Book buying shelved

By Russell Bennett
YARRA Valley librarians are unable to stack more than 4000 new books on their shelves, just so they can keep their jobs.
The Baillieu Government has forced library service provider Eastern Regional Libraries into making an impossible choice – either lose resources or face losing staff.
And local bookworms have been the hardest hit. Healesville, Yarra Junction and other libraries across the hills will lose more than $30,000 in government funding per year over the next four years.
Libraries across the state stand to lose about $6 million.
Eastern Regional Libraries (ERL) CEO Joseph Cullen told the Mail he found out about the cutbacks from the government less than two weeks ago.
“We weren’t told until then that there’d be an outright reduction in funds,” he said.
“There was no announcement, nothing.”
The entire ERL library system faces losses of more than $320,000.
Mr Cullen said the cost cutting equated to losing 4500 new books from the system, or over 1600 man-hours.
“It will badly hurt the community,” he said.
But Mr Cullen said ERL would not choose to put its staff at risk, and ultimately it would chose to keep jobs rather than books.
“That just isn’t where we’d look (to cut costs),” he said.
At their 12 July meeting, furious Yarra Ranges councillors threw the book at the State Government for robbing their residents of vital library resources.
The councillors said they were blind sided, with no indication of the impending cutbacks. They want local coalition MPs to explain the government move.
Yarra Ranges Council combines with the Maroondah and Knox city councils to make up 81 per cent of ERL funding, but its budget for the next year has already been finalised and has no more money to contribute.
“This is just terribly poor form from the government,” said Lyster Ward councillor Samantha Dunn.
“We’ve already passed our budget and they knew this.
“This is an assault on a critical service, and it goes to the core of cost-shifting.”
Yarra Ranges Council has increased its ERL contribution by five per cent from last year.
Mr Cullen said the council had given with one hand, but the State Government will be taking away with another.
But Paul Price from the Local Government Minister’s office defended the government’s ERL contribution.
“The Coalition Government is absolutely committed to supporting local libraries and has provided more than $55 million in funding in the 2011-12 budget for library upgrades, ongoing funding and key programs such as the Premier’s Reading Challenge,” he said.