Xi: Accelerate environmental improvement

Aerial photo taken on Aug 23, 2021 shows the scenery of Saihanba forest farm in North China's Hebei province. [Photo/Xinhua]

President calls for greater supervision of country's natural monopoly sectors

President Xi Jinping called on Tuesday for greater efforts to combat pollution and accelerate green transformation of the development mode in order to achieve the goal of building a Beautiful China by 2035 with the ecological environment fundamentally improved. Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remark while chairing the third meeting of the Central Commission for Comprehensively Deepening Reform. He is also director of the commission.

A series of documents were reviewed and adopted at the meeting. They include promoting building a Beautiful China in all respects, improving the budget system of State capital operations, improving the supervision mechanism for natural monopoly sectors, strengthening supervision over experts participating in public decision-making, and enhancing region-specific management and control of the ecological environment.

Xi said at the meeting that a Beautiful China is an important goal of building a modernized socialist country in all respects. He emphasized the need to make continued efforts to fight pollution, enhance the diversity, stability and sustainability of the biosystem and promote fundamental improvements in the ecological environment by 2035.

Noting that State capital operations are an important part of the national budget system, Xi said that efforts should be made to improve the budget system of State capital operations, improve management of the revenue and expenditure of State-owned capital and improve the efficiency of capital use. In terms of supervision over natural monopoly sectors, such as electricity, oil and gas, and railways, Xi called for improving related regulatory systems and mechanisms to increase the State-owned economy's control over natural monopoly sectors, better meet the needs of building a modern infrastructure system, and better safeguard national security.

Xi also underscored the importance of strengthening experts' participation in public decision-making, and creating a sound environment for them to actively get involved in the process. Li Qiang, Wang Huning and Cai Qi, who are members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and deputy directors of the Central Commission for Comprehensively Deepening Reform, attended the meeting. Participants in the meeting emphasized the need to ramp up efforts to address environmental problems in line with the new requirements of high-quality economic and social development to secure ecological environment goals step by step through concrete actions.

Noting that budget-related work reflects the will of the Party and the State, they called for concentrating State-owned capital in important industries and critical areas related to national security and the national economy, the fields of public services and emergency response capabilities, public welfare fields, and forward-looking strategic emerging industries in order to better serve the needs of advancing the new development paradigm and high-quality development.

The meeting's participants pointed out that the natural monopoly sectors are key areas in the structure of China's State-owned economy. Efforts should be made to improve the regulatory system, focus on overseeing those involved in natural monopoly sectors in implementing major national strategies and plans, and fulfill national security responsibilities and social responsibilities, they said.

Author: Cao Desheng

Edited by Wang Miao 

with reference to <http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202311/08/WS654ac9caa31090682a5ecf82.html>