In April 2008, shortly before the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Yang was transferred to Beijing as the executive deputy minister of Public Security; the executive deputy minister was the second-highest-ranked official at the ministry and was tasked with handling routine administrative affairs, and has the same rank as a minister of state. He served under Meng Jianzhu and Guo Shengkun. It was said that Yang was brought back to the ministry to oversee Tibet and Xinjiang affairs to ensure that 'separatist' elements do not disrupt the Games. Following the 18th Party Congress, Yang issued an important statement on behalf of the Ministry on the abolition of re-education through labour, one of the major reforms under Xi Jinping. Yang also took part in the search and rescue efforts following the 2015 Tianjin explosions.