Lyttelton chairman resigns

By PAM GRAHAM

Lyttelton Port's new chairman, Barney Sundstrum, says the port will reassess everything to resolve its most pressing issue: being able to work a ship whenever it arrives.

The 56-year-old replaces Brent Layton, who resigned yesterday before a hastily called board meeting that had his future on its agenda. Layton will leave as a director when a replacement is found.

The change resolves a public row between Layton and shareholder Christchurch City Holdings (CCHL), the Christchurch City Council company that owns two-thirds of the port company.

The council threatened to call a shareholder meeting to oust Layton, and he countered that the council had been interfering in negotiations with unions to achieve a 24-hour roster.

"I had concluded that my point about meddling by Christchurch City interests in industrial relations matters had been got across," he said in a statement.

"Interference inevitably undermines the port company's position in negotiations to secure flexible labour agreements for the container terminal, which is crucial to the port and region's financial health."

Sundstrum said CCHL had not interfered. Rather it had wanted a change after two years of negotiation had failed to arrive at a deal.

"When a ship comes in customers expect it to be worked continuously until it leaves," he said.

The port was cut from the European route for a new fixed-day weekly service using larger container ships being introduced by P&O Nedlloyd. The labour issue was cited as a factor in the decision, though Dunedin, where the business moved to, had the advantage of being nearer major meat exporters. The port also lost Maersk Sealand's business to Timaru this year.

Sundstrum spent 22 years in Wellington after graduating from Canterbury University. He returned to Christchurch in 1990 as managing director of Mair Astley and later worked for Ernest Adams. He is chairman of Christchurch business Avon Investments and a shareholder in the Loaded Hog pub chain.

Lyttelton Port shares fell 2c to $1.42 yesterday.