Library closures may be unlawful, says Commons select committee The Isle of Wight is among the areas where libraries are threatened by cuts. A new report says closures may be unlawful. Photograph: Martin Godwin for the Guardian A "damning" report into library closures up and down the country has found that councils making plans to shut branches without taking proper account of local needs risk breaking the law. The Commons culture, media and sport select committee's enquiry into library closures, published on Tuesday, advised that "some local authorities, under considerable pressure to quickly find cost savings, have drawn up plans without taking proper account of local needs for library services and the variety of options available to provide them, and are therefore in danger of failing in their statutory duty to provide a 'comprehensive and efficient' library service." The report did not name these local authorities. In September, culture minister Ed Vaizey decided not to intervene in the high-profile closures or handing over to volunteers of library branches in Bolton, the Isle of Wight and Lewisham, finding that each council "continues to offer a comprehensive and efficient library service," as required by the 1964 libraries act. The inquiry into library closures is the first since 2005, when the service was found to be "in distress." This time, John Whittingdale MP, chair of the committee, said that while the "current crisis may appear to bode ill for the future of public libraries, it also presents an opportunity for a thorough reassessment of their role and of the way they are organised." MPs cited statistics showing that adult visits to libraries declined steeply between 2005/06 and 2010/11, from 48.2% to 39.7% of the adult population, but there had been no statistically significant decrease over the past few years, and children's visits remained at a very high level (75.6%). They were told by Annie Mauger, chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (Cilip), that it was "simplistic" to paint a picture of steady decline. "We can't deny that there is a decline but it is not of a scale at the moment that would suggest that this is a service that is utterly in decline, and there is a correlation with reduction in budget," said Mauger in her response to the inquiry, pointing to the fact that in 2011 there were 314m visits to libraries and 300m loans of books, a decline of 2.3% and 2.9% compared with the previous year. The decline is set against a cut of 6.3% in library budgets and 14% in stock acquisitions. The select committee was clear that the fight to save libraries should not be all about buildings, because "reductions in opening hours and the loss of professional staff may damage the service more than the closure of particular buildings, even though premises are clearly key to comprehensive provision." It warned against the dangers of councils failing to support volunteer-run branches, saying that without help these libraries "may well wither on the vine and therefore be viewed as closures by stealth." The MPs also recommended that the government and the Arts Council help councils understand their "comprehensive and efficient" requirement. "At the moment councils appear to be somewhat in the dark about what is expected of them and are making decisions which are being overturned by judicial review," said Whittingdale. This is an expensive, undemocratic and generally unsatisfactory way of making policy. Councils need to be given the support and advice they need to consult locally and develop a service that meets the needs of the local community and complies with their obligations. A further report, on the cumulative effects of the cuts, has been promised by the libraries minister by the end of 2014. Shadow culture minister Dan Jarvis called the report "damning," saying: "[It] exposes a government that has no sense of the scale of the problem and has shown no leadership in forging a coherent vision for the future of the library service. Section after section refers to a lack of action or guidance from the secretary of state. Both on the subject of libraries under threat or being closed, or on what a 'comprehensive and efficient' service should look like. Campaigners, meanwhile, were concerned that the report didn't go far enough. "Library users know public libraries are in crisis - not everywhere, but enough to threaten the whole concept of an accessible, expert service networked across the nation," said The Library Campaign in a statement. The committee sees the need to assess the 'cumulative effect' of all this. But it's happy to wait for the minister to tell it 'by the end of 2014'. That's too late. Irreversible damage has already been done. We dread to think how far things will have gone after two more years of vicious cuts. "The report leaves the impression that the committee is sitting on the fence while the public library service continues to drift," said Desmond Clarke, campaigner and former Faber director. The report will not stop councils closing libraries for the wrong reasons. Mauger agreed. "Change is so rapid that we may not recognise the public library service as we know it in a few years time," she said. We would like to see the suggested research and reports, especially from the secretary of state, brought forward to ensure that decisions that are happening clearly demonstrate consideration of the future needs of communities, families and learners. As the report says, short-term and ill-informed decisions could be hugely destructive to a public library service in the long term.