Given that Rishi Sunak has taken ‘Digital’ away from DCMS, the department will now have a new focus. Luckily, it can still keep the initialism as it is still a ‘Department’ and is responsible for ‘Culture’, ‘Media’, and ‘Sport’. With this new focus comes a new Secretary of State in the form of Lucy Frazer. It may seem like a trivial portfolio but she has the potential to make some significant changes.
First up, it’s Eurovision. The fact that the UK is hosting it for the first time in ages really is a big deal, especially for Liverpool and the surrounding area. We have evidence which shows the positive impact that hosting Eurovision can have on a host city and nation. We should expect it to be no different for Liverpool and the UK. The city and the country will see an influx of people from all around the world, not only to see the main event but also for the various other events which surround it. This will provide a welcome boost for all the pubs, bars, restaurants, and hotels not only in Liverpool but also in the surrounding towns and cities. Places such as my hometown of Huddersfield, for example, look set to see their hotels and bars filled with cheesy music fans.
Eurovision is a major event and has the potential to bring real economic benefits. As such, it’s vitally important that DCMS makes sure nothing goes wrong. A priority needs to be ensuring that the trains are running properly. In theory it should be relatively simple getting from somewhere such as Leeds or Huddersfield to Liverpool via train. Unfortunately, this route is operated by TransPennine Express, an organisation which would find it difficult to get people even remotely tipsy in a brewery. Signalling failures, rota issues, and sometimes staff just not turning up mean that journeys on this route are almost always delayed or cancelled. It is awful that this happens at all, but it cannot be allowed to happen while the North of England is hosting such a major event.
Then there are licensing issues. I’ve written before about how London of all places is being held back by kill joys and NIMBYs who force clubs and bars to close far too early. I know that thankfully it is much better in Manchester but NIMBYs should not be able to ruin Eurovision for people. DCMS should overrule local authorities if necessary and ensure that bars, clubs, pubs, and restaurants are allowed to stay open on the day of the main event and also the days leading up to it. The city centres should also be pedestrianised in order to give venues more space. This should be the case across the UK as we should expect other cities to see an increase in tourism, especially in the days leading up to the main event on the Saturday.
Security and safety is also sadly an issue. They’re obviously completely different events but football matches have seen an increase in fans storming the pitch and during the final of Euro 2020 we saw people force their way into Wembley without a ticket. Even more disturbingly we saw people die at the Brixton Academy. Thankfully deaths and injuries at live music events in the UK are very rare, but they can happen. DCMS must ensure this is not the case at Eurovision.
Moving away from Eurovision, DCMS should make the Premier League scrap the transfer window. I wrote about this a few years ago but the transfer window is ultimately bad for clubs and bad for fans and we’d be far better off without it. As economics graduate and former Man Utd (best team in the world) player pointed out, “I cannot see the logic in a transfer window. It brings on a fire-sale mentality, causes unrest via the media and means clubs buy too many players. The old system, where if you had a problem you could look at loans or make a short-term purchase, was far better than this system we have at the moment”.
As for the TV, it was good to see that plans to privatise Channel 4 have been pretty much abandoned. I wrote last year why this is a good idea. The new Secretary of State might face pressure from some Tories and various pressure groups to change course, but she should hold her ground and say no.
DCMS also needs to look at how it supports our museums and galleries. I’m proud to be a friend of the British Museum (alright, Mark Corrigan) and do think it’s amazing value for what you get. I also think it’s right that many museums are right to look at their legacies and ensure that they are inclusive places for all. However, I believe that giving the Elgin Marbles to Greece would be a mistake (I’ll probably write something on this at some point in the future).
We also need to look at the funding model of museums and galleries. It’s a good thing that DCMS sponsors our most culturally significant ones and this should continue. However, there is probably a case to be made for charging the public for entry while also maintaining support. They should definitely remain free for young people and those on low incomes, but we should look at charging an entry fee to everyone else or perhaps just tourists. DCMS should also be much more generous in its support for other, smaller museums.
DCMS also needs to ensure that culture, media, and sport are well represented in future trade deals. Our media companies are world leading and the Premier League is another huge asset. We need to ensure that they have greater market access and that people from all over the world can enjoy them.
Finally, we need to look at the Online Safety Bill as it’s my understanding that responsibility will still sit with DCMS. It really is a terrible Bill and should be scrapped. It will increase censorship, reduce competition, hamper innovation, and generally just punish adults who are not doing anything wrong.
We’re pretty good at the whole culture, media, and sport think in the UK. Of course, things could be even better and a refocused DCMS can play an important role in this.