Regulator bans Tom Seymour over links to PwC tax scandal
Handed a four year ban, Tom Seymour contests findings he failed to stop ‘widespread’ misuse of confidential government information but won’t challenge the ban as he has no plans to practise again.
The Tax Practitioners Board has banned former PwC Australia boss Tom Seymour for four years, as the regulator takes its biggest scalp to date tied to the audit and consulting firm’s misuse of confidential government tax plans.
But the move to bar Mr Seymour from practising as a tax agent until 2030 has seen the one-time PwC boss take aim at the regulator’s findings, challenging claims about his responsibility for the scandal.
Mr Seymour, who ran PwC from May 2020 to May 2023, claims he did not know his colleagues were sharing confidential tax information, taken from private sessions with the Commonwealth as authorities prepared to introduce laws aimed at stopping multinationals shifting profits offshore.
The TPB, which oversees the tax accountant sector, on Tuesday handed Mr Seymour a four-year ban, warning he failed to act honestly and with integrity and failed to put in place arrangements to manage conflicts of interest.
The regulator said Mr Seymour had allowed a “widespread” culture in PwC’s tax and legal practice of sharing confidential information, “suggesting a broad cultural acceptance for this type of behaviour and conduct”.
The ban comes after a lengthy investigation by the tax system regulator, which determined Mr Seymour breached the Tax Agent Services Act Code of Professional Conduct.
In its findings, the TPB said Mr Seymour failed to act with integrity and failed to manage conflicts of interest in PwC relating to work done in the firm’s tax and legal services divisions between July 2012 and April 2020.
Mr Seymour was forced to resign from PwC in May 2023, in the face of the scandal surrounding the firm after the TPB struck out its former head of international tax, Peter Collins.
Mr Collins and Mr Seymour previously worked closely in PwC’s tax practice, which Mr Seymour ran from 2012 to 2016.
After this, Mr Seymour ran the firm’s financial advisory and Asia Pacific Americas tax business.
Mr Collins shared confidential government tax plans he had received while participating in a consultation process over plans to introduce new laws in 2016 to block multinational companies shifting profits offshore.
He shared these plans with others in the firm, allowing PwC to put in place structures for its clients in a bid to subvert the new tax.
The TPB found Mr Seymour “failed to take any action, or otherwise implement any procedures, to ensure that the actual conflicts of interest which arose for individual partners in the PwC tax and legal services division, as well as for PwC as a registered tax agent firm, were appropriately managed”.
The regulator also found Mr Seymour permitted “business culture to develop and operate within the tax and legal services division at PwC while he was the managing partner that included unethical and improper professional conduct by multiple partners”.
Mr Seymour “did not take action in relation to the way in which confidential information was shared within PwC’s tax a legal division”, the TPB also found.
TPG chair Peter de Cure said the regulator’s investigations into Mr Seymour revealed the firm disregarded repeated reminders that information was “confidential and should not be disclosed further”.
“Mr Seymour’s conduct has fallen short of the standards that the community would expect from a person in the profession,” Mr de Cure said.
“I want to assure the public the TPB is committed to upholding the highest standards of professional conduct in Australia’s tax profession and will continue to take strong action in cases of serious misconduct.”
However, in a statement Mr Seymour rejected the TPB’s attack on him and said he had not been aware “confidential information was being inappropriately shared prior to the investigation”.
“In fact, when I first became aware of this possibility, I immediately raised it with PwC’s legal and risk teams, and requested they investigate it,” he said.
“I was advised verbally, and in writing, that the issue was investigated and no breach of confidentiality had occurred.”
Mr Seymour, who issued a statement and declined to comment further, said no one at PwC, Treasury, the Australian Taxation Office or the TPB had raised “any concerns” with him prior to the launch of investigations.
“The finding that I should have raised questions in respect of five emails received over a four-year period can only be made with the benefit of hindsight,” he said.
“These five emails were also received by multiple other people, who did not raise any concerns or have had findings made against them.”
“As I have previously acknowledged, I accept leadership accountability and, in doing so, stood down as CEO,” Mr Seymour said on Tuesday.
“Notwithstanding this, I disagree with the TPB finding that I breached the code of conduct and believe it is incorrect.”
Mr Seymour said his decision to stand down “does not correlate with an individual breach of the code”.
The Brisbane-based former PwC partner said he had not worked as a tax agent since leaving the firm in 2023.
His tax agent status was due to expire in 2026.
“I have not practised as a tax agent since leaving PwC, and have no intention to do so in the future. Given this, I will not be seeking review of the decision,” Mr Seymour said.
The TPB had been investigating a number of former PwC partners who received emails from Mr Collins featuring confidential information.
It has cleared several of them.
However, it recently made findings against former PwC partner Richard Gregg, banning him for four years after concluding he made false and misleading statements to support research and development tax incentive grants.
The TPB made no findings in relation to confidentiality breaches.
PwC has previously denied any members of its firm outside of Australia, who received confidential information shared by Mr Collins, did anything with the government plans.
However, court documents have alleged the government secrets were shared with others in the firm, with sources close to the investigation previously telling The Australian they were aware of others in the firm who were integral to PwC’s tax structuring efforts.
Former PwC International partner Matthew Chen has been named in court documents as someone who allegedly received confidential information.
PwC International seized control of PwC Australia in the wake of the scandal, installing loyalist Kevin Burrowes as CEO.
A PwC spokeswoman said the TPB’s findings related to “historic matters and conduct”.
“Those found to have failed in their leadership or governance duties have left the firm,” she said.
“Across the past two years, the firm has made changes which have significantly enhanced our governance and culture.”
An Australian Federal Police investigation of the PwC tax leaks is ongoing, after raids of the Sydney offices last year as part of a probe into several figures linked to the tax scandal.
Labor Senator Deb O’Neill said the TPB’s move was a “good start towards taking action that clarifies professional standards and expectations about leadership and behaviour in the audit and assurance sector”.
“The action taken by the TPB against Mr Seymour is a first step in formally holding to account those directly responsible for the PwC tax leaks scandal,” she said.
“I hold the firm’s toxic leadership in Australia and globally directly responsible for allowing this culture to flourish.”
Greens Senator Barbara Pocock said she doubted PwC’s assurances, warning there was a need for “greater transparency and stronger procurement protections from corrupt contractors”.
Ms Pocock introduced a bill last week which would blacklist PwC from Commonwealth contracts for five years, after the firm was cleared by the Department of Finance to begin tendering for work again.
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