EU-UK Summit: Visa Waiver Agreement
Debate between Lord Berkeley of Knighton and Baroness Blake of Leeds
Lord Berkeley of Knighton (CB)
Let us get back to the broader issues—and one of them is this. Culture, whether it be music, dance or drama, depends on the exchange of ideas. What we have at the moment is a profoundly philistine situation, and it is affecting individuals. I have heard from the leaders of opera houses and festivals in Europe that they are—let us put it this way—reluctant to engage British artists at the moment because of the costs.
As the Minister mentioned, we have had recent exchanges on the Floor of the House about this problem, and I was very heartened to hear Brexiteers—people from the right, including the noble Lord, Lord Frost—say that this needs finessing. So please will the Government get on with this with more urgency than the previous Government did?
Baroness Blake of Leeds (Lab)
I add my thanks to all the contributions around this. In this context it is particularly important to recognise that it is not just musicians who are being affected by the situation in Europe; it is a very broad area. I personally have been in contact with opera singers who are struggling to take up short-term pieces of work in Europe, for example. Of course, our concern remains with young people and how they go out and make their mark on a wider stage. So, absolutely, this is a priority, and we should be heartened by the fact that Minister Bryant went over to Poland in February—the first Minister to do so—to build on the relationships, as so much of this is about relationships, making face-to-face contact and making sure that the important matters before us are kept on the agenda.
National Centre for Arts and Music Education
Debate between Lord Berkeley of Knighton and Baroness Blake of Leeds
Baroness Blake of Leeds (Lab)
I thank the noble Earl for introducing this. I do not have the specific answers that he seeks. I am very happy to take this away and look at it in more detail. However, the most important thing is that all these areas are integrated across the piece, so that every aspect of work benefits from the skills that he has rightly raised to ensure that things are not put into a silo and that everyone can benefit.
Lord Berkeley of Knighton (CB)
My Lords, as my noble friend Lady Bull and the Minister have said, AI could be very important. However, as my noble friend will remember from her days as a dancer, and speaking as an instrumentalist, physical presence in the room is everything if you are learning about movement or bowing a violin. Where will this national centre be? Also, this should not cover up the real need for more music in schools for physically hearing music and thus finding that one has a vocation, where excellence can then be introduced.
Baroness Blake of Leeds (Lab)
The noble Lord raises an interesting point. The national centre will be an umbrella organisation, building on the existing hubs and working with schools. It is critical that everyone realises how important schools and the physical presence is in the room are. In my own experience, having a company such as Opera North take education into a primary school in my ward and teach every child in one of the most deprived parts of Leeds to play a stringed instrument taught me more than anything how important those aspects are. However, we must harness the opportunities and not get held back by failing to recognise that things are changing.