I am suprised the case of Air New Zealand has not featured more prominently to illustrate that the purported paradigm of government inefficiency in SOE enterprises was simply ideology and politics mixed together...
Air New Zealand, 75 per cent government-owned since its taxpayer rescue 10 years ago, has performed well and delivered better dividends than the power SOEs in recent years.
"If you talk to [CEO] Rob Fyfe or [chairman [John Palmer] they will tell you that the majority long-term ownership of the government has been a real positive," says Mr Weldon, "because it means they can focus on long-term planning and not worry about being taken over, as they would if they were a fully free-float company."
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11508152
It is a shame, Australian politicians are content to allow Qantas to be simultaneously hamstrung by the provisions of the QSA whilst somehow maintaining that the market ought control it. With nominee companies (foreign) and errant management fighting an IR war no matter what the cost am not quite sure how any 'national interest' or indeed employment would have been preserved...
Maybe PM Trumble could buy 15% of QAN?