Beijing's public toilets new two flies only rule

Beijing - Public toilets for tourists in the Chinese capital of Beijing are permitted to contain no more than two flies, in a new ruling which aims to improve standards. Odour monitoring will also be on the agenda.

New standards are being set by Beijing's Municipal Commission of City Administration and Environment. According to the BBC new regulations aim to standardise toilet management and will apply to typical tourist spots such as railway stations and parks. In addition to only two flies per lavatory being allowable, only two pieces of rubbish can be left lying around in the washroom area. Questions have been raised regarding the practicality of attendants actually counting the number of flies to ensure no more than two are present at any one time. The Telegraph reported Xie Guomin, head of the sanitation management division of BMCCAE, said "the new requirements are not compulsory and only aim to improve the Chinese capital's notoriously unpleasant public lavatories." The new ruling may help to improve the experience of foreigners visiting public toilets in China, as typified in this clip from "An Idiot Abroad."