THE SHURA Council (the Upper House of the Parliament) yesterday reviewed a report by an ad-hoc committee formed to look into a speech President Hosni Mubarak made at a joint session of the Parliament on November 21. "The committee examined the new draft bills mentioned in the speech and outlined the guidelines of the national action during the new parliamentary session," the Council's Chairman Safwat el-Sherif, told the meeting. "This session coincides with important parliamentary elections, starting with the midterm polls of the Shura Council next April and the legislative elections in October." El-Sherif added that the council was preparing to debate key draft bills, mainly laws on the organ transport, nuclear activities and the combat of human trafficking. Addressing the same meeting yesterday, Mufeed Shehab, the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, denied claims that there are restrictions on church construction. "I hereby declare that the Government applies the same regulations to the construction of mosques and churches." He added that a law related to the construction of churches, dating back to the 19th century, had been amended several times. Ministers of education and agriculture also took the floor and highlighted their ministries' policies. Members of the Council commented on these remarks, harshly criticising the Government's privatisation programme.
