Liaison offices ordered to close

The government on Friday officially announced its plan to close down thousands of local government liaison offices in Beijing and strengthen supervision to cut costs and uproot corruption.

Counties, local government departments, and development zones have been ordered to close liaison offices in the capital within six months, according to a circular issued by the General Office of the State Council, China's cabinet.

As of 2006, Beijing has 50 liaison offices representing China's provinces and special economic zones, 295 representing major cities, 146 representing local government departments and 436 representing counties, figures from the administration showed.