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POLITICO

KPMG is banned from new federal contracts. It’s still collecting millions.

If you’ve been forwarded this newsletter, you can sign up free here. ESSENTIALS KPMG cuts partners and staff, but rakes in $14M through federal contract amendments Andrew Barr takes you inside National Cabinet Former Labor minister Joel Fitzgibbon backs Ben Roberts-Smith DRIVING THE DAY AUKUS INQUIRY IN BRISBANE: Australia’s citizen-led inquiry into AUKUS arrives in Brisbane today for its seventh public hearing. Former Labor minister and musician Peter Garrett put out a call-out to join the hearing at the Queensland Council of Unions, running from 9.30 am to 5 pm. Watch online. The inquiry has now received nearly 700 submissions since its inception in June 2026. Today’s lineup includes former Sen. Claire Moore, Griffith University’s Charles Sampford and Adrian Pisarski, Executive Officer of National Shelter, alongside others. DON’T MENTION THE TAX: If there’s one thing guaranteed to get C-suiters more excited than tax changes, it’s AI. And that’s exactly the strategy Anthony Albanese is deploying tonight in a Business Council of Australia address in Sydney. The PM is fleshing out his AI principles, but repetition hasn’t convinced Queensland Premier David Crisafulli to get on board — he’s backing a $31 billion gas-powered data center, slated to be Australia’s largest, The Australian reports. Albanese will tell guests from 128 of Australia’s largest companies that AI legislation will set conditions for AI training regarding copyright, security, safety and skills development, and minimum obligations for data centers. While the PM says Australia “must establish conditions to attract investment in frontier AI training,” per excerpts of the speech shared by his office, there will also be rules “ensuring energy bills do not rise, water security is maintained and locations are appropriate.” BCA President Bran Black is still tax-focused: “Australia cannot tax, regulate, or redistribute its way to higher living standards,” he will say. (Of note: BCA’s media director is former long-serving media adviser for Albo, Irene Oh) BY THE NUMBERS KPMG CUTS, CUTS, AND AMENDMENT CASH The fallout from KPMG’s misuse of client data and a whistleblower’s complaint about it grew on Monday. The firm said it will cut nearly 400 roles, mid way through a three-month ban on gaining new federal contracts. $14.2 million: The value of 27 contract amendments to existing federal contracts involving KPMG since June 16, per the Finance Department. KPMG is banned from new contracts between June 16 and Sept. 30. 360: Job cuts announced Monday 80: the number of partners who’ve left the company since July 1, including 27 announced Monday 13 per cent: The cut in KPMG partner pay confirmed Monday $29.29 million: The value in new federal contracts Deloitte — the main winner from KPMG’s absence — has picked up during its rival’s ban, per Tendertrace. LOBBYING REPORT LOBS The Australian Democracy Network’s Saffron Zomer and Christian Slattery are in Canberra today to release a report crunching the numbers on the federal register of lobbyists. ADN is a registered charity, set up in 2022, that advocates for stronger lobbying regulations. As Playbook reported yesterday, the register has been widely criticized for not featuring in-house lobbyists, aka 80 percent of all lobbyists. Freebies and orange passes: “It’s cute isn’t it, that an in-house lobbyist for, say, BHP or the big donor Pharmacy Guild, don’t have to pay a cent, but a small business sole trader – kerching, $140.80.” Self-select your pass: DPS has its work cut out with the influx of new sponsored pass holder applications. The application form — seen by Playbook — allows applicants to self-select the category they fall in, and also asks that they check a box confirming they’re not in “serious breach” of the code of conduct. ADN’s report – based on analysis of the March 2026 register membership – found: 58 percent: of ASX100 companies were not listed as clients on the federal lobbying register. Some of Australia’s largest companies such as Commonwealth Bank, Santos, and Qantas are missing. 