The government has defended new requirements for the receipt of the elderly allowance, which replaces universal welfare payments. It said the universal welfare payments were too great a burden on state coffers.
Cabinet secretary-general Natjaree Ananthasilp said that the risk of the new rules restricting access to assistance was raised at a cabinet meeting on Tuesday following vocal criticism.
Social Development and Human Security (SDHS) Minister Juti Krairiksh told the meeting that if the old criteria were not revised, the government would have to shoulder costs of up to 100 billion baht a year from 2025, not to mention other expenses incurred by Thailand's increasingly ageing society.
The new regulation was signed by Interior Minister Anupong Paojinda and published in the Royal Gazette on Friday. The changes went into effect on Saturday.
The old regulations saw local administration organisations pay universal monthly allowances of 600-1,000 baht to all elderly people, with 600 baht for people aged 60-69, 700 baht for people aged 70-79, 800 baht for people aged 80-89, and 1,000 baht for people aged 90 years and older.
The new regulation states that from Saturday, only elderly people with no income or insufficient income to cover their cost of living are entitled to the monthly allowance from the state.
However, a provisional clause in the new regulations states that eligibility for payment does not apply to people who registered for the allowance with local bodies before Aug 12, 2023, meaning those currently receiving the allowance are not affected.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said after the meeting that the new criteria are in line with the recommendation of the national committee on the elderly.
He stressed the need for prudent budget spending at present but said if the incoming government has sufficient financial resources, it can make its own spending plans.
"The number of senior citizens is increasing. Some have enough money to live on, but others don't. So, we have to consider how much money is at our disposal," Gen Prayut said.
Mr Juti said the next government will ensure that it has its own committee go over payments for the elderly in detail before sticking with the new measures.
"Currently, there are about 4 million poor senior citizens. With limited budget funds, the government has to help the poor first," he said, adding that the Social Development and Human Security Ministry now receives an annual budget allocation of 8 billion baht.
"If the new government plans to offer a monthly allowance of 3,000 baht, it has to collect more taxes to fund the policy," Mr Juti said.
The 3,000-baht figure was taken from promises made by the Move Forward Party at campaign events, he said.
