Spring statement – our response

Following the spring statement, delivered in the House of Commons today (26 March 2025) by Chancellor Rachel Reeves MP (pictured), WGGB issued the following statement:

There was much talk in the spring statement about the Government’s mission to deliver security for working people, but sadly the experience of our members at the moment is the direct opposite of that.

We are seeing cuts to audio drama and continuing drama (most recently River City), a TV industry in crisis, theatres facing austerity in arts funding and a videogames industry decimated by lay-offs. Our author members are reeling from news last week that Meta had plundered their work – without permission or payment – to train AI, while our domestic film industry is still struggling after years of under-investment.

The Government’s recognition of the creative industries in their growth plans via their industrial strategy is important and we look forward to further detail and involvement in the development of this.

The Government said today that it would work closely with world-leading AI companies as part of their AI action plan, yet this must not be at the expense of creators’ remuneration or rights, as we have outlined in our recent response to the consultation on copyright and AI.

Alongside many in the trade union movement we are also concerned about the Government’s swingeing welfare and disability benefit cuts and their impact on writers and the wider community.