RIYADH, Jan 25: Saudi Arabia's appointed Shura Council will be enlarged in three months by a quarter and its powers expanded, the defence minister said in remarks published on Tuesday.

"In three months we will see developments in the Shura Council ... Its (number of members) will become 150," from the current 120, Al-Riyadh newspaper quoted Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz as saying.

The council's powers "will be increased," added the minister, a brother of King Fahd and third in line to the Saudi throne. Nearly two-thirds of the members in the coming term will be new, he said, promising that all tribes and villages would be represented.

The all-male council serves as an advisory body and does not have legislative authority. Its recommendations are referred to the king and must then be approved by the government.

The Shura was set up in 1993 with 60 members appointed by King Fahd, who increased the membership to 90 in 1997 and 120 in 2001. In March last year, Prince Sultan did not rule out elections to the Shura Council, saying they would eventually be held if the Saudi people so wished.

Saudi Arabia will from next month hold landmark polls to elect half the members of the kingdom's 178 municipal councils. Women, who represent more than 50 per cent of the indigenous population, are barred from participating in the first-ever public ballot.

The elections are part of a drive by the kingdom to introduce limited reforms, which Riyadh insists must be tailored to Saudi specifications and not necessarily follow a western pattern. -AFP