Live Music

Baroness Wilcox of Newport Excerpts

Thursday 2nd July 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Wilcox of Newport (Lab)]

My Lords, I declare my interest as chair of trustees of CDMT. I thank my noble friend Lord Brennan of Canton for his leadership of the fan-led review of live music. Its central message is simple: live music must work for audiences, artists and communities alike, and that starts with strong foundations.

In my home city of Newport, live music is not an abstract concept; it is part of our identity. You can hear it, see it and feel it. We have a proud musical heritage. That spirit lives on in grass-roots venues such as Le Pub, a community-owned venue that has nurtured local talent for decades while attracting touring artists from across the UK. It reminds us of a vital truth: the music industry is not built from the top down. Every headline act and every arena tour begins on a small stage somewhere.

The sector contributes billions to our economy and supports hundreds of thousands of jobs, but its value goes beyond economics. Every gig supports local businesses, strengthens town and city centres, and brings communities together, but these foundations are under real pressure. Grass-roots venues face rising costs, tight margins and increasing uncertainty. For Wales, this matters profoundly. We are a nation of song, culture and community; from the Eisteddfod to the streets of Newport, music helps define who we are.

Will the Government recognise the full value of live music, not only as an economic asset but as a cornerstone of community life? Will there be meaningful support for grass-roots venues so they can survive and thrive? If we want a world-leading music industry tomorrow, we must invest in the small stages of today. A nation that values its music must value where the music begins.

Places of Worship Renewal Fund

Baroness Wilcox of Newport Excerpts

Thursday 25th June 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Wilcox of Newport (Lab)]

My Lords, if we get this right, we will do far more than preserve historic buildings; we will protect the civic infrastructure that quietly sustains our communities every single day. If we get it wrong, we risk allowing that infrastructure to erode slowly. So I welcome the Government’s intention, and I thank the Minister for bringing this measure forward. However, intentions alone will not sustain these places. What matters now is delivery and that this proposal truly matches the scale of the reality on the ground.

This is not really about buildings. It is about whether we recognise, and are prepared to properly support, the role that these places now play as front-line providers of community support. In my own city of Newport, these are not abstract heritage assets. They are places where people go when the system is under pressure. They are where families turn to when times are hard. Increasingly, they are stepping in when others no longer can, and they are doing so largely through volunteers, through faith communities, and through people who give their time and energy without expectations of recognition.

My own church, St Woolos Cathedral in Newport—the seat of the Archbishop of Wales, the inspirational and welcoming most reverend Cherry Vann—is a place of history, a place that holds the memory and remains of the Chartists, who died in the struggle for democracy, but its significance does not end there. St Woolos is not simply a monument to our past. It is a working part of our present. It is a place of worship, certainly, but it is a place where people gather, where support is distributed, where community is built and sustained. In every meaningful sense, it is a civic asset. This coming Sunday, I shall be honoured to once again attend Newport’s Civic Sunday service, held to welcome the city’s new mayor, who this municipal year is my very good friend, Councillor Deb Harvey—the epitome of a community champion—together with the deputy mayor, Councillor Debbie Jenkins, who I know has an excellent grade in GCSE English as she is one of my former pupils.

When we talk about funding these buildings, we do not mean that they are passive structures to be preserved; they are active institutions. The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme has recognised that, at least in part, and has succeeded because of that recognition. It has worked because it has been straightforward, predictable and accessible. It has trusted communities to get on with the job of serving others rather than tying them up in bureaucracy.

I welcome the proposal for a places of worship renewal fund, but I say with caution to the Minister that this must not just be a rebranding exercise. It must be a real step forward. The reality is stark. The demands on these buildings are increasing, not decreasing. The question before us is simple: does this fund rise to meet that reality? Will it support not just emergency repairs but essential adaptations to make these buildings usable in the modern world—accessibility, energy efficiency and the ability to remain open as genuine community hubs? I hope it will maintain that simplicity. Most importantly, will it be funded at a level that reflects what is happening in communities like mine in Newport, where these buildings are shouldering an ever greater sense of social responsibility?

