Chuan Leekpai, the President of the National Assembly of Thailand said on Thursday that watching pornographic material in parliament does not breach any ethics guidelines and was not against regulation.
Ronnathep Anuwat, an MP for the ruling Palang Pracharath Party, was photographed looking at a pornographic material during a parliamentary debate on the budget on Wednesday.
The MP said after the photo was leaked to the media that he had unintentionally looked at the photo that was anonymously sent to him.
He said he had to look at the message because the subject of the message was a plea for help. He has since deleted the photograph from his phone and he suspects that the people who sent the photo to him were trying to discredit him.
Chuan defending Ronnathep on Thursday against people calling for an investigation saying that the MP cannot be investigated or punish because he did not violate any regulations.
The MP can only be reprimanded and no committee will be formed to investigate the matter as it was a personal matter, he added.
It is not the first time that a Thai parliamentarian has been caught watching porn. There have been at least three instances in the last decade where bored MPs found solace in erotica.