Lib Dem Opposition Leader Chris White has renewed his party’s opposition to the cuts in library hours agreed by the Conservative controlled County Council Cabinet today.

Chris said: ‘We have made it clear, repeatedly, to the administration that there are other ways of delivering savings in the current Library structure: modernisation, much greater use of new technology and deeper cuts in the numbers of administrators and managers.

‘We will also continue to press for greater sharing of services with parish and town councils, especially in rural areas, and at new forms of funding like sponsorship. These are simple ideas which the council should have been exploring.

‘Hertfordshire has not attempted to learn from the example of other authorities and we cannot be certain that more significant cuts are not on their way – they still plan to reduce council staff by another 350 by 2015. It would be astonishing if this did not have an impact on front-line library services.’