Philippa Jones 

Prof James Laurenceson (UTS) 

Dr Wei Li (Usyd)

Richard MacGregor 

Prof David S G Goodman (moderator) 

The University of Sydney - China Studies Centre

The Communist Party of China has signalled that the 3rd Plenum of its 20th Central Committee will meet in July. By practie the 3rd Plenum of each Central Committee determines economic policy. Within China there has been intense speculation that this year’s 3rd Plenum will focus on structural reforms that

• strengthen indigenous innovation

• promote a unified national market, and

• enhance internal discipline for Party cadres.

About the speakers

Philippa Jones is a regulatory and trade policy specialist. Philippa set up CHINA POLICY in Beijing in 2011. Supported by a team of some 15 analysts, she advises public, private and non-profit clients across the company’s sectoral coverage, from macroeconomy through ag, scitech and energy to education and health. She bases her practice on a long-term, wide-angle vision of Beijing's policy trajectory, bringing cross-sectoral synthesis to emerging issues. She also leads the European Commission's PRC legislative and regulatory monitoring project, EUCLERA, a position she has held since 2015. After 20 years in Beijing, Philippa returned to Australia at the outset of COVID.

James Laurenceson is an economist and Director of the Australia-China Relations Institute at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS:ACRI). He has previously held appointments at the University of Queensland and Shandong University. His academic research has been published in leading scholarly journals including Journal of Contemporary China, China Economic Review and Australian Journal of International Affairs. Professor Laurenceson also provides regular commentary on developments in China’s economy and the Australia-China economic and broader relationship. His opinion pieces have appeared in Australian Financial Review, The Australian, South China Morning Post, China Daily, amongst others.

Dr Wei Li is a Senior Lecturer in International Business at the University of Sydney Business School and the Program Director for the Master of International Business. With a rich background in corporate sectors across the UK and China before transitioning into academia, Dr Li's research focuses on the globalization of Chinese firms, economic developments in China, and the internationalization of the RMB. A prominent contributor to industry research, Dr Li has co-authored significant reports such as the "Demystifying Chinese Investment in Australia" series in collaboration with KPMG. Her work has earned her multiple awards, including prestigious grants from industry and government bodies, and she is an active voice in public media both in Australia and globally.

Richard MacGregor is Senior Fellow for East Asia at the Lowy Institute. His areas of expertise including China’s political system and the workings and structure of the communist party; China’s foreign relations, with an emphasis on ties with Japan, the two Koreas, and Southeast Asia; Australia’s relations with Asia.

David S G Goodman (moderator) is Professor of Chinese Politics and Director of the China Studies Centre at the University of Sydney. His research considers local social and political change in China. Recent publications include the two-volume Class and the Communist Party of China (Routledge, 2022) with Marc Blecher, Yingjie Guo, Jean-Louis Rocca, Tony Saich, and Beibei Tang; and Local Governance in China (Edward Elgar, 2023) with Ceren Ergenc.