Xinhua News Agency Reporter: An Act of Establishing Credibility to Win the Hearts of the Party and the People
Not long ago, the Central Party Building Leading Group [1] issued a notice requiring all regions and departments, while conducting in-depth study and education on implementing the spirit of the central Eight-Point Regulations, to include in their curriculum the "Achievements and Experience of Deeply Implementing the Spirit of the Central Eight-Point Regulations Since the 18th National Congress" and "The Eight-Point Regulations Change China" compiled by the organs of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI). This is intended to promote the continuous deepening and substantiation of study and education, and to drive new achievements in the Party’s work style construction.
A new journey, a new departure. The entire Party is treating this study and education as a major political task, educating and guiding Party members and cadres to temper their Party spirit and enhance their awareness with higher standards and stricter requirements, providing a powerful guarantee for advancing Chinese-path modernization through new achievements in work style construction.
Leading by Example, Seeing It Through to the End
"The Eight-Point Regulations have changed China." Looking across the vast land of China, the Eight-Point Regulations have long become a term of significant influence in the political life of the Party and the state.
On April 25, 2025, General Secretary Xi Jinping presided over a meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee to analyze and study the current economic situation and economic work. The meeting emphasized the need to earnestly carry out study and education on the in-depth implementation of the spirit of the central Eight-Point Regulations, using new achievements in work style construction to open up a new phase of high-quality development.
Turning back the hands of time to December 4, 2012, less than a month after the conclusion of the 18th National Congress of the CPC, General Secretary Xi Jinping presided over a meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee. The meeting deliberated and adopted the Eight-Point Regulations of the Political Bureau on improving work style and maintaining close ties with the masses.
Consisting of just over 600 characters, the Eight-Point Regulations set out rules for strengthening work style construction across eight areas, including investigation and research, as well as meetings and activities.
The 19th National Congress incorporated work style construction into the general requirements for Party building in the New Era. The first meetings of the Political Bureau of both the 19th and 20th Central Committees studied the detailed rules for implementing the Eight-Point Regulations, further deepening and refining them. The "central Eight-Point Regulations" were written into the Party's third historical resolution [2] as an achievement and experience of comprehensively and strictly governing the Party in the New Era, serving as a mirror for history and a guide for the future...
"Formulating and implementing the central Eight-Point Regulations was our Party’s act of 'moving the pole to establish trust' [3] in the New Era. We must grasp this without respite and persist over the long term. If ten years are not enough, take twenty; if twenty are not enough, take thirty, until it truly transforms the atmosphere into custom, leading the social and folk atmosphere with a fine Party style," General Secretary Xi Jinping spoke with resonant force.
From the党的群众路线教育实践活动 (Mass Line Educational Practice Activity), the "Three Stricts and Three Honests" [4] thematic education, the "Two Studies, One Action" [5] study and education, and the "Staying True to Our Initial Aspiration and Founding Mission" [6] thematic education, to the study of Party history, the thematic education on studying and implementing Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and the study and education on Party discipline... concentrated education within the Party, carried out in succession, has always taken work style construction as a critical component.
2025 is the concluding year of the 14th Five-Year Plan and a vital year for further comprehensively deepening reform; the layout for the 15th Five-Year Plan will also be charted.
At this critical juncture, conducting study and education on the in-depth implementation of the spirit of the central Eight-Point Regulations is an important measure to consolidate and deepen the fruits of thematic education and Party discipline education, and to push comprehensively and strictly governing the Party to greater depths. It is an inevitable requirement for maintaining close ties between the Party and the masses and between cadres and the masses, and for consolidating the Party’s foundation of governance. It is a powerful guarantee for advancing Chinese-path modernization.
Work style construction is always a work in progress. In June 2021, on the eve of the Party's centenary, General Secretary Xi Jinping visited the Museum of the Communist Party of China. In front of the display board for the central Eight-Point Regulations, the General Secretary stopped and examined it closely: "Currently, these eight items—streamlining meetings and activities, improving security work, improving news reports, and practicing strict economy—are all being handled well. However, we must still speak of them repeatedly and grasp them repeatedly..." The General Secretary said firmly: "The Eight-Point Regulations must be followed consistently." The photo shows the display board of the central Eight-Point Regulations in the Museum of the Communist Party of China, taken on May 13, 2025. (Photo provided by the Museum of the Communist Party of China)
When the wind blows from above, custom transforms below. Since the 18th National Congress, whether during domestic inspections or foreign visits, General Secretary Xi Jinping has always led by example, taking the lead in strictly implementing the central Eight-Point Regulations and setting a glorious example for the whole Party in improving work style.
