Culture Politick

Here is this week’s news:

Tory Stuff

Media Policy

Jeremy has set out our media proposals in an interview with the FT this week. He said that we want to replace the BBC Trust and that we are looking at reopening the BBC Charter. He also said that we would scrap the Government’s proposed 50p a month tax on all telephone lines to fund superfast broadband and reverse Government plans to force the BBC to share the licence fee, more HERE.

Culture Policy

Ed spoke at the Culture is Right conference yesterday and set out our plans for the National Lottery and philanthropy, confirmed our commitment to free museums, set out our views on the Arts Council, heritage, the MLA, culture in education, highlighted significant proposals at a local level that have implications for the arts, and set out his vision for the cultural Olympiad. Read his full speech HERE and download the green paper on localism HERE the relevant proposals are in the executive summary and in detail on page 25.

Last night we held another Conservative Arts and Creative Industries Network event, thank you to the Creative Coalition for hosting us. The turnout was fantastic, the view, phenomenal and apparently we’re now ‘in danger of becoming trendy’ according to the Standard, HERE.

Ed has posed a question on Linked In: What is the best way for an incoming government to address the issue of online piracy? You can join our network HERE, and respond to his question HERE.

Creative Industries

Broadband Tax

Government advisor Professor Cave agrees with us on there being no need for a broadband tax. Professor Cave, an economist, expressed his support for our proposal and called for more emphasis to be placed on drawing private investment into next-generation network development. More HERE.

BBC

The BBC Trust has rejected plans to open up the iPlayer to ITV and Channel 4 programmes, saying that the idea was ‘too complex’ to be allowed because it would mix programmes that carried advertising with the BBC’s advert-free shows – and it was not clear if the corporation would benefit as a result, more HERE. We think this is a backwards step, which demonstrates that the BBC Trust has once again mis-understood its role – the purpose of this plan was not to benefit the BBC but rather to share the benefits of public investment in the iPlayer with the commercial sector.

Philip Stephens of the FT has outlined a five set programme to save the BBC, HERE. First, show some humility, second, reduce the pay and benefits of top managers, and cut the number of those managers, and publish earnings of its talent; third, rebuild the quality of its journalism, fourth, think strategically about the space a publicly funded broadcaster should be occupying 10 years hence; finally and most importantly, rediscover the difference between ends and means.

Mark Thompson has defended the appearance Nick Griffin, leader of the BNP on Question Time this evening on the grounds of BBC impartiality, and argues that it would be up to Parliament to stop it, more HERE.

Music Piracy

70% of those surveyed in a YouGov poll on internet piracy said that someone suspected of illegal downloading should have a right to a trial in court before restrictions on internet use were imposed, with only 16% in favour of automatic curbs based on accusations by copyright holders such as musicians, more HERE.

In other old model / new model news this week, party chairman Eric Pickles is leading the Conservative party onto Spotify. Cheese and Pickles anyone? More HERE.

Licensing

Ed is at the licensing debate in Westminster Hall at this very moment. We think there should be a review which as we are sympathetic to the suggestion of exemptions for Venues with a capacity of 200 or less – it would support artists without undermining the power of local authorities to control noise levels and promote safety in their area. The Government has just announced a very similar sounding U-turn, more HERE and watch the debate live or recorded, HERE.

Creative Industries

Northwest Vision and Media, which works on behalf of the creative and digital industries in the region, has put together the ‘Fast Company Programme’ to help the industry’s leaders to realise the value of their business and access the private equity funding available to them, more HERE. It launches with a panel discussion at the start of November, more information and registration HERE.

Advertising

Tim Lefroy, Chief Executive of the Advertising Association has announced plans to create a foundation to rebuild trust in advertising. He warned: “Less than 15% of adults ‘generally trust advertising’ today. If current trends continue, for the first time ever, people who are against advertising, who want it more controlled and regulated will, in a few years outnumber those who are ‘for it’, who feel that our freedoms are well placed.” More HERE. We think the foundation is a great idea.

Design

The winner of the Prince Philip Designers Prize for 2009 is Andrew Ritchie’s Brompton bike, based on the ingenuity of its folding mechanism, its balance of functionality, durability and comfort, and a consistent 30-year commitment to refining the product and its 1,200 parts – many of which are unique to Brompton. The bike is wholly manufactured at the company’s factory in Brentford, sells in more than 30 countries, driving a successful business that has grown by 25% for the last three years.  The business still dedicates 50% of management resource to design and development to keep itself ahead of growing competition in the fast-evolving folding bicycle market. More HERE.

