Australians pull out of shipping deal

Press, 1 March 1989, Page 3

Australians pull out of shipping deal

NZPA Sydney Frustrated officials from Australian National Line yesterday announced they were pulling out of the joint venture agreement with the Shipping Corporation. They have pulled out because of the corporation’s inability to recommission the New Zealand Mariner, still strike-bound in Melbourne.

The agreement between ANL and the corporation, which dates to December, 1982, was due to be renewed today.

“The agreement would have been renewed, but the inability of the N.Z. Mariner.to participate left us with no option but to quit,” ANL’s industry and Government liaison manager, Mr Gwyn Bowen, said yesterday.

The decision was made after eight weeks of negotiating with the corporation, “during which time the industrial situation has been getting progressively worse,” Mr Bowen said. ANL and Union Steamship New Zealand would continue to run four ships on the Tasman route and more vessels would be provided as soon as possible.

“Shippers can be assured that business will not be affected by this move and that an announcement concerning Tranztas agency representation in New Zealand will be made shortly,” the managing director of ANL, Mr John Bricknell, said.

The general manager of New Zealand Line, Mr Pat Blewman, said in a

statement yesterday ANL forced the issue and the union position was unacceptable.

“We are now considering what action we might take to get the New Zealand Mariner back in service,” he said. “But in the meantime, the Australian end of the joint service has severed the service, and we believe it is taking a very heavy handed commercial attitude to us because it perceives us to be in a weak negotiating position with the New Zealand Mariner tied up in an industrial dispute. “We believe that ANL’s position as an apparently rejected bidder for the Shipping Corporation has a great deal to do with its attitude to us,” Mr Blewman said.