Delegates expect more from 'National Bill'
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Delegates attending this month's National People's Congress (NPC) and Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) sessions told China.org.cn that they hoped the central government's budget report could become more exhaustive and comprehensible in the future.
Among the 'two sessions' delegates interviewed, the most common complaints about the budget report were lack of specific details regarding allocations, lack of significant explanation of budget statistics, and the report's obscure, overly-academic vernacular.
After the 2009 NPC & CPPCC sessions, the first "National Bill" debuted, marking the first steps taken by the central government to release the national budget to the public. However, delegates said the government still had a long way to go to make the report sufficiently accessible.
Tian Yuke, a NPC deputy from Hubei Province, has participated in the NPC sessions for three years, but said she still can not understand the budget report thoroughly.
"The group discussion about the central budget report seems somewhat like an academic symposium," Tian said.
According to CPPCC member Zhong Xiaoyu, the lack of transparency in reporting discourages public involvement in the budget discussions.
"The budget report is not so detailed, so we don't know the exact budgets of each [government] department," Zhong said.
"I hope the central government's budget report become clearer and add necessary explanations for important data," said NPC deputy Ye Qing, the deputy director of the Hubei Provincial Bureau of Statistics.
Delegates also stressed that the government should do more to promote understanding and transparency of its budget figures.
"Trainings should be organized by the NPC to help deputies easily understand the budget report," said Zhou Hongyu, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the Hubei Province People's Congress.
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