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proposed. In the pre-legislative drafting stage, stakeholder consultation provides
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the responsible government agencies necessary information regarding whether or

not its proposed measure would likely have the desirable effects as well as whether
or not there are previously unrealized inadvertent consequences or impacts of the

bill on the stakeholders. The Constitution imposes a duty on the Government to
create a platform on which all relevant parties can partake conveniently and

efficiently. To this end, the Cabinet approved a guideline on the legislative drafting
process in accordance with Section 77 of the Constitution, included within which

is the recommendations on conducting a stakeholder consultation. Nevertheless,
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it became clear that an imposition of formal legal obligation on government

agencies to hold meaningful and comprehensive stakeholder consultation is
needed, leading to the draft law on the legislative drafting process (the so-called

Section 77 Bill) by the Law Reform Commission. 27

One of the main objectives of the aforementioned Bill is to systematically

enhance the level and substance of people’s participation in the legislative process
beyond their eligibility to elect local and national representatives. A responsible

government agency of a bill or regulatory measure will be required to conduct a
consultation with stakeholders through a new central system and present the

content of the proposed bill or measure in a clear and easily accessible manner for

25. The promotion of stakeholder engagement and participation is in line with the ASEAN Work Plan on
Good Regulatory Practice and the OECD Best Practice Principles on Stakeholder Engagement in
Regulatory Policy.

26. The Cabinet Resolution, April 4th, 2017 (in Thai).
27. The Bill has received an approval from the Cabinet and is being finalized before sending to the
National Assembly for review. It is expected to come into force by March 2019. An English
translation of the Bill is on file with the author (Narun).

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