BEIJING - The four-day Seventh Plenary Session of the 17th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) concluded on Sunday in Beijing with a communique being issued.

Two hundred members and 165 alternate members of the CPC Central Committee attended the meeting, with members of the CPC's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and leading officials of related departments present as non-voting members.

It was decided at the plenum that the 18th CPC National Congress will be convened from November 8 in Beijing, according to the communique issued on Sunday.

The plenum was presided over by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee. Hu Jintao, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, delivered an important speech.

Hu, entrusted by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, made a work report, which was discussed at the plenum.

It also discussed and approved a report to be made by the 17th CPC Central Committee to the 18th Party Congress beginning next Thursday, as well as an amendment to the CPC Constitution.

Both documents will be submitted to the Party Congress for examination, the plenum decided.

Xi Jinping, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, made an explanation to the plenum on the draft report to the 18th Party Congress and the draft amendment to the CPC Constitution.

The plenum fully affirmed the work of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee since the Sixth Plenary Session of the 17th CPC Central Committee.

The meeting reached consensus that the Political Bureau has held high the great banner of socialism with Chinese characteristics and thoroughly implemented the spirits of the 17th Party Congress and its third, fourth, fifth and sixth plenums.

The Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee has been guided by Deng Xiaoping Theory and the important thought of Three Represents, and thoroughly carried out the Scientific Outlook on Development, according to the communique.

The CPC Central Committee Political Bureau has united and led the entire Party, the armed forces and people of all ethnic backgrounds in the nation to maintain growth, keep prices in line, restructure the economy, improve people's livelihoods, embark on reforms and promote social harmony, by adhering to scientific development and accelerating the transformation of the economic growth pattern, according to the communique.

It added that the Political Bureau has continued to implement a proactive fiscal policy and a prudent monetary policy, maintained the continuity and stability of macroeconomic policies, and made efforts in expanding domestic demands, strengthening innovation, reducing energy use and emissions, deepening reform and improving people's livelihoods.

The Political Bureau has comprehensively pushed forward the socialist economic, political, cultural, social and conservation culture construction and the great new Party-building project, with various causes achieving remarkable results and maintaining a stable and relatively fast economic development as well as social harmony and stability, which has created sound conditions for the 18th CPC National Congress.

The plenary session summarized the work of the past five years since the 17th CPC National Congress and held that the five years was an "extraordinary" period.

Facing a volatile and complicated international environment and shouldering arduous tasks of reform, development and stability, the central committee of the CPC has led the Party to conquer various difficulties, and comprehensively advance various work while relying on people of various ethnic groups, the communique said.

"The country's economic development has remained stable and rapid. Reform and opening-up made significant progress. People's living standards have remarkably improved. Democratic and legal system construction have taken new steps," it said.

Cultural construction came to a new level. Social construction made new progress. National defense and military construction opened up new prospects, said the communique.

Works relating to Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan have been further enhanced. Diplomatic work has scored new achievements. Party building has been enhanced in an all-round way. Socialism with Chinese characteristics has been stuck to and developed.

At the session, Fan Changlong and Xu Qiliang were appointed vice-chairmen of the CPC Central Military Commission (CMC).

The plenum also promoted two alternate members of the 17th CPC Central Committee, Wang Xuejun and Wang Jianping, to full members.

The plenum also endorsed the decisions made by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee to expel former Chongqing Municipality Party chief Bo Xilai and former Railways Minister Liu Zhijun from the CPC.

The plenary session comprehensively analyzed the current situation and task, deeply discussed several important issues concerning developing the great cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics under the new situation and pushing forward the new grand project of the Party building, making full preparation for the convention of the 18th CPC National Congress.

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