Labor moves to clean up consulting industry
Tom McIlroy
The federal government has released an options paper to improve the regulation of accounting, auditing and consulting firms in Australia, the latest move in the wake of the KPMG scandal, in which partners leaked client information and mishandled the whistleblower who raised the alarm.
KPMG staff leaked confidential Lendlease and Optus information to colleagues who were applying for lucrative audit contracts at Westpac, Dexus and Telstra. At least three partners were involved.
A new options paper, released by the assistant treasurer, Daniel Mulino, on Wednesday, flags possible moves to impose quality management and ethical obligations on the big firms, as well as possible operational or structural separation of different business functions.
Partnership limits could be reduced, new governance rules imposed and mandatory periodic testing for audit services, or a regular rotation of contracts introduced.
In recent years, we have seen behaviour from some large accounting, auditing and consulting firms in Australia that is not fair and honest.
This has undermined trust in the firms themselves and raised broader questions about the resilience of the frameworks meant to uphold market integrity.
It is time to return trust and integrity so that the government, taxpayers and other businesses can rely on the services of large accounting, auditing and consulting firms.
“,”elementId”:”26ce7069-a7cc-45c0-ba35-4a5c6951e029″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.RichLinkBlockElement”,”prefix”:”Related: “,”text”:”House prices fall in four capital cities as Sydney values drop nearly $50,000 this year”,”elementId”:”77894ae9-635f-439d-94f2-cf0d43f30630″,”role”:”thumbnail”,”url”:”https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/jun/30/house-prices-fall-capital-cities-australia-sydney-melbourne-adelaide-canberra”},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
Treasury had forecast the impact of the government’s budget measures to capital gains tax and negative gearing would slow prices by 2%, but the Cotality data showed prices in Sydney falling 1.2% and in Melbourne 1% in the month of June.
“,”elementId”:”f4299c9b-b6e3-462c-8b90-4080ea3b385c”},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
Mark Butler, the health minister, is asked on ABC News Breakfast if Treasury got that forecasting wrong. He says he believes they’re “well-based”:
“,”elementId”:”2d5dce6f-d670-44e3-ada8-0e3ef9c675c2″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement”,”html”:”
\n
You’ve got to wait more than a few weeks. As I said, there’s a lot happening in the economy and the housing market – much of it as a result of global factors, as we’ve seen now for a few years. I’m very confident that Treasury’s forecasts are well-based, they’ve thought about it very carefully. The history of house prices in Australia is one of growth. And it doesn’t mean there won’t be a week here or a week there that you get particular numbers. But we’re very confident in Treasury’s forecasts.
\n
“,”elementId”:”a5845c09-7064-44df-83c4-44424c9b791d”}],”attributes”:{“pinned”:false,”keyEvent”:true,”summary”:false},”blockCreatedOn”:1782853608000,”blockCreatedOnDisplay”:”17.06 EDT”,”blockLastUpdated”:1782854886000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”:”17.28 EDT”,”blockFirstPublished”:1782853986000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”17.13 EDT”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”17.13″,”title”:”‘We’re very confident in Treasury’s forecasts’: Labor defends tax reforms against cooling housing market”,”contributors”:[],”primaryDateLine”:”Tue 30 Jun 2026 17.33 EDT”,”secondaryDateLine”:”First published on Tue 30 Jun 2026 16.33 EDT”},{“id”:”6a442e2c8f086c02c74c9fa2″,”elements”:[{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
Good morning, Krishani Dhanji here with you for another busy sitting day, thanks to Martin Farrer for getting us started.
“,”elementId”:”cabbc2ad-aab4-48dd-9238-481c20960b5a”},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
Gambling reforms will be on the government’s agenda today – but advocates are still pushing for the changes to go further to crack down on online gambling advertising.
“,”elementId”:”983d0be6-276f-45be-b188-cafe440f2638″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
It’s also 1 July which means all the changes coming into effect – minimum wage increase, paid parental leave increase, social services indexation (which happens automatically without the government’s input) – will be spruiked by Labor.
“,”elementId”:”c1c8dc2d-8754-4ce2-8b14-f7c148607aee”},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
And tonight is Canberra’s night of nights, the Midwinter Ball, so there might be a few people getting a little distracted this afternoon as they start getting ready for the event.
