Sustainable Development
The Great Britain-China Centre works in partnership with Chinese institutions to establish sustainable development models ensuring equal access to justice and public goods and a more equitable society Social and economic injustices and inequalities are widespread between urban and rural communities, eastern and western provinces, and working and middle class populations. These disparities are leading to an increasingly divided society, highly problematic for China 's long-term stability.
Improving Labour Relations
Diversification of ownership has meant opportunity for many in China. Creative, capitalist impulses have spawned a million private companies. But as the state sector shrinks, the job market grows more intense. And non-compliance with a raft of government standards leads to large-scale problems with effective access to justice. Labour arbitration is non-binding. In-company conciliation and mediation is weak. Change to the labour dispute resolution system has been pressing and has resulted in new Labour and Labour Dispute Resolution Laws, passed in 2007. We have a long-standing relationship with the Ministry of Labour and Social Security and have worked on social security legislation research and drafts over the last ten years. We have recently been working with regional labour arbitration committees, and have run a large project conducting research, training Chinese arbitrators and supporting the pilot of a new labour dispute resolution court in Shenzhen
Reforming the Labour Dispute Resolution Law
In 2006-7 we worked with a research team at Renmin University in Beijing and other Labour experts to develop recommendations for the Legal Affairs Commission of the National People's Congress on the Labour Dispute Resolution Law in advance of the promulgation of the new law in 2007.
Developing a Labour Arbitration Court System in China
The initial focus of the project was on identifying UK training models to assist the development of Chinese pilot arbitration courts. Having completed a technical study at the start of 2005 the project provided study visits to UK and EU institutions for senior officials and train-the-trainers training courses for key staff from more than ten provinces across China. The Shenzhen model has now spread to six other provinces in China, been made a national model by the Ministry of Labour and Social Security and is currently the subject of much discussion among Chinese Labour experts. This project was funded by the Global Opportunities Fund.
Supporting Trade Union exchange
We have undertaken a series of projects in the last seven years in co-operation with the All China Federation of Trade Unions. This has included a series of study visits for senior members of the ACFTU to discuss topics including collective bargaining, dispute resolution and health and safety with UK unions and other bodies involved in labour regulation.
Promoting Fair Resolution of Land Disputes
China's rapidly developing economy has led to large scale urbanisation, turning thousands of acres of agricultural land into industrial parks, high technology zones, university towns, commercial residential flats and even golf courses. In almost all urban cities, there are regeneration projects in areas where existing houses have to be demolished and households to be relocated. Chinese researchers have asserted that the problem of land disputes now constitutes the main cause of peasant grievance leading to complaints, and sometimes to unrest. In urban areas, disputes over housing demolition and relocation are also overwhelming. However the existing administrative adjudicating systems governing land acquisition and urban housing demolition and relocation are proving inadequate in resolving these disputes.
Developing a fair and effective Land Dispute Tribunal
We have been working with the Chinese Ministry of Land and Resources on the development of a fair and effective administrative tribunal system which will deal with disputes relating to land acquisition, compensation and resettlement. The project team visited the UK in 2006 to observe the current system of administrative redress for land disputes. They were impressed by the UK system and further trips are planned to study this in more detail. Their findings will feed directly into the establishment of a pilot land tribunal as well as policy making in this crucial area.
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