Parliament convenes special session to debate 2026 budget worth 3.78 trillion baht in second and third readings

The House of Representatives is set to consider the draft Budget Act for the 2026 fiscal year, totalling 3.78 trillion baht, in its second and third readings from August 13 to 15. The meeting was scheduled by House Speaker Wan Muhamad Noor Matha.

This follows the conclusion of the ad hoc committee’s review, which resulted in a total budget cut of 8.92 billion baht. The funds trimmed from various ministries will be reallocated to agencies deemed to have pressing and appropriate needs.

The five ministries and agencies with the largest budget reductions are:

• Ministry of Interior: reduced by 2.148 billion baht, mainly from equipment and construction costs.
• Parliamentary Agencies: reduced by 880 million baht.
• Ministry of Transport: reduced by 795 million baht.
• Ministry of Public Health: reduced by 693 million baht.
• Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment: reduced by 459 million baht.

Agencies receiving additional allocations include:

• State enterprises: up 4.914 billion baht for the Orange Line electric train project.
• Ministry of Finance: up 1.568 billion baht for hosting the World Bank Governors’ Annual Meeting.
• Central Fund: up 1 billion baht as an emergency reserve.
• Ministry of Labour: up 1 billion baht for Social Security Fund contributions.

Additional funds will also be allocated to local administrative organisations, such as Koh Kloi Municipality in Phang Nga and the Prachuap Khiri Khan Provincial Administrative Organisation, with funding redirected from cuts to the Interior and Public Health ministries.

The Ministry of Defence will see a reduction of 189 million baht, though there will be no cuts to the budget for national sovereignty protection. The Office of the Permanent Secretary for Defence will lose 40 million baht from its land and construction budget. The 545 million baht earmarked for strengthening the armed forces will be trimmed by only 690,000 baht.

The Royal Thai Navy’s budget of 21 billion baht will be reduced by 47 million baht, the Royal Thai Air Force’s 23 billion baht budget by 23 million baht, and the Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters’ 7.6 billion baht budget by 42 million baht. The cuts mainly target construction of official residences, administrative buildings, and military capability development projects.