Future of Public Libraries

Chris Kane Excerpts

Wednesday 14th May 2025 Westminster Hall

[Chris Kane (Stirling and Strathallan) (Lab)]

I have said before in this place that libraries are the NHS for the soul. They are funded by our taxes, free at the point of use and there when we need them the most. Libraries are no longer just about borrowing books, although that is still reason enough to love them; they are community hubs, digital lifelines, maker spaces, job centres and warm welcomes all in one. They offer a helping hand, a listening ear and a gateway to opportunity. They improve, enrich and inspire us. A library can change a life, whether it is a child discovering a love of reading, an adult learning new skills or someone finding the support they need to turn their life around. Libraries are the crown jewels of our communities. As with anything precious, they deserve to be cherished, protected and given everything they need to thrive.

Yet today, too many libraries are simply trying to survive. Years of being in the crosshairs of local authority budget cuts have taken their toll. But never underestimate a community that hears that its local library is under threat. The quietest places often have the loudest defenders, and they have a formidable arsenal of defensive weapons available—including, of course, paper cuts. Let us remember that libraries are not a luxury: they are a lifeline—a non-negotiable part of community life.

I have loved libraries since I was five, although I admit that a library was also the first place I ever got fined, and the only place where I have accidentally triggered a bomb scare. I like to think that I have got better at using them responsibly since then. One of my earliest memories is being taken to Bannockburn library by my mum, who told me to pick any book I wanted. I remember being overwhelmed by the choice and thrilled by the freedom. I walked out with a book on Roman warships that sparked a lifelong love of history and libraries. I should also admit that I did not walk it back in until well after the book was due, and I got a fine for my trouble. Happily, in Stirling today it has been many years since a Labour-led council did away with library fines, because no one should face a financial penalty for enjoying a book.

When I was 15 and walking home from orchestra practice, I popped into the library and lost track of time. I left my clarinet in its black case under a table. The next day it was sitting at the police station, after being assessed as a potential security threat to the then Secretary of State for Scotland, who had spoken at the community centre that evening. Let us just say that the local sergeant gave me a very firm talking to when I went to collect it.

In Stirling and Strathallan, we are proud of our library heritage. The Leighton library in Dunblane—the oldest purpose-built library in Scotland—has offered books since 1687; the Smith Art Gallery and Museum included a public reading room when it opened in 1874; and Stirling’s first modern public library was opened in 1904, thanks to Andrew Carnegie’s generosity. That spirit lives on today, most recently when 270 donations from local residents funded the award-winning Thomas Graham library in Strathblane.

Across Stirling and Strathallan we have 18 libraries and two mobile library vans, serving almost 70,000 people across almost 2,500 square kilometres. And our libraries are busy, from Bannockburn library’s award-winning maker space to the fantastic Off the Page book festival, which is happening right now in libraries across my constituency. The University of Stirling’s libraries and archives, including the Scottish political archive, remind us that libraries are also stewards of our shared history.

Libraries are free, welcoming and open to all. They are where a child can fall in love with reading, someone can retrain for work, and a lonely person can find connection. In the rush to balance budgets, we must not lose sight of what libraries give us and what we lose if we let them slip away. Libraries are not a luxury; they are a lifeline. Books can open doors, but libraries hold the keys to those doors. Let us not lock the doors on future generations by undervaluing and under-investing in our libraries. Libraries ask for very little and give us everything in return. If we value community, we must value our libraries. Let us protect them, promote them and make sure that they are there—open, welcoming and thriving—for generations to come.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Gagan Mohindra (South West Hertfordshire) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Dowd. I congratulate the hon. Member for Mid Derbyshire (Jonathan Davies) on securing this debate. The Chamber is very well attended, and rightly so; libraries remain at the heart of our communities.

Libraries are more than just books. They offer computer and internet access, host local community groups and provide safe spaces for those who need it. Library staff, supported by volunteers, are pillars of the community. They help those who are most vulnerable, such as the elderly, children and jobseekers. Even throughout the pandemic, libraries adapted to lockdown, and began to provide online services and activities, including e-books. Those services will have supported many families throughout those difficult times, and many would have struggled without them.

I am passionate about all children having access to a quality education, and libraries help to provide that. They provide the environment for children to be curious and have imagination. I am lucky enough to have Harry Potter world in my constituency. JK Rowling’s ability to read previous authors, like the Enid Blytons of the world, would have driven the imagination that allowed her to create the vision that we all enjoy today. Statistics show that about two thirds of children aged 15 visit the library each year in London. They use them in multiple ways by borrowing books, or using computers, printing facilities or study spaces. Nowhere else can offer all those things.

I am lucky enough to have six libraries in my constituency of South West Hertfordshire: Abbots Langley, Chorleywood Community, Croxley Green, Kings Langley Community, Oxhey and Rickmansworth. I am a regular user of those libraries, hiring meetings rooms at Croxley Green to meet constituents and to discuss a library link scheme. Croxley Green is a tier 2 library, meaning it is a community-focused, small library. Its library link scheme allows residents to request specialised research from a librarian. It also ran a slipper project, encouraging elderly people to bring in their old slippers to be replaced with new ones to keep them warm in the winter.

Rickmansworth library has unfortunately been closed for a number of months due to a refurbishment following a fire. Understandably, locals are concerned because they do not have access to the library services. I know that the county council is providing some of those services off site, but I will continue to work with Hertfordshire county council, whoever the new leader is, to ensure that my community keeps the services that it has had over many years. I do not want Rickmansworth library to be one of the 2,276 libraries that have closed since 2016.

Instead of seeing libraries close, we should be seeking plans to open new ones—for example, in Leavesden in my constituency, which does not have a local library. In England and Wales, only 78% of the population are within a 30-minute walk of a public library. We should be investing to increase that percentage. The Conservative Government committed to publishing a public library strategy, which the election unfortunately prevented.

[Chris Kane]

On the location of libraries, certainly in Scotland, there is a statutory duty is to provide a library service. That means that only one library could be provided for my constituency of nearly 2,500 sq km. Does the hon. Member agree that access and proximity to the library in terms of travel time is important to any strategy?

[Mr Mohindra]

I wholeheartedly agree, especially for some of our more rural communities. There are modern ways of solving that problem, including mobile libraries, which allow communities to have access for a few hours each week to a van that drives around, and books can be pre-ordered via an online system.

Will the Minister commit the Government to publishing a public library strategy? I am sure that members of the wider community would be keen to hear the direction of travel.

I congratulate Hertfordshire library services, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary. We should support all counties to continue offering these services, so that libraries can remain the strong community hubs they have been for so long.