The National Assembly Standing Committee on Information Technology on Tuesday postponed approval of the Electronic Transactions (Amendment) Bill, 2026, after the government admitted it had yet to build consensus among coalition partners.

During the meeting, Committee Chairman Syed Amin Ul Haque asked whether political parties had agreed on the proposed amendments. Minister of State for IT Shaza Fatima Khawaja confirmed that no consensus had been reached and said the government would not seek the bill’s approval without broader political agreement.

Officials from the Ministry of Law told the committee that the amendments primarily replace the term “Federal Government” with “Prime Minister” in the relevant provisions.

The proposal drew objections from committee members. PPP MNA Sharmila Faruqui called for a detailed legal briefing before the amendments are considered, while MNA Sadiq Memon argued that the changes would transfer powers from the federal cabinet to the prime minister.

Responding to the concerns, Shaza Fatima said the amendments are intended to speed up routine administrative decisions that are often delayed by the cabinet approval process, while policy matters would continue to be decided by the federal cabinet.

The committee directed the Ministry of IT to consult coalition partners, develop consensus on the proposed changes, and present the bill again for consideration.