Unified Building Law gets Senate committee nod: The Senate Housing and Local Administration Committee approved amendments to the 2008 Unified Building Law. The five-article bill bans construction outside authorized areas in cities, villages and districts. Some exceptions are made for plots that serve agricultural and livestock production, public service projects, and agricultural land outside villages but will need to be approved by the agriculture minister and the cabinet, said committee chair Khaled Said.

And more: The housing minister will be tasked with issuing the executive regulations within three months of the legislation being signed into law. A Higher Council for Planning and Urban Development will be set up and led by the PM to take charge on proposing laws on urban development, evaluating national strategies of urban development projects and setting conditions required for licensing urban projects.

What's next: The bill will be drafted to the Senate’s General Assembly for discussions and a vote in an upcoming session. It will then be referred to the House.

A note on the new building reconciliation law: Both the government and the House will be drafting the law’s executive regulations, Housing Minister Assem El Gazzar said. “We want these regulations to win the satisfaction of all and so we should draft it in coordination with the House,” El Gazzar said. His statements came during a House Housing Committee meeting on the reconciliation bill.

What’s next: The bill could be up for discussion and vote before the House when it reconvenes on Sunday 18 December.

ALSO FROM THE SENATE- The Senate Trade and Industry Committee approved a proposal to set up a database for the industrial sector affiliated with the Federation of Egyptian Industries that will serve as a source of information for companies and investors.