“,”elementId”:”41f42363-b54c-4598-a21a-eaba0ac7c5b3″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
Let’s get straight into it!
“,”elementId”:”b29f2e24-fa0e-4d87-8141-a11516e7b51d”}],”attributes”:{“pinned”:false,”keyEvent”:true,”summary”:false},”blockCreatedOn”:1782853164000,”blockCreatedOnDisplay”:”16.59 EDT”,”blockLastUpdated”:1782854432000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”:”17.20 EDT”,”blockFirstPublished”:1782853520000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”17.05 EDT”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”17.05″,”title”:”Good morning”,”contributors”:[{“name”:”Krishani Dhanji”,”imageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2025/01/08/Krishani_Dhanji.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=bdf5a04a6ecde71861bca41ae4119e02″,”largeImageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2025/01/08/Krishani_Dhanji.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=88e85a466dde81302ee6274d3af35cd6″}],”primaryDateLine”:”Tue 30 Jun 2026 17.33 EDT”,”secondaryDateLine”:”First published on Tue 30 Jun 2026 16.33 EDT”},{“id”:”6a43a7a98f08f424eb4cf282″,”elements”:[{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
The federal government has released an options paper to improve the regulation of accounting, auditing and consulting firms in Australia, the latest move in the wake of the KPMG scandal, in which partners leaked client information and mishandled the whistleblower who raised the alarm.
“,”elementId”:”a6194639-71f1-494b-bf0c-f5db84dd7644″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
KPMG staff leaked confidential Lendlease and Optus information to colleagues who were applying for lucrative audit contracts at Westpac, Dexus and Telstra. At least three partners were involved.
“,”elementId”:”3826ea2e-e896-4b29-9774-2dfdff831304″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
A new options paper, released by the assistant treasurer, Daniel Mulino, on Wednesday, flags possible moves to impose quality management and ethical obligations on the big firms, as well as possible operational or structural separation of different business functions.
“,”elementId”:”a55bcb4d-2153-463c-b8c5-e970266f9a51″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
Partnership limits could be reduced, new governance rules imposed and mandatory periodic testing for audit services, or a regular rotation of contracts introduced.
“,”elementId”:”849d045d-2857-401c-beee-1818800dd087″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement”,”html”:”
\n
In recent years, we have seen behaviour from some large accounting, auditing and consulting firms in Australia that is not fair and honest.
\n
This has undermined trust in the firms themselves and raised broader questions about the resilience of the frameworks meant to uphold market integrity.
\n
It is time to return trust and integrity so that the government, taxpayers and other businesses can rely on the services of large accounting, auditing and consulting firms.
\n
“,”elementId”:”30548951-917f-4e64-b439-ff406a348768″},{“displayCredit”:true,”_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.ImageBlockElement”,”role”:”inline”,”media”:{“allImages”:[{“index”:0,”fields”:{“height”:”1689″,”width”:”2857″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/2857.jpg”},{“index”:1,”fields”:{“isMaster”:”true”,”height”:”1689″,”width”:”2857″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg”},{“index”:2,”fields”:{“height”:”1182″,”width”:”2000″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/2000.jpg”},{“index”:3,”fields”:{“height”:”591″,”width”:”1000″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/1000.jpg”},{“index”:4,”fields”:{“height”:”296″,”width”:”500″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/500.jpg”},{“index”:5,”fields”:{“height”:”83″,”width”:”140″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/140.jpg”}]},”elementId”:”feba40ee-07c3-4af8-b9b7-9c8dd49de1dc”,”imageSources”:[{“weighting”:”inline”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=3b86dc3ddf99e6d2725ae1a27481c204″,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=1736a0b5bc24feef2fb7cb30556ad4dc”,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=596a82deeec4f37ef9c74a01ac1689cc”,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=d524cda9b35e17f44f640073093bd70e”,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=716a55b7272d1edbc45e212909f20e6d”,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=a7efe2a2873040389dc1730cba55a1ee”,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”thumbnail”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=140&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=4609b7cd870f2399334794cabd145fdb”,”width”:140},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=140&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=7ea3476f71410b51afc723bac922586f”,”width”:280},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=120&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=1f54ee3a030ccab050cebf7ce5143a2a”,”width”:120},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=120&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=89b6e17463afbc647e91aaa984d946c5″,”width”:240}]},{“weighting”:”supporting”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=380&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=020bc1b201261ef9339afd52b73321f7″,”width”:380},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=380&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=fcc3c5b5a1b4ed6b1c210f12d004d27d”,”width”:760},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=95d364b7a71d9ef2afb7056d9639e754″,”width”:300},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=300&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=ee483f16532ff11f9e30c91e9fe412ac”,”width”:600},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