64 percent: of the registered lobbyists in Canberra were former federal or state government representatives (ministers, assistant ministers, political advisers or public servants). That proportion is higher than Playbook reported yesterday because the report includes extra layers of government experience beyond disclosure requirements. 22: Number of former federal ministers or assistant ministers who are lobbyists. “Lobbying can help people bring legitimate concerns to the government,” the ADN report concludes, but “Australia’s federal lobbying framework is structurally inadequate.” THE PLAYBOOK INTERVIEW ANDREW BARR — “OFFICIALS HAVE WRESTLED BACK CONTROL” OF NATIONAL CABINET Australia’s longest-serving current state or territory leader met with Playbook at Edgar’s in Ainslie. The interview has been edited for length and clarity. National Cabinet is a relatively new political forum — how does it actually function? The old COAG model was a lot of officials working things out, the meeting was ceremonial. National Cabinet formed out of COVID and became a lot more hands-on, and a lot quicker in terms of decision making: We sometimes met several times a week. Where we are now is somewhere between the two. Officials have wrestled back control of some elements and process, so things take longer. I can imagine some leaders will raise the GST revenue deal, no matter what the agenda for this week’s meeting says. In 12 years of meetings, it is rare that the GST is not mentioned inside the first 60 seconds. That’s largely because it hasn’t really lived up to the promise of the end of the last century: that it would keep pace with the costs states and territories face. It has a narrow base and the rate has not changed. Are we inevitably headed towards a rate increase at some point? The politics of that are near impossible. A better approach might be to grow the tax pie to make more available to distribute. I always find it interesting that health and education were excluded. The effective exclusion is private health and private education. What kind of trust is around the table? I’ve seen four different prime ministers and four very different approaches. The current prime minister is at the collegiate end. But he has pretty firm views on what the outcome should be. And when you chair the meeting and hold the bulk of the resources, then that tends to be the way that the meeting will go. But we have seen some pretty famous examples over the last decade of prime ministers being rolled in that room. National Cabinet will discuss standards for AI, and Canberra feels ripe for becoming a data center hub. Data centers in the ACT predominantly relate to sovereign capability: the university sector, CSIRO, the Australian government, all the sophisticated climate and weather modeling. And there is pioneering water-efficient technology — it’s world-leading and exportable. In a water-constrained environment, they adapted and have a closed-loop water supply. Canberra’s ideal because it’s cool seven to eight months of the year. All of our electricity is renewably sourced. We already meet the proposed national standards. Do you support University of Canberra and Canberra Institute of Technology merging? Well, I originally proposed it 15 years ago. In principle, I support it. You need both sides to want to do it. What will we get beyond the sum of the two parts? What new courses? What new investment in the campuses? [Barr and University of Canberra Vice Chancellor Bill Shorten unveiled a statement of intent around the possible merger Aug. 24, after Playbook’s interview with Barr took place]. How do you want the rest of Australia to see Canberra? Canberra is an avatar for what the rest of the country is, or wants. Read the full interview here. Speaking of Playbook Interviews, you can catch Ryan Heath on the United States Studies’ Center podcast. CANBERRA MEETS WORLD AUKUS UPDATES HENDERSON MAPPED: The detailed map for the new AUKUS-driven Defence Precinct at Henderson, WA, is out. The focus is on naval shipbuilding and sustainment and an initial $12 billion in federal funding is committed. Map. AUKUS INQUIRY REPORT EXPECTED NOV. 4: The grassroots AUKUS inquiry chaired by former minister Peter Garrett and featuring figures such as ex-Chief of the Defence Force Chris Barrie will bunker down after