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Subject: LINC comments on Government and 君ew Libraryｹ
Sent: 19/6/98 11:23 am
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Library and Information Co-operation Council (LINC)
Press Release 19 June 1998
With apologies for cross-posting
LINC comments on Government and 君ew Libraryｹ
The Library and Information Co-operation Council (LINC) has commented to Government on its Response to 君ew Library: The Peopleｹs Networkｹ. LINC warmly welcomes the Response, particularly the fact that it is a co-ordinated document covering the UK as a whole and forms an integral part of the Governmentｹs wider strategy for the Information Age.
LINC is pleased to see Government clearly articulating a place for public libraries on the political agenda and acknowledging their contribution to its major policy objectives. It welcomes both the Governmentｹs commitment to the public libraries IT network and its recognition that momentum must be maintained if the network is to become a reality.
LINC is encouraged by Governmentｹs assurance that ｳit will do all it can to create the conditions required to ensure its successｲ. The Government initiatives outlined in the Response provide an excellent start for a process which, if it is to succeed, will continue to require determined leadership, collaboration and co-ordination.
Adequate funding for all elements of the network will be essential if it is to be successfully established within the next four years and effectively sustained as an ongoing project. LINC welcomes the Governmentｹs commitment to the development of partnerships and new funding arrangements across the public and private sectors.
However, whereas libraries will be eligible for a share of the funds being made available for content creation, staff training and, to a limited extent, the development of network infrastructure, the Governmentｹs reliance on private finance for hardware and software places a large emphasis on the abilities of library authorities to attract private sector support. The task is particularly challenging at a time when many authorities are operating in a framework of budget cuts, reduced staffing (including the loss of key management, specialist and service staff) and local government reorganisation.
A continuing firm steer from Government will therefore be necessary to facilitate real progress for the network, to ensure that the Governmentｹs policy objective of enhancing public access to knowledge and information is achieved, and to see that local inequalities in the services available from the network are avoided. Encouragement should be given to local and regional, as well as to national, initiatives which could bring the added value of collaborative development.
If the demands made on libraries increase as a result of the Peopleｹs Network, additional streams of resources will be required if libraries are to respond adequately, and the need for the development of effective models of co-operation, collaboration and partnership will be even stronger.
LINC notes that, when launching the the Governmentｹs Response, Chris Smith, the Culture Secretary, said that Government would monitor local authority library plans to check that their spending on books was statutorily adequate. LINC looks forward to the Governmentｹs proposals in this respect, which might initially need some investigation and research in order to clarify, where appropriate, the existing statutory requirements and to identify optimum levels of public library book provision.
/ends
Notes to Editors
1. LINC is the leading representative organisation promoting co-operation and partnership in the UK and Republic of Ireland as a means of improving the effectiveness of the library and information sector. Its members include the British Library, the National Library of Scotland, An Chomhairle Leabharlanna (the Irish Library Council), LISC (NI), Interlending Wales, LA, SCONUL, the Society of Chief Librarians, all but one of the English Library Regions, and a range of organisations with an interest in co-operation.
2. For further *information on LINC* and its comments to Government contact:
LINC Chair John Blagden, University Librarian, Cranfield University, Cranfield, Bedfordshire MK43 0AL. Tel: 01234 754 446. Fax: 01234 752 391. E-mail: [log in to unmask]
or
LINC Honorary Secretary Paul Turner, County Librarian, Hampshire, 81 North Walls, Winchester SO23 8BY. Tel: 01962 846109. Fax: 01962 856 615. E-mail: [log in to unmask]
3. 元New Library: The Peopleｹs Networkｲ. The Governmentｹs Responseｹ. Department for Culture, Media and Sport. Cm 3887. April 1998
http://www.culture.gov.uk/new.library.htm
4. 君ew Library: The Peopleｹs Networkｹ. Library and Information Commission. 1997
http://www.lic.gov.uk/publications/newlibrary.html
5. 薫ur Information Age: The Governmentｹs Visionｹ. Department of Trade & Industry. 1998
http://www.number-10.gov.uk
6. Press release issued for LINC by Pat Wressell & Associates, Press Officer.
Tel: 0191 281 3502. Fax: 0191 212 0146. E-mail: [log in to unmask]
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