The closure of 127 public libraries did not get much attention amid the turmoil of 2018, but that does not make it a small story. The loss was felt by users of the culled services and those who worked in them. According to a survey by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy, local authority spending on libraries fell by £30m to £741m over the past year.
That is a tiny fraction of public spending. The NHS budget for England last year was £124.7bn and, while libraries matter, it is hard to argue that they matter more than life-saving operations. Yet they also matter in ways that are harder to measure, and their loss tells a more profound story of national malaise. Partly it is a story of austerity, but it does not start there. The loss of facilities behind the frontline of public service is part of a protracted hollowing out of the public realm that increasingly makes itself felt in the decay of nationwide political solidarity.
Continue reading...from The Guardian http://bit.ly/2EUbdOW
No comments:
Post a Comment