Craig Hoy has teamed up with local councillors to raise public awareness of East Lothian Council’s decision to reduce library hours by a total of 46 hours across East Lothian.
Craig said: “Libraries are at the heart of our communities and Labour and the SNP think they can reduce their hours by stealth. This is unacceptable, that’s why we have launched our survey to establish what residents think about how the libraries are used.”
Craig and the Conservative councillors are in the process of collecting data from residents about how they use the library’s and whether they intend to support or object this decision from the council.
East Lothian Conservative councillors George McGuire, Lachlan Bruce, Donna Collins and Jeremy Findlay echoed Mr Hoy's concern at the tactics being used by the council to reduce library hours. The Conservative group on East Lothian Council opposed the cuts to library hours, proposing instead a plan to save the necessary £300,000 by reducing senior management roles within East Lothian Council.
Mr Hoy said smaller and village libraries were being disproportionately targeted by the reduction in hours.
Craig added: "Libraries are at the heart of villages like Longniddry and Gullane and it is important they remain open accessible for residents and visitors. They are vital part of our communities. To help us fight future cuts to public services and to library opening hours, we need your help. Please take a moment to fill out our survey."
