Neil Chenoweth and Edmund Tadros have won the 48th Graham Perkin Award for coverage of the PwC Tax Leaks Scandal.

The award was presented at the 29th Quill Awards for Excellence in Victorian Journalism at Crown Palladium on 15 March 2024.

Judges' citation

In a story that dominated the news cycle last year, Edmund Tadros and Neil Chenoweth exposed how senior figures at PWC leaked confidential Treasury documents to drum up tax business for the firm. The revelations led to the break-up of the accounting giant, the departure of the CEO and the biggest crackdown on misconduct by tax advisors in Australian history. Tadros and Chenoweth displayed true courage and determination in pursuing various leads, including how governments had become far too reliant on the work of the big consulting firms. It is truly memorable and excellent journalism in the fine Graham Perkin tradition

The winning entry

Hedley Thomas, National Chief Correspondent, The Australian, for coverage of the criminal justice system

• 'PwC partner leaked government tax plans to clients', Australian Financial Review, 23 January 2023
• '"For your eyes only": How PwC leaks helped global clients dodge tax', Australian Financial Review, 3 May 2023
• 'The inside story of PwC’s tax scandal', Australian Financial Review, 5 May 2023
• 'Panic at PwC: How a tax scandal played out behind closed doors',  Australian Financial Review, 12 May 2023
• '"The dog that didn’t bark": Where was the ATO in the PwC mess?',  Australian Financial Review, 2 June 2023

Award acceptance speeches

Other 48th Perkin award finalists

Stephanie March of the ABC for coverage of global affairs

• 'Philippines: Saving the Children', ABC Foreign Correspondent, 2 March 2023
• 'Somalia: A Story of Survivial', ABC Foreign Correspondent, 23 March 2023
• 'Iraq: Surviving ISIS', ABC Foreign Correspondent, 26 August 2023
• 'Israel: Before the War', ABC Foreign Correspondent, 12 October 2023

Kate McClymont of the Sydney Morning Herald for coverage of indecent assault claims against broadcaster Alan Jones

• '"He’d go the grope": Alan Jones accused of indecently assaulting young men', Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, 7 December 2023
• 'Schoolboy went to police over Alan Jones indecent assault allegation', Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, 11 December 2023
• '"Classic abuse of power": More men come forward with claims about Alan Jones’ behaviour', Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, 18 December 2023

Nick Mckenzie of The Age for agenda-setting reporting

• 'Five years. A thousand messages. How a top public servant tried to influence governments', The Age, 24 September 2023
• 'Millions of dollars in detention money went to Pacific politicians', The Age, 23 July 2023
• 'Failures in immigration allowing violent criminals to thrive in Australia', 60 Minutes, 23 July 2023
• 'The rich and influential cheer squad who backed a war criminal', The Age, 3 June 2023
• '"I’d never seen a courtroom so still": The witness who rocked the Roberts-Smith trial', Good Weekend magazine, 24 June 2023