Labour signs removed for breaking rules
A number of Labour Party campaign signs have been removed from a Hutt Valley street after being found to be in breach of road requirements.
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A number of Labour Party campaign signs have been removed from a Hutt Valley street after being found to be in breach of road requirements.
The signs, which emulate road stop signs in shape and colour, but contain the message "Stop asset sales vote Labour", had been erected along the median strip of a road in Petone.
Right-wing blogger David Farrar drew attention to the signs in a post on his Kiwiblog website yesterday afternoon, saying the party had broken the law by positioning what looked like a traffic sign by the road.
Mr Farrar referred to the land transport rules relating to traffic control devices.
"A person must not install on a road, or in or on a place visible from a road, a sign, device or object that is not a traffic control device; but that may be mistaken for a traffic control device."
The Hutt City Council, which is the road controlling authority for the area, said this afternoon that the signs had been taken down.
"The signs did not meet any road signage requirements and following a complaint from the public they were removed," the council said in a statement.
General secretary of the Labour Party Chris Flatt said the party had not been formally told of any rules the signs had breached.
"We were told they were taken down within an hour," Mr Flatt told NZPA.
"Any reasonable person would see that the nature of the writing and the 'vote Labour' on there indicates they're not traffic control devices."
Mr Flatt said the party would continue to use the signs and had told members to be cautious near roads.
"We're aware of these things but we think this is a little bit of a campaign by National Party bloggers and right-wing groups to take the issue away from the actual campaign."
NZPA
Thu, 21 Apr 2011
Thu, 21 Apr 2011
© All content copyright NBR. Do not reproduce in any form without permission, even if you have a paid subscription.
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Labour signs removed for breaking rules
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