Rubber stamp or not, annual session bears watching closely

It is the fate of China's nominal parliament - the National People's Congress - to seem more boring than it actually is.

Interesting bits of realpolitik - such as who gets promoted, sacked or moved - will have happened well before its full, annual session opens next week. What is typically left for about 3,000 national delegates to do is sit through two carefully choreographed weeks of scripted speechmaking, and overwhelmingly approve law bills and work reports.

But the rubber-stamp parliament is still keenly watched.

The annual full session of the NPC remains the only real occasion when the media can get remotely close to the top public officials.

And with the Olympics looming large, Beijing has felt the need to be less secretive, or at least to project such an image. Eleven press conferences have been scheduled for this year's NPC meeting and that of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

The new team of vice-premiers and state councillors will be a shrewd mixture of economics experts, skilful diplomats, military hardliners and blue-blood politicians.