The Commerce Commission welcomes the appointment of Peter Allport as its Chairman.

Mr Allport's extensive business experience - 33 years in engineering, manufacturing and senior corporate management - is of considerable value to the Commission. He also has extensive knowledge of the Commission's operations.

Mr Allport was first appointed to the Commission in June 1992, has been its Deputy Chairman since July 1995 and has been Acting Chairman since February 1 this year. He replaces Dr Alan Bollard who resigned the Chairmanship when he was appointed Secretary of the Treasury.

Much of the early part of Mr Allport's career was spent overseas involved in engineering projects in many countries of the world, mainly in the food processing industry.

He returned to New Zealand in the mid 1970s, and in 1981 took up the position of Managing Director of the Goodman Fielder Cereal Foods Division in New Zealand.

He resigned from Goodman Fielder in 1989 to form his own company, Alpega Management Limited, which he still operates, providing business advisory services to clients mainly in New Zealand, Australia, Asia and Britain.

In addition to his consultancy and Commission activities, Mr Allport is also a director of TransAlta New Zealand Limited, Chairman of Partnership Wellington Trust Inc., Chairman of the New Zealand Institute of Crop & Food Research Limited, Reviewer of Complaints for the New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants, a Trustee of the Crown Forestry Rentals Trust and a director of a number of private companies.

Mr Allport has no involvement at all in any of the Commission's work in the energy sector or other areas where he has business involvements.

Media contact: General Manager John Feil

Phone work (04) 498 0963

Communications Officer Vincent Cholewa

Phone work (04) 498 0920

Commission media releases can be viewed on its website www.comcom.govt.nz