Sir – We are reminded (Oxford bid to become capital of book world, September 16) that we are ‘awash with literary associations’ and ‘home to world-class writers and publishers’.

Tony Stratton, chairman of Oxford Inspires, is co-ordinating the bid on behalf of Oxford University, the Oxford University Press, the Bodleian Library, etc.

He claims that ‘there are probably more major authors of fiction and non-fiction based in and around Oxford than in any comparable city in the world’.

A case can be made for the city to be a worthy candidate for World Book Capital.

But before we become too excited, we need to be aware of severe threats to the cultural life of the city and surrounding districts.

The Oxfordshire Record Office (ORO) and Oxfordshire Studies (OxS) are both in line for dramatic cuts which will impact heavily on writers and researchers.

County libraries are threatened with closure or drastic reductions in. In Milton-under-Wychwood we have an excellent library which is at the very heart of the life of this and other neighbouring villages. During the last financial year it had over 14,000 visits and issued 44,500 books, and audio CDs etc.

The Friends of the Library in 1998 helped to raise substantial sums to expand the library and continue to give active support. The library provides an exceptional range of activities for young and old, book readers, computer users, two flourishing book clubs, a children’s book club, and other seekers of information and knowledge.

For it to face closure or severe restriction of its facilities would deprive us of a vital component of village life.

If Oxford is to have any chance of being an appropriate candidate for UNESCO World Book Capital in 2014, the Record Office and libraries must be preserved as vital components of our cultural life.

Alan Penn Milton-under-Wychwood