Brogden part of new-look Sydney Ports board

<span class="" id="parent-fieldname-description"> Former New South Wales Opposition leader John Brogden has been appointed to the board of Sydney Ports Corporation. </span> <p>By&nbspSam Collyer<br />&nbsp<br />Brogden, who now heads the Investment &amp Financial Services Association, joins Sydney lawyer Talal Yassine on the board.<br />The pair replace Trevor Robertson and outgoing chairman Paul Binstead, who has been in the position for three years.<br />Sydney Ports director Bryan Smith is the new chairman, having been appointed to the board 12 months ago.<br />The appointment means the two top positions at the port corporation are held by former stevedoring executives.<br />Mr Smith is a former Patrick Stevedoring general manager and has held senior positions with P&ampO Ports and DP World in Asia.<br />Sydney Ports chief executive Grant Gilfillan, who started his three-year term in early 2008, previously worked for P&ampO and DP World, being the Sydney terminal manager.<br />Their combined experience will be essential in the drawn-out negotiations with Patrick and DP World on performance-based penalties for Port Botany which the corporation has struggled to introduce.<br />Sydney Ports’ much-hyped landside improvement strategy was scheduled to begin being phased in six months ago and fully-implemented this year but the port corporation has hit a negotiations roadblock, particularly with the stevedores.<br />In unveiling the scheme in mid-2009, former ports minister Joe Tripodi emphasised that the state government would adopt a two-phase approach to its implementation.<br />Both Tripodi and subsequently his successor, Paul McLeay, have stressed that the state government would move swiftly to a second phase if the first phase – allowing stevedores, carriers and other parties to accept penalty pricing and benchmarks voluntarily – was obviously failing.<br />The second phase would see the state government, through Sydney Ports, set performance benchmarks for all parties and would introduce compulsory penalties for any breaches which followed.<br />McLeay pointed to “fruitful” discussions in January but warned that time was running out.</p><p>Source: Lloyd’s List Daily Commercial News – <a target="_blank" href="http://www.lloydslistdcn.com.au">www.lloydslistdcn.com.au</a></p><p>&nbsp</p>