Watch a design documentary of 50 years of British innovation, HERE.

The Design Council has launched a national design challenge called ‘Design for Patient Dignity’, inviting designers to join forces with manufacturers, service providers and specialist contractors to help eliminate mixed sex accommodation and increase patient privacy and dignity in hospitals. One of the briefs includes redesigning the patient gown! More HERE.

Architecture

CABE and eight regional design review panels have joined together to create a national network of design review panels. This will provide all local planning authorities with access to independent practical design advice, which is great news, more HERE

Congratulations to Richard Rogers who won this year’s Stirling Prize for his Maggie’s Centre in London, more HERE.

Arts and Heritage

Money Money Money

The Government appears to have found some money to fill the DCMS funding hole that came to light in the summer, HERE as last Friday they confirmed funding for the BFI National Film Centre, Stonehenge, the Tate Modern Extension and the British Museum’s conservation and exhibitions centre and the British Library’s newspaper archive, more HERE and HERE. It’s not at all clear to us where they have found this extra money. Nevertheless, if it is there, it is very welcome.

ACE

Speaking of money, Arts Council England chief executive Alan Davey has argued: ‘The arts ought to be a key part of any civilised government’s mission,’ also speaking at Culture is Right, this week. He added: ‘I hope any government would not return to a Mills-ian view of the most efficient creation of wealth being the sole aim of any society. [Money for the arts] has an ultimate end that Ruskin knew was important to any society – the creation of beauty, and something that goes beyond the material and straight to who we are.’ HERE. We agree.

Cultural Olympiad

The Arts Council have announced the 12 winning projects for their Artists taking the lead programme, part of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad. Congratulations to the winners, full details HERE.

Heritage

English Heritage has launched the Heritage Counts 2009 website, HERE. This annual report on the state of the historic environment shows that heritage can have an impact on wider social issues such as people’s sense of well-being and community cohesion, and reveals that England’s heritage has had a bumper year with visitor numbers far higher than expected, more HERE.

Libraries

Tim Godfray at the Booksellers Association has written a: ‘blistering private reply to Hodge’s proposal, and in public he talks about a “growing sense of concern” and regards libraries selling books as “unfair competition”—not least because bookshops pay taxes that support libraries… Rather than flying ill-conceived and frankly preposterous suggestions, Margaret Hodge would be better off speeding up the publication of the Charteris Report into the library service in the Wirral, and on speeding the publication of her own long-delayed Department for Culture, Media & Sport library review.’ Ouch! More HERE.

Meanwhile CILIP has weighed in with the biting headline: ‘Hot news! Absolutely nothing is happening!’ more HERE.

Effects of the recession

The Art Fund has carried out its second nationwide survey of museums and galleries which shows that more people are visiting museums across the UK and that they are spending more in the shops and cafes – a positive sign. But income from other sources, especially public funding, investments and corporate sponsorship, is falling, more HERE.

In Parliament

Parliamentary Questions

Falling Lottery funding for the arts, sports and heritage HERE

But steady lottery sales over the past few years HERE

The increasing cost of visiting English Heritage properties HERE

Buildings added, buildings removed from the English Heritage ‘Buildings At Risk’ register HERE

Estimates of the financial contribution of the heritage sector HERE

The impact of digital switchover on provision of ITV 3 and 4 in Wales HERE

The proposal for top-slicing the license fee and the impact on ITV HERE

And Finally

To mark the end of its popular P G Wodehouse exhibition, Heywood Hill the bookshop has come up with a mouth-watering free competition for anyone with an appetite for Wilton’s, Berry Bros, Heywood Hill and/ or Nicholas Soames! Watch Plum Idol HERE featuring among others Stephen Fry, Santa Montefiore and Henry Blofeld (and including Debo Devonshire’s first official appearance on You Tube) and then vote for your favourite – there is a corker of a prize for one lucky winner:

Where we’ve been and who we’ve seen

TIGA, London Film Festival screenings of Bright Star and An Education, CBI Tourism Alliance Breakfast, the Roundhouse, Culture is Right, ITV, Conservative Arts and Creative Industries Network at the Paramount, Editorial Intelligence on the future of the arts, more HERE, Alan Davey, CBI London Annual Dinner, Cartoon Museum, Moctezuma exhibition at the British Museum, Churches Conservation Trust, Channel 4, Enron at the Royal Court Theatre, TimeWarner, Connect.

Ed Vaizey

Shadow Arts Minister

Jeremy Hunt

Shadow Culture Secretary