Xi Jinping is expected to secure his third five-year term as president at the National People’s Congress (NPC).
China’s legislature will vote in the coming days on a plan to reform institutions under the State Council or cabinet and determine a new cabinet lineup for the next five years, including a new prime minister, an agenda showed on Saturday.
The annual National People’s Congress (NPC) will also review a range of reports, including the current prime minister’s work report, parliament spokesman Wang Chao said at a news conference.
Draft amendments to the country’s law, which governs how laws are enacted, are also on the agenda for the meeting starting Sunday.
In the second half of the NPC, which runs until March 13, the nearly 3,000 members of the largely stamped parliament will elect and approve a new lineup of top officials.
Xi Jinping is widely expected to secure his third five-year term as president when lawmakers vote on March 10.
He this week reiterated calls for the “intensive” reorganization of state and communist party entities, adding that part of the reform plan related to state institutions will be presented to parliament.
Lawmakers will also vote on the State Council’s institutional reform plan on March 10.
The call for institutional reform comes after China’s economy grew by 3 percent last year — one of its lowest rates in nearly half a century — softened by strict COVID-19 restrictions advocated by Xi, which were lifted in December.
On Sunday, the government work report to be delivered by Premier Li Keqiang at the beginning of parliament will reveal the official 2023 economic growth target, among many other social and economic targets.
The gross domestic product (GDP) target could be as high as 6 percent, compared to a range of 4.5 percent to 5.5 percent proposed in November, sources told Reuters this week.
New Prime Minister
On March 11, parliament will decide on a new prime minister for the next five years. A day later, it decides on a new group of deputy prime ministers, state councillors, ministers and the governor of the People’s Bank of China.
Among the amendments to China’s legislative law that will be reviewed at the meeting is a proposal that would allow the NPC Standing Committee to pass laws in the event of an “emergency” after a single review.
The commission, which enacts and amends laws when parliament is not in session, voted in June 2020 to pass landmark national security laws in Hong Kong. That legislation was put to the vote after two deliberations.
Lawmakers will vote on the bill’s draft amendments on March 13.
