Dame Lynne Brindley DBE, