Mayor's U-turn to save Bristol libraries

The Mayor of Bristol originally planned to closed 17 libraries in the city Credit: ITV West Country

Marvin Rees has made a big u-turn on his plans to close libraries in Bristol.

In 2017, Bristol City Council announced they needed to shut 17 of 27 libraries in order to help combat their £108 million debt.

But today the Mayor has announced they've been able to keep all libraries open thanks to effective financial management.

The Labour Mayor still hopes to encourage communities to help change the way Bristol's libraries are run, and is calling on local groups to step forward to give their ideas on how to make facilities more economical.

Today's announcement doesn't firm up the future of the city's libraries as Rees has committed to maintaining the funding until the next mayoral vote in 2020.