Thai parliament passes $99.7 billion budget bill at first reading

[webfact]

FILE PHOTO: Thailand's Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha arrives before a family photo session with new cabinet ministers at the Government House in Bangkok, Thailand, March 30, 2021. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha

 

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand's parliament on Wednesday passed by a narrow margin the first reading of a 3.1 trillion baht ($99.7 billion) budget bill for the 2022 fiscal year starting Oct. 1, aimed at reviving an economy hit by coronavirus outbreaks.

 

The budget is crucial to Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha's government as it deals with the Southeast Asian country's latest, most severe outbreak yet.

 

After a three-day debate, the bill passed with 269 votes in favour, 201 against and two abstentions.

 

"The budget bill will help drive our economy out of this economic crisis caused by the outbreak as well as quickly restore growth," Prayuth told the House of Representatives.

 

The bill has to pass second and third readings expected in August before it goes for senate and royal approval.

The budget forecasts a 5.7% drop in spending to 3.1 trillion baht in the 2022 fiscal year, with a deficit of 700 billion baht, up 15% from the current year.

 

Budget planners have assumed Southeast Asia's second-largest economy will expand by between 2.5% and 3.5% this year and 4.0% to 5.0% in 2022.

 

The state planning agency, however, predicts growth of between 1.5% and 2.5% this year due to the latest outbreak.

($1 = 31.11 baht)

 

(Reporting by Orathai Sriring and Satawasin Staporncharnchai; Editing by David Holmes)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2021-06-03

 

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[hotchilli]

4 hours ago, webfact said:

Thailand's parliament on Wednesday passed by a narrow margin the first reading of a 3.1 trillion baht ($99.7 billion) budget bill for the 2022 fiscal year starting Oct. 1, aimed at reviving an economy hit by coronavirus outbreaks.

Just get the vaccines rolling and the economy can recover on it's own...

Thailand was supposedly doing so well before the pandemic came along, it has everything in place to recover to the same position does it not?

[Poet]

4 hours ago, webfact said:

Thai parliament passes $99.7 billion budget bill at first reading

At least they didn't go crazy and spend $100 billion.

[pegman]

2 hours ago, hotchilli said:

Just get the vaccines rolling and the economy can recover on it's own...

Thailand was supposedly doing so well before the pandemic came along, it has everything in place to recover to the same position does it not?

The Thai economy was not doing well before the COVID. Tourism, exports and domestic vehicle sales were all down because of the juntas high baht policy.  

[hotchilli]

20 minutes ago, pegman said:

The Thai economy was not doing well before the COVID. Tourism, exports and domestic vehicle sales were all down because of the juntas high baht policy.  

Hence I said "supposedly doing well" claiming to be the best performing economy etc etc...