Govt to raise education spending to 4% of GDP (2)

Higher income

In addition, Wen said the government would set up a scheduled income increase mechanism and steadily raise the minimum wage to curb the widening income gap.

"(We will) place more effort in taxation adjustment of high-income citizens, strictly regulate income of senior managerial staff at State-owned enterprises and financial institutions, enlarge the middle-income group and raise low-income people's income to boost fairness," he said.

The government would also endeavor to increase people's property income and build a mechanism to make people share profits derived from public resources, said Wen.

The government aims to raise the minimum wage by at least 13 percent each year from 2011 to 2015, according to a national employment promotion plan released in February. China raised its minimum wage by an average of 12.5 percent annually during the 2006-2010 period.

Cai Fang, a deputy to the National People's Congress, hailed the government's determination to close the income gap and said China had made a great achievement in promoting employment and transferring surplus labor from rural areas. Many people's incomes had risen as a result.

Cai said that in addition to the existing income gap, what makes people feel a widening wealth gap is the large disparity in property income.

"Lack of transparency and fairness in property distribution or benefits distribution derived from public resources have led to disparity in property income among different groups," he said.

He Dan and Shan Juan contributed to this story.