BEIJING, April 22 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese government is to establish a credit record system and blacklist individuals and organizations found committing illegal practices in government procurement.

    Qu Wanxiang, vice minister of supervision, announced the measure on Tuesday in a tele-conference held by the finance and supervision ministries, the National Audit Office and the National Bureau of Corruption Prevention.

    Qu, also deputy head of the National Bureau of Corruption Prevention, said the blacklisted individuals and companies would be banned from trading.

    The four departments announced the launch of a special nationwide survey of government procurement from May to September to uncover illegal practices.

    Embezzlement and bribery by companies submitting tenders for government contracts would be the focus of the survey, said Qu.

    Premier Wen Jiabao's administration has increased procurement spending since 2002. Governments at various levels spent more than 400 billion yuan (57.1 billion U.S. dollars) in purchasing equipment and fixed assets in 2007.

Editor: Gao Ying