She said the number included 26 abandoned projects this year.

“The government is taking action to blacklist developers who failed to complete projects as per the Sale and Purchase Agreement (SPA) or who caused the abandonment of housing projects,” she told the Dewan Negara here yesterday.

Halimah was replying to a question from Senator Zali Mat Yasin (BN-Umno) who enquired about the number of abandoned housing projects and the government’s action against developers who failed to complete the projects, in addition to what protection was being offered to buyers involved.

Elaborating, she said developers who were blacklisted were not allowed to apply for, or renew their licences, as well as advertising and sales permits. Their names would appear on the ministry’s website for reference by buyers and investors.

In addition, she said the government would take legal action to prosecute and compound errant developers.

To protect consumer interests, Halimah said they could apply to have the sales and purchase agreement terminated if there was no progress on the construction for a continuous period of six months or more.