Blame for Ansett's woes sheeted home to NZ

By GREG ANSLEY

CANBERRA - As Ansett jets continued to lift off from airports across Australia yesterday, accusing fingers began to be pointed across the Tasman.

The national newspaper the Australian headlined one front-page story "Kiwi cock-ups opened the door for Singapore", and continued its attack in its leading editorial.

Kiwi parochialism and a less-than-friendly attitude to business by Helen Clark's Government had shot down Ansett's chances of survival in its present form, the newspaper said.

Unfortunately for Prime Minister John Howard, most other commentators and opponents placed the blame much closer to home, lashing the Australian Government for allowing a national icon to fail.

Just a week ago he was basking in the surge of support for his refusal to let the Tampa boat people into Australia.

Yesterday, as a federal judge ordered the asylum-seekers to be returned to Australia, critics said Mr Howard should have spent more time persuading Wellington to save Ansett than in persuading New Zealand to take Tampa refugees.

"[A deal with Singapore Airlines] looked one that was eminently do-able, but they just fooled with it, fiddled with it for about six months and now we have what we have on our hands," said Labor leader Kim Beazley.

Yesterday, Singapore Airlines told Canberra it had no interest in helping an Ansett rescue, Virgin Blue said it was prepared to pick up some Ansett routes and add 10 Ansett jets and crews to its fleet of nine Boeings, and Qantas was considering a buyout.

Most analysts believed political pressure would force Qantas to take the bulk of Ansett's assets, giving it 90 per cent of the domestic aviation market, and that the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission would approve the deal.

This would almost certainly entail predatory pricing curbs and price caps to prevent fares soaring to predicted levels of up to 30 per cent above those ruling before the discount price wars begun last year by Virgin and Impulse, now owned by Qantas.

It is also considered likely that Qantas would need to give some form of guarantee to continue flying a significant part of Ansett's rural network.

Mr Howard desperately needs to find a solution.

He is under huge pressure to avert the loss of up to 30,000 jobs at direct and indirect risk and avoid further inflaming rural communities already furious at Government policies.

Some time in November Mr Howard will go to the polls to try to retain power. His major campaign theme of good economic management would be hammered by a total Ansett collapse - especially given the spectacular failure of the HIH insurance group and Australia's growing sense of economic nationalism.

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