Paetongtarn Shinawatra, the newly minted Prime Minister of Thailand, made her debut in the parliament as the second female Prime Minister to take up the mantle, laid out her policies to the parliament highlighted by the plan for THB 450 billion handout to kick off the second-largest economy in the region.
Her policies generally conserve agendas set forth by Srettha Thavisin, former Prime Minister ousted by the court’s decision, and the Pheu Thai Party, encompassing debt restructures and legalization of casinos. Faced with challenges, structural economic problems among others, Paetongtarn remarked the government would take immediate actions.
“Without a course of action to support growth, the nation’s economic growth rate is unlikely to surpass 3% per annum,” said Paetongtarn. If so, the level of public debt – 63.74% of the GDP as of July 2024, may touch the 70% ceiling in 2027.
A plan for THB 10,000 handout to 50 million citizens, one of the main selling points since Srettha’s administration, received no further update on the timing nor the approach to carry out the foregoing – although the government once ushered that THB 145 billion would soon be distributed in support of vulnerable groups by this month.
Billionaire Thaksin Shinawatra, Paetongtarn’s father, a key figure of the party and one of the most divisive politicians in Thailand, is among the supporters of her stimulus plan.
Economists and former bank governors have voiced their opinion about the plan, calling it ‘financially irresponsible’. The government, however, insisted on the necessity of such policies in order to revitalise the economy. The central bank is expecting growth to 2.6% this year from 1.9% in 2023.
Survey, however, showed consumers have been losing confidence for six consecutive months.
