Thai News
- Northern Thailand
Former police inspector in North Thailand scammed, loses retirement funds
A scam gang, pretending to be police, have tricked a former police inspector in North Thailand into handing over all of his retirement money, totalling 1.8 million baht. The former inspector, who lives in Lampang province, said the scammers called him on June 1, claiming to be from the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission. The scammers told the former inspector…
- Thailand
Even Thailand’s monkeys don’t have monkeypox
Thai officials have now run tens of thousands of tests for monkeypox on monkeys throughout Thailand (we’re not quite sure why). There have so far been 25,000 tests, out of 50,000 monkeys in 222 locations across the country. Yesterday, a veterinarian at the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, Phattarapol Mee-on, announced that all the tests have turned…
- Crime
As Thailand opens more, police prepare for more international crime
A senior Thai police inspector told Thai media that Royal Thai Police plans to redouble its efforts to fight international crime as the country opens up more and more with the ease in Covid-19 restrictions. The inspector, General Wisanu Prasatthongosot, told Daily News that Thailand is located at a crossroads in the region that makes it an ideal spot for international crimes…
- Tourism
Thailand’s tourism ranking drops down a notch
Thailand’s place on a list of countries ranked for travel and tourism development has fallen a notch below where it stood last year. Thailand fell from it’s spot in 35th place out of 117 countries in 2021, to 36th place, on the Travel and Tourism Development Index. The index is based on scores from 1-7, where 1 is the worst…
- Economy
Now there’s a Pepsi price surge coming to Thailand, too
Amidst Thailand’s skyrocketing prices on fuel, postal services, and palm oil, another item’s price is set to go up- Pepsi. Suntory Pepsico (Thailand) Beverage announced today that Pepsi’s price will rise by up to 2 baht per bottle starting June 1, now that the cost of plastic bottles and aluminium cans has risen. The company noted, however, that the price…
- South
Tourists who went missing in southern Thailand park found safe
Yesterday, park rangers in Thailand’s southern province of Surat Thani found 2 tourists who had gone missing the day before. The women, 19 year old Eliza Rose and 19 year old Matilda Cox, got lost in a jungle in Khao Sok National Park in Phanom district. Eliza is a British national, and Matilda is from Northern Ireland. Eliza and Matilda…
- Politics
Leaders of smaller Thai parties want to legalise online casinos
Twenty representatives of smaller Thai political parties have submitted a draft amendment for the Gambling Act to Thailand’s parliamentary house speaker yesterday. The draft amendment would aim to legalise online casinos. An MP from the Thai Local Power Party said that legalising online casinos will let authorities collect taxes from license holders, and decide how to punish illegal casino operators.…
- Education
Thai officials say schools can set their own hair rules, but no harsh punishment
Thailand school haircut drama continues as the Education Ministry has announced yesterday that schools are free to set their own hairstyle rules. While Education Minister Trinuch Thienthong added that schools have been ordered not to impose harsh punishments on students who violate hairstyle rules, the secretary-general of Thailand’s Basic Education Commission reiterated that responsibility over the rules lies with schools.…
- Thailand
Remember Thailand’s alcohol sales ban tomorrow!
