Small Malaysian party quits ruling coalition
Updated
A small party in Malaysia has quit the ruling coalition.
The Sabah Progressive Party will leave the Barisan Nasional coalition, three months after it proposed a no-confidence vote against Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.
The party accounts for only two of Barisan's 140 MPs, but there are concerns this could spark an exodus from other coalition members to the opposition, led by Anwar Ibrahim.
He needs 30 government MPs to join his opposition alliance to tip the balance of power in parliament
Earlier, Prime Minister Abdullah handed over his key finance ministry post to his chosen successor Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak and hinted he might leave the top job earlier than 2010 as planned.
