"Environmental protection is the fundamental policy of our country, and is crucial to the existence and development of the Chinese nation," state media quoted Hua Jianmin, secretary-general of the State Council, as saying.
The State Environment Protection Administration will be upgraded to the Ministry of Environmental Protection, which aims "to step up environmental improvement and ecological protection and accelerate the building of a resource-saving and environment-friendly society," Hua said.
The other four new ministries will be: the Ministry of Industry and Information, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Construction, and the Ministry of Transport, which will bring together the bodies responsible for aviation, roads and shipping.
See full story