Cabinet to mull more Covid-19 stimulus
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha will chair a special cabinet meeting tomorrow to discuss additional stimulus measures to ease the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the economy, a government spokeswoman said.
Spokeswoman Narumon Pinyosinwat said the prime minister will look at stimulus packages proposed by various ministries, which will be the third and fourth in a series designed to counteract the fallout caused by the Covid19 pandemic.
The new packages will be implemented from May to July, Ms Narumon said, adding that the cabinet meeting will also discuss funding sources for the proposed measures.
Lavaron Saengsanit, spokesman for the Finance Ministry, said that the third stimulus package is expected to be finalised and presented for cabinet approval this month.
The third package is designed to provide comprehensive and continued assistance for all groups of people affected by the virus, and keep the economy running without disruption.
“It is important to ensure economic mechanisms remain operational [so that] when the Covid-19 outbreak eases, it will not take a long time and a lot of money to restore the economy,” said Mr Lavaron, who is also the director of the Fiscal Policy Office under the Finance Ministry.
He said that details of the third stimulus package are yet to be hammered out, and it remains to be seen how much money will be required to implement it.
The Budget Bureau will inform the prime minister whether there will be enough funds available for the package. If there is not enough money, issuing an executive decree for borrowing will be an option, said Mr Lavaron.
He insisted that borrowing will not pose any problems because the country’s financial standing remains solid, with public debt at 42% of GDP below the 60% threshold.
The government has rolled out a series of stimulus packages to ease the impact of Covid-19.
Among them is a 50-billion-baht government fund that provides 5,000 baht per month for three months to the 3 million temporary- and self-employed workers affected by the pandemic.
But Ms Narumon said on Tuesday that some nine million people who registered will be eligible for the financial aid.
Before this, a broad range of financialand fiscal-relief measures were issued to help companies, especially small and medium-sized enterprises.
Meanwhile, the number of people who registered for the 5,000 baht cash handout scheme rose to more than 22 million yesterday.
The website www.Á¦µÅ¤n·Ê ´.com [“You will never be left behind”] began accepting applications at 6pm last Saturday.