I support the direction the Government are taking. This is the moment for realism and ambition. If we are serious about strengthening communities, we must be serious about strengthening the institutions that hold them together; if we are serious about resilience, we must invest in the places that deliver it daily; and, if we are serious about fairness, we must recognise that these communities cannot continue to do more with less. I urge my noble friend the Minister to ensure that the fund does not merely continue what exists but strengthens it, to ensure that it reflects not just aspiration but the reality faced on the ground, and to ensure that places like St Woolos are not simply preserved for their past but properly supported for the indispensable role that they play today. These buildings are not just part of our heritage; they are part of our response to the challenges that we face now, and we cannot afford to let them fall in that pursuit.

EU-UK Cultural Exchange Arrangements

Baroness Wilcox of Newport Excerpts

Thursday 4th June 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Twycross (Lab)]

The UK has made a number of arrangements with non-EU countries that are possible because we have been outside the EU, as part of our work on that since Brexit, so there are opportunities for broader cultural exchange. One of the successes of this Government’s work on culture is in some of the delegations that have taken place to non-EU countries. There has been huge enthusiasm from our sectors here for that, but also from the countries to which UK delegations have travelled.

[Baroness Wilcox of Newport (Lab)]

My Lords, I declare an interest as the chair of trustees of the Council for Dance, Drama and Musical Theatre. Following on from the noble Lord’s question, can my noble friend give a slightly wider view? What are we going to do to support Ukraine from a cultural perspective, after it has had so many years of dealing with a dreadful war?

[Baroness Twycross (Lab)]

My noble friend makes a valid and topical point, because in the past week there has been some publicity around some of the destruction wrought on Ukraine’s cultural landmarks. Recently, the UK and the European Commission each committed £250,000 to support cultural heritage protection in Ukraine, aimed at protecting and restoring Ukraine’s cultural landmarks. We have also discussed collaborating on the impact of artificial intelligence in the creative industries with Ukraine, facilitating international cultural collaboration and improving working conditions for creative and cultural professionals. I met the Ukrainian Culture Minister recently and discussed with her how we could work more closely to support them in their cultural recovery.

Creative Industries: Freelance Champion

Baroness Wilcox of Newport Excerpts

Thursday 22nd January 2026 Lords Chamber

[Viscount Colville of Culross (CB)]

My Lords—

[Baroness Wilcox of Newport (Lab)]

My Lords—

[Lord Brennan of Canton (Lab)]

My Lords—

--- Later in debate ---

[Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms and Chief Whip (Lord Kennedy of Southwark) (Lab Co-op)]

We will hear from the Labour Benches next, if we can please make our minds up.

[Baroness Wilcox of Newport (Lab)]

Please could my noble friend the Minister update us on the progress of implementing the creative industries sector plan? How is DCMS addressing problems of social mobility as part of the “arts for everyone, everywhere” vision?

[Baroness Twycross (Lab)]

Delivery of our ambitious vision is on track. Key achievements include the £150 million creative places growth fund allocated to six mayoral strategic authorities; we have secured agreement to boost music creator streaming income; we have announced the price cap to ban for-profit resale of live event tickets; and we have secured investment for three Bollywood films in the UK, which are expected to create over 3,000 jobs. We also have an increase in innovation funding of £369 million from UKRI and over £4 billion for scaling creative businesses through the British Business Bank. I am delighted to say that the Culture Secretary announced today that £1.5 billion will be invested to save more than 1,000 arts venues—museums, libraries and heritage buildings—across England from closure. These are just a few of the actions that we have taken so far.

Arts and Creative Industries: Social Mobility

Baroness Wilcox of Newport Excerpts

Wednesday 3rd December 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Twycross (Lab)]

High-quality arts education cannot be for the privileged few. To provide certainty over future funding, we are increasing tuition fee caps by forecast inflation next year and the year after. Alongside this, we continue to invest in creative arts through the strategic priorities grant, which includes support for world-leading creative institutions. We will also revitalise arts education in schools through a reformed curriculum and support for teachers.

