李克强在全国推进简政放权放管结合职能转变工作电视电话会议上的讲话

Full text of Chinese Premier's teleconference address on streamlining administration procedures, cutting red tape

李克强在全国推进简政放权放管结合职能转变工作电视电话会议上的讲话

Streamline Administration, Delegate Power, Strengthen Regulation and Improve Service to Deepen Administrative Reform and Transform Government Functions
-- The teleconference address on streamlining administration procedures, cutting red tape
May 12, 2015
Li Keqiang

简政放权 放管结合 优化服务 深化行政体制改革 切实转变政府职能
——在全国推进简政放权放管结合职能转变工作电视电话会议上的讲话
（2015年5月12日）
李克强

The major tasks of this conference are to review and summerize the situation of streamlining administration, delegating power, strengthening regulation and transforming government functions over the past two years and more, and deploy key tasks for the next phase to further deepen the reform.
这次会议的主要任务，就是回顾总结两年多来简政放权、放管结合、政府职能转变情况，部署下一阶段的重点工作，把改革推向纵深。

I. To deepen administrative reform and transform government functions are a strong driving force behind and an important guarantee for development.
一、深化行政体制改革、转变政府职能，是促进发展的强大动力和重要保障

To transform government functions lies at the core of administrative reform. Economic reform is essentially about striking a balance between the government and the market by enabling the market to play a decisive role in resources allocation and the government to function better. The first task this government undertook after taking office is to advance administrative reform and transform government functions, with streamlining administration, delegating power and strengthening regulation being the first moves. For years, excess intervention and stifling supervision by the government over microeconomic activities as well as too much emphasis on review and approval to the neglect of regulation have sapped economic vitality, incurred high administrative costs and provided breeding grounds for corruption. To streamline administration, delegate power and strengthen regulation is a crucial step to address these acute problems. It tackles the crux of administrative and economic reform and what matters the most in improving the socialist market economy and enhancing social development. It is fair to say that this reform is right at the heart of all reforms with wide-ranging implications.
党的十八大以来，以习近平同志为总书记的党中央对深化行政体制改革提出了明确要求。十八届二中全会指出，转变政府职能是深化行政体制改革的核心。十八届三中全会强调，经济体制改革的核心问题是处理好政府和市场的关系，使市场在资源配置中起决定性作用和更好发挥政府作用。本届政府成立伊始，开门办的第一件大事就是推进行政体制改革、转变政府职能，把简政放权、放管结合作为“先手棋”。长期以来，政府对微观经济运行干预过多、管得过死，重审批、轻监管，不仅抑制经济发展活力，而且行政成本高，也容易滋生腐败。推进简政放权、放管结合，就是解决这些突出矛盾和问题的关键一招，也紧紧抓住了行政体制改革和经济体制改革的核心，把握了完善社会主义市场经济体制、加强社会建设的要害。可以说，这项改革是“牛鼻子”，具有牵一发动全身的重要作用。

Over the past two years and more, notable results have been achieved in streamlining administration, delegating power and strengthening regulation. State Council agencies have canceled or delegated administrative approval power for 537 items, meeting two years ahead of schedule the pledged target of cutting the number of items requiring administrative approval by one third within the term of this government. The number of investment projects subject to central government approval is down by 76%. All overseas investment projects but for a few exceptional cases can now proceed without administrative approval. For companies seeking registration, they can have their business licenses issued to them before getting administrative permits; 85% of the matters that once needed pre-registration approval now only require post-registration approval; with regard to capital registration, the paid-in capital scheme has been replaced with a pledged capital scheme; and annual business inspections have been canceled in favor of annual information disclosure. The number of qualification accreditation and performance appraisal has been cut dramatically. At the central government level, 420 administrative fees and government managed funds have been abolished or reduced, relieving businesses and individuals of their financial burden by nearly 100 billion yuan every year. While delegating power, the government has taken measures to strengthen regulation both during and after projects. Local governments at all levels are earnestly implementing the decisions and plans of the central government and stepping forward to take over, delegate or fulfill responsibilities accordingly. Some provinces have moved faster in this regard, canceling or delegating administrative approval power for over half or, in the highest case, 70% of the matters. In some provinces, non-administrative approval has even become something of the past.
两年多来，简政放权、放管结合工作取得明显成效。国务院部门共取消或下放行政审批事项537项，本届政府承诺减少三分之一的目标提前两年多完成。投资核准事项中央层面减少76%，境外投资项目核准除特殊情况外全部取消。工商登记实行“先照后证”，前置审批事项85%改为后置审批；注册资本由实缴改为认缴，企业年检改为年报公示。资质资格许可认定和评比达标表彰事项大幅减少。中央层面取消、停征、减免420项行政事业性收费和政府性基金，每年减轻企业和个人负担近千亿元。在放权的同时，采取措施加强事中事后监管。地方各级政府认真贯彻中央决策部署，积极做好“接、放、管”工作。有些省份进展较快，行政审批事项取消和下放比例超过一半、最高的达70%，有的省级非行政许可已全面取消。

