Carlton boss Luke Sayers dragged to Canberra for PwC senate inquiry

Former PwC chief Luke Sayers has been summoned to face a parliamentary committee into one of the biggest scandals in Australian corporate history.

Luke Sayers, Chairman of Sayers Group, is the President of Carlton and was once in charge of consulting firm PwC. Photograph by Arsineh Houspian

Under siege Carlton president Luke Sayers will be dragged to Canberra to explain how he oversaw one of the biggest scandals in Australian corporate history.

Mr Sayers will front a powerful Senate committee in Parliament House on Thursday at 11.30am.

He was in charge of consulting firm PwC when its senior advisers sold secret government tax advice to its clients for profit.

The scandal was exposed in a string of explosive internal emails that bounced around the top end of town consultancy firm.

Mr Sayers was briefed in three meetings with the Australian Taxation Office second commissioner Jeremy Hirschhorn during 2019 and 2020.

The ATO told Mr Sayers to “read the emails” but he claimed that he did not have knowledge of confidentiality breaches.

Carlton president Luke Sayers. Photo by Michael Klein.

Mr Sayers and wife Cate Sayers at the Brownlow Medal. Photo: Graham Denholm/Getty Images

Senator Barbara Pocock told parliament that it was “absolutely implausible that Mr Luke Sayers had no knowledge of confidentiality breaches.”

Mr Sayers has not been accused of participating in sharing secret government information for profit, but was expected to be questioned about his leadership and oversight of the firm.

Labor Senator Deborah O’Neill, who is also on the committee, has previously said the firm had a “willingness to rob” Australian taxpayers during Mr Sayers’ tenure.

Mr Sayers was also on the governance board of PwC when the tax advice was allegedly misused.

PwC won more than $500 million of Federal Government contracts in just two years before it was effectively banned from the work.

The global giant sold the government arm of the Australian outfit for $1, with its new owners renaming it Scyne Advisory.

Senator Deborah O’Neill will question Mr Sayers. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Senator Barbara Pocock. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Mr Sayers left PwC in 2020, with Tom Seymour appointed as his successor as chief executive.

Mr Seymour departed the company in July this year following the scandal.

Mr Sayers has since set up his own company called Sayers Group, which won a $682,000 contract to advise on how to rebuild the Shane Warne Stand at the MCG.

Former Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews was friends with Mr Sayers, while billionaire Lindsay Fox has invested in his business.

Mr Sayers said in August: “I did not personally review the tens of thousands of documents and emails which PwC provided to the ATO as part of these processes, nor do I recall that being suggested to me by the ATO.

“I was working through a number of issues with the ATO, but a breach of a confidentiality agreement was not one of them.

“As the CEO when this occurred, I take this extremely seriously and understand that there are questions about this matter.”