§ 51. Ms. QuinTo ask the Minister for the Arts what plans he has for expansion of the public library service; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. LuceI hope to provide new opportunities to help public libraries expand by allowing them to charge for a wider range of additional and specialised services. I shall be issuing a consultative paper on how this might best be done. In addition, as I announced in a written answer on 8 December, at column95, I have set aside £250,000 a year for three years for the establishment of an incentive scheme to encourage new developments designed to extend or improve the public library service in England.