State Council of the People's Republic of China

State Council of the People's Republic of China
中华人民共和国国务院
Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó Guówùyuàn
Emblem of the People's Republic of China
Agency overview
Formed	27 September 1954
Preceding agency	Government Administration Council of the Central People's Government
Jurisdiction	Government of the People's Republic of China
Headquarters	Zhongnanhai, Beijing
Agency executives	Wen Jiabao, Premier Li Keqiang Hui Liangyu Zhang Dejiang Wang Qishan, Vice-Premiers
Website
http://english.gov.cn

People's Republic of China

This article is part of the series: Politics and government of the People's Republic of China

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The State Council of the People's Republic of China (simplified Chinese: 国务院; traditional Chinese: 國務院; pinyin: Guówùyuàn), which is largely synonymous with the Central People's Government (Chinese: 中央人民政府) after 1954, is the chief administrative authority of the People's Republic of China. It is chaired by the Premier and includes the heads of each governmental department and agency. Currently, the council has 35 members: the premier, one executive vice premier, three vice premiers, five state councilors (of whom two are also ministers), and 25 additional ministers and chairs of major agencies. In the politics of the People's Republic of China, the Central People's Government forms one of three interlocking branches of power, the others being the Communist Party of China and the People's Liberation Army. The State Council directly oversees the various subordinate People's Governments in the provinces, and in practice maintains an interlocking membership with the top levels of the Communist Party of China creating a fused center of power.

Organization

The State Council meets once every six months. Between meetings it is guided by a standing committee which meets weekly. The standing committee includes the premier, one executive vice premier, three vice premiers, and five other state councilors (one of whom serves as Secretary General of the State Council, and two of whom concurrently serve as ministers).

The vice-premiers and state councilors are nominated by the premier, and appointed by the president with National People's Congress' (NPC) approval. The premier is nominated and appointed by the president with NPC approval. Incumbents may serve two successive five-year terms.

Each vice premier oversees certain areas of administration. Each State Councilor performs duties as designated by the Premier. The secretary-general heads the General Office which handles the day-to-day work of the State Council. The secretary-general has relatively little power and should not be confused with the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China.

Each ministry supervises one sector. Commissions outrank ministries and set policies for and coordinate the related activities of different administrative organs. Offices deal with matters of ongoing concern. Bureaus and administrations rank below ministries.

In addition to the 27 ministries, there are 38 centrally administered government organizations that report directly to the state council. The heads of these organizations attend full meetings of the state committee on an irregular basis.

Although the State Council is formally responsible to the NPC and its Standing Committee in conducting a wide range of government functions both at the national and at the local levels, in practice the NPC's authority is rather limited, although it not completely non-existent. The State Council acts according by virtue of the authority of the NPC, and there has been at least one case where the NPC has outright rejected an initiative of the State Council and a few cases where the State Council has withdrawn or greatly modified a proposal in response to NPC opposition.

The State Council and the Communist Party of China are also tightly interlocked. Most of the members of the State Council are high level party members. Although, as party members, they are supposed to follow party instructions, because they tend to be senior members of the party they also have large amounts of influence over what those instructions are. This results in a system which is unlike the Soviet practice in which the Party effectively controlled the state. Rather the party and state are fused at this level of government. The members of the State Council derive their authority from being members of the state, while as members of the Party they coordinate their activities and determine key decisions such as the naming of personnel.

Although there were attempts to separate the party and state in the late 1980s under Zhao Ziyang and have the Party in charge of formulating policy and the State Council executing policy, these efforts were largely abandoned in the early 1990s.

As the chief administrative organ of government, its main functions are to formulate administrative measures, issue decisions and orders, and monitor their implementation; draft legislative bills for submission to the NPC or its Standing Committee; and prepare the economic plan and the state budget for deliberation and approval by the NPC. The State Council is the functional center of state power and clearinghouse for government initiatives at all levels. With the government's emphasis on economic modernization, the State Council clearly acquired additional importance and influence.

The State Council controls the Ministry for National Defense but does not control the People's Liberation Army, which is instead controlled by the Central Military Commission.

