It's up to the government

With shareholders in Auckland International Airport happy to have the Canadian Pension Plan in control, the deal is now in the hands of the government. But it's hard to see it succeeding at that stage. The criteria in the Overseas Investment Regulations 2005 include:

• Whether the investment is beneficial to New Zealand (no; it's speculation, not productive investment, and brings nothing to the table other than a threat of asset stripping);
• Whether refusal will adversely harm our international reputation or breach international obligations (no; most countries protect strategic assets such as airports, and our reputation can only be enhanced by refusing to play host to a dodgy tax scam);
• whether the investment will "assist New Zealand to maintain New Zealand control" (well, duh).

In addition, there's the basic test laid out in the Act itself of whether the investment will create or retain jobs, introduce new technology, increase exports or competition, or increase development investment. The answer to all of these questions is again "no" (again, its pure speculative investment, people buying an asset with the hope of screwing monopoly rents from it. This is simply not the sort of "investment" we need, and it provides nothing beneficial to New Zealand).

Given the legal criteria, it's hard to see how the CPP's application can succeed. But I'm sure the worshippers of the free market will kick and scream when they are inevitably told to piss off.