Mr Xi goes on to thank the party "for the trust you have placed in us", and says the country has achieved its goal of establishing a "moderately prosperous society".

"Now we are taking confident strides on a new journey to turn China into a modern socialist country in all respects. To advance to the second centenary goal and to embrace the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on all fronts, for a Chinese path to modernisation," he said.

He said the country would continue to buid a modern socialist society, "a great yet enormous undertaking... the enormity is what makes it great and infinitely glorious".

Image source, AFP

Xi Jinping is addressing the media now, saying that the party yesterday the party successfully concluded its congress, "holding high our banner, pulling together our strength and forging ahead in unity".

He also noted that the international community had been following the congress "with great interest" and heads of state had sent congratulatory messages and letter, and he thanked all of them.

He then introduced his new line-up in the Politburo standing committee, adding "they are all quite familiar to you".

It remains a seven-person committee. The members walked out behind Xi in order of rank:

• Li Qiang - he is the new premier, replacing Li Keqiang
• Zhao Leji
• Wang Huning
• Cai Qi
• Ding Xuexiang
• Li Xi

Image source, State TV

Xi Jinping has walked out leading his new Politburo Standing Committee, meaning he has been re-elected as party secretary for a third straight term.

We'll have the make-up of his top team shortly.

Image source, Supplied

This stage inside the Great Hall of the People is where the members of the party's Politburo Standing Committee will soon walk out - and the world will learn who is in Xi's top team.

Image source, Getty Images

So far the party congress has proceeded smoothly for Xi.The constitution has been amended to further reflect his authority; most of the Central Committee membership revealed yesterday reflect his allies and their factions.

But Xi's grip on power comes amid mounting challenges to the Chinese economy.

For the first time in years, China will miss its annual growth target (5.5% this year). Some Chinese have lost their homes amid a property crisis.

Covid lockdowns have also driven many to their limits across the country. Almost all domestic outcry on China's internet this year has been about the toll of Xi's flagship zero-Covid policy.

But in his speech as the party congress opened Xi doubled down on zero-Covid. saying it was saving lives, and emphasised ideology rather than coming up with specific solutions.

• Why China's economy is in trouble

Yesterday's final session also revealed amendments to the party's constitution - always a key sign of where the party leadership's priorities are.

There were some expected updates - consolidating Xi's core status and his political ideology.

But also - for the first time - there was a specific call to oppose "separatists" seeking independence for Taiwan.

Xi has made what he describes as "reunification" with Taiwan an issue on his leadership agenda in his tenure so far.

China sees Taiwan as a part of its territory that must be unified with the mainland. But self-ruling Taiwan sees itself as distinct.

A new amendment also enshrined the goal of "developing fighting spirit, strengthening fighting ability" in the constitution.

Xi clears decks for top leadershippublished at 04:10 British Summer Time 23 October 2022

04:10 BST 23 October 2022

Tessa Wong
Reporting from Singapore

In about an hour we'll find out who is in the Politburo Standing Committee - the leaders at the very top of the Communist Party, who will rule China together with Xi Jinping.

The men - and they are always men - are the equivalent of a presidential cabinet and essentially handpicked by Xi.

But we already know that four members of the Standing Committee are out.

Yesterday state news agency Xinhua announced the new make-up of the Central Committee.

The four missing from that list are Premier Li Keqiang, Vice-Premier Han Zheng, as well as Li Zhanshu and Wang Yang who respectively chair China's parliament and political advisory body.

They are definitely out of the top leadership, and will go into retirement. So only anti-corruption chief Zhao Leji and political theorist Wang Huning are still in play.

The move represents a clearing of the decks by Xi.

It is common to see big reshuffles of the team after one term, and Xi could possibly be making space for a younger team. The party operates by an informal age rule known as "qi shang ba xia", where those who are 67 years or younger can stay while those above 68 have to go.

But Li Keqiang and Wang Yang have not hit this ceiling yet, and in any case, this rule is set to be broken by Xi himself - he's 69.

The retirement of Li Keqiang - which had been signalled previously - and Wang Yang, as well as other officials lower down, could also be seen as an eviction of moderates in the party's leadership.

Both men are seen as liberals within the party who pushed for economic or political reform.

Li was also associated with a faction led by former leader Hu Jintao, whose hasty ejection from the proceedings on Saturday has prompted intense speculation, and Wang was seen as Li's successor.

Most observers believe Xi will pick loyalists to staff the Standing Committee as he consolidates power.

Stephen McDonell
Reporting from Beijing

Image source, Getty Images

Mr Hu, 79, appeared reluctant to move. If that is the case, why?

