Here is this week’s news:
Election Stuff
Gary Barlow of Take That joined David Cameron at a school in Nantwich, Cheshire, to launch our School Stars initiative to celebrate musical kids, more HERE. The new competition will encourage musical achievement among young people and is designed to provide those who participate with a unique, fun and exciting experience. Gary Barlow will be involved in judging the final stages of the competition and the first prize is a chance to record a song with him. The BPI, UK Music and Global Radio have backed our plans, full details HERE
Tonight’s Prime Minsterial debate is at the Arnolfini, possible the only time the arts will really take, or provide, the centre stage during this election, more HERE.
Creative Industries
Media
Jeremy has been interviewed by Dow Jones HERE and discussed our plans to ease media regulations.
Jeremy also took part in a manifesto debate chaired by Michael White with Douglas Alexander and Danny Alexander which covered the BBC and digital economy bill, amongst other things, more HERE.
Google
The Labour Government head’s Google’s European censorship list, more HERE
While the Information commissioner joins Germany, Canada and Spain in calling on Google to protect its users better, more HERE.
BBC
Newly disclosed BBC expenses show BBC technology boss Erik Huggers has had yet another expensive drive, clocking up £646.79 for a car and driver on a trip to Korea, while BBC Worldwide spent more that £6,000 bringing director general Mike Thompson back from Australia. In total BBC executives claimed expenses totalling £173,527.04 from September to December last year, more HERE.
Broadband
Orange has done a deal with BT to piggy back onto BT’s network, and pass their own fixed-line infrastructure to BT. Orange will go head to head with market leaders BT, Virgin Media and TalkTalk, which could sharply increase competition, and drive down consumer charges, more HERE
Video Games
Ed has reassured the video games sector that we support tax breaks more HERE
Skillset’s computer games manager Saint John Walker joined a panel of industry experts for an online Q&A session about the representation of women in the computer games industry on Guardian Careers on Tuesday, more HERE.
Paid content
DMCT, the group that owns the Mail newspapers appear determined to follow a different path to the Time Online’s paid route, more HERE
Publishing
In the era of the iPad and the Kindle some independent innovative publishers are finding a profitable niche for the old-fashioned book, in the FT more HERE.
A thoughtful piece on the iPad’s impact on publishing and the fight for market share and price setting in the digital era, in the New Yorker, HERE.
Music
Paolo Nutini, Dizzie Rascal and an album about cricket have all be nominated for Ivor Novello Awards, more HERE.
Film
The future of MGM is in doubt, as the producers of James Bond put their next production on hold, more HERE.
The founders of Miramax, the Weinstein brothers, are in talks with Disney to buy it back, more HERE.
Arts and Heritage
Arts
Ed was on BBC Midlands Today on Tuesday talking about our arts policies, although for reasons that are unclear, this gem is not on the iPlayer.
This was ahead of an election debate at the Birmingham Hippodrome on arts policies with former Labour creative industries minister Sion Simon, Liberal Democrat Lord Clement Jones and Ed himself, more HERE
Orchestras count the cost of the volcano calamity, more HERE
Heritage
The National Churches Trust has launched its online survey, aimed at people with responsibility for looking after their church building HERE
Theatre
Where were the skewerings of new Labour in Posh? HERE.
Where we’ve been and who we’ve seen
Still on the stump, lovely weather for it.
Ed Vaizey
Shadow Arts Minister
Jeremy Hunt
Shadow Culture Secretary
