Supporting the Creative Economy

Baroness Bray of Coln Excerpts

Thursday 13th February 2014 Westminster Hall

[Angie Bray (Ealing Central and Acton) (Con)]

The debate is important. It is clear that we need this opportunity to discuss the Government’s response to the Select Committee’s report on the shape of the creative industries in the UK. Our recommendations focus on how we can harness our extraordinary success and growth in the field, while ensuring that that welcome development is not compromised by any failure to tackle crucial issues such as copyright infringement. The UK has cemented its reputation in recent years as a leading light in the creative world, a place where talent in the creative industries is nurtured and allowed to develop and thrive, backed up by wide-ranging financial support and a sympathetic tax system. As a result, we are a destination on the film-maker’s map. We are a place to go to make films, where a director can come from abroad with the smallest of crews, because he or she can call on superb local technical talent to direct and produce, and where he or she can source some of the finest acting and musical talent. All that creative skill, know-how and nous boosts the Treasury’s coffers by nearly £40 billion a year.

I am lucky and proud to have a fantastic example of the recent renewed success of our creative economy on my doorstep in Ealing studios, the world’s best known and oldest continuously running film production studios. They showcase great British talent with, among other things, some of the “Downton Abbey” sets and the stunning Imaginarium studios, which use performance capture technology under the direction of one of our best exports, Andy Serkis. The Chancellor of the Exchequer recently paid a visit to see for himself the success story sitting at the heart of Ealing. He was keen to find out that the view of what the Treasury is doing is positive, and it is. The message that he got was that the film tax relief, the extension of which he announced in the autumn statement, is turning the UK into one of the most popular film locations.

The Select Committee had in mind the question of what more might be done when we took the fascinating evidence sessions for our report on the creative economy. We carried out work here in London and on our Committee trip to the United States. The aim throughout was to get to the bottom of how we might best protect the livelihoods of the people and businesses that make such a massive contribution to our economy, and how we might help them to grow still further.

Several of the issues that we raised in our report stand out as being particularly important for the growth of our creative industries. The most significant, as other hon. Members have said, is the need to stand up for intellectual property rights in an ever-changing and increasingly challenging environment. The modern internet dictates most people’s daily movements, and it is all about accessing as much information as possible and sharing it as easily as possible. If proper protections are not put in place for those who create, we will not get much more creation. As those protections get weaker, the chances of proper recompense diminish, which is hardly an incentive to carry on creating. A critical balance must be found and maintained between free access and property rights, but the Government’s feedback on our report is not encouraging on that point.

That difficult subject provided the basis of our discussions when we visited film studios in Los Angeles, which are also battling with issues relating to copying and piracy. Whenever technology moves on, piracy moves with it, and it is always a problem. Creators need certainty that the Government will protect the principle that the right people must be rewarded properly. The danger, as I think is apparent in the Government’s response, is that standards may slip. For instance, when we met the chief executive of Fox, he spoke about his concern over plans to legalise the copying of audio-visual material on to other formats, which is illegal at the moment but everyone does it. Organisations such as Fox are well aware of that, but they choose to do very little about it, essentially because it is too difficult. He underlined the point that any change in the law that recognises the right to copy would be a slippery slope. That law may be rarely applied, but it serves an important purpose in limiting abuse. Meanwhile, he and others are working on legal mechanisms that would allow copying on to different formats but would still allow due financial reward for the creators. Unfortunately, the Government’s response suggests that they have no intention of listening to that message.

The name that always crops up in debates such as this is Google, as we have heard today. I wonder whether there is anyone here who does not spend a great deal of their time using Google to find any amount of easy-to-access information. There is a darker side, however, which is a major concern to those who worry about intellectual property rights. In providing easy-to-access information for nothing, Google’s search engine can take users through to sites that breach copyright regulations. Google told us that, wherever possible, it takes such offending sites down. It is hampered, however, by the many millions of pages that must be trawled through. The BPI alone sends Google well in excess of 2 million notices per month relating to individual pages on sites guilty of copyright infringement. Again, Google says that in many cases the pages are contained on sites that otherwise host legal content, making it difficult to take action. My view and that of my colleagues on the Select Committee is that that is a pretty flimsy excuse. It is not beyond the wit of Google and its engineers to devise proper solutions. It can certainly afford to do so.

[Helen Goodman (Bishop Auckland) (Lab)]

The hon. Lady makes a good point. When sites are found by the courts to be providing material that has not been paid for, Google is able to take action. Does that not demonstrate that it has the technological capacity to which she is referring?