These reform measures have achieved multiple purposes. They have effectively emancipated productivity, unleashed market vitality and social creativity, helped with efforts to stabilize growth, adjust economic structure and improve people's livelihood, and facilitated the government in building governance capacity and a cleaner government. New market players have mushroomed, reaching 12.93 million last year with a 45.9% increase in the number of newly registered businesses. Despite the economic slowdown, 13.22 million new jobs were created in cities and townships. In the first four months of this year, the number of newly registered businesses grew by 10,000 every day on average and 4.45 million urban jobs were added. Over the last two years, faced with complicated domestic and external developments and growing downward pressure on the economy, we did not resort to massive short-term stimulus. Rather, we innovated the way we regulate the macro economy and deepened reform in all respects. As a result, the economy has continued to run within a reasonable range; records for job creation have been repeatedly set and broken; and the Chinese economy has remained among the fastest-growing major economies in the world. This is largely attributable to the effect of reforms including those to streamline administration and delegate power.
这一系列改革举措有力解放和发展了生产力，激发了市场活力和社会创造力，促进了稳增长、调结构、惠民生，也推动了政府治理能力提升和廉政建设，取得了一举多得的成效。新增市场主体呈现“井喷式”增长，去年达1293万户，其中新注册企业增长45.9%；尽管经济增速放缓，但城镇新增就业仍达到1322万人。今年一至四月份，新注册企业继续保持每天1万户，城镇新增就业445万人。这两年，在国内外形势错综复杂、我国经济下行压力加大的情况下，我们没有采取短期强刺激措施，而是创新宏观调控方式，全面深化改革，使经济运行保持在合理区间，就业连创历史新高，增长速度在世界主要经济体中名列前茅，其中简政放权等改革红利的释放发挥了关键作用。