Regarding meals, he eats simple home-cooked food. In Gutian, Fujian, he had lunch with grassroots representatives, eating red rice and pumpkin soup. In Liangjiahe, Northern Shaanxi, he ate buckwheat noodles, oil cakes, and hemp soup with the villagers. Regarding accommodation, arrangements are simplified as much as possible. During an inspection in Fuping, Hebei, he stayed in a 16-square-meter room. In the earthquake-stricken area of Lushan, Sichuan, he stayed in a temporary prefabricated house. Regarding travel, he has always traveled with light luggage and a small retinue. He controls the number of accompanying staff during inspections and pays travel expenses according to regulations. He strictly follows foreign affairs regulations during state visits... Every word and action reflects a clear attitude of taking the lead in implementing the central Eight-Point Regulations; every small detail demonstrates the profound sentiment of the people’s leader caring for the people.
A good work style brings creativity, cohesion, and combat effectiveness. Facing the arduous and heavy tasks of reform, development, and stability, the full mental state and solid work style of Party members and cadres are the strong guarantee for overcoming difficulties.
In November 2024, General Secretary Xi Jinping inspected Hubei. In Siyi Village, Panjiawan Town, Jiayu County, Xianning City, at the Party-mass service center, the "List of Service Items for the Masses" posted on the wall caught the General Secretary's eye. "In the past, there were more requirements for the masses to do things; now, it is more about Party members and cadres doing things and providing services for the masses. This is a fundamental change," General Secretary Xi Jinping said. "We must continue to reduce burdens [7] at the grassroots level, so that grassroots cadres can use more time and energy to serve the masses."
From the "Notice on Resolving Prominent Problems of Formalism to Reduce Burdens at the Grassroots," which proposed "hard bars" and concrete measures, to the launch of a special working mechanism at the central level to rectify formalism and reduce burdens at the grassroots; from designating the "Year of Reducing Burdens at the Grassroots" to the public exposure of typical cases of formalism and bureaucratism...
Since the 18th National Congress, General Secretary Xi Jinping has always attached great importance to the work of rectifying formalism and reducing burdens at the grassroots. A series of solid measures have tackled the "tough nuts," demonstrating a firm determination to eliminate the deep-seated malaise of work style problems.
"Leading cadres at all levels must lead by example and set a standard. What is said must be done, and what is promised must be fulfilled. The comrades of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee will start with me."
Those who lead by example are followed. Carrying a strong sense of historical responsibility and a deep sense of concern for the mission, General Secretary Xi Jinping has always practiced the solemn promise made to the Party and the people of all ethnic groups in the country. By taking the lead in carrying forward the Party’s fine style and strictly implementing the central Eight-Point Regulations, he has allowed the people to see tangible changes.
Overpowering Malignant Tendencies with Clean and Upright Winds
In the online exhibition hall of the National Museum of China, a dinner menu from General Secretary Xi Jinping’s inspection in Fuping, Hebei, at the end of 2012 is particularly eye-catching—
Four dishes and one soup: braised local chicken, Fuping stew, stir-fried garlic sprouts with pork belly, sautéed garland chrysanthemum with garlic, and winter melon meatball soup; staple foods: dumplings, rice, steamed flower rolls, and multi-grain porridge.
The simple home-cooked meal, the strict "four dishes and one soup," and the specific instruction not to serve alcohol reflect the political character and fine tradition of Communists characterized by hard work and plain living.
Since the 18th National Congress, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has focused on prominent problems strongly reflected by the masses. Starting from small details and focusing on practical efforts, it has ensured the in-depth implementation of the spirit of the central Eight-Point Regulations through normalized and long-term governance, driving the continuous infusion of clean and upright winds throughout China.
