Australia news live: politicians and media gather for Canberra’s Midwinter Ball; Westpac director resigns as KPMG scandal widens

According to The Guardian, Australia's accounting industry faces mounting scrutiny over privacy breaches. Ernst and Young, or EY, has terminated two graduate employees who allegedly accessed Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's personal bank account details while on secondment at the Commonwealth Bank. The Prime Minister says the charges against them are appropriate, calling unauthorized access to anyone's private information alarming. The scandal extends beyond EY—KPMG is also under investigation, and a Westpac director has resigned. Albanese criticized the behavior of major accounting firms as completely unacceptable, noting that some may have violated the law, and pledged the government would accelerate its examination of these issues.

Listen to this story

Hear this and more stories in a personalized audio briefing.

Open The Chonkerton