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Chinese walls are being built at the Treasury to ensure confidential information it will recieve about Air New Zealand does not leak out.
The airline has signed a confidentiality agreement with its 82% shareholder so it can supply information that will not be available to other shareholders.
Finance Minister Michael Cullen in spelling out the government's relationship with the airline on Monday insisted there will be a clear divisions: the airline and its board will handle operational matters, the Minister of Transport will deal with regulatory issues and he will act as shareholder.
Cullen said he will also be responsible for making sure that the airline does breach insider trading laws which it could easily do when the government comes to sell down its holding to a cornerstone shareholder.
Former competition lawyer and ACT MP Stephen Franks says the government should bring the airline under the State Owned Enterprises Act so that it can be held accountable to Parliament.
The airline is almost unique among the government's assets in that it is a publicly listed company. Franks says the SOE Act recognises there are situations where there may be other shareholders.
The Act MP says its unrealistic to expect the ministers to turn away the strong representations of provincial centres if and when Air New Zealand starts cutting services.
In detailing the government's relationship with the airline, Cullen also made clear that initial discussions for finding a cornerstone shareholder would originate with Air New Zealand.
Source: RNZ
