National has reservations about the need for price controls on airfield activities at Auckland International Airport, National's Transport spokesperson Belinda Vernon said today.

"We will be disappointed if it is necessary for price controls to be introduced as raised in the Price Control Study of Airfield Activities.

"Price control should be a last resort, necessary only where abuse of position exists and where more light handed measures can't deliver the same results.

"The need for price control must be unambiguous. We believe there are other ways to manage airport pricing and the Commerce Commission itself acknowledges that other mechanisms may be effective in the report.

"National supports a light-handed regulatory regime and expects operators to work within that framework. The market works best when operators act responsibly without price controls being imposed.

"The draft recommendation to impose price control flows from a wide range of calculations and considerations, many of which are subjective and open to dispute. We believe the case must be strong before resorting to the price control mechanism.

"The Commerce Commission has asked for input on a wide range of issues. The final decision then rests with the Minister and could have serious implications for the infrustructural sector," Ms Vernon said.

Ends

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Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>