Briefs: White Ribbon, toll submissions, Bush Telegraph closure

Police and representatives from the Tararua White Ribbon Action Group were out and about last week to raise awareness for White Ribbon Day.

Tararua White Ribbon Action Group was out and about around the Tararua District last month raising awareness for White Ribbon Day.

Ribbons and stories of past victims of family violence were placed on trees in Dannevirke, Woodville, Pahīatua and Eketāhuna and attracted attention from a number of people passing by.

The group, supported by police, also had sausage sizzles in Dannevirke and Pahīatua to open up conversations with locals on the day and what it means.

Toll proposal

Tararua District Mayor Tracey Collis has written to the Office of the Ombudsman over NZ Transport Agency/Waka Kotahi’s refusal to release the number of submissions made on the proposal to toll Te Ahu a Turanga: Manawatū-Tararua highway.

The community was invited to send in submissions on the proposal to toll Te Ahu a Turanga.

The mayor told councillors at the November meeting that a request to speak at a meeting of the NZTA board was declined.

She also sent an Official Information Act request on the number of submissions.

She said NZTA had asked for an extension on the request past the 20 days but on the 25th day had declined the request based on it “being complex”.

She had lodged it with the Ombudsman because Tararua District would be highly impacted if the toll were to go ahead, and one of the purposes of the council’s campaign through the process was to make sure that people were heard.

“We were very fortunate that some of our locals were little and loud.”

Collis said there were others giving up their time to work helping in the background and she was very grateful to the council chief executive and the staff who also put in additional hours and their own time to help the cause.

Bush Telegraph to close

NZME has confirmed the closure of 14 community newspapers, with the loss of 29 jobs in a big blow for regional New Zealand and in what its chief executive describes as a “sad day”.

Many of the titles date back more than 100 years and the Bush Telegraph’s origins can be traced back to 1886.

NZME states that its community network remains unprofitable despite best efforts to improve its financial position.

The Bush Telegraph’s last issue under the NZME banner will be dated Monday, December 16.

NZME, which also owns the NZ Herald, states it has also been approached by several parties interested in buying individual community mastheads and will liaise with those people in the coming days.