Dissecting the 2027 Fiscal Budget Bill

Matichon•Politics•18d ago

Reader Briefing

Experts urge structural budget reforms and transparency to address Thailand's narrowing fiscal space in the 2027 budget bill.

•The 2027 fiscal budget bill is set at 3.788 trillion THB, currently under review by a special parliamentary committee.
•Experts call for redirecting expenditures toward economic potential and grassroots support rather than just cutting costs.
•Fiscal space is tightening as fixed expenses, welfare obligations, and debt payments consume more of the budget.

Overview

•Sutin Wienwiwat assesses the 2027 budget bill in order to address the nation's reliance on recurrent expenditures.
•The 2027 budget bill allocates 2.786 trillion THB to fixed expenses, resulting in 73.6% of the total budget.
•Ekniti Nitithanprapas chairs the special committee evaluating the 2027 budget bill due to the need for tighter fiscal oversight.
•Thailand faces limited fiscal space as economic growth remains insufficient to generate significant tax revenue, leading to the necessity of budget restructuring.
•The Bank of Thailand projected an economic growth of 2.3% for 2026 and 1.8% for 2027 as of June 24, 2026.
•The Budget Bureau has initiated the disclosure of electronic budget documents in order to enhance public and parliamentary transparency.
•Sutin Wienwiwat suggests that the government must implement annual spending reviews and zero-based budgeting to improve fiscal outcomes.

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Key Quotes

Sutin Wienwiwat

"Revealing fiscal constraints is the starting point for good budget discipline, but transparency alone is not enough."

การเปิดเผยข้อจำกัดทางการคลัง เพราะเป็นจุดเริ่มต้นของวินัยงบประมาณที่ดี แต่ความโปร่งใสอย่างเดียวไม่เพียงพอ

Sutin Wienwiwat

"I view this as a necessary 'lancing of the fiscal wound' because if we do not accept the truth today, problems will accumulate and become harder to solve."

ผมมองว่านี่คือการ “เปิดแผลทางการคลัง” ที่จำเป็น เพราะหากไม่ยอมรับความจริงในวันนี้ ปัญหาจะสะสมและแก้ไขยากขึ้นในอนาคต

Key Entities

Person

Sutin Wienwiwat(สุทิน เวียนวิวัฒน์)

Head of the Isan Poll project and Dean of the Faculty of Economics at Khon Kaen University.

Ekniti Nitithanprapas(เอกนิติ นิติทัณฑ์ประภาศ)

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, serving as chair of the 2027 budget committee.

Organization

Khon Kaen University(มหาวิทยาลัยขอนแก่น)ℹ️

The academic institution where the Isan Poll project and the Faculty of Economics are housed.

Bank of Thailand(ธนาคารแห่งประเทศไทย)ℹ️

The central bank responsible for forecasting Thailand's economic growth figures.