Expenditure on government cars to be cut by half
Print Edition
THE use of government vehicles by all but the most senior of China’s officials will be phased out by the end of next year.
The announcement was made in a central government guideline that reemphasized President Xi Jinping’s commitment to crack down on overspending and corruption.
The rule will not apply to the emergency services, or to officials holding the rank of deputy minister or above.
The government has targeted official corruption and extravagance since Xi’s election last year. He has repeatedly said that graft threatens the ruling Communist Party’s very survival.
Last year, the military began replacing licence plates on its cars and trucks in a bid to combat the legions of vehicles — many of them luxury brands — that were regularly reported breaking traffic laws and filling up with free petrol.
Now the Party is targeting the fleets of vehicles that ferry officials around.
In place of free vehicles, public servants will be paid a monthly transport allowance by the central government of between 500 (US$80) yuan and 1,300 yuan depending on their ranks, the guideline said.
In the past decades, officials above a certain level were provided with both a driver and a car for work purposes, though most were also used for private purposes, resulting in a massive waste of public funds and widespread public complaints.
In an unusual move, the government attached a timeframe to the guideline, saying it aims to complete its car reform of central government bodies by the end of this year and of local government institutions before the end of 2015.
A similar cleanup at all public utility and state-owned companies will be completed within the next two to three years.
The document also called for local authorities to properly relocate drivers and anyone else who might be laid off as a result of the changes, and to auction off redundant vehicles so as to minimize the loss of state assets.
Jia Kang, head of the Research Institute for Fiscal Science under the Ministry of Finance, said the move will involve about 800,000 vehicles.
In the long term, if factoring in maintenance and other administrative costs, expenditure on government vehicles will be cut by half, he said.
Spending on government vehicles accounts for about 60 percent of the so-called “three public consumptions,” namely overseas visits, vehicles and receptions.
The central government has set its annual budget for this year for such items at 7.151 billion yuan, down slightly from last year’s actual spending of 7.154 billion yuan.
The allocation includes 4.1 billion yuan for the purchase and maintenance of vehicles, 126 million yuan less than last year.
The latest reform in the sector comes amid the country’s ongoing frugality campaign, which is designed to achieve a cleaner and more transparent government.
In December 2012, central authorities issued their “eight-point rules,” requiring government officials to strictly practice frugality and clean up undesirable work styles, including formalism and extravagance.
Since then, formerly unchecked official activities, such as dining in high-end restaurants and receiving luxury gifts, have gradually ebbed.
While the public generally welcomed yesterday’s announcement, some people expressed doubt over whether the move will have the desired effect.
“I hope it doesn’t end in officials having both the cars and the subsidies,” an unidentified person said via the social media platform Weibo.
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