Let power run in sunshine

Whatever the law does not prohibit can be done as far as the market is concerned, while whatever the government does must be authorized by law. That is how Premier Li Keqiang summarized why the government must sim-plify approval procedures, cancel unnecessary items for approval and publish lists of such items.

Li made the remarks when he delivered a speech on the fight against corruption on Feb 11, the text of which was published on Sunday.

On Feb 8, the State Council required all its departments to publish lists of items that require their approval. Li said that only those items included on the lists would require approval. He also said local governments would gradually have to publish their own lists.