From Wednesday, entertainment venues in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket, Chonburi and 27 other Blue and Green zone provinces will be permitted to serve alcohol until midnight. However, venue operators must request permission from the provincial communicable disease committee and self-assess via the Thai Stop Covid 2 Plus platform before reopening. Customers may be asked to show proof of vaccination, while people at risk of infection have been advised to avoid entertainment venues.

From June 1, unvaccinated or partially vaccinated travellers can produce a negative rapid antigen or RT-PCR test taken within 72 hours of departure. Those failing to do so will be put in quarantine until a test result is released. Also, Thai travellers will no longer be required to register for Thailand Pass tomorrow, though registration is still required for foreigners, who must also provide proof of US$10,000 Covid-19 insurance.

The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission has instructed all telecom operators to strictly comply with the Personal Data Protection Act which is scheduled to come into force on Wednesday. Major mobile operators have affirmed they are fully prepared for customer data protection and cybersecurity standards in line with the requirements of the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA), which is scheduled to come into force on Wednesday. The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), meanwhile, has instructed all telecom operators to strictly comply with the PDPA. AIS has ramped up efforts to boost customer understanding about the law so they are aware of their rights in terms of personal data protection, he said. The firm collects, stores and manages users' personal data in compliance with the PDPA while its policy details the opportunities that clients can monitor and manage their personal data.

NPO bill's opponents confront police barricadeProtesters, left, and police, right, face off across rolls of razor wire in the middle of Chamai Maruchet bridge on Monday. The protesters are demanding the government shelve the NPO bill. About 10.30am their leaders began speaking by turn, saying the government-sponsored bill was against the constitution and principles of human rights. The protest leaders announced at 12.10pm they would step up the protest to another level. The NPO bill is currently being put for public opinion by the Social Development and Human Security Ministry, after the cabinet approved it in principle in January.

'No foreign doctors,' insist medical chiefsThe Medical Council of Thailand (MCT) on Monday refuted claims by some private sector hospitals that they have foreign doctors on staff to assist with patient care and perform surgical procedures. Dr Ittaporn Kanacharoen, the MCT's secretary-general, yesterday clarified the issue after some privately run hospitals advertised that they have foreign doctors available to see patients. Under current laws, foreign doctors are only allowed to work in state programmes due to concerns regarding issues of liability, he said. "The medical council reviews all applications for foreign doctors every month. He said Thai doctors who graduate from overseas are required to have a medical licence to practice like those who graduate locally, while foreign doctors who practice without a Thai licence and a permit from the medical council will face legal action.

Published byThe Bangkok PostRemembering the legend Ray Liottapublished : 31 May 2022 at 04:00 newspaper section: [Life](http://search.bangkokpost.com/search/result_advanced?category=news&xNewsSection=Life) Last Thursday, Hollywood and the world were mourning the sudden loss of Ray Liotta, the prolific actor in hit films like Goodfellas and Field Of Dreams. So far, it’s been reported that Liotta died in his sleep in the Dominican Republic where he was shooting a new film. “Ray was working on a project in the Dominican Republic called Dangerous Waters when he passed. He passed in his sleep. He is survi…Read More

As of Sunday, the Oil Fuel Fund is in a deficit of 81 billion baht, of which 45.9 billion baht deficit is in the oil subsidy and 35.4 billion baht in the LPG subsidy. The fund’s liquidity stands at 9.7 billion baht, 3.2 billion baht of which is in the fund’s bank account and 6.5 billion baht deposited with the Finance Ministry.

The Finance Ministry is considering the private sector's proposal to delay and reduce collection of the land and building tax because businesses are struggling with the double whammy of the impact of the pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war, says minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith. In 2020, the government issued a 90% cut to the land and building tax to ease the burden on owners of land and building sites because of the severe impact of the pandemic. A ministry source who requested anonymity said the ministry is concerned a delay or cut of this tax could affect the local administrations' revenue. Though this year landowners have to resume paying the full amount, the land and building tax law still offers a payment discount this year. Regarding the tax discount rules, if landowners are assessed a tax higher than the amount calculated under the previous land tax, they are allowed to pay the previous tax rate.

