China is clamping down on abortions which are not “medically necessary” in a bid to tackle its plunging birth rate, authorities have announced.

The National Health Authority has published new guidelines to prevent unwanted pregnancies and “reduce abortions that are not medically necessary”, amid mounting concerns about an untenable ageing population.

New births in China, home to 1.4 billion, are set to fall to record lows this year, dropping below 10 million for the first time. The UN predicts that India will overtake the country as the world’s most populous next year.

It is estimated that 9.5 million abortions took place between 2015 and 2019. Under the now abolished one-child rule, forced abortions were common.