Parliament has unanimously approved legislation amending the Environment Law to extend the time limit for challenging administrative environmental decisions.
The amendment revises Article 113(a) of Law No 7 of 2022, increasing the deadline for filing a court appeal against rejected grievances from 30 days to 60 days.
The session was attended by Oil and Environment Minister Dr Mohammed Bin Daina.
Under the existing law, affected parties are given 30 days to submit a grievance against an administrative decision, with the relevant authority required to respond within 30 days. If the grievance is rejected – explicitly or implicitly – the appellant previously had only 30 days to seek judicial review. The amendment doubles this final appeal period to 60 days.
Parliament’s public utilities and environment affairs committee chairman MP Mohammed Al Bulooshi said the longer appeal window would allow individuals and entities sufficient time to properly assess administrative decisions and prepare legal challenges, particularly in complex environmental cases.
In its memorandum, the government had urged MPs to reconsider the amendment, arguing that the existing framework already provides up to 90 days across the grievance and appeal process – 30 days to submit a grievance, 30 days for administrative review, and 30 days to file an appeal.
The government also stressed the special and urgent nature of environmental legislation, noting that swift enforcement is essential to respond to pollution incidents and prevent environmental degradation. It cited comparative environmental laws in countries such as the UAE and Egypt, where environmental disputes are handled on an expedited basis.
Additionally, the government pointed out that several Bahraini laws maintain a 30-day appeal deadline, including legislation governing time-share accommodation units, small vessel regulation, excise tax, real estate regulation and marine sand extraction.
Despite the government’s reservations, MPs approved the bill yesterday and referred it to the Shura Council for review.
Parliament also unanimously approved a proposal to establish a temporary committee for sports’ development until the end of the term.
They also gave a go-ahead to a proposal to employ professional bookkeepers in ministries and government bodies and referred it to the Cabinet for review.
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