Reforms to streamline administration and delegate power have produced initial results, but they fall far short of what is expected by our people and what is needed by economic and social development. For one thing, the government, which still tends to overreach itself, has yet to relinquish power to the necessary extent. What's more, measures aimed at streamlining administration and delegating power are yet to be implemented fully. While obstruction abounds in the middle of implementation, there are also problems with both the first and the last miles in implementation, so to speak. This is partly due to the absence of the right mindset and management modality. It also has something to do with resistance from local and departmental vested interests. Businesses and members of the public complain that quite a few matters still need review and approval, only in a different form. The once explicit requirement for government approval has morphed into an implicit requirement for approval from intermediaries with government background. There remain multitudes of documents to be submitted for review and approval and a raft of procedures to go through. For many, the process of getting something done remains lengthy and difficult, because agencies are in the habit of shirking responsibilities to each other, seals and certificates of one kind or another are still a must, and there is a lot of toing and froing. Take the business registration reform for example. It is true that companies are now able to obtain a business license without first acquiring an administrative permit. But even with a license in hand, many people keep running into all sorts of difficulties, and sometimes they cannot get their businesses up and running simply because of a single missing permit, whose requirement may sound rather ridiculous. As a matter of fact, this can happen to officials present at today's conference as well as ordinary people. I believe you or your family members would encounter many of the above-mentioned problems in areas outside your purview. In the global context, according to the 2015 World Bank Doing Business Report, China ranks 90th out of 189 economies, though three places higher than last year. Too many restrictions like administrative approval are largely to blame. The ubiquitous requirement for approval, certificates, seals and documents of various types is a waste of time and energy for any individual and a source of fret and frustration. It consumes the human and material resources of a company and costs it market opportunities. It undermines justice and equity of a society, dampens entrepreneurship and innovation and, worst of all, suppresses productivity. It impairs the image and authority of a government and affects public mood and opinion. If no steps are taken to remove these constraints on social productivity, the shared interests of the entire Chinese population will suffer and the process of the great national rejuvenation of China will be held up.
简政放权等改革虽初见成效，但与人民群众的期待和经济社会发展要求相比，还有很大差距。一方面，政府一些该放的权还没有放，手伸得还是太长；另一方面，已出台的简政放权措施尚未完全落实到位，“中梗阻”现象大量存在，“最后一公里”还没有完全打通。当然，“最先一公里”也存在问题。这里面既有思想认识不到位、管理方式不适应的原因，也有地方和部门利益在作梗。企业和基层反映，不少审批事项只是换了个“马甲”，从明的转成暗的、从上面转到下面、从政府转到与政府有关的中介，审批服务中的各种“要件”、程序、环节等还是关卡林立。比如，稳增长必须发挥投资的关键作用，而当前投资仍处于下行状态，像重大水利工程、中西部铁路、棚户区改造、城市基础设施等，有的项目批了，中央投资也到位了，但就是迟迟开不了工，钱也花不出去。到3月底，地方国库库存余额创历史同期最高水平。其中有不作为的问题，但确实还有审批慢、审批难、环节多的问题，影响了投资进度。同时不少群众反映，办事还是存在难与慢，部门之间经常扯皮，这个章那个证还是很多，经常被折腾来折腾去。比如，商事制度改革实现了“先照后证”，有些人反映拿了照以后还是碰到层层阻碍。缺一个“证”，企业就运行不了。一些谁听了都会觉得荒唐的“证”仍然存在。其实不只是普通群众，就是今天参加会议的领导干部，离开你管的“一亩三分地”，自己或家属办事也会遇到诸如此类的不少难题。另外，从国际比较来看，世界银行发布了全球2015年营商环境报告，我国虽比上年上升3位，但在189个经济体中仍排在第90位，主要原因还是各类行政审批等管制措施太多。名目繁多、无处不在的审批“当关”、证明“围城”、公章“旅行”、公文“长征”，对个人来说，耗费的是时间和精力，增添的是烦恼和无奈；对企业来说，浪费的是人力和物力，贻误的是市场机遇；对社会来说，削弱的是公平和公正，挤压的是创业创新空间，尤其是抑制劳动生产率提高；对党和政府来说，影响的是形象和威信，挫伤的是人心民意。对此，如果不努力加以改变，束缚社会生产力的发展，损害的是全体人民的共同利益，延误的是中华民族的伟大复兴进程。

