EDM 1331: Libraries Week 2025

That this House celebrates Libraries Week 2025, taking place from Monday 2 June to Sunday 8 June, as a national campaign recognising the vital role libraries, professional librarians and volunteers play in strengthening communities and driving opportunity; welcomes this year’s theme entitled Libraries change lives by sustaining economic growth, which highlights the many ways in which library services across the UK support local economies by empowering jobseekers, supporting entrepreneurs and small businesses, delivering digital skills and literacy training; acknowledges the particular importance of libraries in rural communities where access to services and educational opportunities can be limited; highlights Somerset Council’s mobile library service as an important resource for isolated and rural residents, providing a trusted and accessible gateway to books, digital services, and community support; further welcomes the findings of a recent independent review which cited Somerset Libraries as a national example of excellence; and calls on the Government to ensure continued investment in and the protection of library services as essential infrastructure in tackling digital exclusion, reducing educational inequality, promoting lifelong learning and economic growth across the UK.