THE recently introduced fee to reserve books at Essex County Council’s 74 libraries is set to be scrapped by the authority’s new administration.

The changes, implemented in April, introduced a £1.15 fee for reserving books for most customers.

However, the council’s new administration has announced it intends to reverse the decision, originally made as part of the previous council’s budget.

Councillor Peter Harris, Leader of Essex County Council’s Reform UK Group and Leader Elect, said: “We want a library service which everyone in Essex can use without having to fork out for the privilege of doing so, particularly as 2026 is the National Year of Reading.

“Our view is that this was a tax on reading and learning. I am very pleased as one of our first actions, we are committing to the removal of such an unfair imposition on library users by the previous administration.”