On July 9 (local time), according to Xinhua, the Thai Constitutional Court ruled that the government's emergency decree on borrowing 400 billion baht (about 11.95 billion USD) to respond to the energy crisis and promote energy infrastructure transformation is in accordance with the Constitution.
According to a statement from the Constitutional Court, a panel of 9 judges unanimously approved the main provision of the decree, allowing the Thai Ministry of Finance to mobilize loans to address urgent impacts caused by strong fluctuations in world energy prices.
With a voting ratio of 7 - 2, the court also maintained the provision stipulating the allocation of state budget to promote the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources.
The ruling was issued after 133 members of the House of Representatives filed petitions requesting consideration of the constitutionality of the decree.
The parliamentary group believes that the Government has used the emergency decree to overcome the ordinary legislative process, while the Thai Constitution only allows the issuance of decrees in emergency cases related to national security or serious economic crises.
However, the Constitutional Court stated that the conditions for issuing an emergency decree in this case have been met, which means that the Government's borrowing plan can continue to be implemented.
According to the plan approved by the Thai cabinet in May, the total value of the loan is 400 billion baht. Of which, about 200 billion baht will be used to reduce the pressure on living costs for people in the context of the Middle East conflict causing global energy prices to rise sharply.
The remaining budget will be allocated to energy transition programs, supporting Thailand to gradually reduce dependence on fossil fuels and develop clean and sustainable energy sources.
The Thai government believes that this loan not only helps stabilize the economy in the short term but also creates a foundation for the country's long-term energy development strategy, in the context that many economies around the world are promoting the goal of reducing emissions and strengthening energy security.
The Constitutional Court's decision is considered an important step to help the government have a legal basis to implement a large-scale support package, while accelerating investment programs to serve the energy transition process in the coming years.