[Angie Bray]

The hon. Lady makes a reasonable point, and I tend to agree with her.

There are many ways in which to provide a balance to help everyone. The Hargreaves report recommended the establishment of a digital copyright exchange, which got expanded into a copyright hub, set up in July 2013. The key point about it is that anyone may access it online to find out anything about the complexities of copyright and about who owns what rights. The idea was also to make licensing arrangements easier with a one-stop shop.

Our Committee has made plain its firm support for the establishment of a global repertoire database, based in the UK, making us a global centre for copyright exchanges. We remain of the view, however, that participation in a copyright exchange should preferably be voluntary.

It would be childish of me not to mention some areas in which the Government are showing a remarkable and positive lead in promoting and nurturing our home-grown creative industries. As I said earlier, the Chancellor has demonstrated his commitment and delighted the film and vision-effects industries with another dollop of tax relief, meaning that big-budget productions will get the same 25% tax relief that smaller firms already enjoy for the first £20 million that they spend. He has also widened the criteria for those who can apply for the relief.

All that is a huge encouragement to film makers to make their movies in the UK, thereby investing often considerable sums here. It is clear that such relief easily more than pays for itself. Other beneficiaries of the new points system, which will adjudicate the recipients, will be those who work in special and visual effects, again where the UK excels. We look forward to the Government’s introducing video games tax relief as soon as possible as well.

By the way, an interesting suggestion was put to us by Fox as a way of illustrating the economic value to countries and local communities of providing locations for film production. The idea would be to include in the opening credits of films some brief information about the economic benefits and job opportunities as a consequence of the film being made in a given location.

The Committee has expressed concerns, as we have heard repeatedly this afternoon, about the downgrading of arts subjects in the curriculum, although the Government have responded by stating that a key measurement of a school’s performance will continue to include art, design and music. I agree with my hon. Friend the Member for Folkestone and Hythe (Damian Collins), who suggested that extending school hours would provide an opportunity for schools, which are perhaps sending children home at 3 o’clock in the afternoon, to introduce more arts, drama and music.

I put on record that one of my local schools, Twyford, has an excellent record in music. Indeed, I saw some of its members playing with the English Chamber Orchestra only last night. Some state schools still take arts and music seriously, but I want to see longer hours meaning that there is more opportunity, because we have to widen such opportunities. I have noticed recently that people have noted the fact that so many public school people are becoming the big names as actors and actresses, because they get the drama opportunities.

[Mrs Hodgson]

As I said earlier, I agree, but my concern is the funding for all the extra-curricular lessons and opportunities. Some of the necessary items, such as a musical instrument, are outside the reach of a lot of children. What solutions does the hon. Lady suggest to ensure equality, so that all children get those opportunities?

[Angie Bray]

I can assure the hon. Lady that last night all the children playing in the orchestra had their violins and cellos with them. Obviously, there must be access to musical instruments, and in the case of Twyford, there certainly is. We need to work that out. First, we need everyone to agree that we are going to have those longer hours. We must then ensure that we make the best use of them to build the skills base.

[Mr Vaizey]

Surely my hon. Friend, in welcoming many of the Government’s initiatives, will welcome the funding of music education by the Secretary of State for Education. He ring-fenced £170 million for music education. He has also provided financial support for the national plan for cultural education.

[Angie Bray]

I certainly do. I hope that music money will be spent wisely because, as someone who studied music, I am keen to ensure that nobody loses the opportunity to build their skills base, which is important for the country.

[Mrs Hodgson]

Does the hon. Lady share my concern about the discount codes? Although children might still be allowed to take creative GCSE subjects, some schools may have a perverse incentive to deter children from taking multiple GCSEs in creative subjects because they are discounted on the league tables.

[Angie Bray]

I am most concerned to ensure that we make full use of those longer hours for the arts.

Our report welcomes the greater focus on computing in schools as part of the digital age. There is no doubt that our video games and special effects industries will flourish even more with a new generation of creatives who have the highest level of IT and programming skills. We have a number of universities that are building a global reputation for media production, including Bournemouth university and the well-thought-of course at my local university of West London. We were given a strong impression on our trip to Los Angeles that, tax relief aside, the UK is such an appealing location for film making because the skills base is already available here. We need to build on that success story.

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[Helen Goodman]

I am sorry to disappoint the Minister, but a lot of the money was put into those initiatives by the regional development agencies. He needs to talk more to his colleagues in other Whitehall Departments, because those self-same big cities are seeing the biggest reductions in funding in their local government settlements. The reduction in Liverpool is somewhere between 30% and 60%, and the picture is similar in Gateshead and Manchester. He should be less complacent about the situation faced by the creative sectors beyond London. He cannot get away from giving the impression that the Government are not developing creative industries across the entire country because they are staying within their comfort zone.

