Borrow a book "wherever you are"

So, how long was it before someone came into your local library this morning, produced a library card from a different local authority and attempted to borrow books on it because "they said on the telly you could do it"? My first one happened at 10.21. Patiently, I explained that all I could do was accept their library card as ID and issue them with one of our own library cards. No problem, of course, but my borrower did seem a tad disappointed that we didn't have an all singing, all dancing "One card fits all" system. The idea of making libraries accessible to all is fine, upstanding and laudable but I do wish the Society of Chief Librarians would take a bit more care when putting out press releases and not create the impression that we are offering one kind of service when it's really another. Perhaps the spin doctors just got carried away. We're all politicians now ...