BANGKOK – The Cabinet has decided to halt demands for repayment resulting from excess elder allowance payouts, and has cancelled legal action taken against numerous senior citizens, while instructing the agencies responsible to implement measures to avoid a repeat of the problem.
Deputy spokesperson of the Prime Minister’s Office, Rachada Thanadirek said that the Cabinet has accepted a recommendation from the National Elders Committee to delay a call for repayments from senior citizens who received elderly benefits they were not entitled to, and has given an assurance to those affected that no legal action will be taken against them. The Ministry of Social Development and Human Security has been told to coordinate with local administrative organizations to find remedial measures for those impacted by the issue in compliance with applicable laws, and to implement measures to avoid a repeat of the situation.
The Cabinet also approved a proposal to increase student lunch allowances in 2022 and for the Council of State to review three related laws.
Prime Minister’s Office Spokesperson Anucha Burapachaisri announced that student lunch allowances will be increased to 21 baht per student per day in fiscal 2022, with 25.436 billion baht to be allotted to support the scheme. The total will be divided between local administrative organizations, the Office of the Permanent Secretary for Education and private schools, with 823 million baht to go to local administrations and 32 million to private schools.
The National Education Act, Lifelong Learning Act and the law for citizen registration are to be reviewed by the Council of State in support of the decision. (NNT)
