Budget Bill approval 'deferred'
The Cabinet yesterday delayed its approval of the Budget Bill for fiscal 2012, said an informed source.
The bill had run into problems, as the government could not find adequate resources to increase the salary of new graduates serving as civil servants or state employees to Bt15,000 per month. The Pheu Thai Party, which leads the new administration, had made an election pledge to this effect.
The Finance Ministry and the Budget Bureau had agreed to increase the monthly income of newly graduated public employees to Bt15,000, but they did not agree to salary hikes for other groups of public officials.
The source said ministers now feared that other groups of civil servants could sue the government for a pay hike on the grounds of fair treatment.
The problem could delay budget approval and implementation from the normal schedule of October this year to March next year, according to the source. Such a delay would have an adverse impact on government capital spending.
The new administration plans expenditure of Bt2.36 trillion and projects revenue of Bt1.96 billion for fiscal 2012, resulting in a deficit of Bt400 billion. The deficit is Bt50 billion larger than the plan prepared by the previous government.
