Thai PM finalises Cabinet, expects to seek royal approval this week

BANGKOK – Thailand’s new Cabinet has been selected and the line-up should be submitted for royal endorsement within this week, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said on Sept 2. 

Senior officials in her caretaker government previously said the new government should be in place by mid-September. 

The new Cabinet is expected to retain the current finance and foreign ministers but will likely see 11 new ministers and deputy ministers, according to local media reports that cited unnamed sources.

Mr Sorawong Thienthong, secretary-general of Ms Paetongtarn’s ruling Pheu Thai Party, told Reuters that the new government should account for slightly more parliamentary seats than its predecessor.

He declined to comment on the list of new Cabinet members. 

After Mr Srettha Thavisin

was removed from office as prime minister less than a month ago

by a court order, the populist Pheu Thai quickly rallied support behind its inexperienced leader, Ms Paetongtarn. The 38-year-old was selected as prime minister by Parliament just days later.

As Thailand’s youngest premier,

she is the second woman and fourth member of her billionaire family to hold the post. 

Ms Paetongtarn is the daughter of the influential and divisive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, who is still seen as a major force behind the party.

The new government

dropped the military-aligned Palang Pracharath Party

and has added its oldest foe, the Democrat Party, to the coalition. REUTERS