China abandoned its one-child policy yesterday in an attempt to defuse the economic time bomb of a rapidly ageing population.

But experts say it may be too late, with more people moving to cities and enjoying a middle-class existence, and many couples no longer wanting to have more than one child.

By allowing couples to have two each, Beijing hopes to avoid labour shortages that could hit its faltering economy.

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The policy restricted most couples to only a single offspring, and for years authorities argued that it was a key contributor to China's economic boom

Official state media has confirmed that all couples will now be allowed to have two children

Couples have been limited to having a single child since 1979, an often brutally enforced rule intended to slow population growth and boost the economy.

But the law, which is estimated to have prevented 400million births, also caused long-term economic problems, huge social upheaval and human tragedy.

Human rights campaigners say many women were coerced into having abortions when they became pregnant for a second time. And desperate to ensure their only child was a male breadwinner, many more couples aborted female foetuses or even killed newborn girls.

Concerns over its ageing population had led to limited reforms in China in 2013, including allowing a second child for some couples in urban areas, but relatively few have taken up the opportunity

A communique from the ruling Communist Party’s central committee said the decision to end the one-child policy was aimed at improving the ‘balanced development of population’.

China has 1.4billion people – the world’s biggest population – but demographers say it faces a looming crisis as the labour pool dwindles to support the huge baby-boom generation as it retires.

Currently, about 30 per cent of the population is over the age of 50. Beijing has been gradually relaxing the one-child policy as its social and economic consequences became clear.

An early reform was to allow rural couples to have two children if the firstborn was a girl. Ethnic minority couples are also allowed more than one child. Two years ago, couples were allowed to have two children if one parent was a single child.

The one-child policy, combined with a traditional Chinese preference for having sons, has created a gender imbalance so severe that there are now 117 boys born for every 100 girls. It is estimated that by 2020 there will be 30million enforced bachelors in China, unable to find wives as there will not be enough women to go around.

Xie Zuoshi, an economics professor at Zhejiang University, caused controversy this week by suggesting that men should start ‘sharing’ wives to tackle the crisis. The one-child policy had left poorer men facing grim prospects and pushed up crime, he argued.

Some experts say China has acted too late to spur a baby boom. ‘China, like everywhere else, is looking at a low birth rate especially among affluent, well-educated women,’ said Dr Anna Smajdor, a reproduction expert at the University of East Anglia.

The country's rubber-stamp legislature will officially approve the resulting document next year

The economic boom in China has transformed the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of people and propelled the country to global prominence

Concerns over an ageing population led to limited reforms in 2013, including allowing a second child for some couples in urban areas, but relatively few have taken up the opportunity

Previous relaxations of the one-child rule did not boost births as much as expected, with many couples saying they could not afford two children in such a competitive and increasingly expensive society.

Human rights groups also warned Chinese women remain at risk.

William Nee, of Amnesty International, said: ‘The move to change China’s one-child policy is not enough. Couples that have two children could still be subjected to coercive and intrusive forms of contraception, and even forced abortions – which amount to torture.’

Under the leadership of Chairman Mao, China's birthrate was high as four children per family which led to serious food shortages