Deputy optimistic about 12th Five-Year Plan

By Zhang Ming'ai

China.org.cn, March 11, 2011

Director of the Hangzhou Research Institute of Chemical Technology Yao Xianping told China.org.cn Wednesday in Beijing that he expects housing prices to be reined in under the 12th Five-Year Plan.

Yao Xianping, director of the Hangzhou Research Institute of Chemical Technology and a deputy to the National People's Congress (NPC).

Yao, who is a deputy to the National People's Congress (NPC), said government determination is the key to getting housing prices under control.

Regarding general inflation in China, Yao said that prices are a complex problem, and the government certainly wants price stability. Yet he expressed his concern that prices may continue to rise due to the many factors involved. For example, China is not able to control international oil and food prices, and a hike in those would subsequently force up domestic prices. In addition, speculation may fuel further inflation, Yao added.

Yao also addressed farmers' relatively low income, which provides a dilemma for the government. On the one hand it wants to increase farmers' earnings and is willing to allow the prices of agricultural products to rise. But on the other hand it also wants to stabilize prices, which implies that the prices of farm products must be kept at a reasonable level, Yao said.

The 12th Five-Year Plan sets the resident income growth at 7 percent. While admitting it will be a difficult task, Yao expressed confidence the government will take a series of concrete measures to meet this goal but warned of consequences if the measures fail.

"If this problem is not solved, it will lead to many social problems," Yao said.

He cited China's ability to maintain stability and fast growth despite the financial crisis as the greatest achievement during the 11th Five-Year Plan period (2006-2010).

"Development is of overriding importance," Yao quoted Deng Xiaoping. For that matter, Yao hopes technology can become the driving force of economic development. He also pointed out that more efforts need to be made to improve the efficiency and quality of investments over the next five years, as this was not done well the past five years.