Baroness Beeban Kidron, a crossbench peer whose films include Bridget Jones: Edge of Reason, said the Government’s proposals to modify copyright laws to encourage artificial intelligence developers to set up shop in Britain would effectively give away the work of writers and artists.
The plans have sparked anger across the UK’s £126bn creative industries sector, which employs 2.4 million people in the UK, and figures including Kate Bush and Michael Morpurgo have signalled their opposition to a move which critics argue will undermine a key part of the economy.
Baroness Kidron said that while ministers were only too happy to mingle with A-list stars, they were riding roughshod over the livelihoods of thousands of others who work in the background of sectors such as the film, television or music industries.
“It seems the Government is unaware of how the creative industries operate; it is mainly working people, 70 per cent based outside London, and largely working class.”
Baroness Kidron with her husband, the playwright Lee Hall (Copyright: David M. Benett)The amendments, which are likely to be overturned by the Government when the legislation returns to the House of Commons, make AI companies subject to existing UK copyright law wherever they are based and also impose a duty of transparency so copyright holders are informed about when, where and how their work is used by AI models.
However, it also says it has not yet made any final decisions on changes after a consultation on its blueprint ended this week, amid anger at the proposals from a number of Labour MPs.
How many people are employed in the creative industries?
Creative industries employ around 2.4 million people in the UK, according to government figures.
More than a quarter (28 per cent) of jobs in the creative industries are self-employed roles, double the figure across the UK as a whole.
IT and software jobs are the biggest source of employment in the creative industries, with roles breaking down as follows:
IT and software – 1,022,000 Music, performing and visual arts – 311,000 Advertising and marketing – 260,000 Film, TV, radio and photography – 256,000 Publishing – 187,000 Design and fashion – 140,000 Architecture – 122,000 Museums, galleries and libraries – 91,000 Crafts – 10,000She said: “The creative community is quite clear that copyright is attached to the creative work, so it is not for government to decide whose copyright is important or not. That is the beauty of the current system.”
She said: “We should be growing UK AI firms, [and] SME’s on an equitable basis, rather than channelling data and funds to Silicon Valley.”
Peter Kyle said he was “really open minded about how we move forward”, and wanted to support both the AI sector and creative industries.
Jobs linked to media production at risk from AI
The Office of National Statistics analysed the jobs of 20 million people in England in 2019 to assess their risk of automation.
The results found the average risk for jobs in the UK was 7 per cent, but a number of roles linked to media production and highlighted by Baroness Kidron were likely to be at far higher risk from technological advances.
61% – Scaffolders, stagers and riggers 53% – Carpenters and joiners 51% – Electricians 49% – TV, video and audio engineers 44% – Actors 35% – Authors and writers 35% – Artists 29% – Producers and directorsHe added: “I’m really open minded about how we move forward, but there’s one principle I have: I will not have one side forcing me to make a choice between one or the other”.
“As a Government, we’re really responding well to the challenge, but it’s going to be a very tricky issue. Lots of people have very strong views, but as I said before, I will not be forced to make a choice between one or the other. We will find a way forward, because Britain needs us to.”
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