KUWAIT: In the meantime, the newly-elected parliamentary human resources development committee renewed demands tax expats' remittances, as it also recently expressed full support of imposing the policy of replacing expatriate public sector employees with citizens, resolving the unemployment issue, adjusting the demographic imbalances, and imposing health insurance on visit visas.

In this regard, Al-Rai daily quoted head of the committee MP Khalil Al-Saleh yesterday, who said that the panel will meet next week to set a working plan, with passing the strategic payroll alternative and reducing the number of expats in the country on top of its priorities. Saleh added that the committee will demand immediate imposition of a certain quota per community living in Kuwait to prevent the domination of any of them in the local labor market in both the government and the private sectors. Saleh noted that the committee will also discuss reports by the parliamentary financial affairs committee concerning taxing expat remittances. The legal and legislative committee had earlier this year rejected proposals to tax expats' remittances, saying they were unconstitutional.

By A Saleh