25 June 2001 Media Statement
Alliance central role in Crown-Owned Company
The Alliance is pleased to have played a central role in making the decision to create a new Crown-Owned Company, TVNZ.
We were not supportive of a split between BCL and TVNZ, Deputy Prime Minister and Alliance leader Jim Anderton said
today.
"The new Crown-Owned Company will deliver a higher standard of public broadcasting in a commercial environment, and
allow use of the latest technologies.
"Alliance Ministers questioned the idea of splitting BCL from TVNZ and at the end of the day the arguments didn't stack
up," said Jim Anderton.
"Keeping BCL as a separate subsidiary of TVNZ allows both development of BCL and complementary growth with TVNZ. The
business activities of these two parts of TVNZ are highly complementary and full separation would have incurred costs
while not necessarily generating any efficiencies.
"The discussions with Labour were constructive as both parties explored the issues.
"TVNZ's biggest threat continues to be National and ACT plans to privatise the public broadcaster," said Jim Anderton.
ENDS