BANGKOK, Sept 12 (Askume) – Thailand’s new Prime Minister Patongthan Shinawatra was in parliament on Thursday.He marks the beginning of his administrationWill issue a policy statement that will give priority to stimulating the sluggish economy and tackling stubborn debt.
Here are the highlights of the statement issued earlier this week.
– Restructure people’s debt, including home and car loans, and address informal credit problems by working with the government, commercial banks and asset management companies.
– Maintain predecessor Sritha K Thawisin’s digital wallet distribution plan and target disadvantaged groups to stimulate the economy. The plan initially called for 50 million Thais to receive 10,000 baht ($300) via a smartphone app. The statement did not specify implementation methods or budget.
– Protect SMEs from foreign competition through e-commerce platforms.
– Reduce the public’s energy and utility costs by developing strategic petroleum reserves, negotiating with Cambodia to jointly develop new natural gas sources in neighboring countries’ overlapping waters, and providing one-price access to Bangkok’s public transportation to offset public transportation costs.
– Some underground economic activities should be legalized to increase national revenue.
– Expand Thailand’s tax base, including imposing a negative income tax on low-income earners.
– Promotion of agriculture and tourism, including the construction of large entertainment centres offering gambling facilities .
–Promote medical cannabis to increase economic value .
– Promoting large-scale transportation projects, including the US$30 billion Southern Land Bridge project , which will link the Indian Ocean with the South China Sea through a transportation network.
situation
Patong Beach was hit by political turmoil last month when the Constitutional Court ousted Shrestha and dissolved the opposition Kadima party for violating ethics rules.The Prime Minister is elected by the Parliament . The court has said that this campaign threatens to weaken the constitution.
– The Prime Minister faces challenges of a sluggish economy and declining popularity of the Pheu Thai Party , which failed to complete the one-time digital wallet.
– Many of the policies in the statement echo ideas outlined last month by Patongdam’s father, divisive former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra , who is widely seen as wielding power from behind the scenes.
(starting at $1 = 33.7100)
