Beijing: China's top family planning authority has stressed that its local affiliates must implement the current one-child policy until a new policy allowing all couples to have two children goes into effect after being ratified by legislators.

Local authorities in each province should not carry out the two-child policy "wilfully," the National Health and Family Planning Commission (NHFPC) said, refuting claims by one local official that the new policy was effective as soon as it was announced, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.