Guernsey Press

Did Condor make the best choice?

CONDOR CEO John Napton was refreshingly open and honest in his interview with the editor of this newspaper, where the breadth of Condor’s business, from cafes to package holidays, was discussed.

Published

He spoke at length about his desire to provide resilience for the fleet – something that Condor felt it had lost since bringing in the Liberation as one ferry to do the job of two – and was, perhaps surprisingly, refreshingly direct in discussing the political ‘hot potatoes’ of the day. He’d taken a similar approach in an interview with the Jersey Evening Post not long previously.

Why was the States so keen to buy a ferry? He didn’t know, he said. He surmised it had something to do with the island’s appetite for owning transport infrastructure – Aurigny was mentioned – and Jersey took a very different view.

What were the funding possibilities? Condor had options, he said, but it wasn’t going to sign and seal anything until agreement had been reached on the ferry purchase. That secured, he went after the money, and was keen to take an offer to work with the States, as a local company working with a key stakeholder.

So why were emergency powers invoked? Again, he said, he didn’t know, and it wasn’t a matter for him. He just wanted to secure the vessel.

The latest Condor statement seems to indicate that Mr Napton either knew, or has now been told, more than he knew when he spoke to this newspaper. Or perhaps he was playing a dead bat for the first and only time in the interview, not wanting to ruffle the secrecy that surrounds the activities of the CCA and its desire to act in the case of ‘potential emergencies’ emerging.

If the subjects of news stories don’t like them, or disagree with the content, they tend to contact you directly. We did not hear from Condor Ferries until late afternoon on the Monday of publication, with a short statement that added nothing. But we did hear a lot from States communications officers earlier in the day. It was no surprise yesterday to find out that Condor had been leaned on to make its statement.

In fairness to Policy and Resources president Peter Ferbrache, he never once yesterday, when facing scrutiny from political colleagues, criticised the Press reporting on this story, which, of course, we stand by.

Questions still remain, however.

Taxpayers still don’t know why the States was so desperate to support Condor with the purchase of a ferry.

Why the Guernsey Investment Fund withdrew from the deal remains unknown.

How does P&R feel about not having any preferential treatment from Condor, despite the shared ownership of Islander? We don’t know.

And perhaps most crucially, it remains unknown whether John Napton and Condor now wish they had chosen another route to fund the purchase of this vessel. Right now, it must feel that a trip to the bank would have meant a lot less hassle – and government interference.