Port not for sale, says Dover MP
Privatisation bid will fail
Dover’s Labour MP, Gwyn Prosser, is confident that Dover Harbour Board’s (DHB) application to have the port privatised will fail.
Prosser, who himself is opposed to the sale, said: “There’s a big difference between applying for a change of status and having such an application granted.”
He explained that prior to DHB’s application, the government had issued guidelines, which he claimed made it harder for trust ports to privatise.
The MP added: “The effect of the new criteria makes it virtually impossible for any port to get anywhere near privatising itself in the current year, or of completing a change of status in the following year – even if the government of the day was minded to grant permission.
He added: “That hardly sounds as if this Labour government is ‘hell-bent’ on privatisation and I’m confident that no privatisation will take place under our jurisdiction.”
Prosser’s remarks followed prospective Conservative MP Charlie Elphicke’s claim that prime minister Gordon Brown wanted to sell Dover as fast as he could.
Prosser, who himself is opposed to the sale, said: “There’s a big difference between applying for a change of status and having such an application granted.”
He explained that prior to DHB’s application, the government had issued guidelines, which he claimed made it harder for trust ports to privatise.
The MP added: “The effect of the new criteria makes it virtually impossible for any port to get anywhere near privatising itself in the current year, or of completing a change of status in the following year – even if the government of the day was minded to grant permission.
He added: “That hardly sounds as if this Labour government is ‘hell-bent’ on privatisation and I’m confident that no privatisation will take place under our jurisdiction.”
Prosser’s remarks followed prospective Conservative MP Charlie Elphicke’s claim that prime minister Gordon Brown wanted to sell Dover as fast as he could.
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