[Baroness Wilcox of Newport (Lab)]

My Lords, does my noble friend the Minister agree that the millions of pounds of investment announced by Cardiff-based company Bad Wolf at the summit in Newport will create thousands of creative industry jobs and support local business and talent development? The projects will include investment in trainee placements and work shadowing opportunities, which is a great example of social mobility in practice.

UK and EU Trade: Arts and Creative Industries

Baroness Wilcox of Newport Excerpts

Thursday 11th September 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Wilcox of Newport (Lab)]

My Lords, the Welsh Government promote creative arts and education through the creative learning through the arts programme. Its aim is to integrate arts and creativity into the core of the education system, ensuring that all learners have access to creative experiences, regardless of their background. Does my noble friend agree that this is something that the UK Government could explore for young people in England?

[Baroness Twycross (Lab)]

There are a number of ways in which the UK Government are working towards ensuring youth mobility and exchange. We are working towards association with Erasmus+ on mutually agreed financial terms with the EU. We want to ensure that any agreement reflects a fair balance between the UK financial contribution and the number of UK participants. I am aware of the work that the Government in Wales have done on this and that many young people have benefited from that programme.

S4C

Baroness Wilcox of Newport Excerpts

Thursday 8th February 2024 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Baroness Wilcox of Newport]

To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the report by Capital Law into the working environment and atmosphere at S4C, the Welsh language broadcaster, and what discussions they have had with that broadcaster in response.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay) (Con)]

My Lords, His Majesty’s Government are committed to supporting S4C, which plays a vital role in the UK’s broadcasting sector. The recent events at the channel raise serious concerns; significant work is required to rebuild trust at S4C and to bring a fresh start. The Secretary of State has therefore written to S4C encouraging its current leadership swiftly to agree a programme of work to address the issues it has faced.

[Baroness Wilcox of Newport (Lab)]

My Lords, we all want to see Sianel Pedwar Cymru succeed and to continue to make its vital contribution to Welsh culture and a vibrant creative economy, but recent events have raised serious concerns about governance, leadership and culture. Can the Minister be a bit more detailed about when the recruitment process for a new chair will begin? Can he tell noble Lords what conversations his department has had with Sianel Pedwar Cymru to ensure that the organisation stays on track while, inevitably, it has an interim chair and interim joint CEO for at least a short period?

[Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)]

The Secretary of State and the whole department are treating this issue with the utmost seriousness. The department has been in regular contact with S4C and will remain so. An interim appointment of a chairman will be announced in due course, following consultation with the board; that is consistent with the board’s standing orders. We will move swiftly to launch the process to appoint a new chairman of the channel. That will be a fair and open process run in accordance with the Governance Code on Public Appointments.

Music Education

Baroness Wilcox of Newport Excerpts

Wednesday 9th November 2022 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Wilcox of Newport (Lab)]

I am very pleased to follow the noble Lord, Lord German. When I was a young drama teacher up the road in Newport, he was a music teacher in Cardiff, very well known and very well respected by colleagues. I am also pleased to see the Minister restored to his place; we entered the House at the same time. We may be political opponents, but we are both good public servants.

I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Fleet, for her comprehensive introduction and her work on this plan to

“ensure all pupils receive a high-quality music education, strengthen the creative pipeline, and help create the musicians and audiences of the future”—

all children and young people receiving a high-quality music education, all music educators working in partnership, and all children and young people with musical interests and talents having the opportunity to progress.

Many noble Lords know that I spent more than three decades teaching the performing arts. Indeed, Wales is stereotypically the land of song, and music underpinned so much of my work in other areas of creativity. I was very proud to work alongside many inspirational music teachers in my time—people such as Lisa Fitzgerald-Lombard, a graduate of the Royal Academy of Music. I am sure that the noble Lord, Lord German, knows her father, Bob Childs, a renowned brass band conductor. Lisa and music teachers like her in Wales will now be working with our National Plan for Music Education, launched this summer by the Welsh Government.

