British Library Funding Must Not Be Threatened

Commenting on the threat of a 7% year on year cut to the funding of the British Library, Liberal Democrat Arts and Culture Spokesman Paul Holmes MP said:

"Today I have tabled an Early Day Motion calling on the Government to rethink these damaging funding cuts.

"The British Library is a world class research institution which supports the UK's businesses and universities. It is essential for the future strength of the UK economy that the British Library maintains the breadth and quality of its collection.

"This level of funding cut would threaten the ability of the British Library to collect material which would damage the UK's ability to compete at the cutting edge of international scientific research.

"Opening hours may also have to be cut and charges introduced. There is a real danger that our national libraries would no longer be accessible and affordable to all.

"Inevitably this funding cut would affect the UK's attraction to international scholars. Foreign students and academics will not come to the UK if our libraries are not meeting the highest international standard. This has serious implications for the UK's ability to compete in the global skills based economy.

"The British Library would be unable to upgrade its newspaper storage facilities to prevent the destruction of a significant part of the UK's printed history. For the 30,000 readers who currently use the newspaper collection this would be devastating.

"Tessa Jowell should be fighting for funding for such a critically important national institution not threatening to undermine 250 years of collecting."

The Early Day Motion tabled by Paul Holmes MP reads:

That this House recognises the success of the British Library as a world-class institution and leader in knowledge and innovation; applauds the almost two-fold increase in the British Library's Productivity Index from 100 in 2000 to 196 today, and its achievement of £40 million efficiency savings in the same period; deplores the Government's proposed spending cuts as indicative of its failure to recognise not only the Library's contribution to the cultural wealth of the nation, but also its economic impact, valued at a return of £4.40 for every £1 of public funding; considers that these cuts will undermine 250 years of collecting and lead to the irrecoverable loss of unique conservation skills at a time when the Library's Centre for Conservation is due for completion, undo five years of successful investment in profile-building which has led to an increase from 50 per cent. to 75 per cent. in public recognition of the Library and severely curtail the Library's digital strategy, resulting in the loss of UK digital output to future generations and creating gaps in the intellectual record of the nation; believes that a cut in funding will force a reduction in opening hours and the introduction of charges, to the detriment of the service offered; and calls on the Government to cancel the planned cuts and finally to acknowledge the Library's contribution to the economic and cultural wealth of the nation.