Top military brass have been told that "no luxury or hedonism will be tolerated" - the warning issued by the Central Military Commission (CMC) less than a year after a five-year anti-corruption campaign was launched last October.

Military insiders told China Daily the directive, issued over the weekend, is a strong signal to senior officers to stop extravagant spending by some.

Corruption in the People's Liberation Army (PLA) has rarely been revealed; and the last time a case was made public was when 66-year-old Wang Shouye was expelled as the deputy commander of the Chinese Navy in June 2006 for abusing power and taking bribes.