Beijing old town protection lacks funding, population redistributing: report

Beijing has not put enough funding in protecting the city's historic areas and many residents in those areas still live in bad conditions, said a report released by the city's legislature on Saturday.

The standing committee of the Beijing people's congress said the protection was mainly funded by the government and the money was not enough. It said social investments were small as the city lacked a mechanism for attracting such funding.

According to the report, about 300,000 people living in those areas have poor housing conditions and infrastructure.

The government has not issued standards saying which buildings should be protected and what activities would affect the historic value, the report said. Endit