PwC Australia is putting nine senior partners on leave and appointing independent directors to its board as the embattled firm seeks to claw back confidence in the wake of a tax scandal.
(Bloomberg) — PwC Australia is putting nine senior partners on leave and appointing independent directors to its board as the embattled firm seeks to claw back confidence in the wake of a tax scandal.
The company will ringfence business conducted with Australia’s government to minimize conflicts of interest and boost governance, according to a statement Monday. The chairs of its governance board and its designated risk committee also stepped down from their respective roles.
“We are announcing these actions today, despite the fact that our investigation continues, because we recognize that our stakeholders want more transparency in order to restore confidence in our firm,” said Kristin Stubbins, acting chief executive of PwC Australia.
PwC has been under fire following revelations that one of its former tax chiefs obtained secret information during his time working as an adviser to the government, and then leaked it to his colleagues who used to it to shop tax-planning advice to global customers.
“We recognize that enhanced governance, structures and controls are necessary and the decision to ringfence our Federal government business is a critical next step,” Stubbins said.
Earlier this month, Ziggy Switkowski was appointed to lead an independent review into the firm’s governance and culture. Stubbins said the full report and its recommendations will be published when the review concludes in September.
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