Adviser to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah on Saturday said that a referendum on the creation of new provinces will be held if approved by a joint session of parliament. During his interaction with journalists in Lahore, Sanaullah said that parliament was the best forum for discussing the creation of new provinces. His remarks echoed those of Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, who said that parliamentary debate on the creation of new provinces would be held in October.

"The matter of new provinces has not yet been brought before the cabinet," Sanaullah said, adding that his party, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), was still consulting on its position over the matter. He said the PML-N would issue its policy statement when the issue was brought before parliament. "The matter of whether provinces should be created or not has to be decided by parliament," Sanaullah added. The PML-N leader said that the issue would move in a better direction once it came before parliament, where all political parties would present their positions.

Sanaullah also claimed that tensions between the PML-N and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) had eased considerably following differences that emerged during recent political developments. He also said the PML-N wanted petroleum product prices to come down, while urging Jamaat-e-Islami to postpone its proposed long march by one or two weeks. Sanaullah hoped that the Jamaat-e-Islami's long march would be peaceful, while warning that disruptions by other elements would be handled by law enforcement agencies.

The debate on new administrative units was originally ignited in July by Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, who called for fundamental reforms and a system reset. The debate subsequently widened when Planning and Development Minister Ahsan Iqbal called for a national discussion on Pakistan's administrative structure and proposed 12 to 15 provinces.