Hon Chris Tremain
Minister of Internal Affairs
27 November 2012
New era begins for National Library
The reopening of the National Library heralds a new era in connecting New Zealanders with the documentary heritage of
their country, says Internal Affairs Minister Chris Tremain.
The National Library building on Molesworth Street was officially reopened by Prime Minister John Key early this
morning.
“The National Library has undergone an amazing transformation. It’s a state of the art space which embraces technology –
it’s an exciting and vibrant place to spend time in,” says Mr Tremain.
“The $65 million refurbishment has taken three years to complete and has involved extensive remodelling of the interior
as well as a new roof. The upgrade has also included improving storage conditions for the preservation of fragile
documents and images in the collections.
“Modernising the building means visitors can interact with visual representations of New Zealand’s history. The
knowledge and information the National Library holds is accessible to everyone and I encourage school groups to include
it in their itinerary when they come to visit the Capital.
“The collection is an impressive piece of New Zealand’s past. It’s valued at almost $1 billion and if laid out would
span 95 kilometres.
“If people can’t make it into the building they can easily access the collections through the newly re-launched library
website www.natlib.govt.nz.”
ends