Calls for fairer distribution of income and social justice

Beijing: Economists have urged the government to redistribute income in a more balanced manner to achieve sustainable growth.

This will lead to higher consumption, which is the ultimate solution to the problem of oversupply, he said.

Premier Wen Jiabao, who outlined fairness and justice as a centerpiece of his tenure, said fairness and justice "shine much brighter than the sun".

"Our country's development does not involve promoting only economic growth, but also pushing ahead with social fairness and justice, and the individual's all-round free development," he said.

"We are still facing many unfair problems in fields such as income distribution and the judicial sector. The problems demand more attention from us," he said.

"I will exert my utmost efforts to redress the problem during the rest of my tenure and, I believe, future leaders will continue to pay more attention to it," said Wen.

Song Zhiping, a deputy to the National People's Congress from Jilin province, said the government should heed the woes of workers in their 40s and 50s who have been laid off from State firms over the past few years.

Song said this group of disadvantaged people is "snowballing" in number with enterprises restructuring and downsizing. They are hard-pressed to support their families because of low incomes or difficulty finding jobs, Song said.