Nerth gwlad, ei gwybodaeth—the strength of a nation is in its knowledge. All children and young people in Wales, regardless of background, will have the chance to learn to play a musical instrument that has previously been for those few whose parents and carers could afford the tuition or those who had a musical tradition in their family. The development of the National Music Service has now ended this inequality and will ensure that the musical skills of the next generation are nurtured in our schools in Wales.

However, today we are talking about the English plan, which builds on the Model Music Curriculum for years 1 to 9, published by the Government in March last year. Its four key areas are singing, listening, composing and performing. The Government described the curriculum as non-statutory guidance,

“designed to assist rather than to prescribe”

in designing music lessons—and here is the first obstacle, as noted by the noble Lord, Lord Black. In my decades of experience, whenever something is non-statutory there is a reluctance to engage with it, despite best efforts. So much is statutory in a curriculum that non-statutory gets crowded out. I respectfully suggest to the Minister that the sooner plans for music education are enshrined in law, the better.

In the early part of the debate, my noble friend Lord Stansgate also raised significant concerns in these areas, including about the exclusion of music from the core curriculum and the pressures that the English baccalaureate has brought on all creative subjects, including music.

Labour is ambitious for every single child and every precious teacher. We have a Children’s Recovery Plan, under which we intend to train up to 6,500 new teachers, including music teachers, and give them ongoing professional development. We should not settle, anywhere in the UK, for less than world-class standards of teaching.

A further barrier to this plan, as with so many of these plans, is inadequate staffing levels right across the public services. On the education workforce, noble Lords will be well aware of the crisis in teacher recruitment; many noble Lords have mentioned it. In the 2021-22 academic year, recruitment for secondary music trainees was just 72% of the DfE’s target—the largest yearly decrease of any subject. The NFER’s 2022 report predicts that, judging by current application trends, music will meet only about half of its target this year—I have 51% but others have said different figures. Without music educators there is no plan for music education, so I ask the Minister: what is the Government’s plan to stop this totally unsustainable workforce crisis?

However, in positive terms, I am particularly drawn to the statements in the plan about the importance of inclusion in a number of areas. It says that the Government

“will pilot a Music Progression Fund to support disadvantaged pupils with significant musical potential, enthusiasm and commitment.”

In my career—from Brixton to Brynmawr, to Newport to Pontypridd—I saw potential and was able to support that potential, enthusiasm and commitment.

I am going off script because I have suddenly remembered that I had a fantastic pupil called Adam. He used to call himself Billy Sausage; I do not know why but in every book, we could find that name. Adam Parsons was an incredibly gifted young man who won a place at Guildford School of Acting—3,000 applicants for 30 places. He was unable to take up the place through a lack of funding, because it was not grant funded and he lived in Pontypridd with his mum. They were unable to stump up the thousands of pounds. We tried everything: we wrote to Anthony Hopkins, Tom Jones and Shirley Bassey. We tried everything but we could not get Adam to get that place. He would be a West End star now if he had. As it is, he is making a good living—he was out in Europe, and he now does a Tom Jones tribute act—but that lack of funding meant that he was not able to fill that wonderful place he had won. However, I digress.

The report also says that

“all Music Hubs should develop … an inclusion strategy”.

I do not know enough about music hubs, but I picked up what the noble Earl, Lord Clancarty, talked about. I have reservations; the money should be in schools. The report also says that all music educators should commit to

“removing barriers, including for children in low-income families”,

and that those teaching music should

“take action to support increasing access, opportunity, participation”.

These are admirable aims, but I am concerned about the follow-through aspect. I ask again of the Minister: how will the Government ensure that these important outcomes are sustained and monitored?

