Veitch takes leave from Radio Sport and TVNZ

Sports presenter Tony Veitch, at the centre of domestic abuse allegations levelled at him by a newspaper yesterday, has taken leave from both his broadcasting positions.

The Dominion Post yesterday alleged Veitch assaulted his former partner, Kristin Dunne-Powell, in 2006, hospitalising her, and then paid her $100,000 to keep quiet.

The story said Ms Dunne-Powell was confined to a wheelchair, suffered a nervous breakdown and lost her job at Vodafone after the incident.

She had not made a complaint to the police.

Veitch hosts the Radio Sport morning show and is the TV One News sports presenter. Yesterday, he fronted up to both jobs, and his boss at Radio Sport, run by the Radio Network, said nothing had changed.

However, today, Radio Network's general manager talk programmes, Bill Francis, said the announcer would be on leave for the rest of the week, while he took legal advice over the media reports.

TVNZ head of news and current affairs Anthony Flannery also said Veitch had agreed to step down while the state broadcaster conducted a review into the allegations.

Mr Flannery said there were complex issues, particularly the privacy of others, to consider and declined to comment further.

Previous broadcasters have lost their jobs over allegations of abusive behaviour. In 2006, television presenter Clint Brown stepped down from his role at TV3, where he had been since 1989, after allegations he had been drunk and abusive during a night out in Taupo.

Police investigating the incident subsequently decided not to prosecute Brown.

Meanwhile, a group has been formed on social networking site Facebook , calling for people to boycott media appearances by Veitch. Twenty four people had joined the group by this afternoon.