F-35 purchase plan in perilThe Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) will not back down on its request to purchase US-made F-35 fighter jets, even after the opposition party announced it would use the issue to vote down the 2023 budget bill during an upcoming House debate. The air force is aiming to procure three of the aircraft per year in each phase, and the process may take about seven years. Yutthapong Charasathian, deputy leader of the Pheu Thai Party, said opposition parties will vote down the budget bill in parliament tomorrow over the plan to purchase the F-35s. He said that the country needs money for development and financial relief rather than new fighter jets. "I wanted to know why we need new fighter jets and who we must fight against," he said.

He said the fair successfully matched 46 leading global firms from 12 countries with the 53 Thai digital content makers. The matchings led to 266 online negotiating partners and helped the Thai firms sell products worth THB690.65 million, Phusit added. Animations accounted for THB412.9 million, digital characters for THB150 million, games THB103.9 million and e-learning courses THB23.6 million. The foreign firms were mostly interested in Thailand’s animation outsourcing services, followed by game outsourcing service, game development and animation co-production, Phusit added.

He will defend the budget in Parliament on Tuesday. Of the total, 78.2% will go towards funding fixed expenses while the rest will finance investment projects, she said, adding the coming year's fiscal budget is 85 billion baht higher than that of 2022. A sum of around 270 billion baht will be earmarked for 265 projects spanning 14 ministries and aimed at tackling poverty in five core areas of development, she said. He likened the bill to a seriously ill elephant and claimed the majority of the provisions merely address existing needs, while only 30% of the budget has been set aside for future management of the country. The government should better plan its budget to bring about the recovery of the country's economy and raise public hope, he said.

(Photo: Varuth Hirunyatheb)Whether the government should bid farewell to economic stimulus measures became a source of debate after the topic was raised by an economist at Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI). He said these measures help reduce the cost of living for the public, attributed to surging global energy prices. Economic stimulus is insufficient for the long run. Authorities must prioritise jobs and clearly understand who will be the target groups for their economic measures. When the economy fully recovers, the government can reduce the budget deficit and create a balanced budget, said Mr Pornchai.

(Photo: Nutthawat Wicheanbut)The Department of Disease Control (DDC) has stopped reporting Covid-19 infections using rapid antigen test kits (ATK) and plans to report only cases that require hospitalisation. She discussed the proposed change to the way Covid-19 infections will be reported after positive Covid-19 cases using ATKs were dropped from the DDC's dashboard. "Changes are being introduced to Covid-19 reporting and, after June 1, we plan to report only the cases with symptoms and requiring hospitalisation," she said. The proposed change will be submitted to the meeting of the ministry's emergency operations centre (EOC) tomorrow before it is adopted by the CCSA, she said. The easing of face mask wearing will have to be approved by the CCSA and published in the Royal Gazette.

Registered EVs fell into three categories: battery electric vehicles (BEVs), hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV). The government has ambitions to make Thailand the largest EV production hub in the world, with EVs constituting 50 per cent of total domestic auto production by 2030. Comparison of EV registration April 2021 vs April 2022:

The top 10 countries are:Singapore: 68,435India: 58,716Vietnam: 25,273Malaysia: 24,804Cambodia: 21,087US: 20,407UK: 18,255Australia: 18,077UAE: 14,933Germany: 13,346A total of 490,637 tourists visited Thailand between May 1 and 27, of which 401,722 were foreigners and 88,915 were Thais. Meanwhile, 724,291 tourists registered for entry via Thailand Pass between April 29 and May 27. Of these 709,463 were approved, 14,740 rejected, and 7,088 were waiting for approval. From Wednesday, June 1, Thai nationals will no longer have to apply for the pass though the requirement will remain for foreign travellers.