Under the new historical circumstances, reform measures such as streamlining administration and scaling back administrative power are no expediency but important steps that both deliver short-term benefits and meet long-term needs. To realize the dual objectives of maintaining a medium-high-level growth rate and moving toward a medium-high-level of development, we need to foster new growth drivers through such reform as streamlining administration and scaling back administrative power. With a fluid situation, the world economic recovery is an uphill journey. The Chinese economy has entered a state of "new normal" and a critical stage where we need to deal simultaneously with slower economic growth, difficult structural adjustments, and the impacts of previous economic stimulus measures. In the first quarter this year, the economy faced many headwinds, but thanks to the targeted regulation measures we adopted since the second half of last year, the downward pressure has been somewhat offset. Now the economic performance is stable on the whole, with positive trends seen in some aspects. For instance, the surveyed unemployment rate dropped in April and industry has been rebounding. But still we are under considerable pressure in other aspects, for example investment is further decreasing. We must roll out more effective measures to sustain the upward momentum and resist the downward pressure. Fundamentally speaking, this requires the government to streamline administration and scale back its administrative power, ease restrictions and strengthen regulation where necessary, and improve services. We have both the confidence to keep the economic performance within a proper range, and the capability to reach the main goals for this year and maintain medium-high rate and level of growth for a fairly long time to come. We are confident because the Chinese economy has big potential, strong resilience, and ample space for readjustment. As long as we stay committed to deepen reform and strengthen the twin engines for economic growth, we will build up stronger and longer lasting force for development, and through hard efforts, bring about a new round of stable and enduring growth for the Chinese economy. Streamlining administration and scaling back administrative power is also essential for building a new system for an open economy. With profound adjustment in the global economic landscape and changing conditions of resource and production factors, our traditional competitive strengths are waning. Weak demand in the international market means heavy pressure for our imports and exports to grow. Therefore, we must speed up the building of an open economy and develop a network of high-standard free trade zones open to all other countries and an international and law-based business environment. We must explore the use of a management model based on pre-establishment national treatment and a negative list, foster and expand new competitive strengths in international cooperation. To achieve these, it is essential for the government to streamline administration and scale back administrative power, lift or exercise regulation where necessary and provide better services. I visited the four free trade zones, including the one in Shanghai. A major feature of them is streamlined administration and devolved administrative power that enable companies to get registered and investment projects to get started more quickly. To improve governance capacity, the government needs to deepen such reform as streamlining administration and scaling back administrative power. The government should withdraw from certain areas as needed so as to do a better job where its role is duly required, just as "cutting off extra branches and leaves helps to make the trunk stronger", so to speak. Only when the government further delegates power where necessary, focuses on where regulation is needed, and provides adequate services, can it be possible for us to come up with new practices in governance, and better meet people's will, promote development and facilitate social harmony.
在新的历史时期，深化简政放权等改革，不是权宜之计，而是既利当前又惠长远，具有多方面的重大意义和作用。实现“双中高”目标，需要靠深化简政放权等改革培育新动能。当前，世界经济复苏进程艰难曲折、复杂多变。我国经济发展进入新常态，“三期叠加”矛盾逐步凸显，到了爬坡过坎关键时期。今年一季度经济增长也面临很多困难。但我们从去年下半年以来采取的定向调控措施逐步见效，一定程度上对冲了经济下行压力。当前经济运行总体平稳，一些方面出现向好的趋势，比如调查失业率4月份有所降低，工业也在回升。但有一些方面压力还比较大，比如投资还在继续下行。我们必须采取更有力的措施，把向好的趋势巩固住，把下行的压力顶住。这从根本上讲还要靠简政放权、放管结合、优化服务。我们有信心有能力使经济运行保持在合理区间，完成今年主要目标任务，并在较长时期内保持经济中高速增长、迈向中高端水平。我们这个底气来自于我国经济发展的巨大潜力、韧性和回旋余地。只要我们坚定不移地深化改革，打造好“双引擎”，就能进一步形成更为强劲而持久的发展动力，促进中国新一轮经济“破茧成蝶”、行稳致远。构建开放型经济新体制，需要靠深化简政放权等改革提供支撑。随着国际经贸格局深刻调整和我国资源要素条件变化，我们传统的竞争优势在弱化。当前国际市场低迷，我国进出口增长压力很大。因此，我们必须加快构建开放型经济新体制，建设面向全球的高标准自贸区网络和国际化、法治化营商环境，探索实行准入前国民待遇和负面清单管理模式，培育和扩大国际合作竞争新优势。这对政府工作的核心要求，就是简政放权、放管结合、优化服务。我到上海等四个自贸区都去看过，他们最主要的措施就是简政放权，让企业能够在自贸区内迅速登记，投资项目能较快落地。提高政府治理能力，需要靠深化简政放权等改革“修枝壮干”。政府有所不为方能更好有所为。只有进一步把该放的权放掉、把不该管的事交出，集中力量把该管的事管好、该服务的服务到位，才能有效推进政府的治理创新，更好地遂民意、促发展、利和谐。

