The Water Services Industry Bill (WSI) and the National Water Services Commission (Span) Bill - which have been shrouded in controversy - were passed in the Dewan Rakyat today.

The bills were passed amid repeated attempts by the opposition to propose amendments to plug the 'loopholes'.

However, M Kula Segaran (DAP-Ipoh Barat) and Chow Kon Yeow (DAP-Tanjong) failed to get their motions through in the absence of support from the parliamentarians.

Civil society groups had expressed fears that the bills would allow for the privatisation of the water services industry. However, the government had denied this.

The WSI Bill was passed this afternoon after close to three days of debate, which saw Energy, Water and Communications Minister Dr Lim Keng Yaik being grilled .

The minister was questioned on his wide powers under the bill and whether the industry would fall into the hands of foreigners.

Whereas the Span bill, tabled by the minister himself for the second reading, was passed after several hours of debate this evening during an extended sitting.

Hike in tariffs

During the debate, several MPs expressed concern on the power accorded to the minister and asked if it would overlap the powers of the state water departments.

Lim assured that it would not.

"The power to appoint and cancel a member's position was the joint responsibility of the minister and the government. It can be questioned in court and Parliament," he said.

The functions of Span include advising the minister on all matters in relation to water supply and sewerage services laws as well as to implement them.

It will also ensure the productivity of water supply services and the sewerage services industry as well as monitor operator compliance with stipulated service standards.

Span will also advised the minister on a 'fair and efficient' mechanism for the determination of water tariffs.

The government pushed through constitutional amendments last year which had effectively put water under a shared federal and state jurisdiction.

The bills, however, were then put on hold to enable the ministry to gather feedback from the public.

There are fears that the passage of the bills will lead to a hike in water tariffs which could affect the poor and the disadvantaged.