Strengthening the public finances to spread wealth more widely would be a priority of his second term, Premier Wen Jiabao promised yesterday as he tried to address one of the most pressing issues raised by the National People's Congress. 'I've resolved to push ahead with reforms to public finance in my next five years,' Mr Wen said at his annual press conference on the last day of the NPC's annual meeting. 'Public money should be better spent to meet public needs.' In a subtle acknowledgement of the administration's lack of openness and transparency on government spending, Mr Wen described the public finance reform as something 'rarely talked about in the past'. It would, however, figure high in future economic restructuring, he said. Echoing the concerns of NPC deputies and Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference delegates about the government's inadequate social policies, Mr Wen promised to shift priorities further away from the overriding pursuit of growth to more balanced economic and social development. A chronicle of the country's fiscal evolution should reflect not only economic growth but also social equality and justice, Mr Wen said. The ultimate purpose of the public finance revamp was to optimise the mode of growth while improving people's livelihoods and the environment, he added. Finance Minister Xie Xuren told Xinhua that public finance reform would focus on a consumption tax, levies on fuel, energy and resources, and the strengthening of local finance. A package of tax policies would be released this year to facilitate innovation, energy conservation and environmental protection, Mr Xie said. Central government revenue rose 34.6 per cent last year to 2.9 trillion yuan (HK$3.2 trillion), more than double the forecast, while national revenue for all levels of government rose 32.4 per cent to 5.1 trillion yuan. Many deputies at the NPC session were critical that too little tax revenue had been reinvested in society at large and in basic access to public services such as health, education and social welfare. Almost one-third of the policy proposals made by NPC deputies were about education, which last year accounted for public spending equal to around 3 per cent of the gross domestic product, compared with the world average of 4 per cent. Mr Wen seems ready to back up his rhetoric with action. In his work report, delivered on the opening day of the NPC meeting, he announced big budget increases for health, education and welfare to reduce growing inequality - a major source of increasing social discontent. 'All my colleagues sitting on the podium agree with me that only when you hold people dear in your heart can they support you in your office,' Mr Wen said yesterday.