To encourage all people to start their own business and make innovation, we need to streamline administration and scale back administrative power, reform that will remove obstacles and set a proper stage. History is created by the people, and a country's prosperity and progress must be driven by its people's creativity. By encouraging our people to become entrepreneurs and innovators, we hope to leverage their role as the masters of the country and their unlimited creativity so that our people can all participate in modernization and share in the benefits of reform and the fruits of development.
特别是推进大众创业、万众创新，需要靠深化简政放权等改革清障搭台。历史是人民创造的，国家的繁荣进步来自于人民创造力的发挥。我们党的群众路线是一切为了群众、一切依靠群众。我们提出推进“双创”，就是着眼于尊重人民群众的主体地位，充分发挥人民群众的无限创造力，让他们平等参与现代化进程、共同分享改革红利和发展成果。

- Encouraging start-ups and innovation will boost development, increase people's wealth, promote social equity and strengthen the country. It is therefore an integral part in building socialism with Chinese characteristics. To encourage start-ups is conducive to creating more jobs, increasing people's income and boosting domestic demand. At the same time, it enables people to live a more fulfilling life. It is also the surest way to realize common prosperity for our people. Redistribution alone is not enough to narrow the income gap. Primary distribution should be the main approach to enable more people to get rich. Reality on the ground already shows that where there is a more enabling business environment and a larger number of start-ups, the local economy will be more vibrant, income higher and wealth gap smaller. We now encourage the general public to make innovation. This is intended to foster a culture of innovation in our society. In such a society, we will have more fertile soil for innovation, a stronger push for innovation and a greater impact from innovation. To encourage start-ups and innovation by the public will enhance not only the "hard power" of the national economy but also the soft power of the country. It serves the fundamental interests of the public and meets the needs of each and every worker. A country where start-ups and innovation thrive must be one of promise, energy and progress.
——推进“双创”，既是发展的动力之源，也是富民之道、公平之计、强国之策，是建设中国特色社会主义题中应有之义。让群众起来搞创业、以创业带动就业，可以不断增加收入、扩大内需，还能使其在创造财富过程中实现精神追求和人生价值。这也是逐步实现共同富裕的必由之路，因为缩小收入分配差距，仅靠“二次分配”是不够的，主要得靠“一次分配”让更多的人富起来。实践证明，哪个地方创业的环境好、创业的人数多，哪个地方的经济就充满活力、居民收入就高、贫富差距也就小。我们倡导万众创新，形成全社会的创新文化，这样创新的土壤就更为深厚，创新的动力就更为强劲，创新的效应也更为巨大。推进“双创”，不仅有利于增强国家经济“硬实力”，而且有利于提升国家“软实力”。“双创”着眼于实现广大人民群众的根本利益，有效契合了每个劳动者的内在需求。一个创业创新蔚然成风的国家，必然是昂扬向上、充满活力和希望的。

-Encouraging start-ups and innovation is not just relevant for individuals and newly established companies. In fact, well-established companies, including the bigger ones, should also keep their vitality and competitiveness through entrepreneurship and innovation. Just have a look at those successful companies with staying power. With no exception, they are the ones who keep up with the times and constantly innovate and forge ahead. Otherwise, they would have closed down a long time ago. In recent years some big companies have recognized the trend of Internet development and personalized consumption, and remade their management model. They have reshaped the traditional hierarchical management model into new platforms for their employees to pursue entrepreneurship and innovation. Such platforms are also open to the society. Employees can apply the novel ideas nurtured on such platforms in their own work or with a third party. As such, the company has thus become a big hub of resources for innovation. It can support more small- and medium-sized companies, boasts stronger capacity for innovation and can deliver more diverse products. There is a great deal that businesses can do in tapping their entrepreneurship and innovation.
——推进“双创”，不仅限于个人和新生企业，现有企业包括大企业也要通过不断创业创新来保持活力和竞争力。看看那些长盛不衰的企业，哪一个不是与时俱进、经历过多次创业创新的？否则，它的事业早就可能走到尽头了。近年来，有些大企业积极顺应互联网发展和消费个性化趋势，对管理模式进行再造，将传统的层级管控组织重塑为新型创业创新平台，让员工成为创客，并将平台向外部开放，创客在这个平台上孕育产生的“奇思妙想”，既可以自己用，也可以与外边合作开发，使企业变成一个大的创新资源聚集之地。这样，带动的配套中小企业更多了，创新能力更强了，产品更丰富了。企业推进创业创新是大有可为的。-

