City councillors clashed over service’s future
Bristol Central Library
A row broke out after opposition Labour tried in vain to get Green-led Bristol City Council to commit to keeping all libraries open.
It came as the public health and communities committee set up a cross-party taskforce to redesign the service and make it fit for the future amid a long-term cash crisis.
Labour tabled an amendment to the proposed working group’s remit to say permanently shutting any of the 26 branches, plus a community-run access point in Lockleaze, should be off the table and not supported by the committee.
But the Greens, Lib Dems and Conservatives voted it down by 6-3 after hearing it would predetermine the taskforce’s recommendations when it reports back in November and deter residents from taking part in the process because it cut the options available.
Council leaders dropped plans to more than halve the funding for libraries from £4.7million to £2.3million a year ahead of the annual budget in February, so that a working group could be formed to review the service without the pressure of cuts and imminent closures.
Branches were previously threatened with the axe in 2018 and 2022 under the previous Labour administration, which backtracked on both occasions following huge public opposition.
Cllr Tom Blenkinsop (Labour, Avonmouth & Lawrence Weston) told the committee: “One of the things that would serve the most deprived areas of Bristol least is if their libraries were permanently closed.”
Tabling the amendment, Cllr Lisa Durston (Labour, Filwood) said: “We want to be really clear that we do not support the closure of any libraries.”
She said if the taskforce’s rules made clear from the outset that considering shutting branches was not an option, it would give residents who were concerned about closures clarity on its aims and scope.
But committee chairman Cllr Stephen Williams (Lib Dem, Westbury-on-Trym & Henleaze) said the working group was being set up to design a new four- or five-year library strategy for what councillors wanted the service to look like.
He said: “It’s absolutely not a decision-making forum for any closures or budget reductions.
“That will come after that group has reported back to this committee in November.
“That will be the point where officers draw up how they think the recommendations could be implemented and it will be at that point where we may or may not have some difficult decisions to make.
“This task-and-finish group is not to consider the future of the library buildings, it is simply to design what we think a modern, fit-for-purpose library service should be.”
He said that while the line in Labour’s amendment about closures of physical buildings being outside the taskforce’s remit was factually correct, another – that shutting branches was not supported by the committee – prejudged what it could recommend.
Cllr Williams said: “We are all agreed that the scope of this group is not to look at any sort of hit list, all of us agree that, but the second part of that sentence is a severe curtailment of the free thinking that the group might need to do.”
Bristol City Council director of management of place Patsy Mellor said: “This is an opportunity for a clean slate for some really good thinking from focus groups and members to drive a new service that people are proud of and can access.
“The residents will be really concerned if we said we were setting up a task-and-finish group to develop a new strategy but that the strategy is already predetermined because we’ve already said we’re keeping 26 libraries, which means they are still going to be closed more than they’re open.
“That severely restricts residents’ input who might want to do something different.
“We have communities running services within libraries, and to start this process with the predetermination that we’re not going to change anything, that we’re going to stay shut more than we’re open, I think residents will lose faith in their ability to come forward with really transformative ideas and make any sort of change.
“Residents will be really disappointed if we curtailed the scope of the task-and-finish group.”
Cllr Patrick McAllister (Green, Hotwells & Harbourside) said: “We all know something does need to happen with the library service with the present funding issues across the whole council.
“Libraries aren’t immune to those and the previous administration would salami-slice them, in effect, to keep everything open.
“It’s a zombie library service.
“They’re technically still open but a lot of them aren’t staffed, hours are limited, several are open three days a week, often only during working hours.
“People learn, sadly, that they can’t rely on their library service because it’s not open when they need it.
“That further drives down demand and use – it’s a vicious circle.”
He said the city’s universities could be asked to sponsor parts of the service because students benefited from them.
Cllr Blenkinsop said: “Sponsorship by the universities is a good point and there might be other sponsorships – I’m thinking the port for Avonmouth.
“I’m open to having discussions around this.
“What I’m not open to is taking valuable community assets away from communities that have already had far too much taken away from them.”
Referring to Labour’s amendment, Cllr Ed Fraser (Green, Eastville) said: “I think this has been done to create some kind of dividing line in the media, maybe it’s a precursor to some kind of press release or a petition.
“I don’t think we should be dignifying this with further discussion, we should be moving to the vote, and I’ll be voting against this proposal because it’s against the spirit of task-and-finish groups to try to pigeonhole their ability to discuss issues in that way.”
The committee voted along party lines to set up the group by 6-3.
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