Third, exemptions from 18 administrative charges which currently apply only to small and micro businesses will be expanded to include all enterprises and individuals.

Through the above policies, the burdens on enterprises and individuals will be cut by more than 500 billion yuan this year. At the same time, we will increase government expenditures and investment as appropriate to work on living standards and other areas in need of strengthening. We will develop new ways for government funds to be spent and improve the government spending mix to ensure that all essential items receive sufficient funding, while non-essential items are cut.

Fiscal and tax reforms will be stepped up. We will move forward with the reform of the way powers and expenditure responsibilities are shared between the central and local governments, ensuring that the proportion of VAT revenue received by the central and local governments is determined appropriately. Taxes suitable as sources of local government revenue will be handed over to local governments along with the corresponding administrative powers. Central government special transfer payments to local governments will be further reduced, while this year's general transfer payments will be increased by 12.2%. We will extend ad valorem rates to all resource taxes. We will promote the law-based administration of tax collection. We will establish a well-regulated mechanism for local governments to secure financing through bond issuance and make moderate upward adjustments to debt ceilings for local governments with strong financial resources and low debt risks through statutory procedures. Governments at all levels must tighten their belts and spend every sum of money where it can be seen and where it's most needed.

-- We will pursue prudent monetary policy that is flexible and appropriate.

Both the M2 money supply and aggregate financing in the economy are forecasted to grow by around 13% in 2016. We will use a full range of monetary policy tools including open market operations, interest rates, required reserve ratios, and re-lending to maintain sufficient liquidity at a proper level, improve the transmission mechanism of monetary policy, and reduce financing costs. We will provide more support for the real economy, particularly for small and micro businesses as well as agriculture, rural areas, and farmers.

We will deepen reform of the financial sector. We will move faster in the reform to improve the modern financial regulatory system and ensure that the financial sector serves the real economy more efficiently and that regulation covers all financial risks. Interest rates will be further liberalized. Improvements will be made to the market-based mechanism for setting the RMB exchange rate to ensure it remains generally stable at an appropriate and balanced level. We will deepen reform of state-owned commercial banks as well as development and policy-backed financial institutions, develop private banks, and launch trials to allow commercial banks to participate in combined debt-equity investments into startups and small businesses. We will move forward with the reform of stock and bond markets and increase the level of rule of law in their development, promote the sound development of the multilevel capital market, and ensure that the proportion of direct financing is increased. The Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect will be launched at an appropriate time. A catastrophe insurance system will be established. We will work to see that Internet finance develops in line with regulations, and we will make a major push to develop inclusive and green finance. We will strengthen unified, macroprudential management of foreign debt. We will tighten institutional constraints, safeguard order in the financial sector, crack down on financial fraud, illegal fundraising, and unlawful and criminal activities in the securities and futures markets, and make sure that no systemic or regional financial risks arise.

2. Strengthen supply-side structural reform to drive sustained growth

To solve acute problems in key areas, we must work faster to remove institutional obstacles and carry out supply-side structural reform to improve the quality and efficiency of the supply system, and further stimulate market vitality and the creativity of society.

-- We will deepen reforms to streamline administration, delegate more powers, improve regulation, and provide better services.

With the people in mind, we will streamline administration, transform the functions of the government, and improve its performance. As we continue to cancel the requirement of government review for more matters, we will focus on addressing unsynchronized, uncoordinated, and incomplete delegation of powers and make sure that local governments to which powers of review have been delegated are able to properly exercise those powers.

We will deepen reform of the business system and launch trials to separate operating permits and business licenses. We will release the lists of all powers and responsibilities of local governments, and begin piloting a negative list for market access in some regions. We will draw up lists and catalogues to manage administrative charges, business fees and charges set by the government or set under its guidance, government-managed funds, and professional qualifications recognized by the state. We will move faster to establish a unified, open, competitive, and orderly market system, and put an end to local protectionism. We will deepen pricing reform and tighten up supervision of prices.

We will revise or abolish any administrative regulations and normative documents that are holding back development. We will develop new ways of conducting oversight over the whole process of business operations, and introduce across the board an oversight model drawing on random inspections by randomly selected law enforcement officers or inspectors and requiring the prompt release of results. We will implement the reform for coordinated administrative law enforcement and adopt a unified approach to gathering information on enterprise credit, release such information in accordance with the law, ensure joint punitive action is taken where necessary, and encourage public oversight.

We will carry out the "Internet Plus government services" model and promote better information sharing between government departments, so that the public and businesses need to make fewer visits to government departments to get things done, find procedures simpler, and find the service satisfactory. We will cut red tape and root out illegalities to ensure that the people have more equal opportunities and greater space for creativity.

-- We will ensure that the whole country's potential for starting businesses and making innovations is released.

We will implement the strategy of innovation-driven development, see that science and technology become more deeply embedded in the economy, and improve the overall quality and competitiveness of the real economy.

First, we will ensure that enterprises lead in making innovations. We will implement additional tax deductions for their research and development, accelerate the depreciation of their fixed assets, and increase tax policy support for high-tech enterprises and science and technology business incubators. We will support leading enterprises in building top-level research and development institutions. We will move faster to achieve nationwide implementation of the policy of national innovation demonstration zones, and establish another set of national innovation demonstration zones and high-tech development zones.

Second, we will help people to pool their ideas and talents through a synergy of business startups, innovation, and the Internet Plus. Platforms will be created for crowd innovation, crowd support, crowdsourcing, and crowdfunding, and mechanisms will be built to encourage new types of business startups and innovation-making through cooperation between enterprises, institutions of higher learning, research institutes, and makers. We will establish demonstration centers for business startups and innovation, foster a business startup and innovation service industry, and ensure angel investment, venture capital, industrial investment, and other investment develop in accordance with regulations. We will give our support to the development of a sharing economy and see that resources are used more efficiently and that more people take part and benefit. We will adopt more active, open, and effective policies to attract talent from overseas. We will strengthen the protection and use of intellectual property rights and look to the law to crack down on the infringement of these rights and on the production and sale of counterfeit products. (more)