Minister raps Council over Newsletter after Weekly’s Closure
After the closure of the local newspaper, a local authority was reprimanded for not following government guidelines regarding council publications.
After Trinity Mirror stated that its local market was becoming “increasingly crowded” since the launch Wirral View, this week’s Wirral News made its final decision.
The newsletter is free and distributed to all residents of the borough monthly, despite the fact that the Publicity Code states that council publications should be limited to quarterly.
Marcus Jones, a local government minister, has written to the Wirral Council leader in an effort to remind him about the guidelines.
After the closure of the local newspaper, a local authority was reprimanded for not following government guidelines regarding council publications.
After Trinity Mirror stated that its local market was becoming “increasingly crowded” since the launch Wirral View, this week’s Wirral News made its final decision.
The newsletter is free and distributed to all residents of the borough monthly, despite the fact that the Publicity Code states that council publications should be limited to quarterly.
Marcus Jones, a local government minister, has written to the Wirral Council leader in an effort to remind him about the guidelines.
The Code was introduced by Eric Pickles , former communities secretary, during the Coalition government. It is designed to protect against unfair competition with local newspapers.
A spokesperson for the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG), stated that councils shouldn’t undermine local democracy by publishing more than quarterly newsletters.
“The vast majority (of all) councils follow the rules, and Local Government Minister Marcus Jones wrote to the Leader of Wirral to remind him of the Publicity Code.”
The council denied Wirral View’s launch in October last year was a factor in closing the Wirral News.
Kevin MacCallum, Head of Communications, stated that he was disappointed by the closing of a beloved local title like Wirral News. However, he added, “We must be clear, however, that there is no evidence to suggest Wirral View had any economic impact on Wirral News.”
“We believe there is a place to provide free, non-profit community information and public service information in print format. It is not a competitor to local independent media and does not affect their ability to attract advertising. They offer completely different products.
He said: “We are conscious that we are departing form one provision of code – in regard to the frequency of Wirral view – but we believe our case is strong enough for this decision to be made, and we have presented that case to Government several times during positive discussions over the last year.”
Trinity Mirror stated last month that the Wirral market has become more crowded with free products. The Wirral Borough Council produces a monthly free print publication.
“We believe there is no viable, scalable, or long-term future in the Wirral market for free/giveaway printing products.”
