Other Views

Intensive spending calls for reform

Many blame government agencies for spending money intensively in the last season of the year. Ironically, according to the current budget regulations, if they do not spend the money, the money will be taken away by State finance, and their budget for next year will shrink because "they don't need so much". Only a total reform of this distorted system will effectively end the intensive spending.

Beijing News, Nov 20

The intensive spending of public money at this time of year always arouses wide attention because people feel government agencies fail to perform some of their duties with the excuse they have a "lack of money". The government should publish detailed accounts so that people know where their tax money goes.

Yang Xiaojun, a professor at the Chinese Academy of Governance, Procuratorial Daily, Nov 25

Every early spring, representatives from nationwide gather in the people's congresses to "review" the budget reports of government agencies. Everything seems to be going well, but the representatives have to finish so many jobs within one week they can spend little time on the reports; most simply sign "yes" without ever reading them carefully. Lack of supervision is the root cause of all problems related to the budget and it is time to change that.

People's Daily, Nov 26

Many State agencies that intensively spend money in the latter part of the year complain about their lack of money at the beginning of the year, because fiscal funding for the whole year won't come until the National People's Congress approves the annual central budget in March. Why not reform the current budget system and let the fiscal year match the natural year?

zjjzx.cn, Nov 25

To curb government agencies intensively spending money is only the first step for fiscal reform. How to deal with the surplus budget money? How to raise the efficiency of using the funds? How to adopt a more reasonable regulation, in which the budget for every State agency will be decided in a better way? All these questions need an answer.

Guangming Daily, Nov 21