Beijing's municipal government has vowed to take the lead in encouraging more conservation-minded government by cutting spending by 10 percent this year.

To reach this target, Beijing's government will tighten control of spending on things like meetings, travel and transportation, according to government sources.

It will halt the construction of luxury office buildings and has ordered all government units to stop building training centers. The government will also hold fewer meetings and issue fewer documents.

Government units have been forbidden to compete with one another in lavishness or rash spending.

As the capital of China, Beijing has taken the lead in cutting government spending which may encourage other provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities to follow suit, said Ren Yuling, a national political advisor.

"Reaching the 10 percent target is not the be-all and end-all. However, Beijing's example is of great importance," Ren said.

The administrative cost of China's governments at all levels is 25 percent more than the world average, which has caused concern among the Chinese leadership.

It has been reported that a city in Central China's Hubei Province spends 15 million yuan ($1.94 million) on government cars annually, 11 million yuan more than what would have been needed if the cars had been privately owned.

Premier Wen Jiabao said last month while delivering a government work report that "one important task we are now facing is dealing with the serious problem of extravagance and waste in some government bodies."

Wen said: "we will ... work to reduce government overhead and build a conservation-minded government."

Beijing tightened its management of overseas travel by officials last year in a bid to reduce government overheads. The municipal government rejected 251 unnecessary overseas travel plans involving 484 officials.

Xinhua

(China Daily 04/05/2007 page4)