Government funds to get tighter audits
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China plans to tighten the auditing of fiscal funds and all government-related construction projects, according to a newly-revised regulation, in a bid to ensure sound use of public money and effective prevention of corruption.
The regulation on the implementation of the Audit Law, issued over the weekend by the State Council and to take effect on May 1, will help improve the country's auditing system, experts say. It will also boost the supervision of areas with high incidences of corruption, such as construction projects.
Apart from State-owned companies and projects, auditors will be entitled to track and supervise the use of fiscal funds by other companies and projects that use public money, according to the regulation.
The regulation also makes it clear that construction projects in which government investment exceeds 50 percent, or those with less than 50 percent government investment but which have government control over construction and operation, must accept auditing.
Meanwhile, the limitations for publishing auditing results will be canceled after the revision, which means the transparency in auditing results will be enhanced in the future. But listed companies must be notified of audit results five days before the public announcement.
Mao Shoulong, public policy professor at Beijing-based Renmin University of China, said: "The track audit will be good for the legitimate and efficient use of public funds and will also provide clues for anti-corruption campaigns."
"The newly-revised regulation has increased the independence of the audit administration, while investigation into big cases currently still needs the involvement of the Party's discipline watchdog, which means sometimes the audit authority cannot react in time to prevent State assets from being embezzled or place the suspects under control," 21st Century Business Herald quoted an insider yesterday.
Lin Yueqin, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said it would be better if the auditing departments were granted more power in personnel appointment.
Under the current regulation, local governments have the power to dismiss the auditing head, though the decision should be agreed on by a superior auditing department.
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