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Businessman Ziggy Switkowski — who was paid by PwC to conduct a governance “review” — personally interviewed the head of PwC for the entire tax leaks affair but later shredded his notes.
Switkowski has told a Senate inquiry that he met with ex-PwC Australia CEO Luke Sayers “way down the track” during his review last year but had not records of the meeting.
The meeting had been held “at a hotel over coffee” and while members of his eight-person support team had been present at some other interviews they were not present at the Sayers meeting.
“I kept some notes which I subsequently shredded,” Switkoski told the inquiry afternoon.
Switkowski, who is a former CEO of Telstra, said Sydney management consultancy Bendelta had been engaged to assist his review, providing a team of around eight “foot soldiers” who helped with “heavy lifting”.
“Bendelta were with me on some occasions, they would have kept some notes as well but again it was all towards to help us write a report than met the expectations,” he said.
“I kept some notes which I subsequently shredded” – Ziggy Switkoski
Switkowski said his meeting with Sayers was “interesting”, and raised his hands (image top), but did not elaborate.
It also emerged former PwC CEO Tom Seymour, who replaced Sayers in 2022 but was ousted last year amid the tax scandal — was not interviewed for the Switkowski’s “review”.
Kevin Burrowes fronted the inquiry this morning. Source: Australian Senate
Switkowski said Seymour had responded to his via lawyers but no interview was agreed to during the months-long review.
“The process started and we just couldn’t come to an agreement with his lawyers in time,” Switkowski said.
“It wasn’t a difficult process we just didn’t get there”.
Inquiry chair, ALP Senator Deborah O’Neill asked why he had used the term “CEO” in his report “71 times” but had not named Sayers or Seymour.
“It strikes me as passing strange that you used the term 71 times in your document, including in response to particular actions and failures,” she said.
“I did that deliberately,” responded Switkowski, “because casual reference to anybody by name might have amplified consequences and that wouldn’t be fair”.
Seymour is set to face the inquiry for the first time this afternoon. Sayers is also scheduled to appear today.
PwC announced the review after the tax leaks scandal broke last year, but it later emerged PwC had set terms of reference whereby Switkowski was only to look at matters that existed from the date of his appointment.
Switkowski told the inquiry there were “a lot of things that would be of interest to this committee” but “they fell well outside my period of activity”.
“I’m relatively disciplined in having agreed to undertake a review, I would do it and deliver it according to agreed terms,” Switkowsi told the inquiry.
“So I resisted the temptations which were quite severe to go down avenues that were not material to what I was supposed to do in that period of time”.
The inquiry continues.
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