The federal government has announced that it will take further action against PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) following its recent leak of confidential government tax plans to corporate clients.  

Early this month, the federal government accused the accounting firm of disclosing confidential information about new anti-tax avoidance measures in an attempt to secure more business, referring to it as a significant breach of trust. 

“I think the PwC experience has been deeply, deeply troubling and we’ve already taken some steps but we will be taking further steps,” Australian Broadcasting Corp Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services Stephen Jones said. 

Following the scandal involving the leak of confidential government tax plans, PwC Australia’s CEO Tom Seymour resigned with immediate effect. In a statement, the PwC named Kristin Stubbins as acting CEO while it searches for a replacement. 

“We are committed to learning from our mistakes, listening to our stakeholders and enhancing our culture to build stronger trust and transparency,” Acting CEO Stubbins said. 

Last month, the Australian Financial Review (AFR) reported that a former partner was banned by the country’s tax practitioners board for sharing government tax plans with other staff at the firm. AFR revealed that PwC’s former CEO was one of the partners who had received the details.  

The federal government responded strongly to the incident, with Treasurer Jim Chalmers condemning it as an alarming violation of trust.  

In light of the situation, lawmakers have advocated for a complete prohibition on granting the accounting firm any further government contracts. 

The federal government has enlisted the Treasury to investigate the incident and determine whether criminal charges should be pursued, potentially involving the Australian Federal Police. 

Treasurer Jim Chalmers expressed his determination to address such inexcusable behaviour and promised to announce additional measures to crack down on such incidents. 

PwC has announced that Ziggy Switkowski, former CEO of Telstra and Optus, will lead an independent review into the leak. Switkowski will present his findings and recommendations in September, shedding further light on the situation. 

Eliza Sayon

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Eliza is a content producer and editor at Public Spectrum. She is an experienced writer on topics related to the government and to the public, as well as stories that uplift and improve the community.

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