Contribution
My Lords, I declare an interest as a freelance television producer. I too add my thanks to the noble Baroness, Lady Thornton, for securing this debate. I also add my words of praise to the noble Lords who have made their maiden speeches today. They were tremendous, and I look forward very much to working with them all again.
I want to dedicate my speech to the television and film industry, which has been for so long a major spur to growth in the creative industries. In this country, we have some of the most skilled and creative production workforces in world, yet despite these great achievements, the sector is in crisis. Nobody even knows how many people work in it; there are thought to be at least 73,000 creatives and technicians, more than half of whom are freelance. However, a survey of its members by the union BECTU last year revealed that 68% were not working at that time. The situation was worse for the diverse workforce. The great cry last year, as the industry faced a huge commissioning downturn, especially in middle-budget programming, was “Survive ‘til ‘25”.
It is now ‘25 and the outlook for hundreds of smaller production companies and thousands of TV creatives grows even worse. A new survey by CREATe, at the University of Glasgow, reveals that directors are, on average, working for just half the year, down by six weeks from the previous year. Directors UK, which commissioned the report, says that 30% are doing unpaid development and script work just to get considered for a new contract. I have personal knowledge of talented and experienced colleagues working as delivery drivers and tutors to make ends meet between contracts. Another report shows that 64% are looking to leave due to worries about their mental health. Across the country, especially in the nations and regions, where so much of the middle-budget commissioning used to be placed, production companies have no commissions and are closing down.
Of course, lack of finance is at the root of this problem. Noble Lords know of the downturn in advertising in the commercial television sector and the reduction by a third of the BBC’s funding under the last Government. It is the responsibility of this Government to ensure that the sector is financially sound. I was very pleased to hear support for the BBC voiced by the noble Lord, Lord Stevenson of Balmacara. The BBC is the creative engine of the industry. I wonder about the present Government’s attitude towards it, having been so positive in opposition. I was astonished to hear the Secretary of State propose losing the BBC’s editorial independence with the taxpayer-funded model, only to retract the suggestion a week later. The Government are now consulting on funding options in the run-up to charter renewal. There have already been many reports and consultations on this issue; it should not take too long to come to some sort of conclusion. My preferred option is a household levy.
However, it is the structure of the industry that is causing so many other problems. Freelancing in TV is not like in any other industries: the variety and nature of contracts need special understanding. The terror of being labelled an unemployable troublemaker lurks in the back of every freelancer’s mind as they fail to report not being paid on time or being bullied at work. Although ScreenSkills does some valuable work, there is little training and no structured career development for most freelancers. If this valuable sector is to survive, I, like my noble friend Lord Clancarty, call on the Minister to think hard about setting up a freelance commissioner to fight the creatives’ corner. The good work done by the Small Business Commissioner shows what can be done for small companies, but she cannot fight on behalf of individuals.
Finally, I add my voice to many others in demanding that the Government safeguard the revenues of our creatives by ensuring that tech companies are made to adhere to our world-class copyright regime. The Government’s opt-out proposal will lead to the death of our second most successful industry, and I hope that the Minister will understand and support the widespread concern that there is about this. As we speak, creatives are being driven out of the television industry by lack of work and lack of prospects. I ask the Minister not to delay on implementing my suggestions before we see the destruction of one of the important parts of our creative industry.