Opposition seeks vote for new PM

Thailand's opposition Democrat Party called yesterday for an urgent parliamentary session to select a new prime minister, claiming it had won over enough lawmakers to form a coalition government.

In a petition to the speaker of parliament, the Democrats said a vote to succeed the administration sacked last week by the courts could be held sometime between Dec 12 and Dec 26.

"After talking to other parties, they will cooperate with us to form a new government, led by the Democrat Party," Abhisit Vejjajiva, the party's 44-year-old Oxford-educated leader and candidate for prime minister, told reporters.