State Council appoints new officials for super ministries

BEIJING—The State Council, or China’s Cabinet, announced Monday it has appointed new officials for five newly-established “super ministries”, including the ministry of human resources and social security and the ministry of environmental protection.
Pan Yue and four others were appointed as vice-ministers of the ministry of environmental protection. Qiu Baoxing and three others were appointed as vice-ministers of housing and urban-rural construction. Former Head of the State Food and Drug Administration Shao Mingli was appointed vice-minister of health.
Seven officials, including Wang Xudong and Xi Guohua, were appointed vice-ministers of the industry and information. Ji Yunshi, former director of the State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs, Sun Baoshu, former vice director of the Ministry of Labor and Social Security, Li Zhiyong and six others were appointed as vice-ministers of human resources and social security.
Li Jiaxiang and four others were appointed as vice-ministers of transport. The National People’s Congress, the Chinese parliament, adopted a government reshuffle plan at a plenary meeting earlier this month. The plan involves the establishment of five “super ministries”. Zhang Guobao was appointed as director of the national energy bureau.
Meanwhile, the State Council dismissed some of the above officials from their former posts, while some continue to hold other positions concurrently. In addition, the State Council has appointed Sheng Guangzu as director of the General Administration of Customs, replacing Mou Xinsheng. It also has appointed Wang Jun as director of the State Administration of Work Safety, Chen Qiufa as director of the national defense science, technology and industry bureau, Yin Weimin as director of the national bureau of civil servants and Li Jiaxiang director of the national civil aviation bureau.
China will set up five new “super ministries” in a fresh round of government institutional restructuring, and a plan for the reshuffle was submitted to the National People’s Congress (NPC), or parliament, by Premier Wen Jiabao, for deliberation on Tuesday afternoon. The five “super ministries” are the ministry of industry and information, the ministry of human resources and social security, the ministry of environmental protection, the ministry of housing and urban-rural construction, and the ministry of transport.
To strengthen the government management on the energy sector, a high-level inter-ministerial consultation and coordinating body, the national energy commission, is also to be established, with a national bureau of energy to be set up as its executive office under the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC). The new bureau will integrate the NDRC’s functions relating to energy management, the functions of the National Energy Leading Group and the functions of the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense on nuclear power management.
The combination of a sizzling economy, soaring investment growth in the heavy industries and cars crowding urban streets have driven up China’s demand for fuel. In 2007, the country’s imports of crude oil hit 159.28 million tons, rising 14.7 year-on-year and contributing 46 percent to the total crude consumption. The State Environmental Protection Administration will be elevated to a full-fledged ministry after economic miracle has brought in its wake severe challenges to the environment.
“This elevation shows the government has become more concerned with environmental protection,” said Wei Fusheng, academician with the Chinese Academy of Engineering. The full membership in the State Council means a bigger say in the government policy-making, he said.

—Xinhua