Sir – I write in protest at the decimation of the public library service across Oxfordshire as a result of local government spending cuts.

The public library service is a world-class network. It is as relevant today as it was at its inception, providing education in the widest possible sense to everyone.

Information is power and it provides free access to information in print, together with the electronic technologies.

The public library service has long been proven to improve literary standards and provide social cohesion in a multi-ethnic society. It would be a great tragedy if this quiet and unsung jewel which is the public library service today was destroyed during the, hopefully, short ‘Age of Austerity’.

Fiona Ann Sutherland, Shillingford