19 Nov 2012

Brought to book: boosting the profile of our libraries

We asked our Twitter followers if they agreed with novelist Jeanette Winterson, who says there needs to be a radical change in the way public libraries in this country are funded.

Earlier today, Channel 4 News asked Twitter followers whether they use their local library, and if not, what would make them go.

See below for some the responses. Click to follow Channel 4 News on Twitter.

@channel4news Free: wifi, internet, PCs, ebooks & book ordering. Printers, photocopiers, latest DVDs, guest authors. Oh wait, they do!

— Seymour (@SeymourSunshine) November 19, 2012

@channel4news libraries are like slide rules – nothing to be gained by making them better: they have been replaced by calculators (internet)

— Chris D (@chrisd1974) November 19, 2012

@channel4news My local library is now a baby sitting service,a weightwatchers club. no new books books i have read or i own

— Eric Greenwood (@greenwoods4727) November 19, 2012

@channel4news I love my local library – ppl don’t realise they offer more than just books, they offer lots of services for the community

— Lucy Green (@Lucy_Ann_Green) November 19, 2012

@channel4news comfy chairs and decent coffee. Oh and books. Obviously

— Ed Fox (@Sandboy39) November 19, 2012

Speaking ahead of a talk which will mark the tenth anniversary of the Reading Agency, Jeanette Winterson, author of Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit, told Channel 4 News Culture Editor Matthew Cain there needs to be a change in the way the government pays for libraries.