Principal officers

Wen I and II Cabinet

Office	Head	Tenure
Premier	Wen Jiabao	2003–
First Vice Premier (Financial Affairs)	Huang Ju Li Keqiang	2003–2007 2008–
Vice Premier (Foreign Affairs and Commerce)	Wu Yi Wang Qishan	2003–2008 2008–
Vice Premier (Economy)	Zeng Peiyan Zhang Dejiang	2002–2008 2008–
Vice Premier (Agriculture)	Hui Liangyu	2003–
Secretary General	Hua Jianmin Ma Kai	2003–2008 2008–
Finance Minister	Jin Renqing Xie Xuren	2003–2007 2007–
Foreign Minister	Li Zhaoxing Yang Jiechi	2003–2007 2007–
Defense Minister	Cao Gangchuan Liang Guanglie	2003–2007 2007–
Minister of Education	Zhou Ji Yuan Guiren	2003–2009 2009
Minister of Commerce	Bo Xilai Chen Deming	2004–2007 2007–
Health Minister	Zhang Wenkang Wu Yi Gao Qiang Chen Zhu	1998–2003 2003–2005 2005–2007 2007-
Minister of National Development and Reform Commission	Ma Kai Zhang Ping	2003–2008 2008–
Minister of Railways	Liu Zhijun	2003–
Minister of Civil Affairs	Li Xueju	2003–
Minister of Labour	Tian Chengping	2005–
Governor of the People's Bank of China	Zhou Xiaochuan	2005–

Organizational structure

General Office of the State Council

• General Office of the State Council

Ministries and Commissions under the State Council

1. Ministry of Foreign Affairs
2. Ministry of National Defense
3. National Development and Reform Commission
4. Ministry of Education
5. Ministry of Science and Technology
6. State Ethnic Affairs Commission
7. Ministry of Public Security
8. Ministry of State Security
9. Ministry of Supervision
10. Ministry of Civil Affairs
11. Ministry of Justice
12. Ministry of Finance
13. Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security
14. Ministry of Land and Resources
15. Ministry of Environmental Protection
16. Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Construction
17. Ministry of Railways
18. Ministry of Transport
19. Ministry of Industry and Information Technology
20. Ministry of Water Resources
21. Ministry of Agriculture
22. Ministry of Commerce
23. Ministry of Culture
24. Ministry of Health
25. National Population and Family Planning Commission
26. People's Bank of China
27. National Audit Office

Special Organization directly under the State Council

• State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC)

Organizations directly under the State Council

1. General Administration of Customs
2. State Administration of Taxation
3. State Administration for Industry and Commerce
4. General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine
5. State Administration of Radio, Film and Television
6. General Administration of Press and Publication (National Copyright Administration)
7. State General Administration of Sports
8. National Bureau of Statistics
9. State Forestry Administration
10. State Administration of Work Safety
11. State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO)
12. National Tourism Administration
13. State Administration for Religious Affairs
14. Counselor's Office of the State Council
15. Government Offices Administration of the State Council
16. National Bureau of Corruption Prevention

Administrative Offices under the State Council

1. Overseas Chinese Affairs Office
2. Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office
3. Legislative Affairs Office
4. State Council Research Office

Institutions directly under the State Council

1. Xinhua News Agency
2. Chinese Academy of Sciences
3. Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
4. Chinese Academy of Engineering
5. Development Research Center
6. China National School of Administration
7. China Earthquake Administration
8. China Meteorological Administration
9. China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC)
10. China Securities Regulatory Commission
11. China Insurance Regulatory Commission
12. State Electricity Regulatory Commission
13. National Council for Social Security Fund
14. National Natural Science Foundation
15. Taiwan Affairs Office (also as a CPC institution), under CPC Central Committee
16. State Council Information Office (also as a CPC institution), under CPC Central Committee
17. State Archives Administration (also as a CPC institution), under General Office of CPC Central Commitee

State Administrations and Bureaus under the Ministries and Commissions

1. State Bureau for Letters and Calls, under General Office of the State Council
2. State Administration of Grain, under National Development and Reform Commission
3. National Energy Administration, under National Development and Reform Commission
4. State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence, under Ministry of Industry and Information Technology
5. State Tobacco Monopoly Administration (China National Tobacco Corporation), under Ministry of Industry and Information Technology
6. State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs, under Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security
7. State Bureau of Civil Servants, under Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security
8. State Oceanic Administration, under Ministry of Land and Resources
9. Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), under Ministry of Transport
10. State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping, under Ministry of Land and Resources
11. State Post Bureau, under Ministry of Transport
12. State Administration of Cultural Heritage, under Ministry of Culture
13. State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA), under Ministry of Health
14. State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, under Ministry of Health
15. State Administration of Foreign Exchange, under People's Bank of China
16. State Administration of Coal Mine Safety, under State Administration of Work Safety
17. National Administration for the Protection of State Secrets (also as a CPC institution), under General Office of CPC Central Committee
18. State Cryptography Administration (also as a CPC institution), under General Office of CPC Central Committee
19. China National Space Administration, a name resereved by Ministry of Industry and Information Technology
20. China Atomic Energy Authority, a name resereved by Ministry of Industry and Information Technology
21. State Language Commission, a name resereved by Ministry of Education
22. National Nuclear Safety Administration, a name resereved by Ministry of Environmental Protection

External links

• Official website
• Organizational structure