British Library chief executive quits amid strike action over pay

The British Library’s chief executive has resigned with immediate effect midway through strike action over what has been called a “derisory” pay offer.

In a statement published on 4 November, the UK’s national library announced that Rebecca Lawrence had stepped down after less than a year in post.

“The board extends its thanks to Rebecca for her contribution and wishes her every success in her future endeavours,” said the British Library, confirming that  board member Jeremy Silver, previously chief executive of innovation agency Digital Catapult, will serve as interim head.

Lawrence’s departure came in the second week of strike action by Public and Commercial Service (PCS) union members, which has led to the closure of some reading rooms and the cancellation of public events.

PCS announced that more than 300 of its members would walk out from 27 October to 9 November after 98 per cent voted in favour of industrial action over a below-inflation pay offer. The St Pancras library has been picketed by striking staff throughout the strike.

The British Library said that it had made a formal pay offer of 3 per cent for 2025-26, which was weighted to enhance benefits for lower pay bands.
“All staff would receive a minimum of a consolidated increase of 2.4 per cent or £800 – whichever is the higher,” it said.

A PCS spokesperson said: “The situation is developing quickly and we await further details on why Ms Lawrence has resigned.”

“There has been no improvement on the derisory 2.4 per cent pay offer to our members, which is way below inflation, but we urge the interim chief executive to meet us with the aim of negotiating an end to this dispute immediately,” the union added.

Lawrence, a civil servant who was chief executive of the Crown Prosecution Service from 2019 to 2023, replaced former BBC One controller Roly Keating, who stepped down from the British Library last year after 12 years in charge.

Many of the British Library’s digital services remain inaccessible after a cyber attack in October 2023. However, the library has confirmed that work is under way to restore an interim platform for its EThOS repository of about 300,000 doctoral theses in “late 2025”