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| China to end one-child policy | China to end one-child policy |
| (34 minutes later) | |
| China has decided to end its decades-long one-child policy, Xinhua news agency reports. | |
| All couples will now be allowed to have two children, the state-run news agency said, citing a statement from the Communist Party. | |
| The controversial policy was introduced nationally in 1979, to reduce the country's birth rate and slow the population growth rate. | |
| However, concerns at China's ageing population led to pressure for change. | |
| The one-child policy is estimated to have prevented about 400m births since it began. | |
| Couples who violated the policy faced a variety of punishments, from fines and the loss of employment to forced abortions. | |
| Over time, the policy was relaxed in some provinces, as demographers and sociologists raised concerns about rising social costs and falling worker numbers. | |
| The Communist Party began formally relaxing national rules two years ago, allowing couples in which at least one of the pair is an only child to have a second child. | |
| The announcement comes on the final day of a summit of the Chinese Communist Party's policy-making Central Committee, known as the fifth plenum. | |
| The party is also set to announce growth targets and its next five year plan. | |
| Are you in China? Are you affected by this story? Email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk with your experiences. If you are happy to speak to a BBC journalist, please include contact details. | |
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