The House of Representatives will convene on July 4 to select a speaker and two deputies, according to Senate Speaker Pornpetch Wichitcholchai.
He said His Majesty the King will preside over the state opening of parliament on July 3, and Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and cabinet ministers, newly elected MPs, senators and foreign diplomats will attend the ceremony.
The following day from 9–9.30am, MPs will select a House speaker, who will also serve as president of parliament and two deputies, Mr Pornpetch said.
Each House speaker candidate will be given a chance to share their vision for the development of the Thai parliament before the vote, he said, adding that the session will be held behind closed doors while voting will be carried out via secret ballots.
A joint sitting of the House of Representatives and the Senate is expected to convene on July 13 to select a new prime minister, and the appointment of new cabinet ministers and the swearing-in ceremony for new ministers should be complete in August, according to sources.
Pheu Thai secretary-general Prasert Chantararuangthong previously said the party would finalise its stance on who should get the House speaker role during an internal meeting today before discussing the matter with prospective coalition partner the Move Forward Party, ahead of a planned meeting between all eight prospective coalition parties.
Both parties are expected to settle their differences over the speaker post before the opening of parliament.
MFP secretary-general Chaithawat Tulathon on Monday reiterated that the new House speaker should be from the MFP, which won the most House seats in the May 14 election.
"We should give Pheu Thai some time to reach a conclusion among its members," he said. "The MFP has not [pressured] Pheu Thai to let us take the House speaker position."
"It is a matter of general principle in the parliamentary system," he said.
He also said he believes the MFP and Pheu Thai would act in line with the mandate of voters and work together to form a coalition government successfully.
Asked about talks with senators to secure their support for MFP prime minister candidate Pita Limjaroenrat, Mr Chaithawat said most senators will wait for the outcome of the selection of the House speaker first. "We expect the senators to vote for a candidate nominated by a party that can gather the support of a majority in the House," he said.
