Councillor Chris Metcalfe’s response to the Easingwold Library protest is puzzling (The Press, 22 December).

He says that the cuts are not just about saving money but are “about adapting the libraries to meet changing demands from library users and ensuring all our taxpayers get the best value for money.” I find it hard to see how throwing away the millions invested in recent years on modernisation of North Yorkshire’s libraries can possibly represent best value for money. Investment in community-based libraries has meant North Yorkshire Library Service has been able to boast about bucking the national trend by seeing an increased demand for library services. The strategy of placing libraries at the heart of the communities they serve has been working well. The closure of libraries and the selling off of library buildings across the county will undo all that good work and waste the significant investment of recent years.

The council must think again in order to preserve the infrastructure of a community-based library service. In this way, when more money becomes available in the future, the council will not have to rebuild community provision from scratch. In the short term, if cuts must be made, consideration could be given to spreading them more fairly while keeping as many local libraries open as possible – reduced opening hours, increased use of volunteers and higher charges could be shared across libraries. Otherwise we will see small communities, like Easingwold, paying disproportionately for these cuts for years to come.

Beverley Knights, Easingwold.