Wellington Libraries Should Not Be Turned into Spacie Parlours
22 MAY 2017
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The Taxpayers’ Union is questioning the value of the most recent addition to Wellington City Council libraries: video game consoles. The
Council’s Libraries team revealed that video consoles had been installed at six libraries across Wellington, at an
initial capital cost of approximately $6,600.
Taxpayers’ Union Researcher, Matthew Rhodes, says, “Instead of supporting kids to read, do homework, and utilise the young adult’s
section, Wellington libraries are spending ratepayers money to create modern-day ‘spacie parlours’ for youth to hang
out. That’s not the public service we pay our rates for.”
“This is another example of Wellington libraries failing to get its priorities right. Last year, the Council spent over
$21,000 on acquiring a vinyl collection, a medium which is inherently fragile, and clearly not sustainable for lending.
It is now subsiding another hobby.”
“With rate hikes in Wellington increasing many times the level of inflation, it’s time the Council questioned whether
there really is any value in these sorts of side-ventures. It should be sticking to core services.”
ENDS