THE decision to close Old Town library is a difficult one, according to a Shadow Cabinet member.

Ed Vaizey, the Conservatives’ Minister for Culture, admitted his respect for the campaign to save the library but said Swindon Council had difficult decisions to make.

He also expressed his support for the idea of turning Walcot library into a volunteer-led facility, and said it was a shame Old Town had rejected similar calls.

The MP for Wantage and Didcot refused to comment on the merits of Even Swindon and Gorse Hill libraries, also facing cuts in their budget, before he had a chance to view them.

Mr Vaizey said: “I wanted to visit Swindon because I know there has been a lot of debate over what is happening with libraries.

“I got involved because in the Wirral the Labour/Lib Dem council has closed 11 libraries overnight and I went up there to see what was under threat.

“People said to me you can’t criticise the Wirral when Swindon is losing libraries as well.

“Having been here and seen for myself I think Swindon has a much stronger case.

“Old Town library is very small and it’s barely a ten-minute walk from the new central library, which is a fantastic facility with something for everyone.

“I fully respect the campaign to keep it open. From what I can see the council has listened to those concerns but they have difficult decisions to make.

“I think Swindon Council has been very imaginative in its approach to libraries.”

Mr Vaizey said he thought the idea of volunteer-staffed libraries could be successful if used in the right way.

He said: “It’s a good approach for smaller libraries. If you take somewhere like Old Town library that is a very small facility and I’m sure volunteers could be trained to look after a library of that size.

“It wouldn’t work for a library on the scale of the Central Library, where you expect to have experienced staff to help you out.”

Coun Nick Martin, whose portfolio includes libraries, said: “We would have been happy to extend the volunteering idea to Old Town library but their vociferous campaign against that idea showed us they didn’t want that.”

At Monday’s full council meeting councillors will decide whether to pass the budget, which includes the library budget cuts.