New subsidy meant to help small businesses, govt insists
The government insists its new stimulus package “Kon La Khreung” (Let’s Go Halves) aims to benefit consumers and small businesses, not capitalists as has been claimed by critics on social media.
Deputy government spokesperson Traisulee Traisoranakul said on Friday (September 4) that some social-media users have said the new scheme providing a Bt3,000 subsidy per person to 15 million consumers had been launched to benefit large department stores and convenience outlets.
“Stores who participated in the previous ‘eat, shop, spend’ scheme will be part of this project, but we are also targeting street vendors, food stalls, small mom-and-pop stores,” she said.
Traisulee added that to ensure that cash flows to small businesses, the government has set up a criterion that consumers spend no more than Bt100 per day to buy items at half price, and the other half will be paid by the government.
“The aim is to help as many small businesses as possible,” she said, adding that the government also wants to ease people’s cost of living and stimulate the grassroots economy that has been hit by the Covid-19 crisis.
“Though department stores and convenience outlets are also participating, this scheme will benefit small businesses more,” she added.