LONDON'S LIBRARIES COULD BE CONSIGNED TO THE HISTORY BOOKS IN LESS THAN 2 DECADES - TEATHER

12.00.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Tue 2nd Aug 2005

Charles Kennedy and Sarah Teather

Liberal Democrat MP for Brent East, Sarah Teather, today revealed new figures that show the number of books being borrowed from libraries in the capital have dropped by more than 28% since 1997, leading to fears that in less than two decades time libraries will be consigned to the history books.

The figures, taken from Parliamentary answers show that in 1997/98, there were 55.2million books borrowed from libraries in the capital. By 2003/04, this had plummeted to 39.7million - a drop of 28%. If current trends continue no books would be borrowed by the year 2022.

Liberal Democrat MP for Brent East Sarah Teather said:-

"There is a real danger that in the not too distant future, London's libraries could be consigned to the history books.

"While there are many people now buying their books from the High Street rather than going to their local library, it is deeply worrying that the decline in borrowing could lead to the closure of London's libraries.

"London's libraries serve many elderly people, young mums and poorer communities who wouldn't be able to buy books or travel easily to another. Without it, they won't just be losing access to literature, but also to a social network that has been built up over years.

"The decline in borrowed books will lead to increased pressures to force libraries in London to close their doors. Yet, closing libraries in deprived areas, which already have low educational attainment, would take away the one resource that could help children develop an interest in reading.

"Day in, day out, we hear from the Government about the importance of targeting social need, improving literacy and investing early in education. For the benefit of future generations in the capital, Ministers must provide a commitment to keeping libraries open."