The difference between the National People’s Congress and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference:

1. Different nature

The NPC is the highest organ of State power. Its permanent body is the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress. The National People’s Congress and its Standing Committee exercise the legislative power of the State.

The CPPCC is not an organ of the State. It is a Chinese people’s patriotic united front organization and an important institution of multiparty cooperation and political consultation led by the Communist Party of China.

2. Different legal status, power and functions

The NPC decides on the choice of the Premier of the State Council upon nomination by the President of the People’s Republic of China, and on the choice of the Vice-Premiers, State Councilors, and Ministers in charge of ministries or commissions upon nomination by the Premier. It also elects the President of the Supreme People’s Court and the Procurator-General of the Supreme People’s Procuratorate.

The CPPCC is an important institution of political consultation, democratic supervision and participation in the deliberation and administration of State affairs. It conducts consultations before policy decisions are made, while the NPC votes on policy decisions after the consultations are finished and the government carries them out after policy decisions are made.

3. Different mode of selection

Deputies to the NPC are elected from 35 electoral units from the people’s congresses of provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government, the People’s Liberation Army, the deputy election council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and the Taiwan compatriots’ consultation election council.

CPPCC members are selected through consultation and recommendation. The Standing Committee decides through consultation on the number of members and the candidates for each CPPCC National Committee after they are examined and approved by the Chair’s Council of the preceding CPPCC National Committee.

4. Different work mode

The NPC exercises its power through amending the Constitution and supervising the enforcement of the Constitution, to enact and amend basic laws governing criminal offences, civil affairs, the State organs and other matters, to elect and appoint members to central State organs, and to determine major State issues.

It also deliberates and approves the plan for national economic and social development and the report on its implementation and deliberates and approves the State budget and the report on its implementation.

Meetings are an important way in which the CPPCC exercises its functions and its members participate in the deliberation and administration of State affairs.

Members of a CPPCC committee, political parties or mass organizations affiliated with the CPPCC can make proposals, individually or jointly, over State affairs.

The basic procedures for handling the proposals are presenting the proposals, forwarding them, handling them, and replying the proposal presenters.