Sirikanya revealed that the People's Party is poised to debate the 2026 budget transfer bill and the 2027 budget bill, disclosing that the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society has received a lavish 30% budget increase. She hinted at a continuation of the TH-AI Passport project and said the party is assembling 30 key MPs ready to challenge the bills, confirming that the scrutiny will remain intense as before.
At 10:00 a.m. on 19 Jun 2026 GMT+7 at the People's Party headquarters, Ms. Sirikanya Tansakul, deputy leader of the People's Party (PChon), spoke about preparing to consider the 2027 budget and the 2026 budget transfer bill. She said the debate periods for both budgets will be close, occurring in late June. Previously, agencies were invited to explain their budget requests to clarify the budget details. Meanwhile, the party awaits the Cabinet resolution on 23 Jun 2026 GMT+7, which will approve the 2027 budget draft. The party will have less than a week to prepare for the debate. Regarding the 2026 budget transfer bill, despite only three months to use the funds, the party emphasizes the importance of the debate. The transfer involves 10.3 billion baht moved into the central budget, although the government initially planned to cut the transferred budget from 100 billion baht down to 80 billion baht, and ultimately to 10 billion baht. This amount is intended for relief related to the Thai-Cambodian conflict's impact, and the party will monitor how this budget is authorized and utilized.
Ms. Sirikanya further commented on the 2027 budget debate, noting several projects warrant close attention. Some agencies or ministries have surprisingly received increased budgets, such as the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society (DES), which saw a 30% increase. Specifically, the National Digital Economy and Society Commission (NDESC), responsible for the TH-AI Passport project, received nearly double its previous budget, a 95% increase. It remains to be seen how these funds will be used and whether this represents a follow-up phase of the TH-AI Passport project. She emphasized that the TH-AI Passport project has not relied solely on the budget but also used the Digital Economy Fund's off-budget money, which has posed auditing challenges for the parliament. Thus, the party calls for scrutiny of all off-budget public funds to ensure they are not duplicated with budgeted projects.
Ms. Sirikanya added that the government currently has a 400 billion baht loan, with 200 billion baht allocated for energy transition. There may be overlaps between the Ministry of Energy and the Energy Conservation Fund, which requires detailed examination. The party is preparing about 30 MPs to debate the budget, divided by topics including finance and revenue collection, industrial policy, environmental and military budgets, and decentralization. She affirmed that the People's Party’s budget scrutiny through debates will remain intense as before, despite recent attempts to discredit the party’s credibility. The party is committed to examining the budget’s value, appropriateness, and risks of corruption. She invited the public to closely watch the upcoming debates.