The ruling Pheu Thai Party has decided to remove the military-backed Palang Pracharat Party (PPRP) from its new coalition government.

The Phalang Pracharat Party (PPRP) appears to have broken into two factions after party leader Gen Prawit Wongsuwan said that Thamanat Prompao, the Party’s Secretary-General and Caretaker Agriculture Minister, will not be given a seat in the cabinet of new Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra. Thamanat subsequently threatened to leave the party and to take a number of MPs with him.

ThaiPBS and the Thai Journalists Association have requested an ethics investigation of Gen Prawit Wongsuwan, Palang Pracharat Party leader and MP, after he slapped a ThaiPBS reporter last Friday (16 August).

ThaiPBS and the Thai Journalists Association have demanded that Gen Prawit Wongsuwan, Phalang Pracharat Party leader and MP, take responsibility for assaulting a ThaiPBS reporter who asked him about the vote for a new Prime Minister.

<p>The Constitutional Court has accepted a petition asking it to rule whether Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha&rsquo;s time in office is up due to the 8-year maximum term limit for a Prime Minister imposed by the 2017 Constitution, and suspended him from office until a ruling is made.</p>

<p>Signs of a cabinet reshuffle show an attempt by the establishment to solve disputes within the government coalition. Facing a crisis of legitimacy, they also want to buy time.</p>