英语角-圆桌会议 RoundTable - 公务员升迁潜规则

Topic1 Beijing may introduce congestion charge in 2015Beijing is to unveil plans for a low-emission zone and vehicle congestion charge by the end of the year, with the measures to come into effect as early as 2015.

Environmental officials say they are consulting with experts on whether to adopt a scheme similar to those followed in London or Milan.

In London, the congestion charge is only imposed in some parts of the low-emission zone, while a fee is collected from every driver entering the low-emission zone in Milan.

Finally…it seems this will be happening after long time talk?

Topic2 Beijing Works to Build Wholly Foreign-Funded HospitalsThe Beijing municipal government says it is seeking central government support to build wholly foreign-owned medical establishments.

Han Xiaofang, chief of the municipality's medical reform office, says the city is making active efforts to seek approval from higher authorities to spearhead the country's deepening medical reforms.

Will wholly foreign-owned hospitals hopefully help ease the pressure on the current medical system?

Why is Beijing thinking about doing it?

Topic3 Building Buhhda for TourismWhen talking about giant Buddha statues in the country, most of us will probably think of the stone one in Leshan, which is over 1,200 years old. However, if compared to some modern ones, it can not be called "giant" any more.

In recent years, some local tourism bureaus and developers are racing to build ever-higher statues of Buddha.

How common has this become?

Topic4 Food Safety Crisis in Rural AreaJust when Chinese urban citizens are trying to stay away fromgutter oil, tainted milk, GM soybeans and envy green and natural vegetables, eggs and meat their rural counterparts are enjoying, journalists warn that rural citizens' health isseverely threatened by fake, expired and shoddily produced food products.

How big of a problem are we talking about? Is there a crisis?

Topic5 Promotion Rules for Civil ServantsA post about career rules for civil servants went viral on the internet. The writer, Qi Tiantian, said she recently found a job in a government office after five years of working in an enterprise. She used to get compliments about her appearance, efficiency and intelligence, but in her new office, her boss told her these qualities don't matter that much. If she wants to get promoted, good performance is not enough, as she needs someone to back her up.

Qi also summarizes 22 hidden rules for government office workers who have career ambition.

Do these rules make sense?

Topic6 Things You're Most Disappointed ByA ranking of what make people disappointed is very popular on weibo recently. According to the original post, the results are voted by more than 60,000 net users.

Let's see if you can sympathize with some of the situations or not.