China to allow couples to have three children

The ruling party has enforced birth limits since 1980 to restrain population growth but worries the number of working age people is falling too fast

A man and child wearing masks visit Tiananmen Gate near the portrait of Mao Zedong in Beijing, China. Picture: Ng Han Guan/AP

China’s ruling Communist Party will ease birth limits to allow all couples to have three children instead of two in response to the population’s rising age, a state news agency said.

The announcement follows census data that showed China’s working age population shrank over the past decade while the number of people older than 65 rose, adding to strain on the economy and society.