The Mandarin

The Mandarin is designed for leaders and executives in the public sector, as well as the various stakeholders and suppliers involved in their efforts. Our goal is for The Mandarin to serve as a hub that connects public officials and assists them in enhancing governance in Australia. It aims to provide a platform for insightful presentations, discussions, collaboration, and knowledge-sharing about public service and the individuals and challenges that come with it.

National

English, Latin

Online/Digital

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Global

#309048

Australia

#7031

Law and Government/Government

#273

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Articles

Labor begins major overhaul of social services with early childhood reforms, digital safety push

4 days ago | themandarin.com.au | Christopher Niesche

The headline social services policy Anthony Albanese took into the May election was to provide universal early childhood education. Earlier this year, the Senate passed Labor’s policy of guaranteeing every child three days of subsidised childcare and abolishing the activity test requirements for those three days. The activity test required parents to work or study for at least 16 hours a fortnight to be eligible for subsidised childcare.
Climate mandate offers stability for renewables; flashpoints remain

5 days ago | themandarin.com.au | Joshua Gliddon

The raw facts are sobering. According to a recent Business Council of Australia report, Achieving a Net Zero Economy, unchecked climate change over the next 50 years to 2070 would represent a $3.4 trillion loss to Australia’s GDP at net present value.
Vested interests, weak incentives mire Australia’s housing in politics, red tape, delay

5 days ago | themandarin.com.au | Joshua Gliddon

The ghosts of governments past haunt Australian housing policy in 2025. From Menzies’ 1964 First Homeowners’ Grant Scheme through to Paul Keating and his introduction of capital gains tax, and then John Howard and Peter Costello’s changes to the capital gains regime in 1999, we are today in terms of housing affordability, a problem nearly 70 years in the making.
Labor’s record health spend welcomed, but deeper reform and workforce focus are needed

5 days ago | themandarin.com.au | Christopher Niesche

Healthcare is set to be a major focus on the Albanese government’s second term, following record budget spending on Medicare, but experts question whether the government’s reform agenda is ambitious enough. Most of the health policies the government took to the election were announced in the March budget.
Global economic uncertainty demands nimble tax strategy

5 days ago | themandarin.com.au | Tom Ravlic

There were few taxation and economic election promises for the public service to implement. The most significant tax change proposed by Labor was a cut to the 16% rate down to 15%, then 14%, over two years. Even though it was a major talking point in the election campaign, it was not actually a promise (although it was included in the ABC’s post-election list of promises).
Changing police commissioners won’t impact culture

1 week ago | themandarin.com.au | Tom Ravlic

It takes more than a fresh face at the top of a law enforcement agency to fix culture issues, says an RMIT University researcher. In the wake of several Australian police services recently losing their chiefs, RMIT’s Dr Saskia Penn doubts if changing a law enforcement leader can change culture in its own right. And while politicians were fond of holding inquiries into law enforcement bodies, these probes seldom resulted in substantive change.
Tax returns may be scrapped under ATO grand plan to use data for public good

1 week ago | themandarin.com.au | Julian Bajkowski

The days of millions of Australians fretting over a late tax return and then nervously waiting to find out whether they will get pinged for overclaiming deductibles, or worse yet, underclaiming, could soon be over for good, with everyday citizens just asked to confirm what they earned. That’s the take of the ATO’s most powerful data wonk, Jeremy Hirschhorn, second commissioner of the Client Engagement Group.
NSW moves to equalise digital access

1 week ago | themandarin.com.au | Julian Bajkowski

The New South Wales government has moved to pivot its world-renowned suite of customer-facing digital services toward much higher levels of inclusion and accessibility. A refresh aims to extend access and equity to communities and individuals struggling to navigate digital services and products.
Social cohesion focus for NSW hate speech review

1 week ago | themandarin.com.au | Melissa Coade

Former NSW Supreme Court Justice John Sackar has been chosen to spearhead a review examining hate speech protections for vulnerable communities in the state. The inquiry will consider the balance of protections and rights, such as the implied freedom of political communication and freedom of religion, and how they serve vulnerable communities. Announcing the review on Thursday, NSW Attorney-General Michael Daley said Sackar would focus on any criminal law reforms that could lift social cohesion.
Inquiry into IBAC to revisit definition of ‘corrupt conduct’

1 week ago | themandarin.com.au | Melissa Coade

The Victorian Parliament is calling for submissions for an inquiry led by the integrity and oversight committee. The inquiry will consider thresholds for investigating corruption allegations and the definition and scope of ‘corrupt conduct’. The inquiry will look at whether to amend the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission Act 2011 to include other forms of misconduct and whether information security and confidentiality practices are fit for purpose.