LEGISLATION WATCH- House gives preliminary nod to basket of legislation: The House of Representatives gave a preliminary nod to a basket of legislation yesterday, votes on which had been postponed due to lack of quorum. MPs signed off in principle on the Labor Unions Act, Al Shorouk reports, which comes ahead of an International Labor Organization (ILO) visit on 13 November to review legislative reform and the new law. Labor unions have said is too restrictive while members of the House Manpower Committee have said think it gives unions too much power. Having accepted the draft act in principle, the bill now moves to committee for study.

The House also gave preliminary approval to a law that bans the use of unmanned aerial vehicles — a.k.a drones — without Defense Ministry approval, claiming that the equipment has been used for terrorist attacks. The bill, which prohibits the manufacturing, possession, and use of drones without Defense Ministry approval, sets punishments as severe as the death penalty and maximum prison sentence for those who use the aircraft to commit acts of terror, Al Borsa reports. It also sets prison sentences of up to seven years and fines ranging between EGP 5,000-50,000 for those found in possession of the aircraft.

Parliament also signed off on a EUR 100 mn loan from the French Development Agency for the EUR 360 mn Alexandria tram project, Al Mal reports. The loan agreement had reportedly been opposed by several MPs who objected to taking on more loans — and claimed that they had not been provided with details including the stipulated interest rates. The agreement was pushed through after the majority, pro-government Support Egypt Coalition threw its weight behind it.

Also from the House: Budgeting Committee debate of the Auctions and Tenders Act have been postponed, pending the planning and finance ministers’ return from the World Youth Forum, MP Mervat Alexan tells Al Mal.

More on the way: MPs are also set to receive a new election law in a month’s time, House speaker Ali Abdel Aal announced yesterday. The new law will contain a new electoral system, Abdel Aal said, without specifying whether the bill relates to presidential, parliamentary or local council elections, Al Masry Al Youm points out. A Local Administration Act is in the works and aims to decentralize local councils and organize their elections.

Other items on the House’s agenda include the Universal Healthcare Act, the Bankruptcy Act, the Social Welfare Act, and a law that would make it easier for foreign universities to open branch campuses in Egypt. Tap or click here for a refresher on pending legislation.