County tears up library closure plan

8:00am Thursday 24th March 2011

By Reg Little

COUNTY HALL is abandoning controversial plans to end funding to almost half the county’s libraries.
Oxfordshire County Council leader Keith Mitchell told The Oxford Times that the proposals had been “torn up”, with the council preparing to “rethink” its library policy.
The planned funding cuts led to months of protests over fears that many local libraries would be forced to close.
Mr Mitchell pledged that council officers would now be working with local communities on “a library-by-library basis” in an effort to avoid any closures.
In November, the council said it would stop funding to 20 of the county’s 43 libraries.

But in what will be seen as a major U-turn, Mr Mitchell said the council now wanted to begin working with local people “with the slate clean”. http://www.oxfordtimes.co.uk/news/8927997.County_tears_up_library_closure_plan/