BEIJING: China’s Communist Party has expelled a record 33 members as a major annual political gathering concluded, with attendance at the meeting falling to its lowest level on record.
The fifth plenum was attended by 279 Central Committee members, compared with 315 at the fourth plenum in October 2025 and 364 at the third plenum in July 2024, according to BBC Monitoring.
The gathering placed party discipline at the centre of discussions, unlike previous plenums that focused more heavily on economic reforms, social issues and development policies.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has made the campaign against corruption a key pillar of his leadership since taking power in 2012, describing corruption as the “biggest threat” to the Communist Party.
The latest figures mark the first time during Xi’s 14-year leadership that attendance at a plenum has fallen below 300 members, highlighting the scale of removals and disciplinary action within the party.