These are not just my concerns; they are shared by music professionals such as the Incorporated Society of Musicians, the professional body for musicians in the UK, which welcomes the national plan, particularly the commitment that music should be a key part of the school curriculum, but also calls for more funding for music in schools and hubs, stating that existing levels are

“almost certainly not sufficient in order to implement the Plan’s broad ambitions”.

It expresses concern, as I do, about the new oversight board, stating that the predecessor, set up under the 2011 plan, “fell into abeyance”. I reiterate that close monitoring and assessment by the Government are vital if this plan is to succeed.

In conclusion, the plan’s ambitions are summarised by this statement:

“This refreshed NPME, realised through dynamic partnerships across the country, will ensure all pupils receive a high-quality music education, strengthen the creative pipeline, and help create the musicians and audiences of the future.”


For the children of England and their artistic ambitions I sincerely hope that this is the case, but it will need strong funding and even stronger political will for it to work in practice.

Sport: Transgender Inclusion

Baroness Wilcox of Newport Excerpts

Tuesday 9th November 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)]

I will leave colleagues in the Ministry of Defence to answer about their guide, but the sports councils’ guidance does not contain this wording or offer any advice on language. It aims to helps sports consider how to be inclusive without erasing anybody.

[Baroness Wilcox of Newport (Lab)]

I am sure that the Minister would agree that we should do all we can to increase participation in sport, so does he share the aspiration of the five sports councils to see increased transgender participation in sport and support their message to create novel or modified versions of some sports to increase inclusion?

Telecommunications Infrastructure (Leasehold Property) Bill

Baroness Wilcox of Newport Excerpts

Report stage & Report stage (Hansard) & Report stage (Hansard): House of Lords
Monday 29th June 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Stevenson of Balmacara [V]]

My Lords, this amendment, which I am pleased to move, is supported by the noble Lord, Lord Fox, and the noble Baroness, Lady Meacher, whom I thank. It builds on a very good debate in Committee, which was mainly framed around the existing USO of 10 megabits per second, and the problems that this causes, in terms of how people respond to it in trying to make it feel better than it is, and the reality of living in a household with a 10 megabit per second supply where other users are taking up the bandwidth, making it feel very much slower. To sum up the discussion, the feeling around the House was that the target was the problem. It was a bit unambitious, not least because the experiences gained over the last few months during the pandemic have shown that the whole country needs a step change in broadband capacity, which would of course be signalled if the Government had accepted our amendments to the Digital Economy Act, which called for a USO of 1 gigabit.

However, we are all now roughly in the same place. All sides realise that we must aim for the very high-speed, gigabit-enabled capacity. The question which follows is: how best do we achieve this? This very narrowly constructed Bill does not make amendments of the type that we would like to run on this topic very easy to get in scope, so what we have before us is a classic approach, which I think the Minister when she responds will easily see through. But I hope that the amendment has sufficient in it to attract her interest about how we might make progress together in achieving the future that we both want.

This amendment requires the Secretary of State to commission a review of the impact of this Bill on the Electronic Communications Code within six months of Royal Assent. That review would assess the code’s suitability to support universal access to gigabit-capable broadband by 2025 and to make recommendations for future amendments to other legislation, if that were required, and to this code. We want to ensure that the Government act as if the USO was 1 gigabit enabled broadband across the whole country and work back from that target date of 2025 to draw up a comprehensive plan for the legislation that would be required to achieve that.

We understand that this is a tough call, but it goes with the grain of what we should be doing as a country. We have not specified in the amendment that in future the Government should regard access to fast and affordable broadband as a utility. We believe that, but we know that will not go well with them. We have not required the Government to introduce access rights for operators similar to those in place in respect of electricity, gas and other utilities, as we argued in Committee. They may be going that way anyway, because a consultation has just been opened on this issue. We have not listed a whole host of other issues that contribute to the future connectivity of the UK— wayleaves, mast rentals, use of existing street furniture and better planning of changes to allow better cabling in roads and pathways. We have not put that in, but it is part of the solution. We expect and trust the Government to recognise what is required and to get on with it.