As is custom for several of Thailand’s religious holidays, alcohol sales will be prohibited across the country tomorrow (Sunday) for Visakha Bucha Day. The day, the most significant in the Buddhist calendar, commemorates 3 defining events in the life of the Lord Buddha. These include his birth, attaining enlightenment at 35 years old, and then his death 45 years later,…
- Bangkok
University in Bangkok seeks approval for trials of its Covid-19 vaccine
One Bangkok university developing an mRNA Covid-19 vaccine is seeking approval from Thailand’s Food and Drug Administration to start the first 2 phases of trials of the vaccine on humans. The school, Chulalongkorn University, sent the vaccine for human trials in the US for the first phase, and the vaccine will be produced by BioNet-Asia in the second phase. The…
- Coronavirus (Covid-19)
As schools prepare to reopen, Thai officials discuss Covid-19 regulations
Thai health and education officials held a meeting yesterday to plan Covid-19 regulations, as the new school semester is right around the corner. Schools are expected to reopen on May 17. Officials from the Ministry of Public Health and Ministry of Education discussed how day schools and boarding schools alike will prevent and minimise any rebound of Covid-19. Both types…
- Economy
Employers in Thailand object to raising minimum wage
In the midst of Thailand’s worst worker’s debt in 14 years, Thai employers are opposing a new proposal to increase the country’s daily minimum wage. The currrent minimum daily wages range from 313 baht to 336 baht, depending on which part of the country you’re in. In Bangkok it’s 331 baht. Earlier this week, the Thai Labour Solidarity Committee and…
- Chon Buri
Chon Buri residents believe woman behaving bizarrely ‘possessed’
Chon Buri residents believe a woman is “possessed” after she jumped out of her car near a gas station in Mueang district, and started acted strangely. The 31 year old woman reportedly started acting with a number of bizarre behaviours, according to police from Chon Buri Police Station. These behaviours included rubbing her body with a Chinese talisman, and chanting…
- Economy
Survey says Thailand’s worker’s debt has hit a high after over a decade
A survey by the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce says the average debt of each worker’s household in Thailand is 217,000 baht this year. This is a 14 year high for Thailand. At the end of 2021, the country’s overall household debt was 14.6 trillion baht, one of the highest in Asia, per capita. Most service sector workers…
- Transport
Thailand officials say diesel will be 32 baht per litre from May 1
Get ready to say goodbye to Thailand’s 30 baht per litre price cap on diesel on May 1. Starting on Sunday, the price will be 32 baht per litre, according to the Oil Fuel Fund Office. Thailand’s permanent secretary for energy said the current 11 baht subsidy per litre is falling to 9.6 baht per litre. Officials from Thailand’s energy…
- North East
Boxing champion joins Thailand’s Palang Pracharath Party in Khon Kaen
A big name in Thailand’s boxing scene has now joined Thailand’s Palang Pracharath Party, and will represent the next election in Constituency 10 of the Khon Kaen province. The boxer, 49 year old Somrak Khamsing, won a gold medal in the US in 1996. After he retired from boxing, he became an actor. He then moved into politics. The Palang…
- Phuket
Phuket officials announce electric scooters to be used for security operations
Even though Phuket officials banned electric scooters from all public roads in February, they have now approved their use for security operations around Phuket Provincial Hall Complex. Yesterday, officials announced at Provincial Hall they have approved the use of electric scooters as a test phase to determine how safe they are. Representatives from Beam Mobility Team Co Ltd handed two…
- Economy
Thailand’s postal rates to go up after nearly 2 decades
For the first time in 18 years, Thailand’s postal rates are going up. The country’s Digital Economy and Society Ministry said that according to data from 2011-2020, Thailand Post has a social service burden of up to 18.4 billion baht, and it’s likely to keep rising. Yesterday, the Cabinet approved a proposal by the ministry to raise rates. Thailand’s profit…
- Technology
Thailand agrees to fund Zinc-ion batteries for electric vehicles
A Thai tech executive director says Thailand’s government has agreed to fund 192 billion baht to asset finding for the development and production of zinc-ion batteries for electric vehicles. The executive director of the National Science and Technology Development Agency says the funding will go to the agency for the project. The Thai government has swung their full support around…
- Chiang Rai
Chiang Rai business and tourism sectors weigh reopening Myanmar border bridge
A Chiang Rai commerce official hosted a meeting yesterday for business and tourism sectors to discuss reopening the Mae Sai district’s border crossing with Myanmar. The first Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge connecting the two countries there has been closed ever since Covid-19 hit Thailand in 2020. Since then, Mae Sai has lost a hundred billion baht per year, according to Pakaimas…
- Politics
Members of Thailand’s Move Forward Party banned from renewing passports
A member of Thailand’s Move Forward Party told the press today that she and two other party members had been banned from renewing their passports on suspicion that they have committed treason. MFP member Pannika Wanich made the announcement after meeting with Phaya Thai police today, who she said made the order for the ban. The Department of Consular Affairs…
- Economy
Thailand’s diesel price expected to spike starting May 1
Even though Thailand’s energy minister vowed last month to keep the 30 baht per litre cap on diesel prices until the end of May, officials now expect the diesel price to start pushing 35-36 baht per litre by the start of May. The director of the Energy Policy and Planning Office says all agencies have been instructed to plan how…
