Can Brussels Tell Us How to Run Our Libraries? ....And Should We Care?

Can Brussels tell us how to run our libraries? …. And should we care?

Joanne YeomansDirector, EBLIDA

(European Bureau of Library, Information and Documentation Associations)

www.eblida.orgeblida@eblida.org

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

The EU’s influence

% of UK legislation decided at EU level

EU influences the UK government and vice versa

Legislation – laws and regulations

Policy enforcement and guidance

Funding – direct and indirect

Education

Adult learning

Research assessment

Open Access

Information Society

Culture

Inclusion – disabled, aging population, migrants, ethnic minorities, e-inclusion

Copyright

Contracts

VAT

Plus many others…

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

What are politicians talking about that will affect libraries in the near future?

Legislation

Copyright revision for the digital era?

Piracy and “theft” of intellectual property, illegal downloads and “3-strikes”? (e.g. UK’s Digital Economy Bill)

Web privacy?

Policy

Culture: promoting access to culture - books, art, music, images, museums, etc

Google & Europeana (European Digital Library) – digitization and cross-border services

i2010 – to develop a European digital economy

Lifelong learning, skills

Inclusion: especially e-inclusion – participation in online society

Funding

Lifelong learning, support and services

Inclusion, training for e-inclusion, services for excluded members of society

Culture, digitization, innovation

Employment, training, links with business and industry, etc

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

Can Brussels tell us how to run our libraries?

They will have a big influence on what we do.

Can we influence what they tell us?

Yes we can!

All of us: individuals, libraries, Library Associations, EBLIDA

Should we influence them?

Yes we must!

Otherwise we risk others telling them what libraries want.

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

So…

How do we influence them?

A little about how the EU works…

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

So…

EU structure

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

Council of theEuropean Union

European Council

Permanent Representatives

Head of StateMinisters

PartiesCommittees

Units

DGs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

UK Government

EU

UK

EU countries, organisations, citizens

Brussels

European Commission

MEPs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

DGs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

Units

DGs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

Committees

Units

DGs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

PartiesCommittees

Units

DGs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs Permanent Representatives

PartiesCommittees

Units

DGs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

How the EU works

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

Council of the EU

European Council

Permanent Representatives

Head of StateMinisters

PartiesCommittees

Units

DGs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

UK Government

EU

UK

EU countries, organisations, citizens

Brussels

Council of the EUEuropean Parliament

European CommissionEU

European Council2 per country +2

European Parliament

European CommissionEU

Council of the EUVoting per population

European Parliament

736

European Commission

34,000EU The

EU

The EU makes decisions about policy and funding

MEPs Permanent Representatives

Ministers

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

Council of the EU

European Council

Permanent Representatives

Head of StateMinisters

PartiesCommittees

Units

DGs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

UK Government

EU

UK

EU countries, organisations, citizens

Brussels

Council of the EU

European Council

Permanent RepresentativesCivil servants

Head of StateMinisters

Depending on subject

UK Government

UKGov

Advise

The Council of the EU and the

European Parliamentare the decision-makers

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

Council of the EU

European Council

Permanent Representatives

Head of StateMinisters

PartiesCommittees

Units

DGs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

UK Government

EU

UK

EU countries, organisations, citizens

Brussels

Parties7+1

Committees22

European Parliament

736

MEPs72 UK

European Parliament

The Council of the EU and the

European ParliamentAre the decision-makers

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

Council of the EU

European Council

Permanent Representatives

Head of StateMinisters

PartiesCommittees

Units

DGs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

UK Government

EU

UK

EU countries, organisations, citizens

Brussels

Units

Directorate Generals24 departments

European Commission

27 Commissioners

EuropeanCommission

UK: Catherine Ashton,

Vice-President of the EC

The European Commission

does the work

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

Council of the EU

European Council

Permanent Representatives

Head of StateMinisters

PartiesCommittees

Units

DGs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

UK Government

EU

UK

EU countries, organisations, citizens

Brussels

All these should be influenced

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

Council of the EU

European Council

Permanent Representatives

Head of StateMinisters

PartiesCommittees

Units

DGs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

UK Government

EU

UK

EU countries, organisations, citizens

Brussels

PartiesCommitteesDGs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

European Commission

MEPs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

DGs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

DGs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

CommitteesDGs

European Parliament

European Commission

MEPs

PartiesCommitteesDGs

European Parliament

European Commission

Committees

European Parliament

MEPs

PartiesDGs

European Commission

MEPs

Units

EBLIDA tries to influence these

Council of theEuropean Union

European Council

Head of StateMinisters

UK Government

Permanent Representatives

National Library Associations try to influence these

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

What is needed to influence them?

