ISLAMABAD, Dec 13: The government has agreed to the demands of retiring senators whereby they would be allowed to keep some of their ex-officio privileges.

The Senate’s Functional Committee on Government Assurances on Saturday unanimously endorsed a resolution passed by the Senate on March 15, 2006, under which the retiring senators would be allowed to keep their official passport, use VIP lounges at airports, access to Senate Secretariat, library and lounge.

The committee met here at the Parliament House with Chaudhry Mohammad Anwar Bhinder in the chair, said a handout released by the Senate Secretariat.

The committee observed that similar privileges were available to parliamentarians of a number of democratic countries after their retirement and completion of the term.

According to the press release, Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Babar Awan informed the committee that he had overruled the objections raised by the ministries of interior and defence, and the ministry was already working on the resolution passed by the Senate.

The minister assured full assurance to the committee of his ministry’s backing on the issue of retention of official privileges by the retiring senators.

The committee’s chairman, Mr Bhinder, was asked to draft a bill for the provision of the said privileges to the senators which would be moved in the Senate as a private bill.

When contacted, Mr Awan said: “I am bound to honour any resolution passed by the Upper House, and have assured the committee of my ministry’s help on this.”

To a question, he clarified that a retiring senator would only be allowed to keep his/her official passport till the time it expired.

While considering assurance given by the former federal minister of health regarding building a separate hospital for women and chest diseases in Rawalpindi, the committee’s chairman condemned the slow pace of work on the project. The committee directed the health ministry to submit a new PC-I of the project and complete it without any further delay.

About another assurance provided on 16-03-2006 by the then adviser to the prime minister on women development, the committee noticed that the impact of the much-talked about Gender Reform Action Plan had not been felt at local level.

The committee asked the ministry of women development to take special measures to empower women socially, politically and economically. The committee members also asked the ministry to take steps for the welfare and rehabilitation of women languishing in various jails of the country.

It took strong exception to the absence of both federal minister and minister of state for communication and their secretary from the meeting and asked them to extend due respect to the parliamentary committees.

They decided that the committee would write to the prime minister in this regard.