MP Challenges Anutin Over Thailand’s Cannabis Policy

A People’s Party (PP) MP has accused the government of failing to properly regulate cannabis following its decriminalisation, arguing that widespread illegal exports expose major weaknesses in Thailand’s oversight system.

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Speaking during a House session on 9 July, PP Bangkok MP Bhuntin Noumjerm criticised Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, who, as public health minister, led the 2022 policy to decriminalise cannabis and reclassify it as an economic crop. He said Thailand still lacks comprehensive legislation governing the cultivation, sale, use and advertising of cannabis, leaving significant regulatory gaps.

Bhuntin cited more than 3,000 illegal cannabis export cases involving over 30,000kg seized during the past nine months. He argued these figures reflected a policy failure rather than isolated criminal activity by smugglers.

The opposition MP questioned how the prime minister would account to parliament for what he described as failures arising from a policy he had championed. He also asked whether authorities could trace seized cannabis to its source, identify those profiting from the trade, or operate a central database linking farms, retailers, inventories, transport and export checkpoints.

Bhuntin said that without accurate information on how much cannabis is being cultivated, held in stock, consumed domestically and exported, the government could not claim the situation was under control. He stressed that he was not accusing the prime minister, any political party or any individual of involvement in cannabis smuggling.

Instead, he said lawmakers had a responsibility to question why a policy originally promoted to support an economic crop and herbal medicine had become a growing burden for customs officials and law enforcement agencies.

Responding on behalf of the government, Justice Minister Pol Lt Gen Rutthapon Naowarat said the Office of the Narcotics Control Board had stepped up enforcement efforts. He said authorities had seized 5,119kg of cannabis during the past three months as part of the intensified crackdown.

The Bangkokpost reported that the parliamentary debate highlights continuing political scrutiny of Thailand’s cannabis policy nearly four years after decriminalisation. Questions over regulation, enforcement and oversight are expected to remain under discussion as the government faces calls to strengthen the legal framework governing the cannabis industry.

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11 July 2026

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