AV What are the changes in the Ministry of Higher Education and Intellectual Property following the creation of Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
(BIS) in June?
DL BIS was created to help our economy come through the recession stronger, more competitive and able to grow in the future, fostering our world-class system of higher education to help this objective and enrich our society as a whole.
The merger is part of our commitment to a more active industrial policy (as set out in the document New Industry, New Jobs) that will align government policies to support UK competitiveness, productivity and excellence. The transition was seamless, with the government still committed to ensuring higher education and intellectual property remains as strong as it has ever been.
This joined-up economy-focused outlook has intellectual property at its heart. Any efforts to protect the economy are always going to involve the people upon whom the economy depends: inventors and creators. Without these groups the UK would be a poorer place and it is essential that we keep their needs at the heart of our department.

AV What kind of intellectual property system does the UK need in the digital era?
DL The importance we now place on IP (intellectual property) in our economy cannot be overstated; it is essential to the creative industries that will spearhead our emergence from the economic downturn. The UK needs an IP system that enables us to maximise the culture and economic benefit from our creativity. It must work for everyone in the chain: the creator, the rights holder, intermediaries and the consumer.

AV There have been calls for the government and policymakers to review the copyright laws. How should we go about it?
DL Last year I launched a debate on the future direction of copyright in the light of the growing challenges in an increasingly globalised and digitised environment.
Our work on the review of copyright has revealed that the basic principles of copyright are sound. However, the system needs to evolve to reflect emerging digital realities. Rights holders and service providers must work together to shape the new digital economy.
I want to ensure we get the system right. It must work for rights holders and creators. The continued strength and success of our creative industries depends on it. However, we must not forget about consumers. Their needs are important as business relies on them to use its products.
The UK’s problems are not unique and we can’t address them in isolation. We need to work with partners across the globe to tackle these issues and our thinking coming out of the review will encourage others to join us. After all, we have similar issues and I hope we will find common solutions.

AV After taking the copyright debate online, what do you make of the issues raised?
DL In this review, I want to encourage the right attitudes and behaviours of players in the copyright system, both on a domestic and international level. International support and co-operation is essential to the long-term global direction of copyright. We also want to see industry-led solutions that facilitate a new approach to copyright.
I don’t think we are in a position to solve all the problems facing copyright in the digital age, but there are things we can do and are doing to address some of them. For example, we are setting up schemes to allow extended collective licensing – similar to those of the Nordic countries – and to use orphan works, as set out in the Digital Britain report. We are also strengthening enforcement by tackling peer-to-peer [P2P] file sharing in a fair and effective way.

AV The SABIP report revealed huge economic losses from unauthorised downloads. What is the roadmap
for stimulating public awareness
and enforcing current copyright law?
DL No government can solve all the copyright issues of the digital age (yet). It’s important to remember it’s not just about legislation; it’s about prevention and strengthening partnership.
I am encouraged that industry is playing its part and has put some measures in place to tackle issues like illegal camcording, downloading and piracy.
But I want to encourage the right attitudes and behaviours of players in the copyright system at both domestic and international levels. We’re working at two major levels:
Awareness raising: knowledge of IP infringement is still patchy among enforcement agencies and government departments. We’re working with them to increase awareness and understanding of what IP infringement is and how it fits into the wider criminal and civil landscapes. The attitude of consumers is also relevant. The recent anti-piracy campaign by the Federation Against Copyright Theft rightly recognises the value of those people who go to the cinema and support the film industry.
Intelligence: The Intellectual Property Office has established an intelligence hub to co-ordinate IP crime intelligence in partnership with enforcement agencies and industry. Intelligence supplied by the hub played a key role in the recent conviction of four men involved in a multimillion-pound film piracy operation and in the case against the DV8 operation.

AV Could you elaborate on the proposed rights agency that will facilitate legal content distribution and support innovation?
DL The rights agency was an idea we consulted on as part of the Digital Britain process. It became clear after talking to stakeholders that there were genuine and well-founded concerns as to whether a government-created agency would be helpful in this area. As it stands, we still believe there may be role for an industry association to play; for example, in negotiating codes of practice for the proposed P2P legislation, and if the industry comes together to create such a body we will try and support that choice. We do not, however, think it is right for government to mandate the creation of such a body at this time.

AV Lastly, how must leading UK universities brace themselves to survive the deteriorating economic conditions and assist students?
DL Our universities are central to thinking on government, education, social welfare and economics, and this makes them invaluable during difficult financial times. Not only are they educating a future workforce and teaching skills that will be so useful in building up the economy once again, they also have important links with businesses and research work.
In recognition of this work the government, with HEFCE, has launched a £50m Economic Challenge Investment Fund to offer practical help to 50,000 people and nearly 12,000 businesses through internships, courses and vouchers for job seekers.
Especially during a downturn, higher education remains one of the best pathways to a rewarding career and a good investment for the future, and the government is committed to ensure that people with the talent and potential to succeed have the opportunity to do so – a fact seen in the record numbers of people going to university. Graduates also remain less likely to be unemployed than non-graduates.
This is why we fund the sector to record levels at over £7bn a year and provide a generous support package to those heading to university. The overwhelming majority of students from all backgrounds still consider the benefits of higher education to be considerable and, in an increasingly competitive world, we also know that employers are aware of the range of skills that graduates can bring to their businesses.
The government, along with universities, will continue to support those who aspire to a university education. These institutions, which provide undergraduate and postgraduate courses as well as short courses, are ideally placed to improve the skills of both young and older learners. By continuing the work that they do, we can be confident in an enduring higher education system that will provide support both now and in the years to come.

Box: Why Lammy matters to info pros

As minister for higher education and intellectual property in the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills, David Lammy is responsible for HE teaching quality; research assessment exercise/research excellence framework in HE; climate change campaign in HE; higher level skills; voluntary giving; and student support policy.
In his intellectual property role he is also responsible for developing and implementing an intellectual property system that promotes creativity and innovation in the UK, and has responsibility for the Intellectual Property Office; and policy on copyright and patent issues.

He has been a minister in the Department of Health, Department of Constitutional Affairs, Department for Culture, Media and Sport and was most recently minister for skills.