Kent County Council under fire following ban on trans books

KentOnline / KMTV

It comes after Reform councillor, Paul Webb said the books had been removed after a concerned member of the public had contacted him. Bartholomew Hall reports.

Transcript

00:00I've today issued instruction for them all to be removed from the children's section of any of our libraries.

00:06They do not belong in the children's section of our libraries.

00:08Our children do not need to be told they were born in the wrong bodies.

00:11This is Reform UK's Cabinet Member for Communities, Paul Webb,

00:16speaking to his followers on X to announce Kent County Council has removed

00:20all transgender-related books from the children's sections of its libraries.

00:24The move has quickly sparked opposition online,

00:27with a petition set up calling for the ban to be repealed.

00:31It's disgusting, you know, from the era that we live in now

00:36and this nasty rhetoric anti-trans stuff that's still coming and hitting the trans community,

00:46especially in Kent, you know, all I can say is I think that those people are the ones that need to be educated.

00:54The leader of the council, Lyndon Kamkaran, later joined the online discussion,

00:59writing another victory for common sense in Kent.

01:02This trans material has been removed from the children's sections of all Kent libraries.

01:07The book in question, The Autistic Trans Guide to Life.

01:11Its online description, written by the publishers, clearly states it's a book for adults.

01:16Meanwhile, a quick search on KCC's library directory shows it's part of the adult non-fiction collection.

01:24We cross-referenced the pictures posted by the council leader with these images from Hearn Bay Library's online virtual tour.

01:31It appears it may have been displayed in a pride-themed welcome section,

01:35rather than the library's colourful children's section.

01:38We have a fantastic staff of very well-trained, very well-qualified librarians across Kent

01:43and I'm sure that they ensure all books are in the right sections of the library,

01:47not least because that's the easiest way for people to find the books that they're after.

01:51Cabinet members should perhaps be spending a little bit more time in committees,

01:54which they keep cancelling, rather than faffing about with books in libraries

01:59and interfering with the day job of our hard-working librarians.

02:03In a statement, Kent County Council told us staff at the county's 99 libraries have been asked

02:09to ensure that books are always stocked in age-appropriate categories

02:13and that no adult literature makes its way into areas specifically aimed at children

02:18or where children will be selecting books such as the public welcome displays.

02:23The book has since been relocated to a section that is unlikely to be visited by children.

02:28It's unclear which books or how many have been affected by reform's request,

02:33leaving many to wonder if this chapter is really closed on Kent's library shelves.

02:38Bartholomew Hall for KMTV.

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