Britney can tour (under cover)

China has agreed to let Britney Spears tour the Communist country for the first time — as long as she covers up on stage.

Officials have reportedly given the pop singer approval to tour Shanghai and Beijing but want to know what she plans to wear before she arrives.

Miss Spears — who has a reputation for skimpy, sexy outfits — is one of only a handful of Western artists to have been given permission to perform in China since it became a Communist state in 1949.

Its Culture Ministry has approved her five-concert tour for some time next year but first wants to inspect her wardrobe, it was reported yesterday.

‘Relevant departments will carry out strict reviews of Britney Spears’ performance clothing,’ the semi-official China News Service said.

It quoted an unidentified spokesman for the concert’s Chinese organisers as saying that the ministry’s wishes would be respected.

But he said Miss Spears’ outfits and stage show are the same on each stop of her worldwide tour — which promotes her latest album, In The Zone — and it would be ‘ impossible to make up clothes especially for the China performances’.

Last November, Mariah Carey played two concerts in Shanghai while British hard-rockers Deep Purple performed in Beijing and Shanghai in March.