Public feedback sought on managing commercial messages, calls
A number of ministry-level departments, including those responsible for industry and information technology, commerce, human resources and social security, and financial markets, have responded recently to matters of public concern.
Draft regulations target unwanted communication
China is soliciting public opinion on draft regulations on the management of short message and voice call services, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said on Aug 31.
The draft regulations say organizations or individuals should not send any commercial short messages or make any commercial calls to users without their consent or request, or after they have been explicitly rejected.
Basic telecommunication business operators would not be allowed to provide any access services or communication resources for organizations and individuals that have not obtained business licenses for telecommunication services to engage in commercial short message and voice call services.
Suppliers of short message services should make sure users have agreed to or asked to receive commercial short messages before sending them out, with records of user consent to be kept for at least five months.
Members of the public will be able to give feedback on the draft regulations until Sept 30.
Hotels told to phase out disposable plastic items
Star-rated guesthouses and hotels across China should no longer voluntarily offer disposable plastic items by the end of 2022, according to a notice published by the Ministry of Commerce on Aug 31 about strengthening control of plastic pollution by businesses.
The restriction will be applied to all the country’s guesthouses, hotels and homestay inns by the end of 2025, the notice said.
By the end of this year, the use of disposable nondegradable plastic straws will be forbidden in the catering industry nationwide and disposable nondegradable plastic tableware will not be allowed to be used for dine-in catering services in urban built-up areas at the prefecture level and above.
Noting that the continuously increasing consumption of plastic products, particularly disposable ones, has brought new challenges to efforts to curb environmental pollution, the ministry told local authorities to earnestly implement specific restrictions on plastic use in key areas including shopping malls, supermarkets, restaurants, hotels and e-commerce.
Autumn recruitment campaign for graduates
A special autumn recruitment campaign for college graduates was launched on Sept 1 in an effort to boost employment, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security said.
The nationwide campaign, which will run to Nov 15, will organize more than 800 job fairs across China, it said.
An online recruitment conference will also be held to precisely match employers with graduates applying for jobs.
To satisfy the need for trans-regional employment both for employers and graduates, 25 comprehensive or industrial job fairs will be held in 21 cities and provinces including Beijing, Kunming, in Yunnan province, Xi’an, in Shaanxi province, and Changsha, in Hunan province. The China Nonferrous Metal Industry Human Resource Center will host a series of recruitment events in 22 cities focusing on the industry.
To help lift the country’s most impoverished regions out of poverty, special job fairs will also be held in Linxia Hui autonomous prefecture in Gansu province, the city of
Nyingchi in the Tibet autonomous region, and Liangshan Yi autonomous prefecture in Sichuan province, the ministry said.
Rules aim to increase investment in bonds
Draft rules aimed at facilitating overseas investment in China’s bond market — the world’s second-biggest — were published on Wednesday in an effort to open up and bolster domestic financial markets.
A statement jointly issued by the People’s Bank of China, the China Securities Regulatory Commission and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange seeking public opinion on the draft rules said application procedures for foreign bond investors will be simplified and rules for various investment channels unified.
China’s central bank, the securities watchdog and the foreign exchange regulator will jointly supervise such investment according to their own responsibilities and share information and data with each other in order to improve market transparency and jointly maintain a sound market environment, it said.
The solicitation of public opinion will end on Oct 1.