The Finance Ministry is preparing to lay down a framework to balance the budget in the next 5-10 years, says a senior official at the ministry.
Ms Kulaya says the framework will assume 4% GDP growth. PORNPROM SATRABHAYA
The framework will be based on an assumption of GDP growth of at least 4% per year, which is the proper level to run a balanced budget, said Finance Ministry spokeswoman Kulaya Tantitemit.
Measures to boost state revenue and control expenditures would be parts of the framework, she said.
The framework will not identify an exact year when the budget will be balanced to allow flexibility for economic conditions, said Ms Kulaya, but the deficit will be gradually shrunk until it is balanced.
The government has run a budget deficit since fiscal year 1999 with the exception of 2005 and 2006. The Finance Ministry is eager to curb the deficit to strengthen its fiscal position as a cushion for any economic crisis that could erupt in the future.
The 2018 budget is set at 2.9 trillion baht, with 2.45 trillion in revenue, leaving a deficit of 450 billion. That deficit swells to 550 billion baht if the 100-billion supplementary budget is taken into account.
Suwit Rojanavanich, director-general of the Fiscal Policy Office (FPO), said related state agencies, including the three tax-collecting units, the Public Debt Management Office and the Budget Bureau, have reached conclusions on guidelines to help the budget deficit balance.
However, the FPO needs further discussion on the details before these agencies can strike a memorandum of understanding on arranging a balanced budget, he said.
The balanced budget must be run under the conditions that state investment is not lower than 25% of the annual budget expenditure and state officials' salaries must increase every year to keep up economic growth momentum, said Mr Suwit.
However, controlled spending is needed to help the government achieve a balanced budget, he said. The FPO said earlier it expects the government budget to achieve balance between 2024 and 2026.
Somchai Sujjapongse, permanent secretary for finance, said a balanced budget seems to be a priority for the finance minister.
