BEIJING - Yang Huanning, former head of the State Administration of Work Safety, has been demoted for serious disciplinary violations, the discipline arm of the Communist Party of China (CPC) announced Monday.

Yang was found to have seriously violated political discipline and rules, and deviated from the Party's principles on major issues, the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) said in a statement.

He also took advantage of his position to seek personal benefit, the CCDI said.

Based on CPC regulations on disciplinary penalties and relevant rules, Yang has been given penalties including being placed on probation within the Party for two years, removal from his administrative post, and being demoted to a non-leadership position at the deputy departmental level.

Yang has been discharged as a delegate to the 18th CPC National Congress and all his illegal gains will be confiscated, it added.