Vice-Premier Urges Changes in Government Functions

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, June 28, 2002

Vice-Premier Urges Changes in Government Functions

China's Vice-Premier Tuesday told State Council departments to further trim their administrative powers and give the market a greater say.

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China's Vice-Premier Tuesday told State Council departments to further trim their administrative powers and give the market a greater say.

Li Lanqing told the 65 departments of the State Council that are entitled to carry out administrative examinations and approvals to come up with ``specific'' measures.

``The government should concentrate its efforts on enhancing macro-regulation, on investigation and research, on drafting market rules, on administration in accordance with the law, and on imposing effective supervision,'' said Li.

``The government should back off from fields in which it is not supposed to stay or where it is not capable of performing satisfactorily,'' the vice-premier said.

According to Li, the change in the government's functions is essential for the establishment and perfecting of a market economic mechanism in China. The reform would allow the market, instead of the government, to decide the allocation of the country's social and natural resources, he said.

Therefore, he maintained, such a transfer of functions should top the agenda of government departments at all levels, and the State Council should keep a ``close'' eye on the work's progress to ensure that the result is ``outright'' reform.

However, the change is no excuse for administrative negligence, said Li.

For all items to be freed from the government's administrative examination and approval, the government departments originally responsible should produce specific measures regarding the substitute authority as well as the necessary supervision.

Administrative powers to be given up include those that may endanger the operation of an open and fair market, those that produce no actual effect, and those that can be carried out by intermediary organizations.

Moreover, all issues now submitted for administrative examinations and approvals by the government should be settled via market economic mechanisms where possible.

Where powers of administrative examination and approval are to be retained, a rule should be established whereby only one government department should assume major responsibility for any particular issue.

This rule will enable better monitoring and supervision of the right to carry out administrative examinations and approvals.

Government departments and officials should be punished not only for rash examinations and irresponsible approvals but also for problems that occur because of their managerial negligence.

Li said the reform of administrative examinations and approvals should be implemented cautiously where it concerns the national economy and people's livelihood, social stability, and workplace safety.

``Excessive caution is necessary here to avoid a possible uncontrolled and chaotic situation,'' he said.

Source: China Daily

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