There is an argument to be made that diverting essential resources to areas consider to be more important would be a better use of taxpayers money. However, there would be significant losses if this were to mean the closure of public libraries, as will now be explained.
Primarily, the availability of accessing free resources is of great value to many, especially to people in lower income brackets who may otherwise not be able to afford books. Closure of such facilities would further reduce the number of people who read, and this in turn would have a significant effect on the level of academic ability within a country.
In addition, libraries offer essential research tools to people studying in further education. It is common that in a library, academics can access research journals and other relevant paperwork to pursue their studies, perhaps in areas where their conclusions will be of great benefit to the community.
However, it could be argued that with hospital waiting lists becoming ever longer, that diverting resources to these areas would help. Whilst that is possibly true, libraries offer to many a place a peace and quiet, within which they can relax. Most libraries not only offer books, but also music, internet access and many group and club activities, thus to a large degree allowing them to maintain better health – or at very least, better mental health.
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