WHEN Deng Xiaoping welcomed the Queen to China in 1986 he took care to expectorate into a strategically positioned spittoon beside his chair. His countrymen these days are much less fastidious.

The Beijing city government yesterday identified spitting as the most serious bad habit among the capital’s 15 million residents and one that must be eliminated if China is to appear civilised come the 2008 Olympic Games.

Zhang Huiguang, director of the Beijing Capital Ethics Development Office, recognised the scale of the challenge before her but she comes to her campaign armed with numerous measures to try to ban the unbannable. The fine for citizens who spit in public has been increased tenfold to £3.50. Those who persist face even more serious punishments.

Offenders will be bombarded with exhortations on how to spit correctly. Ms Zhang said: “You have to spit into a tissue or bag, then place it into a dustbin.”

Anyone without a tissue to hand need not worry. Her office has organised an army of volunteers dressed in orange uniforms printed with the character tan or sputum in yellow on the back. They will hand out spitting bags to anyone needing to clear their throat.

The habit is ubiquitous and follows a ceremony perfected over centuries. First warning comes when the head is thrown back or tilted. This is followed by the sound of the clearing of the throat and finally the spit. Pavements are spattered in summer with globules of spittle and in winter with frozen blobs.

To swallow the phlegm is regarded as unhygienic. Ms Zhang said: “It is unhealthy to swallow spit so we need to help people to spit in a civilised way.” It is part of her project to transform the city into a metropolis of good manners.

Shen Hong, a lifestyle adviser, blames poor education coupled with a new-rich mentality for the spitting. “Attention today is on buying stocks, tomorrow on buying a house and the day after on staying in a five-star hotel but not on how to stay in that hotel. People don’t regard spitting as very serious, nor will they unless the fines are 1,000 kuai (£70).

Foreign visitors arriving for the Olympics will also be subject to tough Chinese punishments. Police will have the power to deport foreigners engaged in prostitution, who commit religious crimes, keep a barking dog or who send pornography on mobile-phones.

Gao Zhisheng, a lawyer, voiced concerns that the 238 new rules expand police powers deep into everyday life. “The police will be able to show up everywhere in our lives. For foreigners whom the police don’t like this will be an excuse to abuse their power.”

Foreigners can also be deported for disturbances at sports events — a rule that could be aimed at ensuring a trouble-free Olympics. For Beijing residents, their first concern for now, however, will be to improve their manners.

Ms Zhang has said that London, as host of the 2012 games, needs to get its act together. “When I visited London on an inspection tour, I saw people spitting there. And lots of litter.”

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