By Michael Bristow
BBC News, Beijing
**Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao has said the country’s economy will continue its rapid expansion this year, setting a target of 8%.**But in a major speech at the start of the annual parliamentary session, he said the economy needed restructuring.
On the social front, the premier said the government must reduce the wealth gap between the rich and the poor.
He said China would reform a household registration system classifying people as either rural or city dwellers.
The premier’s comments came in a wide-ranging speech in Beijing’s Great Hall of the People, where the largely ceremonial parliamentary session is being held.
In the keynote speech, Mr Wen reviewed the government’s work over the past 12 months and set out its policy goals for the coming year.