CBAFF welcomes Local Government Forum report

CBAFF welcomes Local Government Forum report on port ownership

The Customs Brokers and Freight Forwarders Federation (CBAFF) has welcomed the Local Government Forum’s stand on New Zealand Port Ownership.

CBAFF President Willie van Heusden said that forum’s report, published this week, which suggests that council control of ports is a barrier to efficiency and stifles competition, “hit the nail on the head”.

“This is exactly what the federation has been saying for a number of years and we welcome the Local Government Forum entering the fray,” said Mr van Heusden.

“It is inevitable that New Zealand ports will be rationalised but the current situation, with many under local body ownership, is stifling that and stifling the potential of many ports to make a major contribution to the economic development of the regions.

“Port mergers would be in the best interests of both the economic viability of the regions and of New Zealand Incorporated. It would enable management to get the best out of the supply chain and maximise productivity.”

The report, Port Ownership and Performance: An Assessment of the Evidence, was written by researcher Dr Brent Layton, a former chairman of the Lyttelton Port Company.

It also suggests that that New Zealand’s ports rank at the bottom end of ports in developed countries and that ratepayer ownership has prevented the introduction of experienced international operators into the management of the ports.

“Hopefully, the intervention of the Local Government Forum, will be the catalyst for council-run ports to start having productive discussions with one another,” said Mr van Heusden.

“That is the only way that we can begin to move forward towards a future of seamless interfacing, with all New Zealand ports working together for the good of all.”

ENDS