[Angie Bray]

rose—

[Helen Goodman]

I will not take any further interventions on this point; otherwise, the debate will deteriorate in tone, and I would not want that to happen during my speech.

I was pleased by the Select Committee Chairman’s remarks on film tax credits. I never expected to hear Government Members praise tax credits, but there we have it; he has done so, at least for the film sector. I reiterate his request to the Minister: it would be good if the Minister brought us up to speed on his negotiations with the European Union. I also wholeheartedly agree with what the Select Committee said on education and skills:

“The broader arts curriculum has been seriously hit by the Government’s approach to performance measurement...The danger remains that schools will in practice see a continued diminution in the provision of dance, drama and other creative subjects.”

My hon. Friend the Member for Washington and Sunderland West (Mrs Hodgson), who is doing an excellent job as chair of the all-party group on art, craft and design in education, made a well-informed and telling speech. Since 2010, there has been a 14% drop in the number of children taking arts subjects at GCSE. We must incorporate arts into the curriculum at the same level as other subjects. I cannot do better than quote a letter from my constituent, Jonathan Carney. He is head of visual arts and photography at Redcar academy and, in preparation for this debate, he wrote to me, saying:

“I am very concerned that the current disincentives to study arts subjects in schools will have a serious impact on the pipeline of UK workers in to employment in the Creative Industries and more broadly on our children’s ability to compete in the global jobs market. Employers look for well-balanced, well-rounded individuals who are capable of expressing themselves and thinking creatively.”

We would all agree with that; none of us could have put it better. One thing that is a bit worrying about the Secretary of State for Education’s approach is that he seems to think that those subjects are not intellectually rigorous. Has he not met an architect or listened to a jazz pianist? Of course those subjects are as intellectually rigorous as mathematics, Latin grammar and English literature. It is patently absurd to think that rigour is only in one part of the curriculum and not in another.

I hope that the Minister will go back to his colleagues in the Department for Education and reinforce the message that is coming from across the sectors. Everywhere I go, the one complaint I get that is common across the board, whether in theatre, music or museums, is about the narrowing of the curriculum.

I also want to take up with the Minister his remarks about music hubs. I do not think those are performing as intended. We hear many reports, particularly from the Musicians’ Union, of the undermining of music services, and of the fact that the music hubs are not making up for local authorities’ loss of direct funding as a result of reductions by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government. Once again, the Minister is too roseate in his picture of what is going on in the world.

Finally, I also agree with the Committee about the Creative Industry Council and the need for the Minister to go to the council’s meetings. Surely it is not too much to ask Ministers to go to their own meetings. However, the Committee might have looked more at two issues. One is geographical spread, which we have discussed; I will not go over that ground again. The other is the importance of widening access and opportunities to work in the cultural industries. That is partly about education, and it is partly a justice issue. These are good, fun jobs that people want, and it will not be satisfactory if, to borrow George Orwell’s phrase, they become of the preserve of

“the lower-upper-middle class”.

However, just as importantly, the arts need these people. The arts need the widest pool of talent.

I will give an example. I was talking to the director of one of our major dance companies, and he said that, to be frank, he did not need any more middle-class girls from the home counties coming into his theatre. When the company got boys from ethnic minorities in east London, they brought a lot more energy and innovation to the theatre. That is really positive and really great. We must have a much bigger picture of what is possible for people.

The Minister’s response to the Committee’s report is a bit disappointing. We do not want a global race to the bottom, with a few multi-millionaires and thousands of unpaid interns. The Opposition believe that creative Britain can do better than that.

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[Mr Vaizey]

I will certainly copy the hon. Lady and the Chairman of the Select Committee into my reply.

Danish law allows sharing within a household; Polish law apparently allows sharing within social circles—so there are much wider exceptions in Europe, and we have been careful to draw ours as narrowly as possible.

My hon. Friend the Select Committee Chairman asked about the future funding of the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit. The Intellectual Property Office funded the set-up costs and the initial period of operation, but I understand that the baton will pass to industry, and that has always been made clear. If the work is worth doing, the industry should support it. I am interested in the PRS proposal on traffic lights. We reached out to some of the relevant intermediaries but without success, but if PRS still believes that we could pursue that system, it is worth revisiting.

