Cost will byte public (From Bucks Free Press)

Cost will byte public

5:56pm Tuesday 24th June 2003 in News By Margaret Smith

PEOPLE using the free computers in libraries could face charges from next month.

Lottery cash, which funded computer use since 2000, stopped this March and Margaret Dewar, county council cabinet member responsible for the computers, is proposing to charge £1 for every 30 minutes. She said: "Facts are facts and Government funding has run out."

Brenda Jennings, chairman of the lifelong learning scrutiny committee which has called Cllr Dewar to account, said the decision to charge would cause significant distress, especially to people on benefits, disabled people and older people on fixed incomes. Some people would get concessions but not these groups, she said.

The county council reckoned it would cost £150,000 this year and £200,00 next to keep the network going without making charges. There will be no extra money made available by Government, and people in Buckinghamshire, when asked if they would pay more council tax for free computers, said no.

Since then, computer users were asked how they felt and the estimate is that three quarters of them would go on using the service.

Visually impaired people will get the service free, unemployed people will get the first half hour free, children under 16 will not be charged if they use the computers designated for children, while children using other computers will get the first half hour free.

Charging should bring in £200,000 a year.

Computers in libraries form The People's Network, an organisation set up by the Government to give more people access to computers and the internet.

Buckinghamshire County Council got £827,138 New Opportunities Lottery money to start the project, but computer use had to be free.

The first one opened in Haddenham library in November 2001. Now across the county about 21,000 people log on every month.