Grasping the fine details and the long term, and holding the bottom line of integrity. On the eve of the 2025 May Day holiday, the CCDI and the National Supervisory Commission (NSC) publicly reported ten typical cases of violating the spirit of the central Eight-Point Regulations, naming names and pointing directly at the "disease." The circular emphasized that discipline inspection and supervision organs at all levels must always adhere to zero tolerance, striking down and strictly dealing with problems such as illicit eating and drinking, illicit receiving and giving of gifts and money, and public-funded tourism under the guise of training or inspection as soon as they appear. They must strictly investigate and promptly handle acts of defiance against discipline during the period of study and education, and issue public reports.
General Secretary Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out: "Some work style problems may seem small—a few meals, a few glasses of wine, a few gift cards—but they all relate to the issue of public vs. private, and they are all connected to public funds and public power."
Unhealthy tendencies and corruption are two sides of the same coin, sharing the same root. A large number of cases show that the corruption and moral decay of Party members and cadres often begin with work style problems. Starting from a pack of cigarettes, a bottle of wine, a meal, or a gift, it gradually evolves into insatiable greed. Since the 18th National Congress, localities have continued to keep a close watch on prominent problems such as illicit eating and drinking and the illicit giving and receiving of gifts and money, strictly investigating and promptly handling acts of defiance. At the same time, they have persisted in investigating and rectifying "winds" (unhealthy tendencies) and corruption together, using joint investigations to solve the difficulty of discovering the "invisible and mutated" forms of unhealthy tendencies, and using joint rectification to eradicate the soil and conditions for such problems to sprout, thereby advancing the rectification of work style and the punishment of corruption as an integrated whole.
Data released by the CCDI and NSC show that in 2024, more than 200,000 cases of violating the spirit of the central Eight-Point Regulations were investigated and handled nationwide. Among them, nearly 60,000 cases involved illicitly receiving or giving expensive local specialties and gifts/money, and more than 20,000 cases involved illicit eating and drinking, using strong shared deterrence to check malignant tendencies.
"Whether one is clean or not depends on how they spend the New Year; whether one is upright or not depends on how they spend the festivals." Holidays are often the nodes where the "Four Winds" are prone to rebound. Since the 18th National Congress, the General Office of the CPC Central Committee and the General Office of the State Council have issued special notices every year before New Year’s Day and the Spring Festival, emphasizing the implementation of the spirit of the central Eight-Point Regulations and setting specific requirements. The CCDI and NSC have released data on the handling of violations of the spirit of the central Eight-Point Regulations for more than 130 consecutive months, creating a strong atmosphere where the further one goes, the closer the watch becomes, the higher the requirements, and the stricter the disciplinary enforcement.
Cultivating a clean family life to nurture a fine work style through upright family traditions. General Secretary Xi Jinping attaches great importance to the construction of family, family education, and family traditions, repeatedly requiring that "every leading cadre must place family tradition construction in an important position, cultivating themselves with integrity and managing their families with integrity," and that they "must hold the line on family ties and strictly manage family education and traditions."
The family tradition of Party members and cadres is not a private matter for the individual or the family; rather, it is an important manifestation of an excellent work style and the first line of defense against corruption. Since the start of the study and education, various regions have deeply excavated the elements of integrity within "Red" (revolutionary) family traditions, told the stories of advanced models' family traditions, and conducted warning education. This guides the broad masses of Party members and cadres to continuously strengthen their understanding of the importance of family, family education, and family tradition construction, and to strictly manage their relatives and children. Party members and cadres have attached more importance to family construction, properly handled family relationships, and strived to be people of integrity, managing their families with diligence and thrift, doing things cleanly, and governing with integrity, continuously using the good family traditions of Communists in the New Era to nurture a fine work style.
Diligence and thrift: leading the social and folk atmosphere with the Party’s work style and government conduct. Being thrifty and simple and strictly avoiding extravagance is our Party's "heirloom" and a major matter concerning "self-cultivation" and "prospering the cause." General Secretary Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out: "Hard work and plain living, and diligence and thrift, were not only important guarantees for our journey and growth, but also important guarantees for us to carry forward the cause and create new brilliance."
