Legislators are to discuss a plan which will give them the authority to scrutinise the government budget. The National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee will begin a week-long session next week. Sources said one of the items on the agenda was to discuss a resolution on 'central budget scrutinisation and supervision'. If adopted, the resolution will give a recently set-up working committee under the NPC's Finance and Economic Committee the power to supervise the Government's income and expenses. Sources said the Standing Committee initially intended to put forward a regulation instead of a resolution. Members eventually agreed to compromise after the Ministry of Finance voiced opposition and blocked the proposal when the committee met in August. 'The fact that it was toned down from a regulation to a resolution indicates that it may weaken the power of the NPC to supervise the Government over its budget even if it is adopted,' a senior official of the NPC said. The official said regulations and resolutions adopted by the NPC carried legal power, although a resolution usually implied a shorter implementation period. The official said: 'NPC Standing Committee members had to make a compromise. It is better to include the resolution in the Standing Committee's agenda now than have it never reach the discussion table.' At present, supervision by NPC members is largely procedural, but the setting up of the working committee and adoption of the resolution would give legislators more power in carrying out their responsibilities. Under the proposed resolution, government departments would be required to provide detailed breakdowns of their spending and income when they submit their budgets.