Opposition prepares to scrutinise budget transfer bill

PUBLISHED : 22 Jun 2026 at 04:22

Opposition parties are preparing to scrutinise both a budget transfer bill for fiscal 2026 and the proposed fiscal 2027 budget, citing concerns over delays, transparency and government spending priorities.

Democrat Party leader and list-MP Abhisit Vejjajiva said the opposition has yet to see details of the budget transfer bill, scheduled for parliamentary scrutiny on June 25.

The bill, which seeks authorisation to transfer expenditure allocations within the 2026 fiscal budget, will be considered by the cabinet on Tuesday.

Some reports say the transfer would amount to only about 10 billion baht, although the opposition had previously estimated that up to 100 billion baht could be reallocated.

Mr Abhisit asked why the government had acted so slowly, causing the state to miss an opportunity to reduce the need for interest-bearing borrowing.

He also asked why the transfer amount appeared relatively small despite its claim that it needs to borrow as much as 400 billion baht to manage spending and support various projects.

"We are closely monitoring the overall economic situation to assess whether budget allocations are appropriate," Mr Abhisit said.

"We haven't seen details of spending by ministry and project, but once those are available, we will examine them thoroughly."

He said several Democrat MPs would participate in the debate, focusing particularly on public debt. With public debt approaching the ceiling, he said, all spending must be efficient.

Democrat MP Sathit Wongnongtoey said budget spending must be aligned with current economic conditions, with risks such as inflation taken into account. He also criticised previous governments for failing to properly coordinate infrastructure investment across ministries and agencies, resulting in duplication and wasteful spending.

People's Party (PP) deputy leader and list-MP Sirikanya Tansakul said her party would examine the 10.3-billion-baht budget transfer bill intended to address the impact of the Thai-Cambodian conflict.

As for the 2027 spending plan, she said several ministries were under scrutiny, including the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society, whose budget is expected to increase by more than 30%.

Ms Sirikanya also raised concerns over off-budget spending, saying such funds are difficult for parliament to scrutinise.

The party would examine whether off-budget spending overlaps with projects already financed through the national budget, she added.

Ms Sirikanya said about 30 PP MPs will take part in the budget debate.