Professor Criticizes Plan to Replace Sin Tax with General Budget
Professor Burachit Singkaneti opposes a government plan to replace the 2% sin tax with general budget allocations, saying it would benefit alcohol and tobacco interests and harm health‑prevention programs. A former deputy health minister warned the change would weaken disease‑prevention efforts, increase illness, cut public‑health funding and worsen hospital deficits. Experts maintain the earmarked tax is fiscally sound and legally compliant, with no need for legal amendment.
Professor Burachit Singkaneti from NIDA’s Faculty of Law said the government’s proposal to scrap the 2% sin tax and replace it with general budget allocations is a deceitful move that cannot be implemented. He argued it would mainly benefit alcohol and tobacco businesses, while insisting the earmarked tax system is reasonable and fully compliant with fiscal discipline laws. He added that the draft law would cut articles 11‑14 of the existing legislation, making any ministerial rule to collect replacement taxes impossible. Former Deputy Health Minister Dr. Somkid Chunasorasri warned that abolishing the sin tax would undermine disease prevention, raise non‑communicable illness rates, increase the state’s health‑care burden, and slash public‑health budgets, worsening hospital deficits. He stressed that the earmarked tax is already subject to three layers of oversight—internal checks, the State Audit Office, and a revolving fund committee—so there is no fiscal‑discipline problem and no need to amend the law.
