China mulls allowing 2 children for all

China may further relax the second child rule, allowing any couple to have second child in the future, according to Ma Xu, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), Xinhuanet reported.

The CPPCC delegate didn't mention a specific dateline for the possible new rule. Ma, who is also director of the Research Center of the National Health and Family Planning Commission, added that studies on a second child for all couples will be conducted.

China's family planning policy was first introduced in the late 1970s to rein in population growth by limiting most urban couples to one child and most rural couples to two, if the first child is a girl.

The policy was relaxed, and the previous version stipulated that both parents must be only children if they want to have a second child.

The second-child policy is now being implemented in eight provinces, autonomous regions and municipal cities: Zhejiang, Anhui, Jiangxi, Tianjin, Beijing, Shaanxi, Guangxi and Shanghai.

"There is going to be 2 million more newborns every year under the new policy, with about 20 provinces joining the league this year," Ma said.