The new Cabinet of Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul is scheduled to deliver its policy statement to Parliament tomorrow (9 April). However, according to the policy statement published on Parliament’s website, constitutional amendment is not mentioned as a policy, but the referendum on constitutional amendment is mentioned only as a task undertaken during Anutin’s first term.

This is in contrast to the policy statement delivered at the beginning of Anutin’s first term, which explicitly stated that the government would organize a constitutional amendment referendum.

Anutin became Prime Minister for the first time in September 2025, after the Bhumjaithai Party agreed to conditions put forward by the People’s Party, which at the time had the most seats in the House of Representatives. The Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) signed by the two parties stated that People’s Party MPs would back Anutin’s bid to become Prime Minister if Bhumjaithai committed to amending the Constitution, among other conditions.

Constitutional reform was subsequently approved in the 8 February 2026 referendum, after 58.64% of voters voted in favour of a new Constitution.

Constitutional reform has been included in policy statements delivered by several governments since the 2023 general election. iLaw noted that the policy statements delivered by Srettha Thavisin and Paetongtarn Shinawatra mentioned that the government intended to draft a new constitution. However, the process was repeatedly delayed and both Srettha and Paetongtarn were dismissed by the Constitutional Court after around a year in office.

Parliament was in the middle of debating a bill proposing amendments to the 2017 Constitution concerning the amendment process and the formation of a constitutional drafting committee when the House of Representatives was dissolved on 12 December 2025. The dissolution came after a jointed sitting of MPs and senators voted to reject a proposal that future constitutional amendments be approved by a simple majority in a joint sitting, opting instead to revert to requiring support from at least one-third of senators.

It has been noted that several Bhumjaithai MPs join the vote to reject the proposal.

The government can still restore the bill to parliament. The Constitution gives a new Cabinet 60 days from the opening of parliament following a general election to restore any bill being considered by the House before dissolution.