PwC Australia CEO Tom Seymour to retire following tax documents leak scandal
He had earlier stepped down and an independent review of the matter has been set forth
PwC Australia CEO Tom Seymour to retire following tax documents leak scandal
He had earlier stepped down and an independent review of the matter has been set forth
PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has announced that Tom Seymour, the partner, and CEO of its Australia business, will retire from the firm on 30 September following a leak of confidential government tax information.
As per the media reports, another former PwC partner was banned by Australia's tax practitioners board for sharing government tax plans with the firm’s staff. Without naming the individuals involved, PwC confirmed the "unauthorised sharing of confidential tax policy information.”
The Australian Financial Review reported that Seymour had issued a statement saying he was one of the partners who had received the sensitive material.
The revelations drew strong reproach from the federal government, a major client of PwC. Some lawmakers even sought a ban on PwC from procuring any further government contracts.
However, PwC has stated that former Telstra and Optus CEO Ziggy Switkowski would lead an independent review into the information leak. In September, he would report his findings and recommendations.
Meanwhile, Kristin Stubbins, the acting CEO stated, "We are committed to learning from our mistakes and ensure that we embrace the high standards of governance, culture and accountability that our people, clients and external stakeholders rightly expect.”
He further expressed, "Switkowski will have access to all the people and information he needs to conduct a rigorous and robust review. We look forward to receiving his report and acting swiftly on the recommendations."
PwC added that if the report proposed ‘exiting’ more people and partners from the firm, it would be accepted.