13 April 2006

Let failed bid be a sign - port should be retained by public

Christchurch City Council's failure to purchase sufficient shares in the Port of Lyttelton to proceed with a planned deal with an overseas company is a sign that the port should be retained in public hands, Green MP Metiria Turei says.

"Public assets like Lyttelton Port must be retained in public hands. The returns from such assets - built up through investment of public funds - should be directed into the communities who support them," Mrs Turei says.

"If Lyttelton Port is sold, even in part, to a private company, money will leak out of the community into overseas hands. This is unacceptable.

"The privatisation of other public assets has been a dismal failure. We have seen time and time again that assets are degraded, services reduced, and profits sent overseas.

"This proposed sale of Lyttelton Port follows hard on the heels a Christchurch City Council proposal to sell off libraries. It is shocking to see this council pursuing a privatisation agenda, especially with a Mayor who is part of the 2021 Coalition and a Labour Party member.

"I hope this failed takeover bid will be the end of attempts to sell shares in the port offshore," Mrs Turei says.

ENDS

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