As to increasing the sentences for online copyright infringement, I understand that the Minister with responsibility for intellectual property said that it was worth looking into that, and we also said so in our response. Further, the Science Minister, who responded on Second Reading in the Commons, said that we would report our findings by the end of the year. We support industry initiatives to educate people about the complexities of copyright, and are in active discussions with the industry about how the Government can support more education initiatives.

Perhaps that is the appropriate moment for me to pick up the point that the Select Committee Chairman made about the VCAP proposals. It has been difficult to implement the details of the Digital Economy Act 2010. The Government have not resiled from it, but there are significant technical obstacles, including the fact that we were being sued by BT and TalkTalk for at least two years from the time when it was passed. Other technical obstacles have presented themselves, and we are actively seeking to overcome them, but nevertheless we welcome the industry initiative, not only because we hope it may be up and running before the end of the year, but because it requires a partnership between both sides of the debate, and because it brings important flexibility to make it possible to adapt. I suspect that it will be easier to adapt the system as technology changes.

The Select Committee’s position and that of many hon. Members who rightly act as strong advocates for the creative industries and rights holders is well known. The Government’s position is also well established, and there has been an extensive dialogue. I hear what has been said about the need for separate statutory instruments when the exceptions are debated, and I am sure that the Department responsible will listen carefully to that recommendation.

Another all-pervasive issue is the position of the arts in education. Hon. Members will know that I sought out the job as culture spokesman in opposition and was lucky enough to be appointed Minister when we came into office. I passionately support the arts and would be concerned if I thought that some of what people allege about the state of the arts in schools was genuine. The Secretary of State for Education is a fantastic supporter of the arts. I have no doubt about that, and I work closely with him, as I have done for several years. One of the first things that we did was jointly to commission Darren Henley to look at music education, to secure the ring-fenced funding of music education services at a time when most funding was being devolved to schools, and when schools were becoming academies, as they still are. I felt that it was important to take that strong position.

We want music services to change, which is why we re-christened them music hubs. Obviously, more has to be done than simply change the name. We want music organisations—orchestras, and so on—to be genuine partners with local authority music services and for music services to be able to call on the talents of a wide range of people who deliver music in different ways in any local area. That is why we introduced the qualified music educator status, to allow people who teach music but are not formally teachers to be recognised for their talents and skills. And that is why we extended the In Harmony programme, increased its funding and integrated it into a wider national music plan.

We are at the beginning of this journey. Nobody is expecting music hubs to spring fully formed from this policy change. We have achieved two important things: we have ring-fenced the money and established the principle that music organisations and music services should be partners. A third important principle is that the money is contestable; no one local music service or local authority should be complacent—a word that has been used in this debate in other contexts—and simply expect to receive that money every three years.

[Angie Bray]

My hon. Friend the Minister will recall launching the Ealing music and film festival this time last year. As I said earlier, on our first night of the festival, last night, the English chamber orchestra was partnering young musicians from Twyford school. Tonight it will be partnering young musicians from Ealing youth orchestra. Does he agree that it is good for young people that such an initiative can be promoted even by a festival?

[Mr Vaizey]

I do think it is a good thing for young people. That is absolutely brilliant. Again, we tend always to look at what we say is going wrong and not good enough and often fail to recognise what is right in front of us, which is that tens of thousands of our young people are brilliant musicians enjoying a brilliant music education. Funnily enough, I was lucky to visit Twyford school with Howard Goodall several years ago and watch its choir in action. It is a phenomenal state school—I emphasise that—with phenomenal music teaching. I recognise what my hon. Friend says.

That is where we are in terms of music education. But we went further and introduced the first national cultural education plan, which, again, has put on the table heritage schools. English Heritage is now working with schools to ensure that heritage is taught in our schools. There are many other initiatives to ensure that our children enjoy as wide a cultural education as possible.

Clearly, the Secretary of State for Education has his own agenda in terms of ensuring, rightly, that we continue to drive up standards in our schools. He is utterly passionate about education and about not leaving behind too many children who, in the past, for whatever reason, have been written off, as have their life chances. He has determined to introduce rigour into the curriculum. The Department for Education has listened to concerns that have been enunciated. We now have the new progress 8 system, which allows schools to take into account the arts and arts education.

There is an either/or element when we debate the arts in education. No one has made teaching the arts illegal in schools. The Secretary of State is also about empowering our teachers and head teachers to lead their schools. A good head teacher and a great teaching staff will recognise the importance of the arts and the fantastic bonus that great arts teaching brings, not just in introducing children to the arts, but enhancing their academic achievement in many other subjects.