Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Philip Lowe said he’s “appalled” by the tax scandal that’s engulfed PricewaterhouseCoopers and the central bank won’t enter into any new contracts with the consultancy giant until a satisfactory resolution is reached.
“We are appalled as you are,” Lowe told lawmakers in a Senate committee hearing in Canberra Wednesday. “The use of private information sought for commercial gains is wrong. It destroys trust and, as you know, it is unacceptable.”
PwC is under scrutiny after revelations that a former senior partner obtained secret information on tax policy while advising the government, before leaking it to colleagues who used it to give tax-planning advice to global clients.
“It should come with very serious consequences for those that did the wrong thing,” Lowe said.
Detailing the current arrangements between the two organizations, Lowe said the RBA has one ongoing consulting agreement with PwC for audit and risk management services, and the cost associated with changing that isn’t worth it. PwC is also doing some work for the central bank related to wages, Lowe said.
However, the central bank won’t enter into any new contracts with PwC until “a satisfactory response has been forth coming,” Lowe said. This includes full transparency and accountability for those involved, he added.
The RBA has spent within the range of A$100,000 ($65,000) and A$800,000 a year in recent years for work with PwC, he said.
