Isle of Wight libraries campaigner Keith Fagan, who quit the Council’s Ethics and Standards Committee in disgust following David Pugh’s appearance in front of MPs, has shared with On The Wight his detailed rebuttal of the Council leader’s evidence to the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee.
So dismayed was Mr Fagan by factual claims made by Cllr Pugh in February that he felt that his continued presence on the committee was in danger of legitimising what was said. When he went public with his criticisms, he was accused of political bias – a claim he vehemently denies.
Full text available
The full text of Mr Fagan’s Emergency Submission is embedded at the end of this article.
On The Wight contacted David Pugh, showing him a copy of the Mr Fagan’s submission and he said, “I stand by the evidence I presented to the Select Committee and strongly refute Mr Fagan’s claim that it was flawed.” The rest of Cllr Pugh’s response is below.
The document has not been published until now because Mr Fagan believed that MPs should have the opportunity to consider it first.
The Select Committee published its interim report this month, having previously noted that Cllr Pugh’s oral evidence was disputed by Island campaigners.
A final report is not due until 2014, but the committee was keen to stress that community (volunteer-run) libraries require adequate local authority support if they are not to “wither on the vine and therefore be viewed as closures by stealth.”
Fagan: Select Committee misled
This is one of the specific areas where Mr Fagan feels the Select Committee was misled by Cllr Pugh’s evidence which suggested that there was no change in service levels inherent in the move from council-staffed to volunteer libraries. He gives as an example the rotation of stock between libraries – pointing out that, at Bembridge at least, this moved from monthly to quarterly under the new system.
Also a source of anger for Mr Fagan was Cllr Pugh’s claim that those whose jobs were lost were not “qualified librarians”, and their work could be adequately covered by volunteers. Two examples of librarians who were indeed well-qualified, and who lost their jobs, are given in his rebuttal.
Crosses the line between truth and fiction claim
Mr Fagan, a former chairman of Bembridge Library Users’ Group (BLUG), also feels that Cllr Pugh’s glowing account of the consultation process which preceded the move to volunteer libraries crosses the line between truth and fiction. He points out, correctly, that the Council announced the schedule of library reorganisation within 24 hours of the consultation period ending in February 2011; and that a 9,000-signature petition was ignored.
Consultation forms kept out of sight
Former library staff, he says, have since come forward to tell how they were instructed to keep the consultation forms out of sight and only produce them if asked, and not to help in filling them in.
This is a picture corroborated by a reliable On The Wight source who overheard a library manager telling a staff member in a soon-to-be community library – while the consultation exercise was still in progress: “We’ve got enough of those (completed forms) now.”
Many letters urged for inquiry
The Select Committee’s role is not to pursue individual library closures. The power to direct a local inquiry into what has happened on the Island, as requested by campaigners, rests with the Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries, Ed Vaizey.
As reported by On The Wight, Mr Vaizey’s department, having received “many letters” urging such an inquiry, extended the deadline for representations until October 31 – although the Minister had previously said he was “not minded” to order an inquiry.
Simply a matter of setting the record straight
For Keith Fagan, however, publication of his submission to the Select Committee is simply a matter of setting the record straight in the face of what he feels is a performance by the Isle of Wight Council leader which falls well short of what Islanders, especially those who care about our libraries, have a right to expect.
Cllr Pugh’s response
In response to seeing Mr Fagan’s Emergency Submission, Cllr Pugh said
“I note that Mr Fagan has claimed that the IW Council is not fulfilling its statutory duty. This view is not shared by the local authority or the Secretary of State, who has reached the view that the IW Council continues to offer a comprehensive and efficient library service. We are quietly confident that this ‘minded to’ view will be confirmed by the Secretary of State in the near future.”
“I appreciate that Mr Fagan feels particularly strongly about the changes which were made to Island libraries, but the service is now settled and the community facilities are an integral part of the Island’s library provision. The contribution of the volunteers to this service is hugely valued and I have drawn this to the attention of the Secretary of State. Please find attached my submission to the Government.”
Keith Fagan’s Emergency Submission document
