The Mandarin

The Australian and Indian prime ministers have announced the commissioning of infrastructure supporting India’s first crewed spaceflight on Australian soil. Anthony Albanese and Narendra Modi revealed the completion of temporary tracking infrastructure installed on the Cocos (Keeling) Islands in a joint statement last week. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) telemetry, tracking and command terminal will support India’s historic Gaganyaan Human Space Flight Program.

The federal government will provide $56.1 million over four years to roll out digital passenger cards and modernise airport operations across the country. Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said the days of scrambling for a pen after a long international flight were numbered. “A lot of us have been in the situation at the end of a flight when the cards get handed out, and you’re not always at your best at the end of a flight,” he told ABC News Breakfast.

Australian Anti-Slavery Commissioner Chris Evans has welcomed the outcome of Operation Mirani, after two men were sentenced for trafficking a 17-year-old Indonesian girl. The commissioner commended AFP investigators and their transnational partners who worked to intercept the trafficking syndicate, as well as the bravery of the victims. “Human trafficking investigations are complex and often rely heavily on victim testimony,” Evans said.

Accounting firm KPMG has told the US Public Company Accounting Oversight Board that it is under investigation by Australia’s Department of Finance for its ethical standards. The firm told the powerful US regulator that a number of Australian governments have suspended KPMG’s ability to participate in government tender processes until Finance determines whether the firm remains ethically fit to continue as a government supplier.

Sound budgeting practices, such as providing for decisions taken but not announced, can make it challenging to evaluate government expenditure, according to Parliamentary Budget Officer Sam Reinhardt. Reinhardt told the Australian Conference of Economists that prudent budget practices designed to provide for expenditure that has yet to be finalised and announced can make it difficult to track initial spending decisions through future budgets.

Michael Drane has been named director-general of the Department of Youth Justice and Victim Support. Drane has been acting in the role since January, after his two predecessors departed to serve as children’s commissioner. Minister for Youth Justice and Victim Support and Minister for Corrective Services Laura Gerber said the appointment gives the department strong and stable leadership.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Australia last week for the Australia-India Annual Leaders’ Summit and to connect with the local Indian community — the country’s fastest-growing migrant group. The trip coincided with Modi and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese signing deals covering everything from energy security and defence to closer cultural relations between the two nations.

The strength of any public service, it can be argued, lies in its ability to conduct its activities and perform its duties without undue, capricious intervention from the executive. Some common ground must invariably be reached. An incoming administration will want to pursue its agenda, and the public service will, at least in principle, be the instrument to that end. But a politicised public service is a step too far.

There’s never a particularly subtle time to launch a long-range, nuclear-capable ballistic missile from near China into the heart of the South Pacific, especially when Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is on a strategic footy-diplomacy tour and a regional charm offensive.

Thousands of Western Australian public servants discovered over the weekend that Premier Roger Cook will become their minister, after Cook assumed direct responsibility for the critical tourism and defence industries portfolios. It’s a minor cabinet reshuffle that has major implications.