He said the current political state of affairs seemed relatively calm and this included the ongoing parliamentary session.

“It has become calmer outside there and the attacks on the government that were prevalent before have reduced, although I have told the opposition not to stop playing their role as the opposition.

“Criticising the government is their job. There needs to be checks and balances.

“However, despite telling them this, there have been fewer attacks on the government in Parliament.

“As for out there, it is very quiet and calm.

“The speeches in Parliament are no more aggressive, whereas before there had to be a standing order ruling each time someone spoke,” he said in a special interview with senior editors recently.

He said the current situation showed there was a growing sense of mutual respect among MPs.

Asked whether this was a result of the government’s cooperation with the opposition or due to his leadership as prime minister, Ismail jokingly replied: “I do not know, it’s hard to say. The opposition leader said this PM is more courteous, but that’s a personal view.”

On whether the opposition’s input was taken into consideration when preparing the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP), Ismail said there had been engagement sessions involving the opposition and government departments.

“Prior to this, briefings only involved the government and not the opposition. But this time around, I wanted both sides to be in the Economic Planning Unit briefings.

“There were no interruptions. The questions were professional and not heated as all the opposition members wanted were truthful answers.”

He said the 12MP was prepared more inclusively by taking into account inputs and suggestions not only from the government and the opposition but also all stakeholders.

The prime minister said although the MoU was signed before the implementation of the 12MP, there were still many views from the opposition that were taken into account to ensure integrity, accountability and transparency.