Key takeaways from the fifth plenary session of the 20th CPC CCDI

The fifth plenary session of the 20th Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) of the Communist Party of China (CPC), held in Beijing from Monday to Wednesday, outlined key priorities for advancing full and rigorous Party self-governance and pledged intensified anti-corruption efforts as China enters the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030).

Advancing full and rigorous Party self-governance

The meeting highlighted that 2026 marks both the first year of the 15th Five-Year Plan and the 105th anniversary of the founding of the CPC, underscoring new requirements in advancing full and rigorous Party self-governance.

Against this backdrop, the communique stressed the need to take stronger and more effective measures to eradicate the breeding ground and conditions for corruption so as to provide a solid guarantee for achieving the goals and tasks of the 15th Five-Year Plan period.

The communique made clear that improving Party conduct and tightening discipline must be pursued with persistence and consistency.

It called for sustained efforts to correct formalism, bureaucracy, hedonism and extravagance, stressing that strengthening work style is a long-term task rather than a short-term campaign. 

Unwavering fight against corruption

The communique emphasized maintaining an unwavering stance in fighting corruption, with continued high-pressure enforcement and no tolerance for misconduct.

It emphasized investigating both those who accept bribes and those who offer them, and paying close attention to new and hidden forms of corruption. By addressing corruption in a systematic manner, the Party aims to continuously eliminate the conditions and breeding ground that allow corrupt practices to emerge and spread.

The session also urged improving long-term mechanisms to refine codes of conduct, while ramping up efforts to combat corruption in key priority sectors. It further mandated tough scrutiny and punishment for collusion between officials and businessmen. 

Strengthening political oversight

The session emphasized the necessity of strengthening political oversight to support the achievement of the period's objectives and tasks.

Stricter enforcement of political discipline and discipline related to leadership transitions was highlighted, alongside firm action against duplicity and political inconsistency.

According to the communique, political oversight will closely track the implementation of major strategic tasks, including advancing high-quality development, fostering a modern industrial system, developing new quality productive forces in line with local conditions, building a unified national market, expanding high-level opening up, promoting common prosperity, preventing a return to poverty, mitigating local government debt risks, strengthening ecological protection, and better coordinating development and security.

At the same time, the communique highlighted the need to strengthen political inspections to enhance their deterrent effect.

Confining power to an institutional cage

Another key message of the communique is the need to confine power to an institutional cage.

It stressed that achieving the goals of the 15th Five-Year Plan places higher demands on regulating how power is exercised. Discipline inspection and supervision bodies are tasked with reinforcing rule-based governance, improving systems that govern power, and ensuring that authority is exercised strictly in accordance with regulations and procedures.

Addressing corruption critical to people's livelihoods

The communique also highlighted continued efforts to address misconduct and corruption that directly affect the people's livelihoods, particularly at the grassroots level.

It highlighted deepened, targeted rectification in key areas, including the management of rural collective assets, funds and resources, oversight of medical insurance funds, and the regulation of elderly care services. The document also called for addressing problems related to high-standard farmland construction and strengthening oversight of region-specific livelihood projects based on local conditions.

The communique stressed firm action against improper law enforcement practices, including irregular cross-regional enforcement and profit-driven enforcement, in order to protect the legitimate rights and interests of the public and maintain fairness and integrity in governance.

To ensure sustained results, the communique called for establishing regularized mechanisms for addressing misconduct and corruption, strengthening the role of counties as the main battleground for grassroots governance, encouraging public participation in supervision and enhancing oversight capacity at the primary level.