The Pheu Thai Party has jumped on the bandwagon with a pledge to push for the opening up of the beer and spirits industry to more people in a bid to end restrictions that favour large companies.
The largest opposition party released a statement on Thursday promising to continue to pursue a policy to free up production after “the party was disappointed at the voting yesterday [Wednesday]."
The so-called progressive liquor bill proposed by the Move Forward Party to amend the Excise Tax Act was narrowly defeated in the House of Representatives by only two votes on Wednesday.
The defeat came a day after the government rushed to approve amended Finance Ministry regulations to ease financial and other requirements for alcoholic beverage production. The ministerial regulation, relatively limited in scope, was seen as an attempt to torpedo the Move Forward bill, which senior government figures had said was too liberal.
Move Forward argued that the new regulation failed to address core problems, including production capacity.
The two opposition parties now appear certain to campaign on the issue in the coming general election, as Move Forward leader Pita Limjaroenrat said on Wednesday that his party would not give up in its attempt to open up the liquor and beer industry for small producers.
Top Pheu Thai figures Paetongtarn Shinawatra and Srettha Thavisin sent the same message on Wednesday, boasting of the opposition party’s strong will to push the liberalisation campaign to the limit if it has an opportunity to form the government after elections that must take place by next May.
“Liberalising the liquor industry did not happen. But it will under the ‘Pheu Thai government’”, said Ms Paetongtarn, the daughter of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Mr Srettha, the chief executive of the property developer Sansiri Plc, is close to Pheu Thai and is strongly tipped to be promoted by the party as one of its candidates for prime minister.
