Some good news on the library front: people power has won the day for one library in east London.
According to the Ilford Recorder, Goodmayes library has been saved from closure as a direct result of campaigning including a petition signed by more than 4,500 people.
Sue Nolan, cabinet member for leisure on Redbridge Council is quoted as saying she had "listened to the community," and the council was now looking to work with the community and provide the service in a different way.
Another news story yesterday suggested that the government may be waking up to the scale of possible library closures. The Sunday Times quoted sources and said: "Ministers are dusting off little-known powers to allow them to control library budgets and run the book-lending services themselves."
Certainly that was not the message that the minister with responsibility for libraries was giving out last week.
To remind you, Ed Vaizey told the State of the Arts conference:
"Local government knows its local people far better than central government and while I might not agree with every decision made by a local authority, I respect their right to make that decision themselves. The last thing the arts needs is a Whitehall minister commanding changes to every decision made by a local authority that he or she doesn't agree with. I know that a lot of local councillors find that hugely counter-productive.
