Li Keqiang asks deepening reform

Li Keqiang said on Thursday that China should lose no time in deepening reform in key sectors and resolutely discard all notions and systems that hinder efforts to pursue development in a scientific way.

Li made the remarks when joining a panel discussion with delegates from Shandong Province on Hu Jintao's report delivered to the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), which opened here Thursday morning.

Li noted China remains in an important period of strategic opportunities for its development, the period that is full of unprecedented risks and challenges.

Under such circumstances, he said, China should accelerate improvement of the socialist market economy and facilitate the change of growth model to complete the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects as well as deepen reform and opening up in an all-round way.

The Party needs to properly handle the relations between the regulators and the market and implement a more proactive opening up strategy to boost the momentum and vitality of development, he said.

Li stressed the importance of keeping to the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics and make the Scientific Outlook on Development guide China in completing the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

For the past decade, he said, China has made marvelous historic achievements in reform and opening up and modernized the country with theoretical and practical innovations, which have laid a solid foundation for completing the building of a moderately prosperous society.

He stressed the CPC members should implement the Scientific Outlook on Development more actively and forcefully throughout the entire process of China's modernization and the Party building.

The Scientific Outlook on Development was proposed by the 16th CPC Central Committee in 2003, against the backdrop of rapid economic growth and a series of problems including excessive consumption of resources, serious environmental pollution and a widening gap between the rich and the poor.

The concept has championed people's interests and advocated comprehensive, coordinated and sustainable development. At the Party's 17th National Congress held in 2007, the Scientific Outlook on Development was first written into the CPC Constitution.