Mr. Natthaporn Jatusripithak, spokesperson for the Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, revealed that the Cabinet (Cabinet) approved the revised budget calendar for the fiscal year 2020 as proposed by the Bureau of the Budget. This adjustment aligns with the current situation, resulting in a delay of approximately 3 months. All agencies are required to review, add, and confirm their budget requests to the Bureau of the Budget in July. Subsequently, these will be compiled and submitted to the House of Representatives for consideration in the first reading at the end of September 2019, and in the second and third readings in early December 2019, before being presented to the Senate in mid-December 2019. The new budget bill will then be submitted for royal approval for enactment.

          Mr. Apisak Tantivorawong, Minister of Finance, stated that the budget for 2020 is expected to commence on January 1, 2020, as it must wait for the new government to take office. In the meantime, the Bureau of the Budget has reported to the Cabinet that various agencies can temporarily utilize the budget for 2019, capped at 50% of the 2019 budget, specifically for their operational expenses. However, new investment projects cannot be funded until the 2020 budget is officially enacted.

          Mr. Dechaphiwat Na Songkhla, Director of the Bureau of the Budget, stated that once the new government is in place, the Bureau will begin to establish a new budget framework for 2020, allowing the new government to plan its expenditures according to the policies promised to the public, while adhering to the 20-year strategic plan. Meanwhile, four agencies, including the Ministry of Finance, the Bureau of the Budget, the Bank of Thailand (BOT), and the National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB), will need to discuss and jointly set the revenue framework again. The current government has seen a budget expenditure framework for the fiscal year 2020 amounting to 3.2 trillion baht, with a budget deficit of 450 billion baht, an increase of 200 billion baht from the fiscal year 2019.

          “Currently, investment projects with a duration of less than 1 year are beginning to sign contracts and incur debts. If contracts are signed and debts are incurred during this period, budget disbursements can begin in October 2019. Therefore, the impact is not expected to be severe. In the fiscal year 2019, the government had an investment budget of 640 billion baht, with the Bureau of the Budget aiming for a maximum disbursement of about 90%, as government agencies have expedited contract signing and incurred a significant amount of obligations. The remaining 10% is expected to be uncommitted, and the Bureau will either fold or cut it,” Mr. Dechaphiwat said.

          Additionally, the Cabinet meeting approved the second revision of the public debt management plan for the fiscal year 2019, as proposed by the Public Debt Policy and Management Committee, with a net reduction of 17 billion baht from the original 1.85 trillion baht to 1.83 trillion baht. This involves a net reduction of 17.9 billion baht in new debt, including a decrease of 16.9 billion baht in new government debt from projects such as the construction of dual-track railways along the eastern coastal line, the light red suburban railway system, and other related projects. The remaining amount is a reduction of 1 billion baht in new debt from state enterprises.

          However, the Cabinet also acknowledged the report on the public debt ratio as of the end of March 2019, which stood at 41.78% of GDP, an increase from 41.70% at the end of September 2018. The ratio of government debt to estimated annual revenue at the end of March 2019 was 27.16%, up from 19.17% at the end of September 2018. The ratio of public debt in foreign currency to total public debt was 3.59%, down from 3.86% in September 2018, while the ratio of public debt in foreign currency to export revenue was 0.21%, down from 0.22%.

 

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