Faced with a downturn in revenue as a consequence of the global economic crisis, southern China's Guangdong Province has decided to reign in the spending of its provincial-level government departments.

The decision mandates that no increase is allowed for the purchase of cars and official business trips.

'The Beijing News' said restrictions are a good move to save public money, and will allow more government investment to boost the economy.

The article notes that available revenue may decrease in light of the economic crisis. But governments are tasked with injecting more money to stimulate the economy and improve welfare.

As a result, the difficult situation is forcing governments to explore other means of saving money.
Therefore, the newspaper says that imposing restrictions on the spending of civil servants is a useful measure.

It goes on to say that some government officials have wasted large sums of money in the name of public service. Statistics from the State Information Centre show that China's civil servants' spending amounted to one trillion yuan, or about 120 billion US dollars, in 2004.

The editorial then points out the government should take effective measures to cut out spending on unnecessary items- and use the money on public welfare projects instead.

It says the move by the Guangdong Provincial government has set an example for the whole country.

In conclusion, the newspaper calls on government officials around the country to follow suit in a bid to ensure much-needed investment in social welfare.