The law prohibits Cabinet members from attempting to boost their support with budget spending that may damage the economy. “The most worrisome part about it is who will tell which policy is populist or not. The law has been pushed for many years by the Finance Ministry’s Fiscal Policy Office, said Soraphol Tulayasathien, the Finance Ministry’s director of Economic Stability Analysis Division at the Fiscal Policy Office. Under the new legislation, the committee chaired by Prayut will decide what economic policy would be defined as “populist policy” that could have a serious negative impact on government finances. Political scientist Somchai Pakkapaswiwat said that the new law’s interpretation will depend on the discretionary power of the committee and its interpretation of what is or is not populist policy.

Source: The Nation Bangkok April 20, 2018 17:37 UTC