hearings end next week, and release a report slated for Nov. 4. PRESS CLUB DEBATE NOW ONLINE: Lowy Institute presented a debate between strategists Sam Roggeveen and Jennifer Parker. NZ MAY COPY TEEN SOCIAL MEDIA RESTRICTIONS: PM Christopher Luxon will introduce a bill which, like Australia, bans children under 16 from social media accounts. He’s also proposing fines of up to 10 percent of a platform’s global revenue for non-compliance. Yes, but: Foreign Minister Winston Peters, Luxon’s coalition partner, is skeptical. When in danger! Are social media bans the new “Break glass in case of emergency” policy for national leaders? Luxon survived a caucus confidence motion earlier this month, and now turns to the policy. Former U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer unveiled his own model, based on Australia’s, as he struggled to stay in Downing Street, before announcing he’d be stepping down a week later. Albanese himself was under threat of becoming a one-term PM when he backed the idea in September 2024. HIDDEN COSTS IN PALM VISAS: SMH’s Natassia Chrysanthos and Alex Ellinghausen look at the unintended effects of a widely lauded visa scheme, as does ABC’s Bronwen Herbert. With around 33,000 PALM workers now central to our industries such as food supply chains, the system appears here to stay, even amid a contentious immigration debate. But there are costs and accountability gaps. What’s the issue? Australia’s high wages give new levels of opportunity to thousands of Pacific Islanders, but many workers face high wage deductions for flights, visas, rent, transport, utilities, and health insurance (never mind tax); many receive little pre-departure education about the contracts they’ve signed. In the last six years 79 deaths and many serious or life-threatening injuries among PALM workers have been recorded. Family effects: For some workers seizing the Australian opportunity means leaving their children to grow up without parents at home. And pregnancy highlights a gap in the scheme’s design: PALM workers aren’t eligible for Medicare, but their private insurance may not cover pregnancy care. RUSSIAN ILLITERACY: Australia has a Russia expertise problem, reports Latika Bourke. REQUIRED READING Writing for ASPI’s Strategist, Raquel Garbers and Michelle Khiangte explain how Australia can distinguish itself from other hedging middle powers — and become indispensable to the U.S. PARTY ROOM LABOR BROAD CHURCH BRS GOES BI-PARTISAN: Eagle-eyed followers of former Labor Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon have noticed he wore a cap with a striking message during a recent round of golf: “I Support BRS.” That’s Ben Roberts-Smith, Australia’s most decorated living veteran, who’s facing five war-crime murder charges, partly based on evidence provided by conservative shadow minister Andrew Hastie. Fitzgibbon told Playbook that, while Australia needed to show the world it took war crimes allegations seriously, its treatment of SAS soldiers — including Roberts-Smith — has “gone well beyond what was needed,” with “show trials and the expenditure of hundreds of billions of dollars [we think he meant millions] pursuing our special forces heroes over many years.” Make Albo Go Away: The BRS cap is sold for $50 by Proud to Be Australian, which also sells pro-Pauline Hanson merch and Australian MAGA Hats: “Make Albo Go Away.” Question: Is Fitzgibbon the only Labor luminary backing BRS? Tell us if you know more. canberraplaybook@politico.com. LIBERAL BROAD CHURCH ABBOTT OFF-SCRIPT AGAIN — PENSIONERS ARE “LEANERS”: Tony Abbott is borrowing from 1942’s style manual again, worried there are “too many net beneficiaries” of government spending. That includes “over 50% of households” who are “getting a very substantial part of their income from governments, either as pensions or through government subsidies for jobs in heavily government-dependent sectors.” Watch him tell IPA’s podcast. WE NOW CHAT IN MANDARIN: Nǐ hǎo fellow Chinese humans! Coalition foreign affairs spokesperson Ted O’Brien is putting his Mandarin language skills to use as he begs multicultural communities to return to the fold. SBS’s Naveen Rasik sat down with the almost polyglot. EX-FILES: Liberal frontbencher Anne Ruston has