A worker is on the assembly line of Dongfeng passenger vehicle on Monday in Wuhan, capital of Central China’s Hubei Province. (Photo: GT)

As people from Central China's Hubei Province have made sacrifices in combating and preventing the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) infection, a National People's Congress (NPC) deputy suggested exempting the province from taxation for two years and allocating special payment funds from this year's national budget. 

Zhu Lieyu, a lawyer with the Guoding Law Firm in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province and also a deputy for the third session of the 13th NPC, said during the fight against COVID-19, Hubei residents made sacrifices, helped prevent the spread of the virus, and protected the lives and safety of others. However, due to the shutdown and suspension of production, the government's tax revenue dropped. 

Resuming work and production requires financial support. As local financial resources have been strained, Zhu suggested the country exempt the province from taxation in 2020 and 2021. Taxes collected from enterprises and individuals will be held by the local government. 

Zhu also proposed to allocate a special fund from the national financial budget for the province to help it restore the social economy and order quickly. 

Millions of Hubei residents were quarantined during the lockdown. They made great sacrifices and contributions to win the battle against COVID-19 at an early date. Hubei is in urgent need of policy support from the country to minimize the loss caused by the epidemic, Zhu said.