Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China

The vice premiers of the State Council of the People's Republic of China are high-ranking officials under the premier and above the state councillors and ministers.[1] Generally, the title is held by multiple individuals at any given time, with each vice-premier holding a broad portfolio of responsibilities. The first vice-premier takes over duties of the premier at the time of the latter's incapacity. The incumbent vice premiers, in order of rank, are Ding Xuexiang, He Lifeng, Zhang Guoqing and Liu Guozhong.

Vice Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China
中华人民共和国国务院副总理
Incumbent
Ding Xuexiang
He Lifeng
Zhang Guoqing
Liu Guozhong
since 12 March 2023
State Council of the People's Republic of China
StyleVice Premier (副总理)
(informal)
Member of
  • Plenary Meeting of the State Council
  • Executive Meeting of the State Council
Reports toPremier of the State Council
ResidencePremier's Office, Zhongnanhai
SeatBeijing
NominatorPremier of the State Council
AppointerPresident
pursuant to a National People's Congress decision
Term lengthFive years, renewable once consecutively
PrecursorVice Premier of the Government Administration Council of the Central People's Government
Inaugural holderChen Yun
FormationSeptember 1954; 69 years ago (1954-09)
WebsiteState Council
Vice Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China
Simplified Chinese中华人民共和国国务院副总理
Traditional Chinese中華人民共和國國務院副總理
Alternative Chinese name
Simplified Chinese国务院副总理
Traditional Chinese國務院副總理

The highest-ranked office holder is informally called the Senior Vice Premier or First Vice Premier (Chinese: 第一副总理) or Executive Vice Premier (Chinese: 常务副总理), a most prominent case being Deng Xiaoping in the mid-to-late 1970s.[2][3] In irregular instances, the position of a senior vice premier has been named either to indicate degree of power, nominal power, or when the premier is incapacitated and requires a full-time deputy to carry out his regular duties.

Selection edit

Officially, the vice premiers are appointed by the National People's Congress (NPC) upon the nomination of the premier.[4] The NPC also has the power to remove the vice premiers and other state officers from office. Elections and removals are decided by majority vote.[4] In practice, the vice premiers are chosen within the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leadership, including the Politburo Standing Committee.[5]

The length of the vice premier's term of office is the same as the NPC, which is 5 years, and the vice premiers are restricted to two consecutive terms.[4] Immediately after the election, the president signs the presidential order formalizing the appointment of the vice premiers. Since 2018, the vice premiers are required to collectively recite the constitutional oath of office before assuming office.[5]

Powers and authority edit

Vice premiers are the deputies to the premier, with each vice premier overseeing a certain area of administration.[6] Vice premiers are members of the executive meetings of the State Council, along with the premier, secretary-general and state councillors.[4] Additionally, all vice premiers have been members of the Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party in recent decades, with the executive vice premier being a member of the Politburo Standing Committee.[7]

Current vice premiers edit

Vice Premiers of the People's Republic of China
Portrait Information Posts
 
Ding Xuexiang
Rank 1st Member of the Politburo Standing Committee (6th Ranked)

Development and reform, education, science and technology, finance, ecology and environment, statistics, and intellectual property

Name Ding Xuexiang
Constituency Liaoning At-large
Birthplace Nantong, Jiangsu
Took office 12 March 2023
 
He Lifeng
Rank 2nd Member of the Politburo

Public finance, natural resource management, housing and urban development, transportation, commerce

Name He Lifeng
Constituency Inner Mongolia At-large
Birthplace Xingning, Guangdong
Took office 12 March 2023
 
Zhang Guoqing
Rank 3rd Member of the Politburo

Industry and information technology, emergency management, and state-owned enterprises

Name Zhang Guoqing
Constituency Tibet At-large
Birthplace Luoshan County, Henan
Took office 12 March 2023
 
Liu Guozhong
Rank 4th Member of the Politburo

Agriculture and rural affairs, health, poverty alleviation, and meteorology

Name Liu Guozhong
Constituency Henan At-large
Birthplace Wangkui County, Heilongjiang
Took office 12 March 2023

References edit

  1. ^ "Organic Law of the State Council of the People's Republic of China". National People's Congress. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  2. ^ "Senior Vice-Premier Teng Hsiao-Ping (Deng Xiaoping) speaking during dinner hosted by Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew and Mrs Lee in honour of the visiting People's Republic of China Senior Vice-Premier and delegation at Istana". National Archives of Singapore. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  3. ^ Xia, Yafeng; Shen, Zhihua (2014). "China's Last Ally: Beijing's Policy toward North Korea during the U.S.–China Rapprochement, 1970–1975". Diplomatic History. Oxford University Press. 38 (5): 1083–1113. ISSN 0145-2096. JSTOR 26376623. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  4. ^ a b c d "Constitution of the People's Republic of China". National People's Congress. Retrieved 2022-08-08.
  5. ^ a b Liao, Zewei (2023-03-04). "NPC 2023: How China Selects Its State Leaders for the Next Five Years". NPC Observer. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  6. ^ He, Laura (4 March 2023). "Meet the 4 men tapped to run China's economy". CNN. Retrieved 19 June 2023.
  7. ^ Miller, Alice. "The 19th Central Committee Politburo" (PDF). Hoover Institution. Retrieved 23 June 2023.

See also edit