Since the 18th National Congress, the CPC Central Committee has successively issued a series of systems and regulations on practicing strict economy and opposing waste, and strengthening the management of official hospitality. All regions and departments have issued corresponding detailed rules, continuously tightening the web of laws, regulations, and systems.
Since the start of the study and education, all regions and departments have further focused on problems of defiant violation of discipline, such as public-funded tourism in the name of inspection, education and training, or Party building activities. They have strengthened supervision and special rectification, promoting the practice of "living within one's means" [8] as a normal state for Party and government organs.
Currently, we are forging ahead toward the goal of Chinese-path modernization. Various tasks of reform and development are heavy, making it especially necessary for all sectors of society to carry forward the fine tradition of hard work and to spend "real gold and silver" where it is most needed.
Reducing Burdens and Empowering, Promoting Integrity and Dispelling Evil
In July 2024, General Secretary Xi Jinping presided over a meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee. An important item on the agenda was the deliberation of the "Certain Provisions on Rectifying Formalism to Reduce Burdens at the Grassroots."
Formalism and bureaucratism are chronic ailments of grassroots governance and a "pain in the heart" that plagues grassroots cadres. Correcting formalism and bureaucratism is an inherent part of implementing the spirit of the central Eight-Point Regulations. Only by persisting with the "spirit of driving a nail" [9], working without respite and going deeper step by step, can we truly clear the "bottlenecks."
To implement the reduction of burdens at the grassroots, Party organizations at all levels need to reduce the "burdens that should be reduced" and take up the "responsibilities that should be fulfilled," transforming the results of burden reduction into a powerful impetus for seeking truth, performing practical work, and overcoming difficulties on the new journey. The photo shows staff members at the Government Affairs Service Center in Dongsheng District, Ordos City, Inner Mongolia, on April 16, 2025, handling business related to private enterprises, using comprehensive measures to continuously optimize the business environment. (Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Zhipeng)
Striking at the pain points, treating with targeted measures.
In March 2025, during inspection tours of Guizhou and Yunnan, General Secretary Xi Jinping spoke on several occasions regarding the far-reaching considerations behind the CPC Central Committee’s decision to launch this study and education campaign: “In recent years, the Eight-Point Regulations have indeed driven fundamental changes; the social atmosphere has been refreshed, and most of the phenomena that were once deeply entrenched and difficult to reverse have disappeared. At the same time, we must see that slackening has occurred in some places, blind spots and dead ends still exist in certain areas, and some unhealthy tendencies have experienced a rebound. It is like driving a nail [10]: drive it a few more times, persist over the long term, and eventually transform these styles into lasting customs.” The General Secretary particularly enjoined: “Party organizations at all levels must profoundly grasp the great significance of this decision by the Central Committee, focus on the theme, and organize the study and education in a concise and pragmatic manner. Do not engage in formalism [11], as formalism itself is what the Eight-Point Regulations seek to oppose.”
Orders must be followed like a mountain [12]. Local Party committees (and leading Party groups) have deeply studied and grasped the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important instructions, fulfilling their primary responsibilities and adopting a problem-oriented approach to perform the work of reducing burdens on the grassroots [13] with meticulousness and substance.
Rectification efforts have focused on problems such as the “mountain of documents and sea of meetings” [14], excessive "traces" of work [15], and the practice of piling task upon task at each successive level. Rectification has involved the timely discovery and punishment of acts that disguise misconduct or represent its invisible mutations, as well as strengthening the verification and notification of typical problematic cases. To address the predicament of grassroots cadres facing “inspections requiring excessive documentation” and “too many evaluations,” authorities have continuously strengthened governance at the source. They have urged various departments to standardize and integrate evaluation indicators to build a scientific evaluation system, eliminating repetitive evaluations at the root. Implementing the long-term mechanism for rectifying formalism to reduce burdens on the grassroots, they have adhered to a systems perspective and coordinated "burden reduction" with "empowerment" [16]. Starting with leading organs and beginning reforms with leading cadres, they have addressed both old formalism problems and their new manifestations in a targeted manner.
