Publishing celebrated at Houses of Parliament
MPs, peers, publishers and leading figures in the UK’s books industry celebrated the importance of the publishing industry at the Publishers Association’s Winter Reception in Parliament yesterday afternoon (Tuesday 12 November).
Guests heard speeches from the event’s sponsor, Baroness Gail Rebuck; the Publishers Association’s President and Bonnier Books UK’s CEO, Perminder Mann; CEO of the Publishers Association, Dan Conway and bestselling author, Richard Osman.
Richard Osman spoke about British books being one of the UK’s great exports and shared some stories of his experience of being published in international markets. He also stated that ensuring each primary school has a library would be an “easy win” for the government.
Perminder Mann spoke about the transformative role books have played in her life and the importance of ensuring that children are encouraged and enabled to read for enjoyment. She also asked the government to protect creators’ work and the value of human creativity when considering how to approach the issue of AI and copyright.
Baroness Gail Rebuck shared insights from her career in publishing and emphasised the impact of British authors’ work on global stage noting that several of the most successful film franchises ever had started their lives as books by UK authors including Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings and James Bond.
In his closing remarks, Dan Conway thanked publishers from across the sector. Sharing that the sector is broad, including consumer publishers that publish riveting bestsellers, education publishers that underpin our education system in the UK and around the world and academic publishers that cement the UK’s status as a science and academic powerhouse. He emphasised that publishers are a force for good and their role in upholding truth and research integrity have never been more important than they are today Dan Conway also thanked new MPs in attendance and welcomed them for the first time to a Publishers Association reception as well as thanking publishing’s long-term supporters in parliament.