Once again that venerable institution - the local library - is in the news. There is a suggestion that " the user pays " principle apply - and that some time in the near future borrowers may be asked to put their hand in their pocket.
Libraries are really a product of a by-gone age. They came at a time when books were expensive and way beyond the means of the masses. Paperbacks had yet to be invented and the idea of providing free access to books seemed a great way of extending education to those with limited schooling.
In particular, libraries were a source of information for school children working on projects. Today, those children get their information from the Internet.
Originally the government was heavily involved in the funding of libraries - but that has shrunk over the years. In 1980 the government picked up the tab for 23% of operating costs, but today that figure is just 7%.
This past week black clad Librarians converged on state parliament to protest twenty-five years of funding cuts. Arts minister Frank Sartor was " not available " to meet with them and hear their grievance.
The state government has dumped libraries onto local councils and is withdrawing from the contribution of funding. Councils either have to pick up the tab - or pass on some of the costs to borrowers. This will not be popular - but in reality the imposition of a small fee to borrow an expensive book is not unreasonable.
In considering this question the public should reflect on the encroaching fee for service that is now part of the twenty-first century. Not that long ago taking rubbish to the tip was free. Today a trailer load costs over twenty dollars to dump.
Remember when buying items from a department store came with free delivery ? And when every day bread vans and milko's visited every street with their wares ?
It seems that the free library is destined to join those services of yesteryear which have succumbed to rising costs. The day of " the freebie " is over !
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