I rise today to recognize Library Week, April 29 to May 5, and the important role of community libraries in our province.

The Newfoundland and Labrador Library Association chose as their theme, Let Libraries Carry You Away � a very appropriate theme which speaks to the world of possibilities reading opens up to us. Reading can transport us back in time, to a far away place or into the future. We read to enhance our education, for work-related research, or simply for the pleasure of it.

As we recognize Library Week and the joys of reading, we must also recognize the importance of being able to read. The Department of Education has identified the teaching of reading and writing, particularly in the early grades, as a priority and has undertaken a comprehensive strategy to focus on literacy in the primary classroom and provide our youngest students with a solid foundation in literacy skills.

In addition, the Department of Education has invested an additional $2 million, over the past two years, to allow the Provincial Information and Library Resources Board to increase the inventory of books and resources in our 96 provincial public libraries.

It is recognized that the availability of reading materials is a significant factor in improving public literacy and that there is a direct correlation between a population�s literacy levels and its economic prosperity.

This Library Week, I commend the staff, volunteers and all those who help operate our public libraries for the valuable work they do and I encourage all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to drop by their local library, pick out a book and allow themselves to be carried away by the joy of reading.

2001 05 02                                            2:10p.m.