President of the British Academy welcomes Government’s response to recommendations to support research and development in the Creative Industries

The President of the British Academy, Professor Julia Black PBA, welcomes the Government’s response to the work she led on harnessing research and development (R&D) in the creative industries for the Prime Minister’s Council for Science and Technology (CST), of which Professor Black is a member, to help grow the UK’s creative industries sector.

The report, described by Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Rt Hon Lucy Frazer MP as ‘important and insightful’, makes six recommendations for enhancing R&D, innovation, and technology in the creative industries, which are:

• Public investment in R&D in the creative industries should reflect the size, economic contribution, and future growth potential of the sector.

• The Chancellor and Culture Secretary should commission research from the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre into the requirements and availability of scale-up finance for creative businesses.

• HM Treasury should work with the Office for National Statistics to prioritise improvements to data collection on creative industries R&D. This should support a future broadening of the definition of R&D eligible for tax relief to include arts, humanities, and social sciences research.

• The Department for Culture, Media and Sport should continue to undertake research to conserve the UK’s cultural assets in museums, collections, and galleries, and work with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology to capitalise on opportunities to value and digitise UK national collections.

• The Intellectual Property Office should, as a matter of urgency, clearly set out guidance on what standards or regulations AI companies need to adhere to with respect to copyright of creative content.

• The Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for Education should work with Research England and the Office for Students to review the performance, geographical distribution, and financial support for small specialist creative institutions.

The UK’s creative industries are an economic and cultural success story, contributing £124.6bn in output to the UK economy and almost 2.4m jobs in 2022. Research from the British Academy found graduates from the humanities, social sciences and arts to be particularly prevalent in the sector – with skills such as critical thinking, creativity and collaboration in high demand.

The report urged that, to build on this profound success, the UK should raise our ambitions and invest further in the creative industries, including in research and development, so that we might reap the benefits of growth, productivity, and cultural innovation.

In a letter to the CST, Secretary of State Rt Hon Lucy Frazer MP noted that the report rightly acknowledges the importance of the United Kingdom’s creative industries as ‘a sector of innovation and growth’ and ‘an essential engine of economic growth, and a beating heart for this country’s R&D and innovation ecosystem.’ Responding on behalf of the Government, she noted that:

• The Chancellor of the Exchequer set out, in the Autumn Statement in 2023, the Government’s intention to review the evidence on public investment in research and development spending for the creative industries, as recommended in this report. The review will be delivered to a Spending Review timeframe, led by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and working with HM Treasury, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, UK Research and Innovation and the Arts and Humanities Research Council.

• The Government are working with Creative UK to consider options for supporting their project to improve the evidence base on access to finance and investment.

• The Office for National Statistics is making progress with work to better capture evidence on the research and development activities of British businesses, including the creative industries. This includes enhanced guidance to help businesses provide accurate information on their research and development, including in the area of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. The business research and development survey is currently underway and results are expected later this year.

• The Government remains firmly committed to supporting all of the Arm’s Length Bodies and UKRI in their efforts to conserve the UK’s cultural assets and pursue opportunities to use digital technologies to widen public access to the Nation’s collections.

• The Intellectual Property Office engaged stakeholders on a voluntary code on copyright and AI (Artificial Intelligence). The Government had hoped that rights holders and AI companies would be able to come together to agree a way forward in this complex and challenging area. However, they were not able to reach a consensus and as a result no code of practice will be published, and the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) Working Group will not continue.

• The Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for Education started work on an action plan to better understand supply and demand for this provision across England. They will incorporate the Council of Science and Technology’s recommendation, and work to review the performance, geographical distribution, and financial support for small specialist creative institutions.

Professor Julia Black PBA, President of the British Academy, said:

“I welcome the Government’s response to the CST report and their commitment to reviewing the evidence on public investment in R&D in the creative industries. This funding is critical if we are to continue to be a world-leader, and to be effective we must look at the performance, geographical distribution, and financial support for small specialist creative institutions.

“I regret that the Intellectual Property Office was not able to clearly set out guidance on the copyright standards or regulations AI companies need to adhere to. The Government urgently needs to develop regulation to ensure a fair balance is struck between the interests of creators and those of AI developers.

“I welcome the ambition to work across the talent pipeline to ensure the future success of the creative industries. We know that the industry is hugely reliant on the skills of arts, humanities and social sciences graduates so we urge the Government to ensure that provision of these important subjects remains healthy.”