Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak was booed by opposition MPs throughout his Budget speech on Friday, culminating in loud heckling when he accused the opposition of being without substance in their criticism of the government's handling of the economy.

The disturbance prompted the Speaker to ask lawmakers not interested in listening to the Budget to leave. Nearly the entire opposition bench walked out, describing the Budget as unrealistic.

"It looks good with many handouts, but where is the money coming from?" asked opposition leader Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.

Datuk Seri Najib described the opposition walkout as "disgraceful" and disrespectful to the Parliament and the people.

However, MPs from Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) remained in the Chamber as Mr Najib continued, with PAS Youth chief Nik Abduh Nik Aziz slamming his opposition colleagues for not being professional.

PAS has so far refused to join efforts to force Mr Najib, who is Umno president, to resign before a general election, and instead cooperated with the ruling party to push for stronger Islamic laws. Shannon Teoh