selecta Member
Joined: 24 Dec 2006 Posts: 813 Location: ORD
|
Posted: Thu Jan 11, 2007 2:29 am Post subject: Joyce - cut Qantas support if the airline is brought-out |
|
|
10-January-07 by AAP
source
Nationals senator Barnaby Joyce has called for Qantas to face more competition on the lucrative Australia-US route if it is taken over by Airline Partners Australia.
Senator Joyce said the private equity consortium was of "indeterminate nationality" and therefore deserved no special treatment from the federal government.
The Australia-US route is currently flown by only Qantas and United Airlines, with Singapore Airlines continually calling for access to the route.
"To continue the special treatment, if Qantas was taken over by a private equity group, would be giving the equity group favoured treatment," Senator Joyce said in a statement tonight.
"This would be equivalent to picking winners and that is not what competition law and policy is about."
The Macquarie Bank-led Airline Partners Australia includes US private equity firm Texas Pacific Group and Canadian investor Onex but the make-up of the consortium is balanced so as to allow it to buy Qantas without breaking tightly knit laws on foreign ownership of the flying kangaroo.
Airline Partners Australia is yet to submit its offer of $5.60 per share formally but Qantas' board has unanimously agreed to the deal. _________________
http://openflights.org/user/citrus |
|