Making The Case For Advertising’s Economic and Social Contribution at the Labour Party Conference

Our team was on the ground in Liverpool this week at what some have described as the biggest ever Labour Party Conference. Unseasonably warm weather across the three days meant the many venues from the main hall onto the fringe and into the bars and restaurants of the Albert Docks and surrounding areas were full of pass-wearing delegates, discussing the big political themes of the event.

The main event for the Advertising Association was our hosting of the Politics Home evening reception on Monday. After introductions from Politics Home editor, Laura Silver and a few words from our Director of Policy and Government Affairs, Lisa Hayley-Jones, Sir Chris Bryant MP newly appointed shadow minister for creative industries and digital, welcomed over 200 invited guests and promised to be the most passionate advocate for the creative industries should Labour win the next general election. It was standing room only, as colleagues and delegates from across the creative industries networked and shared insights on how creativity could help support jobs, and economic and social growth.

Outside of our flagship event, the team took a divide and conquer approach, choosing which of the 500 plus fringe events in the conference centre and surrounding Liverpool waterfront venues to go to.  Dominant and recurring themes of interest to our industry included AI, skills (including the apprenticeships levy), net zero, exports including a new relationship with Europe, and areas of concern such as online fraud, obesity, and gambling.

Labour MP, Matt Rodda, was a regular speaker on AI talking about the need to embrace this transformational technology to boost economic growth and improve public services – his ask was for people to provide positive examples of how and where AI is making new things possible, while also reinforcing the need to protect personal rights and copyright.

Speakers were wide and varied on net zero. Mary Portas made the case for the Better Business Act and Jonathan Reynolds MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Business and Trade noted the biggest ever engagement in green policies, evidenced by the packed rooms he was seeing on the topic. He asked leaders to talk about the opportunities, and stressed the importance of catalytic public investment where decarbonisation does not mean deindustrialisation. Our team even intercepted Ed Miliband MP where he praised the recent work of the ASA as it delivers updated guidance and rulings as part of its Climate Change and Environment project.

A common theme when members of the creative industries met to discuss exports and growth was the importance of Europe and a repeated desire to rejoin Creative Europe, a scheme akin to Horizon so valued by UK Science. Useful insights from Santander highlighted the challenges facing SMEs of all kinds, from meeting potential customers to actually getting their bills paid. Any UK advertising and marketing services SMEs should join our UK Advertising Exports Group which runs regular (and successful) trade missions to different markets around the world.

Debates on education and skills were also a common theme and we caught more than one reference to plans to change the Apprenticeship Levy and turn the scheme into something which could be more practical and useful, something we have been championing on behalf of members for quite a while. We hope to see some progress on that issue soon.

The biggest buzz though came from Scots Night (underlining the importance of Scotland to a UK election success for Labour), and the interest in speeches from new shadow DCMS secretary Thangam Debbonaire, Shadow Chancellor, Rachel Reeves and the Leader of the Opposition, Sir Keir Starmer.

Sequins aside, the conference message was this is a party serious about, and ready to, govern, should the electorate give it the opportunity. We will continue to make the case for advertising’s contribution to the Labour team as the next year’s political events unfold.

To find out more about our trip to the Conservative Party Conference, check out our write-up here.