PwC Australia’s final political donation up 50pc to $370,000
PwC Australia increased the amount of money it donated to political parties by 50 per cent to $370,000 last financial year, before ending the practice as part of efforts to restore its public standing after the tax leaks scandal.
Until the ban, the firm had for years been the largest political donor among the big four consulting firms.
The big four have been among the largest corporate donors to the major political parties, but well behind the likes of Rich Listers such as Anthony Pratt who gave nearly $4 million to the major parties in 2021-22.
The Labor Party was the biggest recipient of PwC donations last year, receiving $224,000, while $146,000 went to the Liberal Party and The Nationals. The total is up from the FY22 total of $246,000 and came during the first full year of the federal Labor taking power.
The move by PwC to stop all political donations will deprive the major political parties of contributions worth an average of about $220,000 a year. It will also put pressure on its major rivals – Deloitte, EY and KPMG – to follow suit.
“This is the last time PwC Australia will report political donations because we simply won’t be making them anymore,” PwC Australia chief executive Kevin Burrowes said in a statement.
“They don’t align with community expectations and we have stopped them in their entirety. While we can’t change the past, we can take the positive steps we need to take in order to improve our governance standards – and that’s exactly what we are doing.”
He said the firm would engage with political leaders “via the many other channels available to us and to all Australian organisations”.
PwC’s ban includes ending the provision of donations for political fundraising events, in-kind donations for event
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