Marvin Rees is rolling back a programme of punishing cuts which would have seen 17 of the city’s 27 libraries close.
The Bristol Mayor has now performed a complete u-turn and announced he is scrapping plans to save £1.4million from the library’s budget.
However the long term future of the city’s library service is by no means certain as Mr Rees has only committed to maintaining current levels of funding up to the next mayoral election in 2020.
And speaking at the endangered Wick Road library on Tuesday, June 19, the 46-year-old warned the service is not fit for purpose as it stands.
“Thanks to my all-Labour administration’s responsibility with council taxpayers’ money, we have found a way to safeguard funds and use reserves to cover the £1.4 million annual shortfall caused by the former Mayor’s overspend and continuing cuts from the Conservative government in Westminster,” he said.
“Next week a cabinet report will be published setting out plans for how my administration can invest to keep every single library in Bristol open.
“We are looking forward to continuing to work with local community groups and councillors to transform and modernise our library service into the future, building on the work of local Labour councillors Estella Tincknell and Jo Sergeant – both former branch librarians.”
The Labour Mayor hopes to rally community support to change the shape of Bristol’s existing library provision, and is calling on local groups to step forward to give their ideas on how to make facilities more economical.
Today’s announcement marks the latest in a long line of twists and turns over the future of the city’s library provision.
Mr Rees declared he was slashing £1.4million from the libraries budget last year in an attempt to claw back the council’s £108million deficit by 2023.
A public consultation revealed the council planned to have one large and two smaller satellite libraries in the south, east and north west areas of Bristol, alongside keeping Central Library off College Green open.
Residents were asked to choose between three lists of libraries they wanted to keep and three they wouldn’t mind seeing close. The consultation was met with fierce opposition from campaign groups who accused the council of pitting communities against each other.
In November three public petitions with more than 12,000 signatures between them were presented to the council, and many library users gave impassioned speeches about the vital role the facilities play in their local communities.
In the same month Mr Rees offered the service a stay of execution and revealed the council had been awarded a central government grant to explore the possibility of launching trusts to manage individual libraries and moving services in to shared community buildings such as health centres and police stations.
Labour MP for Bristol East, Kerry McCarthy said: “I am so pleased with this announcement, having worked hard with councillors and the local community to help find a way forward for Wick Road Library.
“The council has been under immense pressure due to Government cuts, but Marvin and [Deputy Mayor] Asher Craig have been constructive and open throughout this process – always prepared to talk to me, and to listen to local people.
“I know that my constituents will be very happy that competent Labour leadership of the council looks set to ensure we have the money to keep all of Bristol’s libraries and all of Bristol’s children’s centres open.”
While today’s news will surely bring some comfort to campaigners, but it is still unclear how libraries will look for future generations.
Article originally appeared on Bristol Post
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