Calls to expand policy, lawmaking discussions with government ‘closed’ amid PwC tax scandal

The new president of the nation’s peak legal professional body says the government has restricted the discussion of policy in the wake of the PwC tax scandal.

Traditional land owners of Aurukun, Aunty Martha Koowarta (left) and Dorothy Pootchemunka, and Mayor of Aurukun Neville Pootchemunka (right) talk with Greg McIntyre SC.

The federal government has become “much more closed” about discussing policy in the wake of the PwC tax scandal, the Law Council of Australia’s new president says.

In his first interview since he was elected to the position in early December, Greg McIntyre SC told The Australian the government has restricted disclosure of information for the purpose of making decisions about legislation and policy to a handful of people asked to sign confidentiality agreements.

It comes amid the ongoing fallout from the PwC tax scandal, in which a partner divulged confidential government tax briefings with other employees in a bid to benefit their clients.

Mr McIntyre, a barrister based in Perth whose career has been closely tied with Indigenous legal affairs, notably helping Eddie Mabo win his landmark native title case, said effective law in Australia should be developed with robust consultation and the Council — the national peak body representing the legal profession — plans to develop protocols to facilitate the safe transfer of confidential information.

New Law Council of Australia president Greg McIntyre SC. Picture: Supplied

“Particularly following the Price Waterhouse Coopers issue the government has become much more closed about disclosing information … for the purpose of discussion and advance of making decisions about legislation and policy,” he said.

“(In response) we’ve opened up the discussion with the Attorney-General’s department, we hope to extend it to the Australian Taxation Office, to say there is a good working relationship which should exist between development of law and the Law Council.

“(This) requires a form of communication where it can be taken back to the expert committee on taxation or the relevant subject area to be discussed more broadly than the one or two people who are being required to sign confidentiality agreements.”

Mr McIntyre said the Business Law section of the Council is its largest, and regularly provides submissions to the government on key policy and legislative areas.

He said the Council plans to create a scheme allowing “sufficiently broad” confidential communication to help develop particular pieces of legislation, so the government can get a “fully informed submission from the Law Council which takes into account the variety of issues which might apply around the states and territories”.

“(The government) is going to end up with better legislation if there’s been an appropriate level of consultation and secrecy about legislation, I would rarely think that that was going to be helpful,” he said.

Outlining other priorities for the year ahead, Mr McIntyre said the Council hoped to work with the ATO to create a more “balanced” approach to legal professional privilege.

The ATO has battled with firms over what they have said are excessive privilege claims over documents. “That’s an extreme position. So we were working on developing a balanced approach,” he said.

Under Mr McIntyre, further areas the Council will examine this year include migration law, improving access to legal justice, raising the age of criminal responsibility to 14, mental health of members and an ongoing campaign to improve diversity within the profession and courts.

But after his career kickstarted in 1976 with the Aboriginal Legal Service of Western Australia and saw him conduct research into the topic of Aboriginal land rights in common law, Mr McIntyre said a key personal area of focus will be to progress improvement of Indigenous people’s lives in Australia through legal and political reform.

“It will be a priority because it has been an ongoing part of my career. I won’t be abandoning it,” he said.

Mr McIntyre participated in seminars and other social media campaigns in support of the voice to parliament before it was voted down at the referendum.

He said the Council’s Legal Issues Committee will consider a policy position about how it can support the Uluru statement from the heart in the future.

“Indigenous leaders have suggested the Uluru statement from the heart can be implemented outside of constitutional change and whether or not that needs legislation is also an open question.”