Enthusiasm

Evidence:

Information and data.

Case studies.

What you want.

Presentation designed for the audience

Get to know the audience/target and design your information accordingly.

If you can keep track of news, offer information related to relevant events.

Relationships

Don’t think of one-off meetings, develop relationships.

Offer expert advice if appropriate.

Ask for information, don’t just give it – they are servants of UK citizens.

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

What methods can be used to influence?

General updating

Distributing information leaflets, news, data, etc.

Meetings with individuals, invitations to events.

Particular topics

Position papers and campaigns - from libraries alone or from cross-interest groups.

Meetings with individuals.

Particular responses

Written responses to EU consultations.

Representation at meetings and in expert groups.

Meetings with individuals.

All of us can engage at any level – local, national, European.

You don’t need to do everything!

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

What EBLIDA does

EBLIDA – the European Bureau of Library, Information and Documentation Associations.

Set up in 1992 with a strong copyright focus (at that time).

Members are Library Associations (LAs) and individual libraries (voluntary membership with membership fee).

Members in all 27 EU states plus 6 other (mainly European) countries.

Executive Committee of 10 European Country representatives.

Expert Groups arranged around EU subjects.

On behalf of members:

Perform lobbying for libraries at the EU – on all library-related topics.

Help share information on EU and other topics of interest among members.

Organise meetings and events to share best practice, news, etc.

1.6 employed staff.

125,000 EUR annual budget.

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

EBLIDA’s activities

Experts Groups – to develop expertise on EU topics so that libraries can react when necessary.

Write position papers and promote the work of libraries.

Write responses to EU consultations on behalf of libraries.

Collect data for the European Commission.

Meet MEPs from relevant Committees and relevant Commission staff to put forward the views of libraries.

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

What you can do

Library Association

Develop action plans for communicating outside the library world.

Feed information to the MEPs, EU office, Permanent Representatives to the EU, etc about what libraries in the UK/Scotland do and what they need.

Make contact and get regular meetings with MPs and MEPs to tell them what libraries do and why they should be supported.

Invite them to events.

Research and think about what interests your contacts (e.g.social inclusion, employment, economy, etc) and try to frame the library in terms they will care about.

Watch the EU news and try to relate your communication to what’s going on.

Individual

Contact your MEP or MP.

Volunteer to help CILIPS in this area.

Develop your own expertise in an area that interests you by reading and keeping up to date.

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

If you want to read more…UK and Scotland links with the EU

European Commission in the UK: includes contact for Scottish Office

List of Scottish MEPs

The Scottish Government’s EU Office in Brussels

UK Permanent Representation to the EU: Represents the UK’s interests in the European Council. The representatives for Information society and Copyright are listed under “Competitiveness and Markets”

UK Office of the European Parliament:: Raises awareness of what the EU is doing and helps makes links with organisations and the European Parliament

Scotland Europa: Organization that helps Scottish organizations network in the European Union

EU bodies

European Commission’s DG Information Society

European Commission’s DG Culture

European Parliament’s Committee on Culture and Education (CULT)

European Organisations

EBLIDA newsletter: news collected by the EBLIDA Director for EBLIDA members

Open Rights Group: UK organisation representing citizens’ rights in the digital age

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

Should we care?

Politics decides funding, policy and the future.

Put it another way…

Do we believe libraries should exist in the future?

7-9 June 2010 CILIPS Annual Conference 2010, Glasgow

Thank you

Joanne YeomansDirector, EBLIDA

(European Bureau of Library, Information and Documentation Associations)www.eblida.org

Joanne.yeomans@eblida.org