Cutting Brent's Library Service

Following yesterday's post, I have gone through the documents to look at what the suggested options for library cuts are.  Four options are listed:

• Closure of all libraries on Sundays
• Substantial cuts to opening hours at weekends, evenings and at least one weekday.  This would probably be done by keeping Wembley and Willesden going, but having only four day opening at Ealing Road, Harlesden, Kilburn and Kingsbury.
• Closure of one branch entirely.
• Late opening of all libraries.

I suspect the third option is simply included because under Cllr Butt, Brent has adopted a practice of including "options" in an officer report that no one has any intention of following.  I am not sure why this is done.  It strikes me as a rather futile activity.  In particular closing a branch when all the branches bar one had substantial investment during the Libraries Transformation process seems an odd thing to do. 

The same meeting that considers this report will consider renewing the lease for Kingsbury library.  If the Council decides to do that and then decides to close it subsequently again that would look very odd.

Even to be thinking about these cuts sits rather oddly with the considerable largesse handing to those who want to operate privatised libraries as well as with the Borough of Culture plans. 

Cuts to Brent's libraries service also raise a political problem that it is a high profile service where Brent can genuinely claim to be one of the best in the UK.  There are few areas of the Council where Brent can make that claim.  I am not sure that the present leadership of the Council have the intellectual clarity to understand that argument.