Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to Answer of 1 February 2021 to Question 143882 on Public Libraries: Finance, for what reason the funding treatment of the National Library of Wales under the Barnett Formula has changed since 2015.

As outlined in the Statement of Funding Policy, where UK government programmes provide services across the UK, the comparability factor will be 0%.

The vast majority of Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) spending in relation to “Central Libraries” goes to the British Library. “The British Library” was established through the British Library Act 1972 which effected a national library for the United Kingdom.

The legal basis for the British Library makes it distinct from other libraries policy and spending. As it is absolutely clear that the legal extent of the British Library is the United Kingdom, it is right that the comparability factor should be 0%.