The Cabinet met on Tuesday, July 14, 2015 at Command Building1, Government House. Some of the resolutions are as follows;
Title: National Emergency Number Act B.E. ...
The Cabinet approved in principle the National Emergency Number Act B.E. ... as proposed by the Royal Thai Police.
Gist of the matter
1. All relevant terms will be defined to ensure clarity when enforcing the law.
2. The number 911 is determined as the national emergency number.
3. The National Emergency Number Administration Committee must be set up, and chaired by the Prime Minister. Committee Members comprises Permanent Secretary for Ministry of Defense, Permanent Secretary for Ministry of Information and Communication Technology, Commissioner-General, Secretary-General of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission, Secretary-General of the National Security Council, and Secretary-General of the National Institute for Emergency Medicine. The designated Deputy Commissioner-General will be Committee Member and Secretary.
4. The Committee has an authority and function to ensure that government units and telecommunication operators have a network that provides supportive services, to recommend solutions to problems or obstacles regarding the change of national emergency number, appoint subcommittees, and issue regulations, proclamations or commands of operations.
5. The Royal Thai Police is to serve as the Secretariat of the Committee, overseeing administration tasks, academic tasks, and other tasks relevant with the Committee’s mission.
6. Telecommunication operators are prohibited from collecting payments or fees relating to the use of the national emergency number from callers.
7. Criminal penalties are imposed on those falsely reporting emergencies.
8. Receivers of emergency reports and telecommunication operators are protected by law and shall not be held liable for gaining access to and sharing personal information under the regulations, methods, and conditions established by the Committee.
Title: VAT Reduction Extension Measure
The Cabinet granted the following agreement and approval:
1. An agreement to the VAT Reduction Extension Measure; and
2. An approval in principle on the Royal Decree Issued under the Revenue Code Governing Reduction of VAT (No. …) B.E. … as proposed by Ministry of Finance. The Royal Decree will be forwarded to the Council of State for further consideration and implementation.
Gist of the Royal Decree
1. The Royal Decree imposes termination of the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO)’s Proclamation No. 92/2014 on VAT Reduction, dated July 17, 2014.
2. The Royal Decree imposes reduction of VAT according to Section 80 of the Revenue Code and maintenance of VAT collection by the following rate, effective October 1, 2015:
2.1 6.3% VAT for sales of products, services or imports under any circumstance. VAT liability takes effect from October 1, 2015 to September 30, 2016.
2.2 9.0% VAT for sales of products, services, or imports under any circumstance. VAT liability takes effect from October 1, 2016.
Title: Thailand’s gesture for 2nd Thailand-Vietnam Joint Trade Committee Meeting
The Cabinet agreed to and approved the proposal made by Ministry of Commerce as follows:
1. The Cabinet agreed in principle to the agenda on economic and trade cooperation, to be discussed with Vietnam, for Minister of Commerce to use that as a framework for the 2nd Thailand-Vietnam Joint Trade Committee (JTC) Meeting;
2. If the Meeting agreed on any outcome regarding other issues on economic and trade cooperation that will benefit economic and trade relations of both Thailand and Vietnam without implementation of an agreement or contract paper, Minister of Commerce and the Thai delegation attending the Meeting can proceed without seeking another Cabinet consideration.
3. The Cabinet approved for Minister of Commerce or his representative to endorse the meeting outcome and other outcome documents resulting from discussion on specific cooperation (if any).
Gist of the matter
Ministry of Commerce reported the following:
1. Thailand-Vietnam JTC Meeting is a key mechanism for the discussion on bilateral trade. Minister of Commerce serves as head of the Thai delegation. Vietnam’s Minister of Industry and Trade serves as head of the Vietnamese delegation. The meeting is ministerial-level, and is to determine trade and investment direction between the two countries, such as trade targets, trade and investment cooperation, cooperation on agricultural products, transport connectivity, and implementation of Action Plan on Thailand-Vietnam’s trade and investment cooperation.
2. The 1st Thailand-Vietnam JTC Meeting was held on January 12, 2011 in Hanoi, Vietnam, and it was agreed that Thailand would host the 2nd Thailand-Vietnam JTC Meeting during July 20-22, 2015 in Bangkok. Thai Minister of Commerce and Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade (Mr. Vu Huy Hoang) will co-chair the Meeting. Both parties are currently drafting the meeting agenda and the outcome document of the meeting.
Title: Draft Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Labor Cooperation and Draft Agreement on Labor Employment between the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand and the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam
The Cabinet agreed to the proposal made by Ministry of Labour as follows:
1. The Cabinet agreed to the Draft Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Labor Cooperation between the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand and the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, and the Draft Agreement on Labour Employment between both Governments;
2. The Cabinet agreed to the appointment of the Minister of Labour as signatory of the MOU on Labor Cooperation and the Agreement on Labor Employment between the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand and the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Vietnam’s Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs will serve as signatory of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam; and
3. The Cabinet approved import of labors from Vietnam according to the Draft MOU on Labor Cooperation and the Draft Agreement on Labor Employment between the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand and the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, for construction and fishery industries.
Gist of the Draft MOU on Labor Cooperation and the Draft Agreement on Labor Employment between the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand and the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam covers academic cooperation, labor skills development, and employment between the two countries, as well as development and cooperation expansion in construction and fishery industries between Thailand and Vietnam. The agreement will allow import of Vietnamese migrant workers to Thailand.
--Cabinet Meeting (Prayut Chan-o-cha) July 14, 2015--