New nuclear power projects get green light

China approved a number of new nuclear power projects on Sunday, including ?Phase III of the Sanmen Nuclear Power Plant in East China's Zhejiang province,during a State Council executive meeting.

The meeting, presided over by Premier Li Qiang, emphasized the need to ensure the absolute safety of?nuclear power development.

It called for strictly enforcing the primary responsibility of construction and operating entities, building and operating nuclear power units?in line with the world's highest safety standards, and continuously strengthening safety supervision.

This year marks the ?70th anniversary of China's nuclear power industry.

As a ?key clean energy base in East China?, the Sanmen Nuclear Power Plant will have a ?total installed capacity of 7.5 million kilowatts after the Phase III project is completed.

According to China Energy News, the meeting approved five new nuclear power projects with a total of 10 reactor units in Guangdong, Zhejiang, Shandong and Fujian provinces and the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region. China has given the green light to 10 or more nuclear units annually since 2022.

As a key driver of effective investment, these newly approved projects represent a combined investment exceeding 200 billion yuan ($27.45 billion).

The meeting also discussed measures to further strengthen welfare support for disadvantaged children, a move that is crucial to safeguarding children's fundamental interests, promoting family harmony and advancing social progress.

It is necessary to adhere to the principles of prioritizing children's development and the things that are most beneficial to children, and jointly safeguarding the healthy growth of disadvantaged children, the meeting noted.

Continuous improvement of the basic life security, medical rehabilitation, basic public education, mental health care, and other service systems is needed to effectively enhance the level of welfare protection, it said, adding that targeted policies based on the needs of disadvantaged children should be implemented.

It also stressed ?preventing and severely punishing all forms of crimes against disadvantaged children in accordance with the law, and taking concrete actions to ?safeguard their legitimate rights and interests.

During the meeting, a draft medical security law was discussed and approved in principle. It will be submitted to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the nation's top legislature, for deliberation.

The meeting noted that ?this legislative process will serve as an opportunity to further improve China's ?healthcare security policy system and ?effectively safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of insured individuals.

It also underlined the need to?strengthen supervision of healthcare funds and ?crack down on fraudulent activities such as false medical treatments and fake drug purchases.

The meeting also ?launched a campaign for the protection and ecological improvement of rivers and lakes.