Beijing's municipal health authority will now document instances of those who illegally smoke in the social credit system, Beijing Evening News reported on Thursday.
The move, as part of the city's campaign to control smoking, is expected to deter the behavior in public spaces. A total of 2,265 such cases were reported in just one month between August and September, says a report by the Beijing Tobacco Control Association.
A man smokes a cigarette inside a children’s hospital in Beijing, June 1, 2015. /VCG Photo
In the first nine months of this year, 2,723 individuals who had engaged in illegal smoking were fined 143,600 yuan (about 21,100 US dollars), which increased by 30 percent compared with the same period of last year, according to the report.
In addition to publicly naming violators, the Beijing Municipal Commission of Health and Family Planning will share the records of those fined with the city's industrial and commercial administration, which would restrict violators' ability to apply for commercial loans.
A "no smoking" sign at Yungang Bus Station, Fengtai District, Beijing, February 17, 2017. /VCG Photo
The report also found that schools, small restaurants and office buildings had a relatively high compliance rate, with complaints over the use of electronic cigarettes in public places rising year on year.
The health authority is considering strengthening research on the harm brought by smoking electronic cigarettes to justify possible regulatory measures in the future.
A giant "no smoking" banner at the National Stadium, or better known as the Bird's Nest, in Beijing, May 29, 2015. /VCG Photo
Beijing adopted the country's strictest rules on public smoking in June 2015, prohibiting smoking in indoor public places, workplaces and public transportation. The move reduced the smoking population by about 200,000 three years later, according to official data in June.
China's social credit system was implemented in 2014, which aims to blacklist people with poor social credit, like defaulting debtors. Since May 1, travelers who smoke on bullet trains or the no-smoking areas on ordinary trains could be banned from train travel for 180 days.
A man grinds out his cigarette in an ashtray at a railway station in Shanghai, February 28, 2017. /VCG Photo
Although there is no national ban on smoking in the public, it isn't allowed on buses, planes, and subways around the country. And apart from Beijing, some Chinese cities have implemented local bans, like Shanghai, Tianjin and Hangzhou.
In April, the municipal government of Hangzhou published a ban on smoking in 10 public places, including hospitals, schools and sports arenas.