Students 'face books shortage'

Students are suffering book shortages as universities and former polytechnics cut their spending, the Council of Academic and Professional Publishers warned.

A survey of 82 establishments found that almost half reduced spending on books between 1989 and 1990, despite increasing student numbers. The council said there had been a 'dramatic erosion' over the previous decade with universities spending 32 per cent less and polytechnics 56 per cent less in real terms than in 1979.