Since the launch of the study and education campaign, various regions and departments have made good use of typical cases to strengthen warning education. They have guided Party organizations and the broad ranks of Party members and cadres to immerse themselves in hard work and avoid empty efforts, to deeply analyze the root causes of problems, to draw lessons from specific instances, and to implement systematic rectification. Those responsible for fraudulent or superficial rectifications are held accountable according to regulations and discipline, resolutely putting an end to formalism within the rectification process itself.
Innovating methods and empowering the grassroots.
Without issuing prior notice, without advance greetings, and without being accompanied by local officials, they dug deep into the "bottlenecks" in work style during the process of reducing grassroots burdens. Recently, Jinyun County in Lishui, Zhejiang Province, organized relevant functional departments to go deep into the front lines of towns and villages to identify issues such as barriers to data sharing, insufficient integration of supervision and inspection, and poor coordination between departments.
Only when leading cadres of local Party and government organs, especially the "top leaders" [17], truly "throw their bodies down" [18] can they truly grasp the pains, thoughts, and expectations of grassroots cadres and the masses. Only then can they clarify "where the hands of superior departments should reach" and "which burdens grassroots cadres should carry, what work they should do, and what responsibilities they should shoulder."
While ensuring that "small horses" are not pulled by "large carts" [19], even more thought must be given to how to delegate power and provide empowerment. There has been an increased effort to "reduce the top to supplement the bottom" regarding administrative staffing, thereby replenishing grassroots strength. Authorities have solidified the "whistle-blowing" and dispatch power [20], evaluation power, and personnel suggestion power of townships (and sub-districts), enhancing the "right to speak" of the grassroots in governance practice. In recent years, various regions have actively explored giving the grassroots fewer constraints and greater space. Only when grassroots cadres go into battle with light packs and the urgent anxieties of the masses are efficiently resolved can governance effectiveness and people's well-being improve in tandem.
Clearing the muddy waters and stimulating the clear [21], supporting the upright and dispelling the evil.
In January 2025, the Henan Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection and Supervision issued an "unusual" report—publicly announcing six typical cases of punishing false accusations and clarifying the names of those wrongly accused. This "unsheathed the sword" against false accusers and "stiffened the spines" of those who do solid work. Zhejiang Province has utilized experiences and practices such as "clarifying names and investigating false accusations, precise accountability, tolerance of mistakes and error correction, and follow-up education" to create an atmosphere for entrepreneurship and action. In 2024, Shandong Province carried out more than 1,000 instances of clarifying names and restoring reputations, guiding Party members and cadres to act boldly and forge ahead under the premise of observing regulations and discipline.
It is necessary to be both daring in management and precise in policy implementation to reflect the strength of the organization, while also providing support, encouragement, care, and tolerance to reflect the warmth of the organization. General Secretary Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out that "exploration entails the possibility of failure, and doing things entails the possibility of making mistakes." He demanded a correct grasp of the nature and impact of errors to "effectively protect the enthusiasm of cadres for entrepreneurship and action."
To encourage the taking of responsibility, the criteria for identifying cadres, judging their merits, and determining rewards, punishments, promotions, or demotions must center on whether they dare to shoulder tasks, are willing to do work, and are capable of accomplishing things. To advocate pragmatism, cadres must be observed closely and from multiple angles; one must go deep among grassroots cadres and the masses to understand cadres through the "public reputation" of the people. To rectify the atmosphere, false accusations must be investigated and punished seriously according to laws and regulations, using trust and protection to allow cadres to lay down their burdens, go into battle with light packs, and forge ahead with an undistracted mind.
The construction of work style cannot be achieved overnight or in a single stroke, nor can it be like a gust of wind that stops as soon as it blows. It must be grasped frequently and over the long term, with the resolve of "the horse not leaving the saddle and the hand not loosening the reins," and with the tenacity to grasp problems repeatedly and address them as they recur, in order to win this tough and protracted battle.
Under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, the entire Party is solidly carrying out the study and education campaign to deeply implement the spirit of the central Eight-Point Regulations. By unswervingly deepening the construction of work style, the Party will surely inject a continuous stream of powerful force into the great cause of comprehensively promoting the construction of a strong country and national rejuvenation through Chinese-path modernization!