PwC Australia has disclosed the identities of at least 67 current and former staff members linked to the leak of confidential government tax plans.
The revelation comes ahead of parliamentary hearings scheduled for later this week, as the prominent “big four” audit and advisory firm strives to manage the repercussions of the scandal that has engulfed its operations in Australia.
According to Reuters, the controversy unfolded when a former partner, who had been consulting with the federal government on new tax laws aimed at combating corporate tax avoidance, shared confidential drafts with colleagues to generate business globally.
Over 144 pages of partially redacted emails exposed the involvement of numerous PwC staff members collaborating with multinational companies to circumvent Australia’s newly enacted tax legislation.
These collaborative efforts extended to PwC firms located in the United States, Britain, Singapore, and the Netherlands.
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PwC Australia provided a list that included four former partners implicated in the leak, including the partner at the centre of the scandal. The company also identified a separate group of 63 current and former partners who had received at least one email containing confidential information related to Australia’s 2016 Multinational Anti-Avoidance Law.
Last week, Acting Chief Executive Kristin Stubbins issued a public apology for the scandal and directed nine partners to take leave pending the outcome of the investigation into the confidentiality breaches.
“I want to apologise on behalf of PwC Australia. For sharing confidential government tax policy information and for betraying the trust placed in us,” she said in the statement.
“Although investigations are still underway, we know enough about what went wrong to acknowledge that this situation was completely unacceptable. No amount of words can make it right. But I am fully committed to taking all necessary actions to re-earn the trust of our stakeholders. And, as we work through this process, I am committed to being fully transparent.”
The ramifications of the leak continue to widen, with Australia’s largest pension fund announcing a freeze on future collaborations with PwC.