Campaign group the Friends of Gloucestershire Libraries has reacted with fury to Gloucestershire council’s decision today (17 February) to pass a budget with cuts of £34m.
The cuts involve a “complete redesign” of the library service which will see the axing of all mobile services, and 10 libraries set to be funded by the community or else close.
In a statement, the group said the council had “condemned our public library service to heavy handed, disproportionate and permanently damaging cuts, the impact of which will resonate on our communities for decades to come, long after the council members responsible have left office”. They added: “They have not just ignored, but treated with contempt, the will of the 15,000 plus members of the electorate who have called for their representatives to pause and thoroughly examine the consequences of continuing down this path of destruction. In so doing they have risked the crippling expense associated with the legal challenges that are likely to follow.”
A council spokesperson said the axed mobile library services would be replaced by "a virtual library and a personal delivery service instead."
Meanwhile in Oxfordshire, which has seen a vigorous campaign led by author Philip Pullman over proposed library closures, the council confirmed it will press ahead with its planned £119m of savings. But it has said libraries will be subject to a new review, beginning this month, with no final decisions made until the summer.