§ Earl Russellasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they accept the accuracy of the Book Price Index calculated for the National Book Committee by the Library and Information Statistics Unit at Loughborough University; whether they accept that in terms of that index spending on books in the London Borough of Brent has fallen by 71 per cent. in 10 years; and whether they believe cuts of that order are compatible with the authority's statutory duty to provide well-stocked libraries.
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of National Heritage (Lord Inglewood)The Library and Information Statistics Unit provides valuable background information for everyone involved in public libraries. Decisions on how much to spend on books are made by library authorities in the light of local needs and available resources. In assessing whether or not an authority is fulfilling its statutory duty to provide a comprehensive and efficient public library service, the Government would view book expenditure alongside expenditure on other aspects of the library service, and consider the effectiveness of the service as a whole.