offered former minister Simon Birmingham a farewell and “congratulations on an extraordinary contribution to public life” … 18 months after he left Parliament. Better late than never! ICYMI … Louise Clegg, married to Angus Taylor, had this SMH op-ed about cultures of responsibility around sexual assault. You may have missed it because Clegg was by-lined as a “former lawyer,” rather than as a United States Studies Centre board member, or Samuel Griffith Society speaker (this past weekend), or the person who ran Taylor’s initial 2013 election campaign “with military precision.” ONE NATION MOP FACTORY FARLEY’S FLIRTATIONS: More than a few guests at David Farley’s One Nation wedding — the Farrer election night party — were questioning whether this shotgun marriage would last. Keeping up appearances: After Farley went rogue on immigration numbers, fellow One Nation newlywed Barnaby Joyce was playing down trouble in the relationship. “Show me a political career where people haven’t made a mistake,” Joyce told Sunrise [cue a montage of Barnaby chasing pavements]. One Nation national director James Ashby appeared with a literal mop on News24. Wandering eye?: Farley’s showing plenty of signs of restlessness in the relationship, with Rob Harris and Paul Sakkal revealing in the SMH that he walked-in on a meeting of about 20 Liberal MPs last week and told them: “I could see myself sitting here.” Flirting back: “David Farley is a regional leader, he’s a decent fellow,” Coalition frontbench Andrew Hastie told 7.30 last night. “I think he would have been offended by James Ashby … essentially mocking what I thought [was a] thoughtful contribution.” Spreading his bets: Farley is also “impressed” by Albanese’s recent courtship — a bailout for agribusiness SunRice and 78 jobs in his electorate. “I tilt my hat to them.” ICYMI BARNABY ON AUSTRALIAN STORY: Pauline Hanson declined to take part (she doesn’t like Aunty). Episode here — but no revelations Canberra insiders won’t have seen before! PAULINE IN SOFT FOCUS: A long-lost 2001 interview magically landed in News24’s hands. AGENDA ASSISTANT Today’s parliamentary hearings:Epilepsy in AustraliaSupport at Home Program Inquiry into Local Government Funding and Fiscal SustainabilityCreating sustainable economic growth in rural and regional AustraliaInquiry into the value of skilled migration to Australia PARLIAMENTARY PROTOCOL WHICH? Coalition Senator has a reputation for getting into Parliament’s elevators before people have the chance to get out? COMMUNITY CORNER WALKLEY FOR BETOOTA ADVOCATE: Sometimes the satirists sum up the debate best. POLLIES PEDALLING: Tony Abbott and Angus Taylor are teaming up for charity — raising funds for The Krait Foundation, an initiative Wandering Warriors, a special forces veterans support group, THINK TWICE BEFORE BACKYARD BIRD FEEDING: About half of Australian households feed wild birds, but that might cause a bird flu superspreader event, writes Griffith University’s Darryl Jones in The Conversation. LOCAL CANBERRA ANDREW BARR PINES FOR … cà phê trứng — Vietnamese egg coffee — having fallen in love with the beverage during a recent trade delegation to the south-east Asian nation. PREMIERE SCREENING: Tickets are still available for the Aug. 28 Canberra premiere of Silenced, a documentary following human rights lawyer Jennifer Robinson — featuring Brittany Higgins and Amber Heard. There’ll be a Q&A panel featuring Regina Featherstone (from the Human Rights Law Centre) and Emma Webster (from Hawker Britton), moderated by Guardian journalist Sarah Basford Canales. PLAYBOOK TRIVIA: Former Prime Minister John Howard was born on July 26. Which former U.K. Prime Minister does he share a birthday with? LE MARCHÉ COMES TO CANBERRA: Sydney’s favorite French market will be on tour this weekend. Sunday Aug 30, from 9.30 to 2.30 at Exhibition Pavilion in Thoroughbred Park, Lyneham MOVES Dr. Ramya Raman has been elected as the next Royal Australian College of General Practitioners President. BIRTHDAYS Happy Birthday to Matt Burnell (ALP) and Sen. Lisa Darmanin (ALP); former ACT Greens Leader Shane Rattenbury; Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre. Belated wishes for Melissa McIntosh (Lib) and Rebekha Sharkie (Ind), who celebrated Monday.