Decision of the First Session of the Eleventh National People’s Congress on the Plan for Restructuring the State Council

(Adopted at the First Session of the Eleventh National People’s Congress on March 15, 2008)

The First Session of the Eleventh National Congress, having heard the explanations made by Hua Jianmin, State Councilor and Secretary-General of the State Council, regarding the plan for restructuring the State Council and deliberated the plan, decides to approve it. The session requires that the State Council should provide strong leadership, make careful arrangements and ensure smooth implementation of the plan for restructuring.

Appendix:

Plan for Restructuring the State Council

According to the spirit of the Seventeenth National Congress of the Communist Party of China and the Second Plenary Session of the Seventeenth Central Committee of the CPC, the main tasks for the current restructuring of the State Council are: focusing on the transformation of government functions and straightening out the relations of responsibilities of different departments, exploring ways to establish a structure based on larger departments that organically integrate the functions, appropriately dividing the functions among departments that exercise macroeconomic regulation, strengthening the departments for energy and environment administration, integrating and improving the administrative systems of industry, information technology, communications and transport and strengthening and integrating the departments for public administration and public services with stress on improvement of the people’s livelihood.

(1) To appropriately divide the functions among departments that exercise macroeconomic regulation. The National Development and Reform Commission shall further transform its functions, reduce its involvement in microeconomic administration and its examination and approval of specific projects, and concentrate on macroeconomic regulation. The Ministry of Finance shall reform and improve budgetary and taxation administration, improve the system whereby both the central and local governments have financial resources to match their duties and responsibilities, and improve the public finance system. The People’s Bank of China shall further improve the monetary policy system, strengthen overall coordination with the finance regulatory department, and maintain financial security of the State. An interdepartmental coordination mechanism shall be established and improved among the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Finance and the People’s Bank of China to form a more sophisticated system for macroeconomic regulation.

(2) To reinforce the institution for energy administration. A high-level advisory and coordinating institution, the National Energy Commission, will be established. The National Energy Bureau will be established, subject to the jurisdiction of the National Development and Reform Commission. The duties of the Commission related to administration of the energy industry and the relevant bodies under the Commission shall be integrated with the duties of the Office of the National Energy Leading Team and the duties of the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense in respect of administration of nuclear-generated power, and all shall be put under the National Energy Bureau. The tasks of the Office of the National Energy Commission shall be undertaken by the National Energy Bureau. The National Energy Leading Team and its working bodies will cease to exist.

(3) To establish the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. The duties of the National Development and Reform Commission related to industrial administration, the duties other than the administration of nuclear-generated power of the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense as well as the duties of the Ministry of Information Industry and the Information Technology Office of the State Council will be integrated into the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, with the Bureau of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense being established and subjected to its jurisdiction. The State Tobacco Monopoly Administration will be subject to the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology instead. The Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense, the Ministry of Information Industry and the Information Technology Office of the State Council shall cease to exist.

(4) To establish the Ministry of Communications and Transport. The duties of the Ministry of Communications and of the General Administration of Civil Aviation, as well as of the Ministry of Construction to provide guidance to urban passenger transport will be integrated into the Ministry of Communications and Transport, with the Bureau of Civil Aviation being established and subjected to its jurisdiction. The State Post Bureau will be subjected to the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Communications and Transport instead. The Ministry of Railways will still remain for continued reform. The Ministry of Communications and the General Administration of Civil Aviation will cease to exist.

(5) To establish the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security. The duties of the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Labor and Social Security will be integrated into the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, with the State Bureau of Public Servants being established and subjected to its jurisdiction. The Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Labor and Social Security shall cease to exist.

(6) To establish the Ministry of Environment Protection. The State Environmental Protection Administration shall cease to exist.

(7) To establish the Ministry of Housing and Urban and Rural Development. The Ministry of Construction shall cease to exist.

(8) The State Food and Drug Administration will be subjected to the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Health instead. The Ministry of Health shall be charged with clearly defined responsibilities for overall coordination of food safety and organization of efforts to investigate and handle major accidents involving food safety.

After restructuring, there will be the following component departments of the State Council, in addition to the General Office of the State Council:

1. the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China;

2. the Ministry of National Defense of the People’s Republic of China;

3. the National Development and Reform Commission of the People’s Republic of China;

4. the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China;

5. the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s Republic of China;

6. the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of the People’s Republic of China;

7. the State Ethnic Affairs Commission of the People’s Republic of China;

8. the Ministry of Public Security of the People’s Republic of China;

9. the Ministry of State Security of the People’s Republic of China;

10. the Ministry of Supervision of the People’s Republic of China;

11. the Ministry of Civil Affairs of the People’s Republic of China;

12. the Ministry of Justice of the People’s Republic of China;

13. the Ministry of Finance of the People’s Republic of China;

14. the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security of the People’s Republic of China;

15. the Ministry of Land and Resources of the People’s Republic of China;

16. the Ministry of Environment Protection of the People’s Republic of China;

17. the Ministry of Housing and Urban and Rural Developemnt of the People’s Republic of China;

18. the Ministry of Communications and Transport of the People’s Republic of China;

19. the Ministry of Railways of the People’s Republic of China;

20. the Ministry of Water Resources of the People’s Republic of China;

21. the Ministry of Agriculture of the People’s Republic of China;

22. the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China;

23. the Ministry of Culture of the People’s Republic of China;

24. the Ministry of Health of the People’s Republic of China;

25. the National Population and Family Planning Commission of the People’s Republic of China;

26. the People’s Bank of China; and

27. the National Audit Office of the People’s Republic of China.

According to the provisions of the Organic Law of the State Council, the readjustment and establishment of the component departments of the State Council are subject to examination and approval by the National People’s Congress. The readjustment and establishment of other institutions under the State Council are subject to examination and approval by the newly formed State Council.