=3b86dc3ddf99e6d2725ae1a27481c204″,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=1736a0b5bc24feef2fb7cb30556ad4dc”,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=596a82deeec4f37ef9c74a01ac1689cc”,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=d524cda9b35e17f44f640073093bd70e”,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=716a55b7272d1edbc45e212909f20e6d”,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=a7efe2a2873040389dc1730cba55a1ee”,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”showcase”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=860&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=e6cd2f67e30bc21d565e0a37bc91961f”,”width”:860},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=860&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=9a4f384e236db1181143ffdfd4f159f1″,”width”:1720},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=780&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=b637c2dd09854dd6631dbe6baf26ea39″,”width”:780},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=780&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=8856f0bdca6900fc865a3dda9aa38f17″,”width”:1560},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=3b86dc3ddf99e6d2725ae1a27481c204″,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=1736a0b5bc24feef2fb7cb30556ad4dc”,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=596a82deeec4f37ef9c74a01ac1689cc”,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=d524cda9b35e17f44f640073093bd70e”,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=716a55b7272d1edbc45e212909f20e6d”,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=a7efe2a2873040389dc1730cba55a1ee”,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”halfwidth”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=3b86dc3ddf99e6d2725ae1a27481c204″,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=1736a0b5bc24feef2fb7cb30556ad4dc”,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=596a82deeec4f37ef9c74a01ac1689cc”,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=d524cda9b35e17f44f640073093bd70e”,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=716a55b7272d1edbc45e212909f20e6d”,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=a7efe2a2873040389dc1730cba55a1ee”,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”immersive”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=1900&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=2d87ee793b2693bcd0b4854fcc45f0ee”,”width”:1900},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=1900&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=0b7ea5d8a9f7bf8eac8012a2a917f431″,”width”:3800},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=1300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=f404be15357ffa8a7105f0aeb5768ab8″,”width”:1300},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=1300&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=6d7b083994fad4a02c0ba07fc41ad47a”,”width”:2600},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=1140&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=afaf5a8e3aeec9f905fa6cc666f2b755″,”width”:1140},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=1140&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=f978b59d245947c473c2be5604740e5f”,”width”:2280},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=980&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=68dd59e2b5c4ffce8d68daafad685854″,”width”:980},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=980&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=4d79949f10aea3a07a4f5143fc7e3a19″,”width”:1960},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=740&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=544721ea5cb556e0c2288b3a40c29351″,”width”:740},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=740&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=bc848cf1abfa79e88e3fe6773f768bac”,”width”:1480},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=660&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=331b5efc1621dfd183fd7fba19bc26a7″,”width”:660},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=660&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=29ebd445df0133451f1a6abe3b64a75b”,”width”:1320},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=480&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=062c857868f00d1800a5e344fd6a8633″,”width”:480},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1ee38060dd058553f966e143c35d8138ee1954c3/0_0_2857_1689/master/2857.jpg?width=480&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=024f2850e8895c53c274394d2db674a2″,”width”:960}]}],”data”:{“alt”:”KPMG office”,”caption”:”KPMG office.”,”credit”:”Photograph: Reinhard Krause/Reuters”}}],”attributes”:{“pinned”:true,”keyEvent”:true,”summary”:false},”blockCreatedOn”:1782851607000,”blockCreatedOnDisplay”:”16.33 EDT”,”blockLastUpdated”:1782854180000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”:”17.16 EDT”,”blockFirstPublished”:1782852169000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”16.42 EDT”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”16.42″,”title”:”Labor moves to clean up consulting industry”,”contributors”:[{“name”:”Tom McIlroy”,”imageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2025/04/30/Tom_McIlroy.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=7569685c8316a272bbf1c0c6f163a8af”,”largeImageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2025/04/30/Tom_McIlroy.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=20292f2f01dd62725df42f8216da31a6″}],”primaryDateLine”:”Tue 30 Jun 2026 17.33 EDT”,”secondaryDateLine”:”First published on Tue 30 Jun 2026 16.33 EDT”},{“id”:”679b43ab8f08d7cb6f3007fa”,”elements”:[{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then it’ll be Krishani Dhanji with the main action.
