A COUNTER-PETITION has been launched in response to calls to rename Gladstone's Library in Hawarden due to the family's links to the slave trade.

The Leader reported on Thursday that an online petition had been set up to change the historic library's name to St Deiniol's Library - as it was known before being renamed in 2010.

The petition said that the current name is a "symbol of oppression" and ''glorifies'' 19th Century prime minister William Gladstone despite the fact his family, including his father John Gladstone, owned land in the West Indies and South America that used slave labour.

It came amid news that William Gladstone's statue, positioned in the grounds of the library, had been placed on a list of monuments anti-racism activists want taking down.

However, in the latest turn of events a counter-petition has now been launched to "keep Gladstone's Library, his statue and namesakes in Hawarden".

Other "namesakes" in Hawarden include Gladstone Playing Fields, while the Glynne Arms pub is owned by the Gladstone family.

The petition, started by Katie Marshall, states that "many people of Hawarden and surrounding areas would like to keep the Gladstone's Library, the statue and other Gladstone namesakes in tact and as they are".

Miss Marshall says the names form an "important part of history for local residents and beyond", and that while "we do not condone any form or racism or discrimination towards anyone, we believe that eradicating someone with links to aspects of our pasts that we'd rather forget is counter productive".

The petition, which already has over 500 signatures, states that William Gladstone spent most of his career fighting for the rights of others as much as could be expected at his time.

Miss Marshall says that despite his initial political stance - due to the "environment he grew up in" - he "changed", and that "by our standards" he held wrong views as a young man but "matured and developed his moral values and character" and did "much good for many people".

She says if the name Gladstone is removed then "we lose our heritage", and that she "deplores racism and discrimination in all its forms", but at the same time values "the positive aspects of our history".

She said: "We can remember Sir William and teach our children about him and also about the negative aspects of his family past which need to be remembered as well."