§ Mr. Peter AinsworthTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on standards of service in public libraries. [117]
§ Tessa Jowell[holding answer 25 June 2001]: The Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964 makes it a duty of library authorities to
provide a comprehensive and efficient library service.We introduced standards of service for library authorities from 1 April 2001 to help them and users understand what is required under the Act. Since 1998, we have also encouraged better planning and accountability in public library services through the introduction of annual library plans and these will now act as the vehicle for monitoring and assessing library authorities' performance against the standards.