New rules in November

Central government

1. Law of the People's Republic of China on the Protection of the Rights and Interests of Women

Published 30 October 2022 / in force 1 January 2023

The general provisions add new rules on the working mechanism for safeguarding women's rights and interests, the responsibilities of judicial organs, a gender equality assessment mechanism for laws and policies, a system of gender statistics and publication, and education on the basic state policy of equality between men and women.

New relief channels are added: bodies for women's and children's work at every level and women's federations may issue documents urging the handling of a matter; the national unified hotline for women's rights protection is to be strengthened; a system of procuratorial public interest litigation for the protection of women's rights and interests is established, together with a system of supported litigation. The remedies available to women whose rights and interests in rural collective economic organisations are infringed are also improved.

The law adds legal liability for gender discrimination in employment and for failure to take measures to prevent and stop sexual harassment, further refining and strengthening legal remedies and liability. Protection is improved and reinforced across six areas: political rights, cultural and educational rights and interests, labor and social security, property rights and interests, personality rights and interests, and rights and interests in marriage and the family.

2. Animal Husbandry Law of the People's Republic of China

Published 30 October 2022 / in force 1 March 2023

The law provides that the state shall establish and improve a modern livestock and poultry breeding system and shall encourage and support large-scale, standardised and intelligent breeding. It provides that the relevant departments of provincial governments shall set the epidemic prevention conditions for livestock and poultry farmers and the requirements for the harmless treatment and utilisation of livestock and poultry waste.

A new chapter on the slaughter of livestock and poultry regulates slaughter management, requires development plans for the sector to be formulated and implemented, regulates the designated slaughter system, and sets out the conditions for establishing slaughter enterprises and the establishment of quality and safety management and risk monitoring systems. A further new chapter on grassland animal husbandry requires the governments of pastoral areas and their departments to guide farmers and herders in improving livestock breeds and optimising herd structure, so as to reduce costs, improve quality and raise efficiency in grassland animal husbandry.

3. Yellow River Protection Law of the People's Republic of China

Published 30 October 2022 / in force 1 April 2023

The law provides that the state shall establish a mechanism for coordinating ecological protection and high-quality development in the Yellow River basin, and stresses that the state shall strengthen ecological protection and restoration in the basin and the systematic treatment of environmental pollution there. Measures for saving water and improving efficiency in agriculture, reducing water use and emissions in industry, and cutting losses in urban water use are reinforced. Water volumes in the Yellow River are to be allocated uniformly. Coordination of flood control systems within and between basins is to be strengthened, and a scientific and efficient comprehensive flood control and disaster reduction system is to be built. It states that promoting high-quality development in the basin requires commitment to the new development philosophy.

4. Regulation on Promoting the Development of Individual Industrial and Commercial Households

Published 1 October 2022 / in force 1 November 2022

The Regulation has 39 articles. Its main contents are: first, the position and role of individual industrial and commercial households in the socialist market economy and the basic principles for promoting their development; second, improvement of the working mechanism for promoting their development; third, the duties of the government and its departments in that respect; and fourth, tighter constraints on the performance of those duties and stronger protection of the lawful rights and interests of individual industrial and commercial households.

5. Measures of the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China for the Supervision of Goods in Transit

Published 26 September 2022 / in force 1 November 2022

The Measures prohibit the transit of ten categories of goods. Goods in transit are subject to customs supervision from entry to exit. Without customs approval, no unit or individual may open, unpack, collect, deliver, dispatch, exchange, repack, mortgage, pledge, retain, transfer or re-mark goods in transit, change their marks, use them for other purposes or otherwise dispose of them. Animals, plants, their products and other quarantine objects may not be unloaded from the means of transport during transit without customs approval.

6. Provisions on the Supervision and Administration of Food Safety Principal Responsibility of Enterprises

Published 22 September 2022 / in force 1 November 2022

On sound corporate responsibility systems, the Provisions require food producers and traders to establish and improve food safety management systems and to implement a food safety responsibility system, under which the principal person in charge of the enterprise bears overall responsibility and the food safety director and food safety officers are responsible at their respective levels. On improving risk prevention and control, they require enterprises to establish a dynamic management mechanism based on food safety risk prevention and control, to prepare a list of food safety risk control points, and to establish a working mechanism of daily control, weekly inspection and monthly scheduling.

Shanghai

1. Several Provisions of Shanghai Municipality on Promoting Innovation in the Governance of Residential Communities in Pudong New Area

Published 22 September 2022 / in force 1 November 2022

The Provisions set out the conditions and procedural rules under which a residents' committee may temporarily perform the duties of an owners' committee in special circumstances. They set out the specific duties of the Pudong New Area People's Government and its departments, of sub-district offices, of town people's governments and of residents' committees, and require the district government to establish a system for allocating public service resources according to the resident population. They set out the responsibilities of owners, occupiers and property service enterprises in residential communities, and provide for a mechanism for investing in the renovation of older communities and a mechanism of financial support for property services.

2. Shanghai Municipality Animal Epidemic Prevention Regulation (2022 revision)

Published 28 October 2022 / in force 1 December 2022

The Regulation sets out the guiding policy and basic principles for animal epidemic prevention and requires that the work be included in national economic and social development plans and annual plans. It provides that town people's governments and sub-district offices shall be staffed with the animal epidemic prevention personnel needed to prevent and control animal diseases. Where a major animal epidemic occurs, a municipal or district command centre for emergency handling shall be established to lead and direct the response across the city or the district, and the competent municipal department for animal epidemic prevention is designated to coordinate the response to major animal epidemics across the city.