Reward for honesty: Guangzhou 'to give cash to people handing in lost cash, property'

Guangzhou’s city government in southern China is to give people who hand in lost cash or belongings 10 per cent of their value as a reward, according to a newspaper report.

A regulation authorising the payments was issued on Monday, the Guangzhou Daily reported.

Valuations will be carried out by qualified organisations and the rewards will be covered by government funding, the report said. 

The deputy chief of the Guangzhou’s police bureau, Luo Zhenhui, predicted the total outlay would be no more than 100,000 yuan (HK$120,000) each year, the newspaper reported.

The regulation was passed after discussions over three years. 

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The draft proposal was released for public consultation in 2012 and some people argued that returning lost valuables was a sign of honesty and that offering a reward would undermine its moral value. 

Luo told the Guangzhou Daily the regulation could, in fact, promote better moral behaviour.