The Pheu Thai Party is pushing for an amendment to the constitution which would require the next prime minister to be selected by members of parliament.
The chairman of the main opposition party's panel on politics, constitution and democracy, Chusak Nilsiri, said the party has prepared three amendments aimed at improving accountability and people's freedom. The first relates to a change that would require a prime ministerial candidate to be selected from MPs whose party is represented in the House, he said.
However the bill also stipulates that the entire cabinet would not have to resign should the prime minister's MP status be revoked for any reason, resulting in an automatic loss of premiership, he noted. The second bill seeks to remove all conditions for denying bail to criminal suspects, except in cases where the suspect has been proved to be a flight risk.
The change would prevent national security from being cited as grounds for refusing bail.
The third bill would introduce a requirement for a public hearing to be held in all projects which have the potential to harm the environment or health.