Council appears to backtrack on new library rules

Essex County Council appears to have backtracked on its new stance of not promoting events at its libraries.

Leading Reform UK councillor Chris Hossack had said the authority's 74 libraries would not be holding promotions for events in their branches throughout the year.

The announcement was made at the start of Pride Month and a petition opposing what library campaigners referred to as a "ban" has since collected more than 17,500 signatures.

A council spokesman has since clarified that "there is no ban on events at libraries for Pride".

"We have paused social media promotion of some themed days, weeks and months, which do not relate directly to county council services, while the calendar is reviewed," they added.

Pride Month book stands have remained on show in some libraries throughout June, including in Chelmsford, Coggeshall, Harlow and Writtle.

Members of Save Our Libraries Essex joined a Pride march in Chelmsford on Saturday.

A spokesman for the campaign group said the council had taken a "very different" tone, compared with what Hossack had told BBC Essex earlier this month.

"Is this a U-turn?," asked a spokesman for the campaign group.

"[The council's] social media channels should be tapping into what's going on, from the World Cup to Pride.

"This is about the continuing sustainability of Essex Library Service, and it must be free from political interference and prejudice."

The group plans to present its petition to the next full council meeting on 14 July.

Hossack, the cabinet member for residents and community services, had told BBC Essex presenter Ben Fryer that "true equality" could only be achieved in libraries by removing promotion for all topics.

"There's plenty of opportunity for campaigns and organisations that want to promote [International] Women's Day [and] Black History [Month] to do that, and what I'm saying is, we're not going to do that in our libraries," he told presenter Ben Fryer.

The council has maintained that it did not target Pride, but that it was the first big event to occur since Reform gained control.

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