Former PwC boss Luke Sayers grilled over tax leaks in Senate inquiry

The former boss of embattled audit and consulting giant PwC Australia Luke Sayers has faced an intense grilling over his response to the tax leaks scandal.

Carlton president Luke Sayers was accused in parliament of playing Twister with the truth as his responses to the PwC scandal were compared with disgraced businessman Alan Bond.

Mr Sayers faced a blistering parliamentary hearing into his time as PwC chief executive when the company was accused of selling secret government advice for profit.

He was asked whether he failed to take accountability for PwC’s “whatever it takes” culture - the same slogan Essendon had used during its drug supplements saga.

PwC’s government advice division was valued at up to $1 billion but the company was forced to sell it for $1 after the scandal broke earlier this year.

Luke Sayers appearing before a Senate committee into his time at PwC. Supplied

Mr Sayers, who made $30 million during his time as chief executive, said in his opening statement that “the breaches of confidence and the failure to properly identify and address them happened on my watch”.

“I sincerely apologise,” he said.

Mr Sayers was grilled about a meeting he had with Australian Taxation Office second commissioner Jeremy Hirschhorn where he was told to “read the emails”.

He said did “not recall” that part of the meeting.

Liberal Senator Richard Colbeck said Mr Hirschhorn was “emphatic” that the emails related to the “breach of confidentiality” that led to PwC profiting from secret government advice.

“The Alan Bond excuse, ‘I don’t recall’. How do we accept that?” Mr Colbeck said.

Mr Sayers said his version of events “might not be reconcilable” with the ATO’s evidence.

Liberal Senator Richard Colbeck questioning Luke Sayers at the PwC Senate inquiry. Supplied

Labor Senator Deborah O’Neill asked if Mr Sayers was calling Mr Hirschhorn “a liar”.

“One of you is not telling the truth,” she said, adding that giving false or misleading evidence was a contempt of the Senate.

“You’re purporting to be a fit and proper person trying to do business with the government and here you are twisting each way like you’re in a game of Twister to get around the truth. tell the truth, please.”

Mr Sayer replied: “With all due respect, Senator, I am a very truthful and honest person and one that is very fit and proper.”

He said PwC’s $5.5 million investment in an education company shortly after taking on consulting work for the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency was an “honest mistake”.

“I and a small number of partners make a mistake,” he said.

“There was the desire from the consortium that a number of individuals at the top of the tree also put some skin in the game.”

Senator Barbara Pocock said Luke Sayers’ “halo had slipped”. Supplied

Greens Senator Barbara Pocock said Mr Sayers’ claims he was on his “white horse preventing conflicts of interest” was “very implausible”.

“Your wings are singed and your halo has well and truly slipped,” she said.

“You oversaw a complete disaster in management terms. It will be an international case study for decades.

“Many of your colleagues and your peers do not believe that you did not know what was going on.”

Mr Sayers started up a new consultancy group, which he named after himself, when he left PwC.

Former finance minister Matthias Cormann was revealed as an investor into the Sayers group through a trust.

Mr Sayers told parliament former Treasurer Josh Frydenberg was a friend, but denied he had asked him to get the ATO to back off on the investigation into PwC.

Former Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has also described Mr Sayers as a friend.

Originally published as Former PwC boss Luke Sayers grilled over tax leaks in Senate inquiry