Goodbye Dubai, Auckland airport must be under NZ control

The welcome demise of the Dubai Aerospace bid for a controlling share in Auckland's airport, and the looming bid from the Canada Pension Fund both highlight the urgent need for legislation to limit foreign ownership of key strategic assets to only a 25 percent level, Green Party Aviation Spokesperson Sue Kedgley says.

"Most other countries have similar rules on the foreign ownership of such assets. We need to make it clear to foreign bidders that they cannot hope to achieve a controlling interest in Auckland airport. That's why my private members Overseas Investment ( Restriction on Foreign Ownership) Bill puts a 25 percent share ceiling on foreign ownership of key strategic assets within New Zealand," Ms Kedgley says.

"The fact we have one of the most permissive regimes in the world and are one of the only countries in the world without any rules on the foreign ownership of key strategic assets lies behind the intense foreign interest in gaining a controlling share of our airport.

"The Overseas Investment Act specifies 25 percent ownership as a 'controlling interest', and that is why we have set a limit of 25 per cent for foreign ownership in a key strategic asset. A company with 25 percent ownership could easily control a company, as the Overseas Investment Commission recognises.

"The Green Party can see no reason why a Canadian pension fund should gain control of the gateway to New Zealand, any more than Dubai Aerospace. The 49 percent shareholding the Canada Pension Fund is reportedly seeking would be a controlling stake, as was the one that Dubai Aerospace was seeking.

"New Zealand cannot afford the economic, environmental and security risks of letting control of our main aviation gateway pass into foreign hands. If my private members bill was supported in Parliament, overseas investors would know clearly that they could not control more than a 25 percent shareholding in Auckland airport," Ms Kedgley says.