I support Amendments 28C and 28D, and draw the Committee's attention to my entry in the Register of Lords’ Interests as a director of the Performing Rights Society.
I listened carefully to the two preceding speakers. It is difficult to argue against a balance. Who would be against a balance in favour of a bias? But to some extent the amendments that have been presented seek to correct an imbalance that already exists. That is the problem. We are not starting from a level playing field and building in an imbalance: there is a feeling that intellectual property is not protected. The amendments seek to correct an imbalance that the two previous speakers mentioned.
A lot has been said about the importance of this industry and I shall not go over that again, but I have two points. This is probably a pivotal time in that this industry is growing, it is new and it is fast moving. We saw what happened when the sector itself failed to respond to new technology in the appropriate way 10, 15 or 20 years ago, and I think that we have been picking up the pieces ever since. However, things have moved on since then. It is right that, as a society, the Government and the industry now look at what is happening and ask, “What do we need to do to make sure that we can guarantee the future of this industry, giving people new ways of accessing music design and all those things, but protect the copyright holders as well”. Getting that right is what this legislation is about. Given how fast things are moving, if we get it wrong now, we will find it very difficult to go back and get it right again in the future. This is a really important point. In relation to this amendment, perhaps I may say to the Minister that I do not think we can see how it goes and come back in 12 or 18 months’ time to reflect and then take things forward. Now is the time to act.
4.15 pm
The second point that I want to make in terms of background is that we talk about people accessing the intellectual property that exists at the moment. That is part of the structure that we are building, but in some ways it is about ensuring a continuing flow of intellectual property for the industry in the future. Those producing intellectual property are businesses and they, just as
much as anybody else, need a guarantee of a return on their investment. We now have a wonderful system whereby people can access existing intellectual property but, if we do not act for the future, we will have done nothing at all to make sure that we have a continuing flow of intellectual property to make this industry stronger and more robust.
My thoughts on this come from two sources. One is a junior Minister in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and I notice that there is a glut of former DCMS Ministers with me on the Back Bench at the moment. Secondly, the noble Lord, Lord Clement-Jones, referred to the All-Party Parliamentary Intellectual Property Group, on which I also sat, although I was not able to attend all the sessions. The Minister may tell me that things are very different now but, quite honestly, going back to my days in the DCMS, I was horrified at the lack of co-ordination of intellectual property across government. I spent seven years or more in government and I never felt as much animosity about copyright as there was between the DCMS and the DTI, as it was in those days. The two departments were on different sides. There was no coming together in the national interest, and the IPO—I choose my words carefully; I do not want to overstate it—was not seen as a friend of the DCMS. The DCMS saw itself as promoting the creative industries.
That is what is wrong. There is no co-ordination across government departments to act in the interests of the future of this industry and the future growth of intellectual property. Of course, the Minister may tell me that it is all now sweetness and light and that there is a wonderful relationship between the two departments. However, if you put that together with the evidence that we took on the All-Party Parliamentary Intellectual Property Group, I fear that that is not the case. The sector that produces and those who represent the producers are still not convinced that there are people across government who understand them. It is not so much a case of acting in their interests but of making sure that they give what they should be giving this joint enterprise of becoming a society that makes the best use of IP. To have the IPO as the body to which the creative industries can turn being almost despised —I do not think that that is overstating it—cannot be right.
My starting point is that all is not right and all is not well so far as concerns protecting intellectual property and making sure that its niche in the wider area of promoting the creative industries is looked after in the way that it should be. Both the amendments put by the noble Lords, Lord Jenkin and Lord Clement-Jones, and the noble Baroness, Lady Buscombe, would do the trick. Perhaps before Report there needs to be some reflection on this matter, and we can always do that. That would be a good thing and I would very much support it.
Perhaps I may end as the noble Lord, Lord Jenkin, did, by talking about the importance of education. It is good to see that this would become a responsibility of the new post. I am not sure whose responsibility it is at the moment. The sector itself, as it should—it is its responsibility—has invested in and launched a number of initiatives over recent years, running education
programmes in schools and other education institutions and in wider society. This is important, and the Government have a role here as partners in education and copyright—not taking it over and doing it instead of the sector but being partners.
The Government under either party have not done that so far. It was drawn to my attention that the IPO has said that it would launch an educational initiative; I understand that it was announced in December. The Minister may want to say what has happened to that, but whatever he says I think that I will not be convinced. We are talking about changing entrenched public behaviour and perceptions. If you look at what has had to be done to change areas such as smoking, drinking, alcohol and drugs, you can see that it is a massive thing. I do not have confidence that the IPO can be the lead for the Government in educating on the proper safeguarding of intellectual property. So I very much welcome the amendment, which was put forward with great force and skill, and hope that it finds favour with the Minister and the Government.