Answers issued to Members on 8 May 2008

[R] signifies that the Member has declared an interest.
[W] signifies that the question was tabled in Welsh.

Questions to the Minister for Heritage

Nerys Evans (Mid and West Wales): Does the Welsh Assembly Government fund the National Library’s attendance at Conarls—the circle of national and regional library systems? (WAQ51666)

The Minister for Heritage (Rhodri Glyn Thomas): The Welsh Assembly Government does not at present fund the National Library of Wales’s attendance at Conarls—the Circle of Officers of National and Regional Library Systems. The National Library of Wales is leading on work relating to resource discovery and online services as part of the Welsh Assembly Government’s Libraries for Life: Delivering a Modern Library Service for Wales 2008-11 strategy for developing Welsh library services fit for the 21st Century. The National Library of Wales will receive a grant to undertake this work on behalf of Welsh libraries from CyMAL: Museums Archives and Libraries Wales, a division of the Welsh Assembly Government. The Library will establish a representative working group that will, amongst other issues, consider representation and membership of relevant bodies such as Conarls. In the meantime the Library has provided Conarls with a full report on activities in Wales.