KPMG keeps $1.27 M ethics training contract with Australian public service despite scandal

KPMG, one of the Big Four accounting firms, has admitted breaching ethical standards, sharing confidential client information and mishandling whistleblower complaints. A parliamentary inquiry into the scandal, which emerged in March, has revealed the firm’s misconduct.

The Australian Federal Government, however, continues a $1.27 million contract with KPMG to deliver ethics and leadership training to 300 senior Australian Public Service (APS) leaders. The agreement runs until December 2024 and can be extended without re‑tendering to December 2028. Since the scandal broke, KPMG has secured more than 30 additional Commonwealth contracts valued at almost $24 million, while a temporary ban on new KPMG contracts remains in place because existing deals cannot be cancelled under procurement rules.

Greens Senator Barbara Pocock criticised the arrangement, saying “KPMG could run a great class in unethical leadership” and urging the government to cancel the training contract and review all 297 active KPMG agreements worth $653 million. She also highlighted KPMG’s political donations to the Labor Party.