Hansard

As I worked in libraries for many years, I start by putting on record my appreciation for the good work of libraries across Scotland and for the National Library of Scotland. In a previous life, I worked at the Mitchell library, as well as Stirling, Whiteinch and Parkhead libraries.

My experience is that, from recreation and learning in the community to academic study and scholarship, libraries provide an invaluable service to the Scottish public. They are a unique place where we can access and enjoy literature and information, regardless of our background, and they are a portal to knowledge, understanding and culture. In that respect, the National Library is no different from any other library but, when we look at the size of its collection and the scale of its work, it quickly becomes clear that it is no ordinary library.

The consensus in the chamber and among those who take an interest in the subject is that the National Library of Scotland Act 1925 should be replaced. Since its inception, the National Library has evolved and modernised. Today, it is more than a library or a collection of materials—however significant those materials might be.

The library is one of the most respected institutions and one of the greatest resources in the United Kingdom. It has become a world-leading centre for the study of Scotland and the home to events and exhibitions to celebrate Scottish history, writing, language and ingenuity. It has embraced technology and modern communications to improve access to its vast and expanding digital collection.

Through the decades, the library has amassed more than 15 million items, as well as 100,000 manuscripts and 2 million maps. It receives 320,000 new items for its collections each year.

The library has built and maintained a strong international reputation. Since launching its new online registration system, it has received 10,000 registrations from 100 countries. Its visitor centre has helped to turn the library building into a tourist attraction in the centre of Edinburgh.

Given that sustained growth and the on-going changes, it stands to reason that we should take the opportunity as a Parliament to revisit the 1925 act and pass our own legislation to modernise the National Library and secure its future for decades to come. I am happy to support the bill, which clearly defines the library’s purpose and functions and which makes the library’s governance fairer and more accountable.

I am also happy to support legislation to widen access to the library. For example, I welcome the digitisation of collections and the promotion of the library’s position in Scottish cultural life—management should always try to promote access to their collection. However, I will—like other members—draw the Parliament’s attention to a number of points from the Education and Culture Committee’s report on the bill.

The National Library is one of only six legal deposit libraries across the UK and Ireland. In common with the other legal deposit libraries, it can legally request a copy of any publication for its collection. It has held that right since 1925—long before the rise of the internet and the digital revolution—when publications generally came in a printed format. Libraries are now presented with challenges in how they collate, record and store publications, which are increasingly being produced in new and different formats. They also have to consider the status and importance that they attach to online content.

I realise that it is not the Government’s intention to address all those points in one bill and that it intends to prepare the National Library for the future, when technology will surely become more advanced and more sophisticated. We need to know where such changes will leave our legal deposit libraries. I hope that the Scottish and UK Governments can resolve those points soon.

Section 8(3) requires the National Library to comply with directions and guidance that the Scottish ministers issue, provided that they do not conflict with the library’s functions and purposes, as set out in an earlier section. Some of the initial concerns about the extent of the ministers’ power of direction appear to have been resolved, but that is still a grey area. I echo some of the concerns, which were expressed in the committee’s report and in the committee’s evidence sessions.

Let me be clear: I do not suggest that the cabinet secretary would ever choose to interfere with the day-to-day work of such an institution. However, it is important to seek assurances as part of the bill process that the National Library’s curatorial independence and responsibilities as a charity will be respected.

I associate myself with the comments that my Labour colleagues have made. I hope that the cabinet secretary will consider the points that have been raised as the bill progresses through Parliament.

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