Cllr Mike Cox - Gazette Article January 2008

6.09.00pm GMT Sat 5th Jan 2008

I make no apologies for returning once again to the subject of Hillingdons Libraries. It appears I may have done the administration an injustice! In October I highlighted their decision to make redundant 13 librarians and make cuts in learning programs. It appears they may only be guilty of "following orders".

Up and down the country Libraries services are being attacked. 40 Libraries were closed in the last year and more are on the cards. How long will it be before the cuts made to date of £250,000 are not enough? How long will it be before Libraries in Hillingdon start to close?

The so called "modernises" charter for making Libraries compete with coffee shops and bookstores is undermining Libraries. The British Library service has been the bedrock of our literacy culture. British Libraries sprang from the enlightenment of the Victorian era and transformed social mobility.

Service standards in Libraries have been swept away and the indicator they are judged on now is adult visits. Presumably that is why Hillingdon is replacing Children's literacy programs with expensive latte and cakes.

Another "Great British" institution which is again under threat is the Post Office. Successive governments both Conservative and Labour have ignored the social benefits Post Offices provide particularly to the elderly.

The latest round of cuts sees the Labour government targeting 2,500 closures which in Hillingdon means 24 Post Offices could shut. Liberal Democrats are campaigning to stop these closures. You can help by signing our petition at http://www.libdems.org.uk/commerce/issues/