Making Music Matter

The UK music industry is a cornerstone of our economy, contributing £8 billion to the economy and supporting over 220,000 jobs. Yet, from grassroots venues to international touring, British music is facing severe threats. Unregulated AI companies are scraping artists' work without consent, post-Brexit red tape is crippling touring musicians, and funding for local Music Hubs remains down 19% in real terms since 2011.

The Labour Government has offered little reassurance, being indecisive over AI copyright protections and leaving grassroots venues to struggle under immense financial pressure. Meanwhile, voluntary ticket levies have failed to deliver, with only 28% of large venues opting in.

Liberal Democrats believe human creativity must be protected, valued, and fairly rewarded. Today, our members passed a new policy to safeguard creators from AI exploitation, support grassroots venues, tear down barriers to touring, and rebuild music education for every child.

Protecting Creators in the Age of AI

Technological innovation should support artists, not displace them. We are putting forward a firm framework to protect human creativity:

• Enforcing AI Copyright: Confirming that existing UK copyright law applies to AI training models, mandating total transparency in AI training data, and establishing an opt-in licensing model with fair remuneration for artists.
   
• Image, Voice, and Personality Rights: Introducing statutory protections against unauthorised deepfakes and synthetic reproductions of artists' likenesses or voices.
   
• Labelling AI Content: Requiring music streaming platforms to clearly label AI-generated content and championing equitable streaming remuneration for performers.
   
• Creator Collectives: Supporting independent musicians to form collectives to negotiate licensing deals at scale without needing major-label backing.
   

Rebuilding Grassroots Music and Education

Grassroots venues are the lifeblood of our music ecosystem, while music education builds the talent of tomorrow:

• Statutory Large Venue Levy & VAT Cut: Introducing a mandatory levy on large venues to fund grassroots spaces, paired with a targeted VAT cut for grassroots venues.
   
• Enforcing 'Agent of Change': Fully implementing planning protections to block developments near existing venues unless strict soundproofing is built in.
   
• Reversing Music Hub Cuts: Increasing Music Hub funding by 19% to reverse cuts since 2011, backed by multi-year settlements and an Arts Pupil Premium of at least £90 million per year.
   
• Recruiting 1,000 Music Teachers: Reinstating Music PGCE bursaries to bring 1,000 new music teachers into classrooms, while redirecting £25 million into a national instrument repair and maintenance scheme.

Unleashing International Growth

British musicians belong on the global stage. We want to tear down the post-Brexit barriers that have stifled international touring, with:

• Frictionless European Touring: Rejoining the European Single Market, Creative Europe, and entering a customs union with the EU to restore frictionless travel for touring artists and their equipment.
   
• Permanent Music Export Scheme: Placing the UK Music Export Growth Scheme on a permanent statutory footing to back emerging talent abroad.
   
• Cultural Envoys: Establishing a network of UK Cultural Envoys to champion British creative talent globally and secure reciprocal access for touring performers.

Music is not just an economic engine - it is central to our culture, identity, and soft power. The Liberal Democrats are ready to back British artists, defend intellectual property, and ensure music matters in every community and classroom.