“,”elementId”:”7b480990-4e0c-4c59-b254-58715f17217f”},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
There’s plenty of news to come but we’re kicking off with Labor revealing the actions it’s considering taking to crack down on the consulting industry after the latest scandal at KPMG.
“,”elementId”:”5b4be795-637d-4d90-ba85-b52656fdfa00″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
More on that in a few minutes.
“,”elementId”:”2781c793-5532-4af1-adff-c3d3f8bddd88″}],”attributes”:{“pinned”:false,”keyEvent”:true,”summary”:false},”blockCreatedOn”:1782851607000,”blockCreatedOnDisplay”:”16.33 EDT”,”blockLastUpdated”:1782850578000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”:”16.16 EDT”,”blockFirstPublished”:1782851607000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”16.33 EDT”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”16.33″,”title”:”Welcome”,”contributors”:[],”primaryDateLine”:”Tue 30 Jun 2026 17.33 EDT”,”secondaryDateLine”:”First published on Tue 30 Jun 2026 16.33 EDT”}],”id”:”key-events-carousel-mobile”,”renderingTarget”:”Web”,”serverTime”:1782855225384}”>
Key events
Wilson says time and trust needed to win the public back
The Guardian essential poll shows the Coalition is still in dire straits, with its vote being eaten up by One Nation.
There’s some interesting data in the latest poll around One Nation, and a little less appetite from the public for some of their key policy – have a read below:
But it also shows that while One Nation’s primary vote dropped from 28% to 26%, and Labor ticked up from 29% to 30%, the Coalition is still coming third with a very low primary vote of just 23%.
So Sky News host, Pete Stefanovic, asks Tim Wilson why people still aren’t buying what the Liberal party is selling.
Wilson says it’s about time and trust.
There’s absolutely policies we need to get right, to articulate and to articulate to the Australian people. We’ve put out a series of policies already around the tax back guarantee to actually protect Australians against Jim Chalmers active inflation agenda.
And every time we talk to people about it, they see the benefit and the advantage of it, but this is going to take time. No one’s pretending otherwise.
The key thing we’ve got to do is solidify trust … and part of the challenge is we’ve got to be a sustainable alternative that clearly articulates a vision for the country.
Cooling housing market a ‘crisis of confidence’, says Wilson
Tim Wilson is blaming treasurer Jim Chalmers and his budget for falling house prices, which experienced the largest decline in three years in the month of June.
The shadow treasurer says Chalmers has “crashed the confidence of the Australian economy” since his budget – of which the key changes to capital gains tax, negative gearing and working Australians tax offset passed last week.
Wilson tells Sky News that despite claims from the government that the cooling is to allow young people to catch up and get a foothold in the market, he’s not hearing evidence from the banks that this is happening.
What’s happened is crisis of confidence in the Australian economy, we’ve had record, small business instalments, is record low, small business confidence, record low, consumer confidence.
Despite all the claims that it’s about young people getting into housing, I’m told that banks are saying there’s not a lot of debt being issued to young people trying to buy home.
‘It’s all a bit befuddling’: Butler bats away leadership questions
Mark Butler, the health minister, is asked about chatter over whether he could be the next leader after Anthony Albanese.
Butler, from South Australia, is a senior member of the left faction in Labor, and a key ally of Anthony Albanese, and he’s just about to turn 56 (Albanese is 63).
He’s one of a handful of names being thrown around, including Jim Chalmers, who’s one of the more senior members of the right faction, and a Queenslander.
