(P.S.: Xi Jin Ping is as unelected as the British Prime Minister, but I don't see people calling the UK a dictatorship.)
In that same period Xi has changed the rules so that he can hold on to power indefinitely.
(Neither Britain nor Germany have term limits for their head of government, so China removing its term limit is just bringing it at par with the two most prominent European democracies)
They were not able to ignore public opinion indefinitely and could be removed from power without the need for term limits.
No one can remove Xi from power if they don't like the way he performs. No one in China can even publicly discuss his performance except to praise him.
That's what makes China a dictatorship and the UK a democracy.
The British PM was elected, what on earth are you talking about? He won an election to his seat in Parliament just a few weeks ago.
British law doesn't even require the Prime Minister to be an MP, technically Parliament could elect any random bozo from the street to be PM.
But that’s not necessary or expected under the British system, being an MP and Party Leader is enough. If Burnham radically departed from Labour’s manifesto you could then argue he call a general election to establish legitimacy for that, but it isn’t required.
"Deng Xiaoping put the limits in place in the 1980s as part of his effort to ensure that China was never again subjected to a crushing dictatorship like that of Chairman Mao and the turmoil it occasioned. China’s Communist system not accepting the Western notion of formal checks and balances, Deng instituted a system with Chinese characteristics designed to prevent return of one-man rule or a cult of personality by preventing leaders from staying indefinitely in power."
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/7-things-you-need-to-know...
Similar in Russia, 2020 constitutional amendment gave Vladimir Putin legal authority to stay in office until 2036.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Term_limits_in_Russia#Russia_u...