KUWAIT: Government fears with regards to the economic repercussions resulting from the implementation of the population restructuring law have begun to surface, particularly over a rise in wages. Despite the official government support of the population restructuring bill which was approved by the National Assembly recently, official talks revealed warnings from ministers against the hasty treatment of the population imbalance in a way that does not agree with the economic situation and the country's need of labor, according to a report published by Al-Qabas Arabic daily yesterday.

Ministerial sources quoted in the report said it is necessary to study the issue thoroughly as well as its effects, adding that many decisions already reflect the government's seriousness in dealing with the population imbalance. They said that the Public Authority for Housing Welfare has a major distribution plan for Mutlaa City and South Abdullah Al-Mubarak that will reach 31,500 lots, adding that the implementation of the population restructuring law will lead to the reduction of labor, which will reflect on wages that ordinary citizens may not be able to bear.

Sources said the issue of the population structure has the government's attention, and it began the policy of replacement as one way of remedying the population imbalance. They added that the flexibility of rules and decisions is important to face any new events, as there are many jobs that require foreign labor because of the low number of Kuwaitis who apply for such jobs. The government presented a detailed plan to the parliamentary manpower committee during the discussion of the population restructuring law, and put forward short- and long-term solutions to deal with the issue.