THAILAND: Consideration of the proposal to extend the statutory opening hours of entertainment facilities in tourist areas from 2am to 4am has been postponed by the cabinet, according to Tourism and Sports Minister Pipat Ratchakitprakarn, while other areas have requested the extension.

The minister said the proposal, which was due to be considered by Cabinet on November 15, has been postponed to November 29 as other areas such as Songkhla and Kanchanaburi provinces have also requested extended closure times.

Eight first provinces had applied for this extension, Phuket, Krabi, Phang Nga, Samui, Pattaya, Hua Hin, Chiang Mai and Bangkok. Minister Pipat has signaled that he needs to consider these new demands and therefore the proposal will not be presented to the cabinet until November 29.

“Many areas meet the criteria for being open until 4 a.m. These areas also require extended closing times,” said Minister Pipat.

“But the Department and Cabinet will need time to consider these new applications.”

The rescheduling was not due to netizens or victims of traffic accidents due to alcoholism, the minister said, before adding that extending opening hours to 3am or 4am would improve the economics of those areas by 30 to 40 per cent.

TPN media warns that the postponement of this decision will have an impact on the broadcasting of football World Cup matches in these facilities, which are already in jeopardy due to disputes over broadcasting rights.

Original article: Adam Judd / The Phuket Express

https://thephuketexpress.com/2022/11/14/proposal-to-extend-nightspot-closing-hours-to-4-am-retermined-to-ende-november-for-thai-cabinets-consideration/