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Korn hints at reopening Don Mueang Airport
By ACHARA DEBOONME
THE NATION
Published on October 30, 2009
Don Mueang Airport could be reopened to full services as a second airport in Bangkok for economic reasons, Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij said yesterday.
On the opening day of a two-day conference organised by Krungthep Turakij newspaper entitled "Thailand Tomorrow", Korn said Don Mueang - which had been in service for more than 90 years before the opening of Suvarnabhumi Airport - could be reopened to compete with the new facility.
"This needs to be discussed still", he said.
The old airport now serves Orient Thai Airlines and subsidiaries, while Thai Airways International earlier this year relocated all its flights to Suvarnabhumi.
It was reported earlier that if Don Mueang Airport reopened, the expansion of Suvarnabhumi, which would require cost more than Bt70 billion, could be delayed.
The minister also said the government was committed to massive restructuring at the people, private and national levels, in order to ensure long-term economic viability.
"It's known that return from government assets is low while there's economic wealth - like monopolies in several industries. Without restructuring, Thailand will show no development," Korn said.
At the national level, the Finance Ministry is introducing changes to ensure good governance.
Korn expressed surprise that even though ministry officials possessed inside information about the financial market, there was no rule controlling their stock investment. There is also concern over state officials serving as company directors.
A greater focus will be placed on strengthening the private sector, with plans to lower corporate income tax from 30 per cent to 25 per cent, in order to revise the excise-tax collection system and further liberalise the financial market.
Korn said the tax cut would take effective only after the ministry found ways to make up the missing revenue.
Meanwhile, more licences in the financial services could be issued in weak areas like microfinance and opening of foreign bank branches.
"Private investment must be increased. Private investment in the Thai Khemkhaeng (TKK) scheme accounts for only 2 per cent of the Bt1.4-trillion investment budget. It's a signal that private participation should be increased. The government investment budget will narrow, because more money will go towards caring for the elderly and other social considerations. Future investment will come mainly from the private sector, as we cannot afford to launch TKK every year," he said.
At the people level, there are measures to strengthen the people, such as agricultural-product price guarantees and issuing saving bonds for individual investors.
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva told the conference the government would launch a number of measures next year with the main focus on increasing private companies' competitiveness in the global arena and turning populist policies into a full social-security system.
Commerce Minister Porntiva Nakasai stressed export growth would be at least 10 per cent next year, thanks to the recovery in global demand and ministry efforts to open up new markets.
