This week, at its budget meeting on Tuesday 24 February, after effectively campaigning against their own proposal in the face of mounting public anger, the Liberal Democrat Administration at Devon County Council made an eleventh hour U turn and reversed the planned £650,000 in so called efficiency savings from the library service. As a result, the overall libraries budget is expected to remain at around £7 million rather than falling towards £6.5 million.
The revised budget includes £225,000 to restore the book fund to £500,000, an additional £425,000 to support library delivery through any changes following the consultation, and the creation of a £1 million reserve for libraries and rural hubs to support transformation and community led improvement.
This reversal has only happened because of the strength of public feeling. Around 22,000 people responded to the consultation, one of the largest responses Devon County Council has received in recent years. That level of engagement speaks volumes about how deeply our communities value their libraries.
However, we must also be honest. These cuts should never have been proposed in the first place.
Recent proposals from Devon County Council’s Lib Dems would have significantly reduce opening hours at several libraries, including Budleigh Salterton, Exmouth, Topsham, Pinhoe and Clyst Vale. In some cases, the reductions are so severe that valued community libraries risk being reduced to services available for only a handful of hours each week.
What made this particularly disappointing is the clear contrast with the assurances made by Liberal Democrats during the election. Their literature warned that local services, including libraries, were under threat under the Conservatives and promised that a Liberal Democrat council would protect them. Many local people quite reasonably took those commitments at face value.
Against that background, it is deeply concerning that the same administration has been willing to advance proposals that risk cutting, or at the very least hollowing out, library provision across our area. For communities who were reassured by those promises, this feels like a troubling departure from what was said and implied during the campaign.
Although the consultation has now closed and the immediate budget cut has been reversed, proposals such as the so called network model, increased reliance on volunteers and expanded unstaffed access remain under consideration. I am firmly opposed to any changes that would weaken meaningful, accessible library provision across Exmouth and Exeter East.