- We have unique strength in encouraging start-ups and innovation. China has over 1.3 billion people, including a 900-million-strong workforce. The average education level of our working-age population is 10 years, higher than the world average. The education level of our newly added workforce has reached 13 years, approaching the average of medium developed countries. There is huge untapped potential for human resources to be turned into human capital. Meanwhile, we also have over 70 million market entities, including over 18 million companies. Our people and market entities have strong desire for entrepreneurship and innovation, but many have been held back by both tangible and invisible restrictions. We therefore must deepen reform to streamline administration and scale back administrative power. This will get rid of the obstacles and enable our people and market entities to travel light and grow stronger. We have mapped out reform plans for the Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone, which has attracted a large number of domestic entrepreneurs, financial companies, and intermediaries, as well as foreign companies. Speedy progress is also being made in institutional reform in the free trade zones in Guangdong, Tianjin and Fujian. Experience gathered in these free trade zones must be timely applied to the rest of the country so that China, with an improved business environment, stands out as the most appealing destination for foreign investment.
——推进“双创”，我们有得天独厚的条件。我国有13亿多人口、9亿劳动力，目前劳动年龄人口平均受教育年限达到10年、高于世界平均水平，新增劳动力达到13年、接近中等发达国家平均水平，人力资源转化为人力资本的潜力巨大。同时，我们还有7000多万市场主体，其中有1800多万家企业。广大人民群众和市场主体拥有强烈的创业创新愿望，但仍有不少有形无形的枷锁束缚着他们的手脚。必须通过深化简政放权等改革，破枷清障、铺路搭桥，使他们轻装前进、不断发展壮大。我们已就深化上海自贸区改革进行了部署，吸引了大批国内创业者以及金融企业和中介机构，不少外商也跟进了。广东、天津、福建三个自贸区的体制机制创新也在加快推进。这些自贸区探索的经验要及时复制推广，使我国拥有更好的营商环境，是外资的最佳选择地。

