Online services improved

Online services improved

China will move forward with a national integrated platform for online government services to better the business environment and make it easier for the public to access administrative services, according to a decree published by the State Council on April 30.

The decree, signed by Premier Li Keqiang, said the country will accelerate the development of a more standardized, centralized and interconnected online platform for administrative services, and see that administrative services offered with the same standard nationwide can be accessed at each stage of services.

The national integrated online platform, comprising of government platforms of the State, central government departments and local governments, will also facilitate information sharing and coordinate services among regions and departments at various levels.

The development of the national platform will be led by the General Office of the State Council, and provincial authorities are in charge of the development and operations of platforms at their own levels, the decree said.

All government services, unless otherwise specified by law and regulation or involving State secrets, shall be processed online in line with the procedures determined by the State Council, the decree noted.

Government service providers must not require enterprises or individuals to submit information that is already accessible through information sharing. Neither are they allowed to put the submitted information to other use.

The decree also confirms the legal validity of electronic signatures, seals, certificates and archives. The decree came into effect the day it was made public.

State capital reform

China will reform the management mechanism of State-owned capital with measures rolled out to further cut executive interference in State-owned enterprises and prevent the loss of State assets.

According to a plan issued by the State Council on April 28, SOEs will be granted more autonomy to run their businesses, and the boundary of power and responsibilities between representatives of State capital and SOEs will be clarified. The plan is aimed to enable the State-owned capital to become stronger, better and bigger and improve the vitality, control, influence and risk prevention capacities of the State-owned sectors.

A list of State capital representatives' oversight powers and responsibilities should be drafted. State capital representatives' ideas will be embodied through directors, who are appointed according to the equity that State capital holds, the plan said.

The plan also stressed the importance of enhancing the executive capacities of enterprises through improving corporate governance and capital management capacities.

An online real-time oversight platform for State-owned capital will be established to integrate supervision resources and to enable comprehensive oversight over State-owned capital.

Veterans get extra help

China will make efforts to solve difficulties faced by some retired soldiers in securing social insurance coverage, according to a guideline published on April 28.

The guideline, jointly issued by the general offices of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the State Council, is aimed to help retired soldiers who had not participated in the social insurance program or had stopped paying for the program because they had no stable jobs and income.

It was issued to ensure retired soldiers enjoy benefits proportional to their contributions and that their interests are fully guaranteed.

A slew of measures will be adopted to help retired soldiers resume their social insurance payments, with those who have not been covered by the social insurance to be allowed to take part in the program.

The guideline also made it clear that organizations in charge of their resettlement will make up the unpaid amount of social insurance jointly with the veterans if their former employers no longer exist.