The Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs has voiced its support for a proposal to set up a separate commission to end disputes with the ministries of Finance and Agriculture over encroachment of government-owned land. In a statement, the ministry said it was would not impose fines over the encroachment of government land because the Council of Ministers stated, based on a fatwa issued by the Board of Senior Ulema, that it is not permissible to impose fines in such situations. The Shoura Council earlier asked the ministry to lay down regulations that impose annual fees on encroached government land. Sources inside the ministry told Okaz daily that the best solution to end land encroachments is to register the land with the ministry. Sources also said that a report put forth by the ministry before the Shoura Council will be discussed over the next few days. The report made several important recommendations including the need to reassess the policy of land use to reduce the disorganized distribution of certain industries that are scattered haphazardly in the Kingdom's cities. Another recommendation called for updating the ministry's organizational structure and setting up two agencies within the ministry – one to deal with local municipal councils' affairs and the other with roads and transportation. The third recommendation focuses on increasing the effectiveness of risk prevention strategies regarding population density. __
