability, security, and resilience.

5. The law must also move in tandem with the trend toward greater reliance on the electronic Gazette.

a. Today, under section 48 of the Interpretation Act 1965, only the print Gazette is authoritative, in the sense that only the print Gazette is prima facie evidence of its contents. This status is not accorded to the electronic Gazette.

b. This is not compatible with how the Gazette is published and used today.

6. Hence, the key objective of the Bill is to confer authoritative status on the electronic Gazette, as well as electronic versions of revised editions of legislation.

a. Similar to the Gazette, revised legislation can be published both in print and electronically. Hence, even as we make the electronic Gazette authoritative, we should also move in alignment to make electronic versions of revised legislation authoritative.

b. We are also taking the opportunity to make related amendments to other aspects of the law relating to the Gazette.

7. Let me now take Members through the Bill.

8. Clause 2 replaces the current section 48 of the Interpretation Act 1965 with a new section 48. The key effect of the new section 48 is to accord authoritative status to the electronic Gazette in the following ways:

a. First, electronic Gazettes published on the prescribed website will be treated as prima facie evidence of the matters published within.

b. Second, to the extent of any inconsistency, the electronic Gazette will prevail over all other versions of the Gazette.

c. Third, the courts will be required to take judicial notice of the electronic Gazette, in addition to the print Gazette. This means that both print and electronic Gazettes need not be formally proved before they can be relied on in court.

9. Taken together, this means that, going forward, the electronic Gazette will be the authoritative version of the Gazette. Users can therefore rely on the electronic Gazette with confidence.

a. Other existing provisions relating to the Gazette are also consolidated in the new section 48.

10. Clause 3 amends various sections of the Revised Editions of the Laws Act 1983.

a. A new section 17A will provide for electronic versions of revised legislation to prevail over print versions, to the extent of any inconsistency. This is in line with what we are doing for the electronic Gazette.

b. The amendments will also do away with the outdated requirement for revised legislation to be published in print before they can be published electronically.

c. In addition, Clause 3 will delete provisions and language that are peculiar to print versions of revised legislation, or premised on the primacy of such printed versions.

11. Clause 4 amends various Acts to abolish the use of the Gazette as an instrument of statutory appointment.

a. Today, various Acts require that statutory appointments be made via Gazette notifications. However, the use of the Gazette in such a manner is inconsistent with its function as a public record. Hence, clause 4 will amend the relevant Acts to cease the use of the Gazette to make statutory appointments. Going forward, these statutory appointments will be made via other means, such as the issuance of an appointment letter.

b. Nonetheless, these statutory appointments are often of public interest. Hence, clause 4 will generally impose requirements for these statutory appointments to be published in the Gazette. The new requirements are directory in nature, and are not meant to affect the validity of the appointments.

12. Clause 5 makes amendments to various Acts where references are made to materials printed by the Government Printer. As these materials could be published electronically in the electronic Gazette as well, the references are amended accordingly. Other consequential and related amendments are also made.

13. In conclusion, the Bill will bring the law in line with the digital age, and enable the public to rely on the electronic Gazette and electronic legislation with greater confidence. Sir, I beg to move.