Lower House returns 4 bills to Senate, insisting on amendments

AMMAN — The Lower House on Tuesday referred the natural resources law, arbitration law, higher education and scientific research law and the public universities law to the Senate, insisting on the amendments it has recently made to the four bills.

Last week, the Upper House referred the four laws to the Lower House after making some amendments. If any of the Houses of Parliament insists on its amendments for the second time, then, constitutionally, the senators and MPs have to meet in a joint session to resolve the disputed matter in a two-thirds vote.

Concerning the 2018 amendments to the arbitration law, senators changed the “specialised court” in the arbitration law to ‘Court of Appeal” and not “Court of Cassation” as amended by MPs.

Senators also rejected MPs’ proposal as per amendments to the natural resources law to exempt quarries’ building materials extraction for local use from mining levy.

Meanwhile, the Lower House on Tuesday adopted a statement by its Palestine Committee that denounced the Israeli Knesset’s initial approval of a bill allowing withholding the bodies of Palestinians killed by Israeli forces, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The Israeli ministerial committee for legislation on Sunday gave the Knesset its approval to discuss a bill allowing authorities to hold the bodies of Palestinians killed by Israeli gunfire.