Everyone, including the Minister, knows that more legislation is needed. This amendment might prompt the Government to think about that ahead of time and bring it forward at the appropriate moment. I hope that the Government accept this amendment in the spirit in which it is moved, and I look forward to hearing the noble Baroness respond. I beg to move.

[Baroness Wilcox of Newport (Lab) [V]]

This amendment would serve a necessary purpose: the delivery of 1 gigabit per second broadband to every home by 2025. It is an ambition stated by the current Prime Minister, but what is the hesitation? The lack of bold leadership and ambition to get this done is of concern. Amendment 7 builds on an amendment tabled by Liberal Democrat colleagues in Committee but is significantly wider in its scope.

A review of the impact of the Act would require consideration of the suitability of other parts of the Electronic Communications Code in facilitating the Government’s aim of universal access to high-speed broadband. It is clear from some of the stories and examples raised during this Bill’s passage that for a variety of reasons there are significant obstacles to meeting the Government’s target. As such, I hope the Minister will recognise that Amendment 7 is designed to be helpful and to bring us closer to the destination that we all agree on.

The country has a mountain to climb after the serious damage sustained to the economy during and after this health pandemic. Millions of lives will be affected by the implications of unemployment and a contracting public sector. The UK, ill prepared for the onset of the virus and constantly playing catch-up during it, has to try to regain momentum in delivering a fair and balanced economy to benefit the majority of its citizens. The recovery programme that must be implemented after the pandemic will be utterly dependent on how we connect ourselves and the wider world. As it is expected that working from home will continue for some and develop and reproduce, we need good and reliable internet speeds across the country to support this. The universality of the service, so that it is available to all irrespective of location, is also an important point, raised previously by my noble friend Lord Adonis.

The mix of cybersecurity-focused big business, a critical mass of small enterprises and GCHQ-recognised academic excellence, promoted by the Welsh Government’s strategy, is presently located in my home city of Newport.

There must be an evaluation of the impact, over at least a six-month period, to aid the recovery of the economy after Covid, and residents of houses in multiple occupation should not be treated less favourably in any aspect that inhibits the rollout of this vital public service. While steps to improve rollout of new infra- structure to multiple-occupancy dwellings is welcome, I ask the Minister what plans the Government have to deal with issues in rural areas. I therefore speak in favour of the amendment.

[Lord Clement-Jones]

My Lords, the purpose of the amendment is extremely clear and should be welcomed by the Government. It is to ensure that the code is fit for the purpose of delivering the Government’s own manifesto commitment—and that personally expressed by the Prime Minister—of 1 gigabit per second-capable broadband to every home by 2025.

However, in the Minister’s letter to me about comparative rights of entry for different utilities—I thank her for it—she describes it as the Government’s ambition to deliver gigabit-capable broadband to every home and business “as soon as possible”; that is my emphasis. All of us, whether at Second Reading or in Committee, have described the importance of delivering what we must now call ultrafast broadband by any appropriate technology by 2025, particularly in the light of the demonstration through the Covid-19 lockdown of our increasing dependence for remote working, education and many other aspects of life on good broad- band connectivity, as the noble Lord, Lord Stevenson, described.

It is clear that the Electronic Communications Code needs regular review to ensure that this vital objective is met and that operators have all the rights of entry they need. It is all the more important given that, as all of us know, previous pledges and commitments have not been met—and, this year, we can hardly celebrate the arrival of a universal service obligation of a miserable 10 megabits per second.

I am glad that we have started a genuine debate around whether we can describe broadband as a utility and what the appropriate rights of entry are. The amendment is by no means prescriptive on the point, but it should definitely be a matter of consideration on review, particularly given that, unlike with electricity, gas and so on, the rights of broadband operators are only ever temporary in the code at the moment. The amendment would be an extremely valuable addition to the Bill.