Irish secondary schools will suffer with the government's spending cuts on library books.

According to best-selling author Cathy Kelly, speaking to the Irish Independent, the reduction in spending for public libraries in Ireland will result in a "gigantic education step backwards".

The government is set to reduce the amount of money spent on public library stock by 25 per cent - a decline from 13.5 million euros in 2009 to ten million euros in 2010.

This comes despite the network of 359 libraries in Ireland reporting an increase in the number of visitors to its facilities.

Kelly told the newspaper: "I understand that our country is in huge financial difficulty - but cutting the lifeline of knowledge from books when not everyone can afford to buy them is like cutting a vital artery."

Dublin City librarian Margaret Hayes reiterated Kelly's concerns, adding that "education and learning is more important now than ever".

Yesterday (August 3rd), the Department for Education revealed its Sats results, which showed that reading standards among primary school pupils had dropped by 16 per cent.

Written by Donal Walsh

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