Lack of regulation behind spate of food and medical scandals, says People’s Daily

Communist Party mouthpiece the People’s Daily has blamed the lack of proper legislation in China as the main cause behind a string of food safety, medical malpractice and academic fraud scandals in a report on Friday.

The lack of rule of law has led to a decline in morality among Chinese professionals, the newspaper warned, highlighting two recent cases in which unethical practices were uncovered.

On Wednesday, state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) reported that poppy shells had been found in hotpots sold by a Guangxi restaurant, a month after a noodle shop in Shaanxi province was discovered to have been offering poppy-laced noodles in a bid to lure customers.

Chinese academia also hit the headlines in October after the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection – the Communist Party’s watchdog – announced punishment for five renowned scholars, including sexologist Pan Suiming, for embezzling research funds.

Experts interviewed by the said that increasing malpractice within the food, medical and education industries were the consequence of a society in transition, and urged that new rules and codes of ethics be set up to regulate these sectors.

The report falls in line with Chinese President Xi Jinping’s high-profile campaign for legal reform in the mainland. “The Rule of Law” campaign was first advocated when Xi became president in 2012, and became the focus again at the Communist Party’s fourth plenum, a four-day closed-door meeting that ended in October.