Special Report: NPC, CPPCC Annual Sessions 2007

    II. Further achievements were made in oversight work.

    There were two prominent features in last year's oversight work of the Standing Committee. First, the Standing Committee focused its oversight on the major issues that have a bearing on the overall interests of reform, development and stability, elicit widespread concern in society, or affect social harmony. Second, the Standing Committee carried out thorough oversight through various means including the hearing and deliberation of work reports on special subjects as well as investigations of compliance with the law. Last year the Standing Committee heard, deliberated and approved eight work reports on special subjects from the State Council, the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate and investigated the implementation of 12 laws. The State Council, the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate attached great importance to the comments and suggestions of the Standing Committee, actively adopted measures to improve their work and made new achievements.

    Oversight work was centered on efforts to build a new socialist countryside. Solving the problems related to agriculture, rural areas and farmers and building a new socialist countryside is a long, arduous historic task. The Standing Committee has always been concerned about work related to agriculture, rural areas and farmers. On the basis of three consecutive years of oversight in this area, the Standing Committee last year followed up compliance with the Agriculture Law, the Land Administration Law and the Law on Rural Land Contracts. Three suggestions were consequently made concerning major problems in work related to agriculture, rural areas and farmers.

    First, while continuing to increase budgetary support, we need to make a very strong effort to solve financing problems in rural areas.

    Second, we need to shift the focus of infrastructure development toward rural areas to concentrate on solving pressing problems such as the need for more roads, methane facilities and water supplies.

    Third, we need to shift the focus of social programs toward rural areas to resolve the practical difficulties that rural residents have obtaining proper medical treatment, sending their children to school and receiving social security benefits.

    The State Council carefully considered the comments and suggestions of the Standing Committee. Thanks to the concerted efforts of all sides, China's grain output steadily increased and rural per capita net income grew more than 6 percent per annum three years in a row. Rural infrastructure and rural working and living conditions also continued to improve. The building of a new socialist countryside is now well underway.

    Oversight work was also focused on efforts to make China an innovative country. The Central Committee attaches great importance to scientific and technological progress and independent innovation. The State Council formulated the Outline of the National Long- and Medium-Term Program for Scientific and Technological Development. The Central Committee and the State Council held the National Conference on Science and Technology last year and introduced the goal of making China an innovative country by 2020. The Standing Committee investigated compliance with the Patent Law and heard, deliberated and approved work reports by the State Council on special subjects such as increasing the country's capacity for independent innovation and strengthening protection of intellectual property rights. Members of the Standing Committee made three proposals to address the problems of the weak contribution domestic advances in science and technology make to economic growth, the high reliance on foreign technology and the inadequate level of funding for R&D.

    First, we need to integrate resources. We need to speed up development of a system for technological innovation in which enterprises play the leading role, the market plays a guiding role and enterprises, universities and research institutes work together. We need to initiate a beneficial cycle of capital and technology and accelerate the conversion of advances in science and technology into actual production to constantly increase the contribution domestic advances make to economic growth.

¡¡ Second, we need to identify key areas. We need to focus on the main battleground of economic development, carefully decide which battles to fight and which not to fight, concentrate resources and increase funding for major projects of strategic importance to the overall situation, and encourage technological innovation through government policy to make breakthroughs in key areas and achieve leapfrog development.

    Third, we should attach great importance to development of human resources. We need to create an excellent environment in which outstanding personnel can rise to the top and all personnel can fully play their parts by improving mechanisms and systems for developing and concentrating human resources and encouraging outstanding personnel. The State Council last year introduced fiscal, tax, financial and government procurement policies to encourage independent innovation and launched a group of key state science and technology projects affecting overall development. The Supreme People's Court reinforced judicial protection for intellectual property rights.

    Oversight work was focused on building a conservation-minded and environmentally friendly society. On the basis of work carried out over the past few years, the Standing Committee strengthened follow-up and oversight work concerning resource and environmental issues.

    First, while investigating compliance with the Law on the Prevention and Control of Air Pollution, the Standing Committee followed up and investigated compliance with the Law on the Prevention and Control of Solid Waste Environmental Pollution and the Law on the Prevention and Control of Water Pollution. The Committee listened to, deliberated and approved the reports of the State Council on the current state of China's waters and efforts to prevent and control water pollution. It also followed up and reported on progress in improving environmental conditions in key localities and enterprises through activities such as the China Environmental Protection Program.