The two most likely reasons for his departure are that it was either part of China's power politics on full display, with a leader representing a former time being symbolically removed, or that Hu Jintao has serious health problems.

The Communist Party's mass meetings are normally highly scripted events, leading to speculation that the timing of Hu Jintao's departure might not have been an accident.

What is pushing this along is that Hu Jintao represents a very different model for China from that of Xi Jinping.

He ran a much more collective leadership and had to balance various factions represented on the Politburo Standing Committee.

The Hu years - he held the presidency between 2003 and 2013 - were seen as a time of opening up to the outside world and increased tolerance of new ideas.

Xi Jinping has taken the country in a very different direction, with him at the "core" and unable to be challenged.

The most dramatic moment from yesterday's final congress day was the removal of Hu Jintao, China's former president (2002-2012), during the closing ceremony.

Mr Hu had been sitting next to Mr Xi when stewards approached him and escorted him out of the Great Hall of the People.

Chinese state media reported he was escorted from the chamber after feeling unwell.

But Mr Hu had appeared reluctant to move, angling his body several times back to the front. Eventually he followed the officials, muttering some remarks to Mr Xi and also touching the shoulder of his protégé Li Keqiang on his way out. As we mentioned in our introductory post, Premier Li, is not returning as premier and was also dropped from the Central Committee - we'll have more on this shortly.

Leader Xi was left with an empty seat to his left for the remainder of the session.

• The mysterious exit of Hu Jintao

Barbara Plett Usher
State Department Correspondent, BBC News

China is one of the very few things that unites American politicians.

There is bipartisan agreement that Beijing is an increasingly dangerous rival with sharply opposing interests and values.

The Biden administration has toned down the rhetoric of the previous Trump administration, but still sees China as its greatest geopolitical challenge. Most recently, President Joe Biden has taken steps to bolster America’s technology power and block China’s.

He has also expanded ties with Taipei and said three times that the US would fight to defend Taiwan, an apparent departure from Washington’s policy of “strategic ambiguity”.

Increasingly security analysts see Taiwan as a potential trigger for Sino-American conflict. Biden has held virtual meetings with Xi and they may meet in person at the G20 summit in Bali next month.

But much of Biden’s China policy has been focused on shoring up alliances - in the Asia Pacific as well as with the Quad grouping of India, Australia and Japan - to counter Beijing.

Image source, Getty Images

Who is Xi Jinping, the man who’s been in charge of China this past decade?

The son of a CCP founding father, Xi was considered a “princeling” growing up.

But in his teenage years he was banished to the countryside when his father fell out of favour with Mao and was jailed for over a decade.

Because of the shame around his father, Xi was even rejected from joining the Communist Party several times before eventually his membership was accepted. He eventually returned to Beijing where he slowly worked his way up the party ranks. He held leadership positions in regional areas.

Then upon being voted leader in 2012, Xi vowed to lead a “great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation” making China tougher, more assertive and more powerful.

Under his rule, China has also seen increasing clampdowns on freedoms. Human rights groups believe the government has detained more than a million Muslim Uyghurs in the western region of Xinjiang. Xi’s government has also quashed pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong and asserted increasing control there.

• From Communist Party princeling to China's president

Every five years, China’s ruling party the Chinese Communist Party holds a week-long meeting to choose:

• its new leader (the general secretary)
• the members of its 25-person Politburo
• and the members of the even more powerful seven-person Politburo Standing Committee

The General Secretary of the party then becomes President of China through a confirmation vote at a different meeting next March - the National People’s Congress.

Xi Jinping is expected to become party leader for a third time - a huge deal because this goes against the party’s tradition of succession set after the first communist-era leader Mao Zedong died.

About 2,000 party delegates attending the congress have been involved in the selection process. But weeks of political wrangling and factional negotiations in the lead-up means the results are largely locked in by the time the meeting rolls around.

• China's Communist Party Congress: A really simple guide

Image source, Ed Lawrence/BBC

Hello and welcome to our rolling coverage of what is set to be a historic day in China.

Xi Jinping - already in power for a decade - is poised to take a third five-year term as party leader, breaking a precedent that has been in place after the death of Mao Zedong, China's first Communist-era leader.

It follows the end of the party's 20th Communist Party Congress on Saturday.

The overall theme of this week's congress has been confirmation of Xi's power - and we saw that yesterday with the reveal of the 205-member Central Committee.

Premier Li Keqiang and another key party boss Wang Yang - seen as more moderate voices - were not in the group.

That group is set to vote on the new 25-member Poltiburo and seven-member Standing Committee today. They are due to be revealed at noon.