China’s central government has changed its role from an “adviser” to a “leader” in disciplinary inspection, aiming to boost supervision of provincial work and improve enforcement efficiency.

Previously, some provincial inspection teams did not pay attention to problems raised by the central government and could not solve them in a timely fashion, as the role of the central inspection team was only to provide advice for local teams, according to the website of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the nation’s top anti-graft watchdog.

To urge local agencies to efficiently enforce central government requirements, President Xi Jinping shifted the role of the central inspection team, asking it to lead provincial inspection work and apply more pressure on the subordinate teams, the website said.

The inspection team is to look for disciplinary problems such as corruption.

Li Xiaohong, a member of the central inspection team, took the shift as a breakthrough for the country’s inspection system, saying it can push local teams to find disciplinary problems and implement central assignments.

The central inspection team has been divided into five groups to boost supervision of local bodies by checking their meeting summaries and reviewing whether problems are dealt with, Li said.

The inspection－covering more than 280 departments, including government agencies, ministries and Stateowned enterprises－will increase to three times a year from twice, he added.

Yang Xiaojun, a law professor at the Chinese Academy of Governance, said such a role shift was significant, “because it means the central inspection team can lead provincial ones directly”.

“Some provincial inspection teams ignored central suggestions about their work in the past, which meant some problems became chronic diseases,” Yang said.

Jiang Ming’an, a law professor at Peking University, said such inspections are also effective in fighting corruption across the country.

So far, the inspectors have publicized their phone numbers, and the public can send tips directly to the central authorities.