JETSTAR boss Bruce Buchanan has called on politicians on both sides of the Tasman to increase efforts to set up a common border between Australia and New Zealand and help lower costs and boost economic growth.
Mr Buchanan believes such a move would lead to trans-Tasman fare reductions of at least 30 per cent, or $60 a passenger one-way, as well as stimulate the economies of both nations.
It would also boost jobs and decrease costs for both industry and border security agencies, he told a Trans-Tasman Business Circle lunch in Melbourne yesterday.
"At a time when both Australian and New Zealand economies are in technical or real recessions, and jobless numbers are escalating at the fastest rate in decades, surely this is the time to solve this problem," he said.