Lord Freyberg (CB)

My Lords, this group of amendments addresses the arts and cultural sector. I declare my interest as an artist member of DACS. I thank the noble Earl, Lord Clancarty, the noble Baroness, Lady Bennett of Manor Castle, and the noble Lord, Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay, for their support for the various amendments I have tabled in this group. I also thank the Minister and her officials for meeting with the noble Earl, Lord Clancarty, and me earlier this month to discuss these amendments. The arts and cultural sector is of national importance. Creative industries generated some £126 billion in gross value added, representing almost 6% of the economy, and supported roughly 2.4 million jobs, as of 2022. However, its workforce is highly atypical. A recent study found that a fully 32% of creative and cultural jobs are freelance, more than double the 14% of the wider UK workforce. Creative organisations tend to be small, low-margin and reliant on irregular income, such as ticket sales, grants and philanthropy. In short, a one-size-fits-all employment regime risks harming both workers and institutions. Our amendments in this group aim to strengthen protections for arts workers—especially freelancers—without inadvertently pushing theatres, galleries and arts charities over the edge. I remind the House of the earlier Amendment 16, moved by the noble Lord, Lord Parkinson, regarding theatres and casual workers, as another worry. The creative workforce is famously project-based and freelance-heavy. For example, BECTU reports that many film, TV and theatre freelancers were initially excluded from Covid support schemes. We propose sector-specific measures: flexible collective bargaining, phased implementation of new rules and targeted support, balanced by accountability measures such as impact reviews. These proposals reflect best practice abroad. For instance, new EU guidelines explicitly enable self-employed workers to engage in collective bargaining, and many countries even use cultural levies to fund arts employment. Our aim is therefore practical: to adapt the Bill’s intentions to the realities of the arts. It is a vital opportunity for the sector’s needs to be heard.