The press center for the upcoming annual sessions of China's top legislature, the National People's Congress (NPC), and the country's top advisory body, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), formally began operation in Beijing yesterday.

A signboard is displayed at the gate of the building housing the media center for this year's NPC and CPPCC annual sessions.

The center, located at No.3 Jiaoyu Street (about 50 meters south of the intersection of Xidan and Chang'an Boulevard in downtown Beijing), is responsible for assisting Chinese and foreign correspondents covering the two meetings.

About 2,000 journalists, including 400 foreign correspondents, have applied for accreditation for the sessions. NPC media center staffer Cong Wu said the number of foreign journalists covering the annual sessions this year could exceed last year's total 600.

The Fifth Session of the 10th CPPCC will open on March 3, and the Fifth Session of the 10th NPC on March 5.

Two new laws, the Property Law and the Corporate Income Tax Law, are expected to be adopted during the NPC session. Motions aimed at fighting corruption and building a clean government are also expected to be tabled at the two upcoming sessions.

Other important issues, such as expensive medical care, rising education fees, soaring housing prices, scant social security coverage, mounting employment pressure, and the widening income gap, will also top the agenda of the two sessions, experts say.

A total of 1,006 proposals were submitted by 3,000 NPC deputies during the last session. The Standing Committee of the 10th NPC deliberated on 24 draft laws and law-related resolutions and has adopted 15 of them since March 2006.

A guard is on sentry at the entrance to No.3 Jiaoyu Street February 26, 2006. The compound houses the media center for this year's NPC and CPPCC annual sessions.

(CRI.cn February 27, 2007)