The progress achieved in the past two years fully testifies to the effect of deepening reform through streamlining administration and delegating government power. In fact, we have learnt about the importance of such reform from the course of China's history, especially from the success of the reform and opening-up program over the past 37 years. The several-thousand-year-long Chinese civilization provides useful references. In this year's Report on the Work of the Government, I quoted an old Chinese saying that "good governance should be simple in its exercise" and stated that "power should not be used arbitrarily". It was echoed by the deputies to the National People's Congress. My inspiration comes from the ancient Book of Rites, which teaches us that "good governance, when exercised, brings the world together as one community (See Chapter: the Conveyance of Rituals)." And according to the Analects of Confucius, one should "hold the people in reverence and be simple in the measures he takes" when governing the people (see Chapter: Yong Ye). In other words, the job of the government is to keep the people's interests at heart and hold itself accountable to the people at all times while minimizing its intervention and interference in people's lives. The book then goes on to say that "it would be rather unacceptable to be simple both in the way that the government relates to the people and in the measures that it takes." Put simply, if the government exercises power by treating the people as nothing more than just simple subjects, it would be irresponsible and even disrespectful of moral standards. Historically, the prosperity of a dynasty usually came from good simple governance, from freeing the people of levies and taxes to allow them to rest and recover, whereas the decline or demise of a dynasty was usually brought by doing just the opposite, as a bad government, as an old Chinese saying goes, "is more dreadful than a wild tiger." The reform and opening-up process, which began following the Third Plenum of the 11th CPC Central Committee, has led China to remarkable progress. This is one recent example of how good governance, simple in exercise, has achieved the purpose of lifting restrictions and unleashing people's ingenuity by way of reform and opening-up. For instance, rural land reform was conducted in the 1980s with the introduction of the household contract responsibility system, which gave farmers full autonomy in the operation of their land and quickly improved their livelihood. That being said, the delegation of power does not mean zero regulation, but rather better service on the basis of better regulation. China's history over the past several thousand years as well as its 37 years of reform and opening-up shows that over-regulation stifles progress. Only by removing restrictions could we spark creativity, unleash and expand productivity and steadily raise people's living standards. To sum up, the key to good governance is respect for the people and the principle of simplicity in the exercise of government power.
深化简政放权等改革不仅是基于两年多来的有效实践，而且是基于历史的启示，特别是我国37年来改革开放内在成功逻辑的启示。中华民族几千年文明史中有很多优秀文化，值得我们借鉴。我在政府工作报告里讲“大道至简，有权不可任性”，代表们是赞成的。《礼记》“礼运篇”说，“大道之行也，天下为公”。“大道至简”中的“简”字是什么意思呢？《论语》“雍也篇”中讲，要“居敬行简”，可解释为心里牵挂着百姓，做事有敬畏，但行为是“简”的，不扰民、不烦民，这是政府应该做的。但同时又讲，不能“居简行简”，可以解释说，如果心里没有百姓，已经很“简”了，再去“行简”，那就太“简”、不负责任、没有法度了。纵观中国历史，凡盛世往往都用“居敬行简”的办法，轻徭薄赋、让百姓休养生息。而那些衰亡的王朝都是烦民扰民多，所谓苛政猛于虎。党的十一届三中全会以来，我国之所以取得举世瞩目的伟大成就，走的是改革开放之路，“大道至简”与此是相契合的。其核心内容是放开搞活，有力激发蕴藏在人民群众之中的创造活力。拿当年农村改革来说，地还是那些地，人还是那些人，就是因为实行家庭承包制，给农民生产经营自主权，很快就解决了温饱问题。当然放权不是不管，而是既管也服务。几千年的中国历史和37年的改革开放实践证明，管多就会管死，只有放开才能搞活，从而解放和发展社会生产力，使人民生活水平不断提高，政府施政的要义在于以敬民之心行简政之道。

Our overall goal of deepening administrative reform and transforming government functions is to streamline administration and delegate power, combine power delegation with effective oversight, and improve service all in a coordinated way. Such a three-pronged approach will encourage mass entrepreneurship and innovation and mobilize the initiative at the central and local levels. It will help promote sustained and healthy economic and social development, cultivate a law-based, innovative, clean and service-oriented government at a faster pace to meet the requirement of the socialist market economy and socialism with Chinese characteristics, and eventually build up modern governance capacity. In this process, it is important to learn from the wisdom and fine traditions of our ancestors, such as the belief that "good governance should be simple in exercise", and apply it in the modern-day context to let labor, knowledge, technology, managerial expertise and capital play their full part in invigorating the market, open up all sources of social wealth and give all members of the society an equal opportunity to discover and realize their full potential. By so doing, we will be able to build new engines of growth, create fresh prospects for social progress, unity and harmony and ensure that our nation will always be a place full of vitality and dynamism.
当前和今后一个时期，深化行政体制改革、转变政府职能总的要求是：简政放权、放管结合、优化服务协同推进，即“放、管、服”三管齐下，推动大众创业、万众创新，充分发挥中央和地方两个积极性，促进经济社会持续健康发展，加快建设与社会主义市场经济体制和中国特色社会主义事业发展相适应的法治政府、创新政府、廉洁政府和服务型政府，逐步实现政府治理能力现代化。为此，我们要善于借鉴汲取“大道至简”等优秀文化传统，并结合新的时代要求予以发扬光大，放手让一切劳动、知识、技术、管理、资本的活力竞相迸发，让一切创造社会财富的源泉充分涌流，让所有社会成员各得其所、各展其能、机会公平，打造经济发展新引擎，开辟社会进步新天地，营造团结和谐新气象，使我们的国家始终充满生机与活力。