Butler says he has “frankly no idea” why everyone’s talking about this.
It’s all a bit befuddling.
We’re only a year into a term where our prime minister, Anthony Albanese, won a really significant victory with a really big agenda … Our job as a team that has the privilege of governing this country is to work together under a leader in Anthony Albanese that I feel privileged to support.
‘We’re very confident in Treasury’s forecasts’: Labor defends tax reforms against cooling housing market
Labor is under pressure to defend itself as new data shows house prices in Sydney and Melbourne recorded their biggest one-month decline in values in three years.
Treasury had forecast the impact of the government’s budget measures to capital gains tax and negative gearing would slow prices by 2%, but the Cotality data showed prices in Sydney falling 1.2% and in Melbourne 1% in the month of June.
Mark Butler, the health minister, is asked on ABC News Breakfast if Treasury got that forecasting wrong. He says he believes they’re “well-based”:
You’ve got to wait more than a few weeks. As I said, there’s a lot happening in the economy and the housing market – much of it as a result of global factors, as we’ve seen now for a few years. I’m very confident that Treasury’s forecasts are well-based, they’ve thought about it very carefully. The history of house prices in Australia is one of growth. And it doesn’t mean there won’t be a week here or a week there that you get particular numbers. But we’re very confident in Treasury’s forecasts.
Good morning
Krishani Dhanji
Good morning, Krishani Dhanji here with you for another busy sitting day, thanks to Martin Farrer for getting us started.
Gambling reforms will be on the government’s agenda today – but advocates are still pushing for the changes to go further to crack down on online gambling advertising.
It’s also 1 July which means all the changes coming into effect – minimum wage increase, paid parental leave increase, social services indexation (which happens automatically without the government’s input) – will be spruiked by Labor.
And tonight is Canberra’s night of nights, the Midwinter Ball, so there might be a few people getting a little distracted this afternoon as they start getting ready for the event.
Let’s get straight into it!
Labor moves to clean up consulting industry
Tom McIlroy
The federal government has released an options paper to improve the regulation of accounting, auditing and consulting firms in Australia, the latest move in the wake of the KPMG scandal, in which partners leaked client information and mishandled the whistleblower who raised the alarm.
KPMG staff leaked confidential Lendlease and Optus information to colleagues who were applying for lucrative audit contracts at Westpac, Dexus and Telstra. At least three partners were involved.
A new options paper, released by the assistant treasurer, Daniel Mulino, on Wednesday, flags possible moves to impose quality management and ethical obligations on the big firms, as well as possible operational or structural separation of different business functions.
Partnership limits could be reduced, new governance rules imposed and mandatory periodic testing for audit services, or a regular rotation of contracts introduced.
In recent years, we have seen behaviour from some large accounting, auditing and consulting firms in Australia that is not fair and honest.
This has undermined trust in the firms themselves and raised broader questions about the resilience of the frameworks meant to uphold market integrity.
It is time to return trust and integrity so that the government, taxpayers and other businesses can rely on the services of large accounting, auditing and consulting firms.
Caitlin Cassidy
Independent MP Boele backs childcare reforms
The independent member for Bradfield, Nicolette Boele, has backed calls for a national early childhood education and care commission to manage supply and improve safety regulation in the sector.
Addressing parliament on Tuesday evening, Boele said “supply and need just aren’t lining up, and that points to a market that needs proper stewardship”.
The proposed commission has the backing of a NSW parliamentary inquiry and childcare groups including Thrive by Five, The Parenthood, Early Childhood Australia and Minderoo.
Boele said families couldn’t keep waiting on reviews while bills amassed, and called for an updated timeline on the government’s Deloitte pricing review:
If you’re in that position, hearing that the government is waiting for Deloitte to finish a report before they can increase the childcare subsidy, doesn’t hold up. Families can’t budget around a maybe. I’ve written to the minister, and I want the government to commit to a national commission with a firm timeline – not keep it on the “considering” pile.
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then it’ll be Krishani Dhanji with the main action.
There’s plenty of news to come but we’re kicking off with Labor revealing the actions it’s considering taking to crack down on the consulting industry after the latest scandal at KPMG.
More on that in a few minutes.
