We have received a response from the Ministerial Support Team at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. The letter reads as follows: Ministerial Support Team 4th Floor 100 Parliament Street London SW1A 2BQ T: 020 7211 6000 E: enquiries@culture.gov.uk www.gov.uk/dcms 7 November 2016 Dear Mr Martin, Thank you for your email of 10 October to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, the Rt Hon Karen Bradley MP, about the library changes agreed by Lancashire County Council and their impact upon Whalley library. I am replying as a member of the Ministerial Support Team at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). You will be interested to know that the Department has received a number of representations concerning the revisions to Lancashire County Council’s library service provision. After consideration of the various issues raised, as you are aware, those representations are being treated as a formal complaint in accordance with Section 10 (1) (a) of the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964 (“the Act”). The representations raised in your e-mail and petition have also been noted and, along with all appropriate information, will be carefully considered. We appreciate the time you have taken to write. As part of the process for consideration of the complaint, the Department has written to the local authority to notify them that we are treating the representations as a formal complaint. Officials will request all the relevant information regarding proposed changes to the library services. The overarching question for the Secretary of State to consider is whether the public library service provided by the local authority remains “comprehensive and efficient”. There is no set timetable for the Secretary of State to consider a complaint that a local authority may be failing to carry out its duties in accordance with the Act. The timescale will vary and is dependent upon a number of factors. This includes the complexity of issues to be addressed and the volume of detail to be analysed. All relevant detail will be carefully considered to enable the Secretary of State to decide whether a local inquiry is necessary to resolve any real doubt about the council's compliance with its statutory duty under the Act. You should be aware that it is for the council’s elected members to decide whether or not to continue with the implementation of their plans, prior to the outcome of the Secretary of State’s consideration of the complaint, and to determine whether or not to order a local inquiry. I hope this information is helpful. Department for Culture, Media & Sport Yours sincerely, Jackie Shirley Ministerial Support Team