Libraries abroad: The battle of Britain’s libraries

Cities in the UK such as Cardiff, Newcastle and Swindon already have new super-libraries, while Liverpool and Manchester's central libraries are undergoing multimillion-pound renovations. However Birmingham City council’s leader Mike Whitby thinks Birmingham's will be better than any of them. Thanks to Dutch architects, the library will be a highly transparent glass building wrapped in delicate metal filigree, housing within its 33,500 sq m a few million books. It is a key component in the city's bid to be the UK's capital of culture in 2013.

The existing Birmingham Central Library, which was built in 1973-74, will be demolished by the order of the UK Culture Minister Margaret Hodge, as the building has become dilapidated and it would cost too much money to properly renovate.

Ms Hodge considers that running a successful public library in the 21st century is tough. Technological advances and higher expectations of service mean that libraries must "move with the times to stay part of the times". Only 14 of 151 local authorities have libraries that offer ebooks. They have to change, adds Ms Hodge.

Hodge has spent the past six months in a consultation process that asks some unsettling questions. What, really, is the point of a public library in the 21st century? How should libraries respond to today's 24/7 culture and the greater availability of cheap books? Next week, she will publish the answers to these questions in her department's Library Review.