It was stressed at the central conference on work related to people's congresses in October 2021 that people's congresses should properly and effectively exercise the power of oversight in accordance with the law.

Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in 2012, the CPC Central Committee has put forward a slew of new concepts, thoughts and measures on the country's economic work, which makes new and higher requirements for the people's congresses to supervise economic work.

The 32nd session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee adopted a revised decision on strengthening oversight of economic work on Dec 24, 2021.

It was the first time that the NPC Standing Committee had revised the decision since it was introduced on March 1, 2000. The decision has provided the NPC Standing Committee with a specialized legal framework to exercise the power of oversight over economic work in accordance with the law and achieve relevant supervision on a regular basis, playing an important role in helping the government better promote social and economic growth and conduct law-based administration.

Briefing on the draft revision, Xu Shaoshi, chairman of the NPC’s Financial and Economic Affairs Committee, noted that the revision of the decision was designed to adjust to changing conditions in the new era, make more detailed and well-rounded changes to some key stipulations, translate sound practices and experience into legal norms, and strengthen its relevance with the Law on Oversight by the Standing Committees of the People's Congresses, the revised Organic Law of the National People's Congress and the Rules of Procedure for the National People's Congress.

The revision has increased the number of its clauses from 11 to 29 and laid out guiding principles for the standing committees of the people's congresses to exercise the power of oversight over economic work, which fully demonstrates the latest achievements made by the CPC in theoretical innovation, refines and improves relevant specifications related to the review, implementation and supervision of annual plans and outlines of five-year plans.

With regard to the core and overall economic work of the Party and the country, the revised decision specifies priorities of the oversight, which includes deepening the reform of the economic system, strengthening technological innovation, promoting coordinated regional development, adhering to green and low-carbon growth, ensuring and improving people's livelihoods, advancing common prosperity and high-level opening-up, and safeguarding the country's economic security.

The revision defines the scope of major issues expected to be declared, stresses supervision over key projects, and aims to strengthen oversight of financial work from five perspectives, such as the implementation of monetary policies.

A major highlight of the revised decision is that it sums up practical experience over the past few years and improves relevant working mechanisms. It strengthens follow-up and oversight of the implementation and handling of resolutions, decisions and opinions made by the people's congresses and their standing committees, and specifies the utilization of auditing oversight, third-party assessment and big data technologies to support the supervision of economic work.

To give full play to the functions of all special committees of the NPC and form a joint force in the exercise of oversight, the NPC Financial and Economic Affairs Committee and other special committees are required to fulfill their respective tasks under the leadership of the NPC and the NPC Standing Committee, according to the newly revised decision.

The Standing Committee of the 13th NPC has attached great importance to work related to deputies, making specific requirements on giving full play to their roles and overall arrangements on strengthening and improving relevant work. The revised decision said the NPC Standing Committee should exercise the power of oversight over economic work on a regular basis, take full advantage of the roles played by NPC deputies, listen to their suggestions, respond to their concerns and support them to fulfill their legal duties.

During the deliberation of the draft revision, Shen Yueyue, vice-chairperson of the Standing Committee of the 13th NPC, said that the revision has thoroughly implemented the spirit of the central conference on work related to the people's congresses, underscored the centralized and unified leadership of the CPC over economic work, adhered to the principles of focusing on central tasks and prioritizing key areas, earnestly summed up practical experience and explored new approaches in the oversight over economic work, and translated sound practices and experience into legal norms.

Moreover, the revision has made additional specifications over a wide range of topics from guiding principles, content, key areas and working mechanisms connected with oversight of economic work to the fulfillment of duties by special committees of the people's congresses and deputies, it also specified and consolidated the responsibilities of the people's congresses in this regard in a move to regulate as well as strengthen the efficacy of the supervision, she said.

"It is a major task for our Party to deliver a sound economic performance in the governance of the country," said Li Yuefeng, a deputy to the NPC. He said that the revision is of great importance to giving full play to the institutional advantages of the people's congress system, exercising the legal right of the people's congresses in supervision and implementing the concept of the whole-process people's democracy and it is conducive to achieving regular and whole process supervision over economic work and promoting high-quality development.

"This is a necessary and timely revision," said Ouyang Changqiong, another NPC deputy. He noted that the newly revised decision is a summary of the practices and experience made by the people's congresses in oversight of economic work over the past 21 years and the latest achievement made by the NPC Standing Committee in the implementation of the spirit of the central conference on work related to the people's congresses.

Deputy Liu Yuting said that the latest revision has summed up sound practices and experience taken by the people's congresses in oversight of economic work, as well as specified and strengthened some generally-stated clauses, which reflects the characteristics of the new era.