A business survey is reporting that some Auckland small medium enterprises would prefer the Ports of Auckland to amalgamate with Tauranga or move to Whangarei which has huge implications for the vehicle and machinery shipping trade.
More than 243,000 vehicles came through the Ports of Auckland in 2015, and more than 162,000 tonnes of machinery in the same period, as well as 12 helicopters, and 43,000 tonnes of bananas.
An amalgamation with the Port of Tauranga or moving the port to Whangarei were the two most preferred options of the 326 respondents in the MYOB Colmar Brunton Business Monitor survey carried out this August and September.
“The location of the port is hugely important to small business owners in Auckland,” says MYOB Head of Small Medium Enterprise (SME) Ingrid Cronin-Knight.
“It’s a vital piece of economic infrastructure. It’s important that the next mayor settles on a long-term plan for its location that gives business owners confidence in the future.”
When offered a choice of locations for the port, 54% of SME business owners would choose another location, 31% selected the current location, while and 16% did not know.
Of the alternate locations, 16% suggested amalgamating with the Port of Tauranga, 15% said it should move to North Port (Whangarei), 15% chose the Manukau Harbour, 7% chose the Firth of Thames and 1% said other.
When asked if they were satisfied with Auckland Council’s support for businesses, 29% of Auckland owners were dissatisfied with Auckland Council’s performance, only 15% were satisfied, while just under half were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied (49%).
“SMEs are looking to Auckland Council to help set the economic conditions to help them succeed. However, twice as many operators are dissatisfied with its performance. We’d encourage the new mayor and councilors to get alongside local businesses more to understand what’s important to them,” says Cronin-Knight.
“Small businesses want action on reducing resource consent times, reducing business rates and making council easier to deal with.”
Owners opinions divide regarding dealing with Auckland’s transport problems.
When asked whether the focus of the new Auckland Council should be more directed more on roads or public transport, 31% of respondents said all or most should go on public transport.
However, 39% said an equal amount should go on both, while 26% said most, or all should go on roads and 3% did not know.
“Fixing Auckland’s transport is one of the top issues facing the new mayor. It’s essential to deal with congestion so businesses can move their goods and people efficiently around the city. It’s great to see a spread of support for investment in public transport. This offers employees affordable means of getting to and from work,” says Cronin-Knight.
“MYOB has worked alongside Auckland SMEs for more than 25 years. Our customers tell us they’ve grown increasingly dissatisfied with Auckland Council’s performance, but the hope is the new mayor and council will focus more sharply on helping them succeed,” she says.
The MYOB Colmar Brunton Business Monitor Survey was carried out in last August and early September. It has a sample size of 326 and a margin of error of 6.5%.
