Reorganisation threat to Public Lending Right

The Public Lending Right scheme, which pays authors 6p per loan from public libraries, is threatened by a major reorganisation proposed this week.

The Department of Culture, Media and Sport issued its long-awaited policy statement The Modernisation Review of Public Libraries but it contained a surprise that had not been signalled in last year’s consultation exercise: a new 'strategic body' that would wrap up PLR in an organisation covering museums, libraries and archives.

The Guild, alongside the Society of Authors and the Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society, has written to Margaret Hodge, Minister of State for Culture, seeking assurances and a meeting to air our concerns. The letter points out that PLR has a good reputation among writers and that it is not primarily concerned with giving a voice for libraries, but with the rights of authors.

The writers’ organisations demand that PLR should remain independent and properly funded, and retain its expert staff.

You can download the letter to Margaret Hodge (pdf) or click on the screen below to read it.