The Finance Ministry plans to reserve funds from the 20 billion baht first-home scheme to fund a home repair loan programme for flood victims with zero interest for the first three years.

The ministry will submit the proposal to the cabinet on Tuesday, Deputy Finance Minister Wirun Techapaiboon said on Friday.

About 5 billion baht will be reserved from the 20 billion baht budget for first home owners, he said.

The homeowner scheme, which offers zero interest for three years for a unit priced at one million baht or less, had received a lukewarm reception, Mr Wirun said.

Instead, Mr Wirun said, the floods had caused massive damage in numerous provinces, creating huge demand for soft loans for home repairs.