    Second, the Standing Committee investigated compliance with the Energy Conservation Law and listened to, deliberated and approved the report of the State Council on the work of rationally utilizing, protecting and managing mineral resources, focusing on improving energy conservation in industry and construction. Members of the Standing Committee pointed out that although the State Council and local governments adopted a series of measures and did a great deal of work, it is difficult to fundamentally solve the longstanding problems of an inefficient pattern of economic growth and an unfavorable economic structure in the short-term, that it would be extremely difficult to meet the targets of reducing energy consumption per unit of GDP in 2006 by 4 percent and reducing the emission of major pollutants by 2 percent, and that the task of building a conservation-minded and environmentally friendly society is daunting. We must truly change our approach to development, make innovations in our development model, improve the quality of development, make changing the pattern of economic growth a strategic focus, accelerate economic restructuring, put the focus of work on improving reserves, launch technological upgrading that gives high priority to saving energy, reducing consumption and protecting the environment, develop a circular economy, promote independent innovation and truly make economic and social development more scientific.

    The Standing Committee sent the group investigating compliance with the Law on the Protection of the Rights and Interests of Returned Overseas Chinese and Their Relatives to six provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government. There they held forums for returned overseas Chinese and their relatives, overseas Chinese nationals, returned overseas Chinese deputies to people's congresses, members of the Returned Overseas Chinese Federation in the CPPCC and leaders of departments concerned with overseas Chinese affairs. They also visited some farms run by overseas Chinese, enterprises funded by overseas Chinese and the homes of some returned overseas Chinese, where they gathered a great deal of firsthand information. Through this investigation they learned that farms run by overseas Chinese face two types of difficulties.

    First, many of the farms are running in the red and are not able to pay wages, pensions, medical bills and social security contributions, and their employee wages are lower than the net incomes of local farmers. Second, a great number of structures are dilapidated and badly in need of repair, and there is a fair amount of outstanding debt owed on infrastructure such as transportation, water supply and electricity supply. In addressing these problems, the investigating group worked out a report and recommended, "All employee wages, pension payments, medical bills and social security contributions in arrears owed by farms run by overseas Chinese should be cleared up within two years. The problems of dilapidated structures, infrastructure development and land-use rights on these farms should be solved in three to five years." The State Council views this as an important issue, and set up a special study on promoting reform and development of such farms. Concerned departments of the State Council carefully carried out investigations and studies, took vigorous measures and diligently acted on the comments and suggestions of the Standing Committee, with good results.

    One important power of the Standing Committee is the duty to oversee budgetary and economic work. The Standing Committee listened to, deliberated and approved the final budget of the central government, the auditing work report and the report on implementing the plan, and deliberated and approved the 2005 central government final budget. It also heard, deliberated and approved the report of the State Council on reforming state-owned commercial banks to convert them into stock companies and deepening reform of the financial system. Everyone on the Standing Committee expressed satisfaction with the implementation of the plan for national economic and social development and affirmed the public finance, banking and accounting work. In addition, a number of suggestions were introduced on how to standardize budget compilation work, improve the system of government transfer payments, strictly implement the budget, strengthen auditing oversight, resolutely curb overheated growth of investment, intensify efforts to save energy, lower consumption and protect the environment, and pay more attention to social development and solving problems to improve people's well-being. The State Council sent a report to the Standing Committee last December on the use of surplus revenue over the budget target and on progress in correcting problems uncovered in auditing.

    The filing and inspection of regulatory documents is an important aspect of the oversight work of the Standing Committee. We carefully handle the suggestions of individuals and organizations that are made during inspection and conduct focused inspections on our own initiative to safeguard consistency in the country's legal system. The Standing Committee pays close attention to petitions submitted through letters and visits from the general public. More than 150,000 letters were received from the public in 2006 and over 75,000 visits were recorded. For problems that occurred frequently, such as legal and judicial issues, land expropriation and requisition, relocation of people to build reservoirs, housing demolition, medical care, education, social security and environmental protection, we increased efforts to refer problems to concerned organizations for them to address and followed up on how they were handled, urged these organizations to handle problems in accordance with the law and government policy, and helped solve some of the problems reflected in the letters and visits, thus playing a positive role in solving problems in society and promoting social harmony.

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