The Communist Party of China has warned that cadres who take advantage of their positions for insider trading on the stock market or allow their spouses or children to take advantage of their influence in business will face anti-corruption enforcement.

A communique released yesterday at the end of a three-day plenary session of the Party's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection also warned officials against several other unhealthy practices.

These include accepting cash or financial instruments as gifts, taking gifts at occasions such as weddings and funerals, occupying extra apartments or circumventing the rules to buy affordable housing intended for low and medium income earners.

The crackdown on corruption in 2008 will also focus on officials who seek to profit from involvement in construction bids, land sales, trading of property rights and government procurement, the communique said.

Officials who buy or sell official posts or use social connections with upper-level officials to solicit promotions, and those who offer bribes during elections, will be severely punished, according to the communique.

Officials who fail to implement orders from central government or disregard bans ordered by central government will be asked to amend, so as to ensure the Party's decisions be smoothly implemented on matters such as market price regulation and control, energy conservation and pollutant discharge reduction, fixed assets investment, land management and real estate market regulation.

Special efforts will also be made to rectify official malpractice in the fields of environmental protection, food and medicine safety, work safety, and land appropriation which ordinary citizens always pay great attention to and are loudly critical of, according to the communique.

Supervision will be intensified on the management of social security funds, housing accumulating funds and special funds for poverty and disaster relief.

The communique said the intensity of the fight against corruption will be maintained. Corrupt cases involved leading officials will be targeted. Collusion between officials and businessmen, trades between power and money, power and eroticism will be severely dealt with. As well as punishment under the legal code, cadres behaving badly can expect additional punishment including dismissal from their posts and expulsion.

Corruption in construction projects, land management, mineral resources, as well as corruption in state-owned enterprises, financial institutions and the judicial system will be severely punished.