Tax debate takes on new sense of urgency

Housing prices are on the boil again, heating up the debate on a property tax.

Both Finance Minister Lou Jiwei and Xu Shaoshi, the head of the National Development and Reform Commission, have confirmed recently that more cities will follow Shanghai and Chongqing as pilot cities for the property tax.

However, be it Hangzhou or Shenzhen, both prime candidates for the trial plan, the tax would only cover housing units bought after the program started, Chinese media have reported.