An advisory chamber

An advisory chamber

The 300-member Senate will meet on Sunday to discuss the 293 articles of internal bylaws that will regulate proceedings in Egypt's second house, Senate Secretary-General Mahmoud Ismail Othman told reporters this week.

According to Othman the bylaws include provisions for 14 committees: constitutional and legislative affairs; foreign, arabic and african affairs; defence and national security; human rights; social solidarity; financial, economic and investment affairs; industry and trade; energy, environment and manpower; housing, local administration and transport; education, youth and sports; health and population; agriculture and irrigation; culture, media, tourism and antiquities; and religious and waqf, as well as an ethics committee headed by one of the Senate speaker's two deputies, and including the heads of each of the 14 committees together with four additional members, one of whom must belong to an opposition party. According to Article 38 of the bylaws, additional committees can be created when the need arises.

The opening articles of the bylaws define the role of the Senate and are clear in indicating that, unlike the House of Representatives, the second chamber does not have legislative powers.

"By this we mean that unlike MPs at the first chamber members of the Senate can't propose