A majority of Australians want consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to be banned from government contracts following the revelations the company used confidential government information to create products that allegedly allowed clients to not pay tax.
This includes nearly half of the respondents who would like to see the government issue a permanent ban. The survey interviewed 1,002 Australians from June 6-9.
Bill Browne the director of the Institute’s Democracy & Accountability Program, said that they found there was overwhelming support for PwC to face serious consequences for their behaviour, which was a “gross breach of integrity and trust.”
“The consequences for PwC’s abuse of public trust cannot be limited to when the political and media heat is on but must be long-lasting to show that this behaviour will not be tolerated,” he said.
Greens Say Albanese Government Failing to Address Issue
Greens Senator Barbara Pocock, who has led the government’s investigation into the consulting firm, said the survey’s results demonstrate what she already was seeing from Australians who were reaching out to her over the scandal.“My office has been inundated with calls and emails from all over the country telling me to go hard and bring these corporate crooks to account,” she said in a media statement obtained by The Epoch Times.
“I share the shock and disgust that Australians feel when they hear about the rich and powerful ripping off Australian taxpayers in the most cynical and self-interested way.”
The senator noted that it was very concerning that as the investigations continue into PwC, they were revealing more moral and ethical failures.
“Every time you open a newspaper, you read about another example of this failed leadership group with their fingers in the cookie jar. The latest version reported by the ABC shows PwC, as well as eight of its senior partners, investing in a controversial private education provider while advising the government regulator on the sector,” she said.
PwC Loses 12 Top Executives Following Scandal
PwC has stood down nine employees and apologised following the revelations the company leaked confidential federal government information with partners and staff to create a system to avoid paying newly devised taxes.“I apologise to the community; to the Australian government for breaching your confidentiality; to our clients for any questions this may have raised about our integrity and trustworthiness; and to the 10,000 hard-working, values-driven PwC Australia partners and staff who have been unfairly impacted,” she said.
“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.”
Stubbins revealed that the company had directed nine partners to take a leave of absence, effective immediately, “pending the outcome of our ongoing investigation.”
“This includes members of the firm’s Executive Board and Governance Board,” she said.
“In addition, the Chairs of the Governance Board and its designated risk committee have decided to step down from their respective roles. ”
This follows the May 8 decision by the former PwC CEO Tom Seymour to stand down and the removal of two other executive board members, bringing the total number of employees brought down in the scandal to 12.
