Chinese premier chairs State Council executive meeting

BEIJING, April 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Friday presided over a State Council executive meeting that studied the work on accelerating the rise of the central region and mulled measures to improve the long-term mechanism for resolving payment arrears to enterprises.

The meeting also heard reports on energy conservation and carbon reduction work, and made arrangements for systemic rectification of potential safety hazards in electric moped scooters.

To further energize the central region, more efforts should be made to promote deep integration between scientific and technological innovation and industrial innovation, strengthen regional coordination, and promote in-depth reform and high-level opening up to turn the region's geographical and resource strengths into development advantages, the meeting said.

Noting that resolving payment arrears to enterprises is related to the improvement of the business environment, the overall situation of economic recovery, and the image and credibility of the government, the meeting urged efforts to promote a current special action on debt clearance and establish a sound long-term mechanism.

Energy conservation and carbon reduction should be combined with the expansion of effective investment, the renovation of old residential areas, the renewal of equipment and trade-ins of consumer goods, according to the meeting.

It also called for efforts to comprehensively improve the safety level of production, sales, use, parking, charging and recycling of electric moped scooters to ensure the safety of people's lives and property.