he audit report will be reviewed by

he audit report will be reviewed by the National Rice Policy Committee before it is passed on to the Cabinet for acknowledgement.

"The report's scope does not cover observations on possible irregularities, but it insists that the account-closing committee include representatives from agencies like the Public Debt Management Office and State Enterprise Policy Office to prevent any impacts on the country's monetary and fiscal stances," Areepong said.

When he bade farewell to the ministry yesterday, he told all officials there to adhere to their tasks in nurturing the national fiscal position.

The ministry is the key agency that has to deal with the world, he said.

The pledging scheme is now in its third year. The Finance Ministry is being pressed to find fresh funds for the scheme, which has exhausted nearly Bt700 billion. Some state-owned banks are also being asked to help out.

Manoonrat Lertkomolsuk, president of the Small and Medium Enterprise Develop-ment Bank of Thailand, said Thai Credit Guarantee Corporation (TCG) was asked to guarantee the borrowings of rice mills with insufficient collateral.