Bangkok (VNA) – The House of Representatives ofThailand passed the 2020 budget bill with 257 votes in favour, one against andthree abstentions at a special session held on February 13 at theConstitutional Court’s request for re-vote.

This budget bill was passed by the lower housein January, but some members of parliament (MPs) were later found to havecasting votes electronically elsewhere when the voting took place.

On February 7, the Constitutional Court ruledthat the 2020 budget bill is partially constitutional and ordered MPs to voteagain on the second and third readings during which illegal proxy voting wasfound.

At the session on February 13, the vote bysection ended at 4:30pm due to problems related to the attendance rate of MPs.

Fiscal 2020 of Thailand began on October 1,2019. The budget bill, worth over 3.2 trillion THB (102.7 billion USD), wasmore than four months late due to a delay in the endorsement of generalelection results in March 2019 and the subsequent formation of the 19-partycoalition government. 

It had been feared that any further delays tothe passage of the budget could sharply curtail government spending at acritical time when the prospects of a severe economic slowdown are rising.

After the lower house’s approval, voting by theupper house will be a formality./.