China’s parliament made revisions to a law on Monday, effectively granting the Communist Party (CCP) greater control over the State Council, the country’s cabinet.

The move, as reported by Reuters, followed the cancellation of the premier’s post-parliament news conference, a tradition spanning three decades.

The amended State Council Organic Law was approved by 2,883 delegate votes, with eight opposing and nine abstaining, during the closing session of the National People’s Congress in Beijing.

These changes mark a continuation of efforts to shift executive authority from the government to the Party.

Legal experts note that this amendment, the first since 1982, aligns with a trend of consolidating power within the Party, relegating the government to the role of implementing Party directives.

Newly added articles emphasise the State Council’s obligation to uphold the authority of the Party Central Committee and adhere to Xi Jinping Thought, the ideological framework promoted by the President.

This shift is significant, according to Ryan Mitchell, a law professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, as it clarifies the division of policymaking and oversight, which can often be ambiguous.

Li Hongzhong, vice chairman of the National People’s Congress Standing Committee, stated that the revision aims to deepen institutional reforms within both the Party and the state, aligning with constitutional changes made in 2018 to reaffirm the Party’s leadership.

Thomas Kellogg, a professor of Asian law at Georgetown University, views this as part of a broader trend where the Party is asserting greater control over state institutions, signaling its dominance in governance and decision-making processes.

The cancellation of the premier’s post-parliament news conference, a highly anticipated event in Beijing’s economic and policy calendar, underscores this shift.

Since assuming power in 2012, President Xi has established new central party committees overseeing various ministries, some encroaching on areas traditionally under the premier’s purview, such as economic and financial policy.

Last year, China announced a significant government reorganisation, creating a Party entity to oversee certain ministries and clarifying that executive decision-making power resides within the Party.

Following the adoption of new working rules, the State Council has also reduced the frequency of its meetings, convening only two or three times a month instead of weekly.

Kellogg views the cancellation of the premier’s news conference as another instance of state governance structures being sidelined in favor of Party control.

He predicts further transformations in the Party-state structure in the coming years, as the Party continues to assert its authority over governance and policymaking.

In summary, the revisions to the State Council Organic Law and the cancellation of the premier’s news conference reflect a broader trend of consolidating power within the Communist Party at the expense of government institutions.

These changes underscore the Party’s dominance in governance and decision-making processes, signaling a continued shift towards centralised control under President Xi Jinping’s leadership.

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