The cabinet has approved a draft amendment to the National Police Act to make seniority a key criterion for all promotions of police officials, deputy government spokeswoman Traisuree Taisaranakul said on Wednesday.
A reason cited to support this change is that seniority-based promotions will require less personal judgement by superiors deciding on promotions and will also assure police that if they continue performing their duties well, they are bound to get promoted when they have enough seniority, said Ms Traisuree.
The draft amendment also includes a better career path for police investigators, she added.
If any police officials feel they were treated unfairly in any seniority-based promotions, they will be able to lodge a complaint with the Royal Thai Police's "moral committee", she said.
The draft amendment also shines light on punishments for police officials who take bribes, which would strip them of any promotions and could also result in their having to serve up to five years in prison, she said.
The amendment also prohibits the transfer of a police officer without appointing a replacement.
The draft amendment also includes a transitory provision dealing with the transfer of certain areas of work by the police to other state organisations, namely railway policing, natural resources and environmental policing and traffic policing, she said.
This amendment is required to ensure the Police Act adheres to the 2017 constitution's Chapter 16 on national reform and Section 258 on judicial processes, she said.