Bahrain’s members of the parliament are to hold a vote on whether the current board of national airline Gulf Air should be replaced.

The proposal has been included on parliament's agenda and is due to be discussed within the next four weeks, according to a report in our sister publication, the Gulf Daily News (GDN).

Parliament will also vote on the immediate cancellation of a contract signed with a consultancy firm hired by the airline and whether it should be replaced by Bahraini experts.

The two proposals were accepted for debate in parliament by its general-secretariat yesterday, along with demands to summon three government ministers for questioning on the open floor of parliament.

The GDN reported last month that the carrier could be dramatically downsized as part of a restructuring plan designed to reduce its losses from BD95 million ($245.4 million) to BD58 million a year by 2017.

That includes massive job cuts that would effectively halve its workforce, slashing its fleet by 50 per cent and cutting routes with a new focus on Asia and the Arab world.

It is part of a deal put on the table by the government to secure National Assembly approval for a BD185 million bailout of the carrier, after earlier efforts to secure a rescue package worth BD664.3 million failed.

Parliament and the Shura Council have agreed in principle to the plan, but must officially approve it in a vote. – TradeArabia News Service