Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin denied seeking to amend a law to curb the power of the Bank of Thailand (BoT) governor following a dispute over the central bank's stance on interest rates.
Asked whether the government will amend the Bank of Thailand Act to curb the BoT governor's powers, Mr Srettha said such an idea had not crossed his mind.
"It is the Finance Ministry's task to handle the matter. I never told the BoT governor to resign. I never pressured him. But I don't know what will happen in the future. You must ask the Finance Minister [Pichai Chunhavajira]," Mr Srettha said on Monday.
"The BoT governor does not want me to communicate directly with him. He suggested the government should coordinate with the BoT through the Finance Ministry's State Enterprise Police Office. I have acted on his suggestion," the prime minister said.
"I am not in conflict with the BoT governor. I am fighting against people's poverty. Poverty stems partly from high interest rates. That's all I can say. Politicians, MPs, cabinet ministers and the BoT all have good intentions for the country, but we approach problems differently," Mr Srettha said.
He previously said he would meet the newly appointed finance minister to discuss how to coordinate and work more efficiently with the central bank.
Earlier, Mr Srettha stood by Pheu Thai leader Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who recently criticised the central bank's stance on interest rates.
Speaking at an event last Friday at Pheu Thai's headquarters, Ms Paetongtarn criticised the BoT, which has refused to bow to constant pressure to cut interest rates.
"The law that keeps the Bank of Thailand independent from the government is a problem and a major obstacle in solving economic problems," she said.
Ms Paetongtarn said the country has relied heavily on fiscal policy to shore up the economy, which has resulted in high public debt and budget deficits.
"If the BoT doesn't understand and cooperate with the government [in its efforts to tackle economic problems], we can't [win]," she said.
The government has repeatedly urged the BoT to consider revising its interest rate policy and lowering the benchmark rate to stimulate the economy. Mr Srettha previously said the current rate of 2.5%, a 10-year high, is hurting the public and may exacerbate the nation's high household debt.