Abhisit fears huge public debt by 2013

Thailand may face a massive public debt problem in 2013 as the government is concentrating solely on providing restoration loans after the flooding, Abhisit Vejjajiva, the former prime minister and now opposition leader, said yesterday.

 
“I’m really worried that public debt in 2013 will exceed the ceiling. Many projects will spend a huge amount of money while creating problems for the country in the long run, particularly the rice-pledging project,” Abhisit said.
Instead, the government should delay its populist policies or at least cut the budgets of the least necessary ones, he said after his Democrat Party met with the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI).
The opposition party and the powerful private-sector organisation shared the view that the Yingluck Shinawatra government should urgently draw up medium and long-term plans to prevent future flooding.
So far, the government shows only concern for shortterm solutions in order to boost public and investor confidence.
On Tuesday, the Cabinet approved a Bt369billion increase in the public debt for funding the rice-pledging and oil-subsidisation programmes and for restructuring or suspending debt.
Abhisit called for the Yingluck Cabinet to reconsider some projects, minimise government borrowing to keep public debt at a prudent level and help companies soon.
After discussing flood problems with the FTI, he pointed out four key issues for the government’s consideration.
First, they have not any seen measures to help businesses located outside of industrial zones. Second, the government has been asked to relax some regulations to collect withholding tax from small and medium-sized enterprises.
Next was higher unemployment, since many companies would suffer from lower income. The government's plan to give a Bt2,000 stipend to each worker many not be enough to help keep employment up and lessen the impact on affected employers.
Last, the Education Ministry should set up a system for sending technical students to help industries rehabilitate their plants, as the country is facing a shortage of technicians.
FTI chairman Payungsak Chartsuthipol has urged the government to put flood prevention on the national agenda.
He said the private sector would like to see the government cooperate with other agencies, including the opposition party and the private and public sectors, to urgently control the flooding, as the problem has crushed the country's growth.
To brainstorm flooding solutions, the Democrat Party is planning to meet with the Board of Trade of Thailand next week.