China on Tuesday unveiled a massive cabinet reshuffle plan to make the government better-structured, more efficient, and service-oriented.[Special coverage]
The institutional reform plan of the State Council was submitted to the ongoing first session of the 13th National People's Congress for deliberations.
State Councilor Wang Yong briefed the lawmakers on the plan.
After merging, restructuring, creating and dissolving, there will be 26 ministries and commissions. Among the new entities are ministries for natural resources, veterans affairs, and emergency management.
There will also be new administrations under the State Council, such as an international development cooperation agency, a state immigration administration, and a banking and insurance regulatory commission.
Compared with the current cabinet setup, the number of ministerial-level entities is reduced by eight and that of vice-ministerial-level entities by seven.
Wang said the reform, focusing on institutional restructuring in key areas, would strengthen the government's functions on economic management, market supervision, social management, public service, and ecological and environmental protection.
"It focuses on the needs of development and meets the people's expectations," Wang said, adding that the restructuring formed part of a broader plan by the Communist Party of China to deepen the reform of the Party and state institutions.
He said the cabinet reshuffle dealt with the institutional obstacles to make the market play a decisive role in resource allocation. The reshuffle will also help China build a modern economy with high quality growth.
In a big change, a banking and insurance regulatory commission will be formed to replace the China Banking Regulatory Commission and the China Insurance Regulatory Commission.
The move is aimed at solving existing problems such as unclear responsibilities, cross-regulation and absence of supervision, Wang said.
The new body will enhance oversight of both banking and insurance industries and be more effective to forestall risks in the financial sector.
The international development cooperation agency, to be formed by merging parts of the functions of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Commerce, will "give full play to foreign aid as a key means of major-country diplomacy," Wang said.
A state immigration administration is to be set up under the Ministry of Public Security to formulate and enforce immigration rules, as "the number of foreigners working and living in China has been increasing, raising new requirements on immigration administration and services," according to Wang.
People's welfare will be better protected, with the establishment of two new ministerial departments devoted to healthcare and veterans affairs.
The ministry of veterans affairs will protect the rights and interests of military personnel and their families, improve the service and management system of demobilized military personnel, and make military service an occupation that enjoys public respect.
If passed, the cabinet reshuffle will be the eighth such move in more than three decades.
Cutting bureaucracy has been a common pursuit of governments around the world. Begining 1982, amid its reform and opening-up push, China began downsizing the central government about every five years.
Ma Liang, a public administration professor of Renmin University of China, said cabinet reshuffles throughout the years aimed to develop a sound, service-oriented administration able to satisfy the people's needs.
Proposed list of ministries, commissions of China's cabinet after reform
The State Council will consist of 26 ministries and commissions in addition to the General Office of the State Council:
-- Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
-- Ministry of National Defense;
-- National Development and Reform Commission;
-- Ministry of Education;
-- Ministry of Science and Technology;
-- Ministry of Industry and Information Technology;
-- State Ethnic Affairs Commission;
-- Ministry of Public Security;
-- Ministry of State Security;
-- Ministry of Civil Affairs;
-- Ministry of Justice;
-- Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security;
-- Ministry of Natural Resources;
-- Ministry of Ecological Environment;
-- Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development;
-- Ministry of Transport;
-- Ministry of Water Resources;
-- Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs;
-- Ministry of Commerce;
-- Ministry of Culture and Tourism;
-- National Health Commission;
-- Ministry of Veterans Affairs;
-- Ministry of Emergency Management;
-- People's Bank of China;
Ministry of Supervision to be merged into new supervisory commission
The Ministry of Supervision will be merged into the national supervisory commission, according to an institutional restructuring plan of the State Council Tuesday.
The National Bureau of Corruption Prevention will also be merged, said the plan delivered by State Councilor Wang Yong at a plenary meeting of the ongoing session of the 13th National People's Congress.
China to restructure State Intellectual Property Office
The move aims to strengthen the creation, protection and application of intellectual property rights (IPR), and speed up making China a country of innovators, said the document on an institutional reform plan of the State Council, or the cabinet.
China to form state radio, television administration
The proposed administration directly under the State Council will be responsible for drafting policies and measures for radio and television management and their implementation, coordinating development of broadcasting undertakings and industries, promoting institutional reform in the sectors, importing radio and television programs, and facilitating the sectors to go global.
China to reform national, local taxation systems
China plans to reform its separate national and local taxation systems by integrating their offices at and below the provincial level, according to a plan submitted to the national legislature on Tuesday.
China to form state grain and reserves administration
Responsibilities of the commission include the stocking, rotation and management of the nation's strategic and emergency-aid materials, including grain, cotton and sugar.
China to form state market regulatory administration
Responsibilities of the administration include comprehensive market supervision and management, market entity registration and market order maintenance.
China to set up state medical insurance administration
The proposed administration will be responsible for formulating policies, plans and standards on healthcare systems in terms of medical insurance, maternity insurance and medical assistance, and ensuring their implementation.
State Council to abolish legislative affairs office
China's cabinet plans to abolish its legislative affairs office and restructure the Ministry of Justice, according to an institutional restructuring plan of the State Council Tuesday.
China to form banking and insurance regulatory commission
The commission is mainly responsible for supervising the banking and insurance industries, preventing and dissolving financial risks and protecting consumers' rights.
China to form state forestry and grassland administration
The administration is mainly responsible for overseeing and managing the development and protection of forest, grassland, wetland, desert and terraneous wild life, as well as organizing ecological protection and restoration, afforestation and management of national parks.
China to form int'l development cooperation agency
The new agency will be responsible for making strategic guidelines, plans and policies on foreign aid; coordinating and making suggestions on major issues related to it; pushing forward reform of the means of aid-giving; making foreign aid plans and and overseeing and evaluating their implementation.
