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October 11, 2008
Library profession lobbies to close down the MLA
The 'All Party Parliamentary Group' on public libraries is not in any way a body endorsed either by Parliament or by Government. These types of committees are lobby groups normally funded by companies, trades unions or special interest groups of some kind and the nomenclature 'All party group' is misleading as it implies a neutrality which is generally not true. Lyn Brown has no governmental responsibility for public libraries in any way. She does have a government job, but not connected with libraries, as far as I can see.
In fact this group who come together to talk about public libraries are paid for by CILIP, the professional body of librarians, which is a quasi trades union looking after the personal interests of its several thousand members.
Indeed Lyn Brown in her feisty speech on Thursday declared openly that she has been given a budget to mount this campaign and she intends to spend it. The campaign whch she spelled out lucidly, is to close down the MLA and her budget comes from CILIP. Nothing could be clearer. This is special interest of a very particular kind. The 'review' of which she talks, will declaim the particular trade union view of library 'professionals' -- and it will, deceptively, carry the endorsement of an 'all party parliamentary group.
Don't be fooled! Not, I am, proud to say, that readers of this blog would be.
I and others could bribe a group of MP's to say that libraries should have more books in. It's just that we already pay our taxes and we hope, in a democracy, that our MP's will say it anyhow. And we can't afford to pay lobby money.
Of course, as in all these matters, I may be completely wrong, and if so, I apologise.
Posted by Perkins at October 11, 2008 1:10 PM
Comments
No chance Lyn Brown could close down the MLA and then terminate CILIP?
Posted by: James Christie at October 13, 2008 3:09 PM