King announces transport appointments

Transport Minister Annette King says two new appointments to the Civil Aviation Authority bring a wealth of experience to the sector.

Errol Millar, of Central Otago, who has been appointed deputy chair, has significant experience in the aviation sector as a past Chair of Airways Corporation of New Zealand Limited, and Captain Ross Crawford is an experienced commercial airline pilot and flight instructor.

Both appointments have been made for a period of three years, says Ms King. Dr Alison Drewry has also been reappointed as Aviation Medical Convener for another three years.

Ms King also announced new appointments to the boards of Transit New Zealand and Land Transport New Zealand, saying the new appointees provide excellent governance and leadership skills as well as extensive knowledge of the sector.

Professional company director Fran Wilde, of Wellington, and Christchurch Mayor Garry Moore have been appointed to the Transit New Zealand Board. Mr Moore is not standing for re-election to the Christchurch City Council this year, and Ms Wilde intends standing down from the Wellington Regional Council.

Ms King says Mr Moore has also been appointed to the Land Transport NZ Board, along with two other new appointees, Murray King, a Wellington transport consultant, and John Rutledge, a Wellington civil engineer and past CEO of Opus International. Gregory Presland has been reappointed to the Land Transport NZ board.

Ms King says all appointments and reappointments to the Transit New Zealand and Land Transport New Zealand boards are for an initial term of one year. “When I released the report of the Ministerial Advisory Group on Roading Costs in February, I also asked the State Services Commission to complete a Next Steps review of the transport sector. When that review is completed and analysed, the Government can re-examine the skill sets on both boards.”

Contact: John Harvey (04) 471 9305, John Saunders (04) 470 6851.