The Albanese Government has been criticised for combining changes to the Petroleum Resources Rent Tax with a bill to avoid a new PwC scandal.

The Greens say they will challenge the government's attempt to use a crackdown on consultants as a cover for alterations to the Petroleum Resources Rent Tax (PRRT), aimed at boosting the budget by $2.4 billion. 

A Treasury bill to be debated until next year intertwines PRRT changes with legislative responses to PwC's exposure for leaking confidential government tax information.

The proposed legislation imposes fines of up to $780 million on companies undermining tax laws, and removes confidentiality rules hindering the Tax Practitioners Board and the Australian Taxation Office from sharing information about the PwC leak. 

The Australian Taxation Office gains enhanced discretion in applying promoter penalty laws, and whistleblowers receive additional protection.

Both the Greens and the Coalition harbour reservations about the PRRT change, designed to expedite revenue rather than increase it. 

Both parties say that it should not be conflated with the PwC response.

Greens Treasury spokesman Nick McKim has dubbed it a “laughable attempt at a wedge”, and called for the bill to be split to address the nuances of both the PRRT changes and the PwC-related reforms separately.

McKim says he plans to seek support from the Coalition and the crossbench to compel the government to split the bill. 

The PRRT changes aim to cap deductions for offshore gas and petroleum producers, limiting the offset of PRRT assessable income by deductions to 90 per cent from July 2023, as outlined in the federal budget. 

The Greens argue that this does not go far enough, while the Coalition seeks exemptions for gas producers from environmental laws in exchange for its support.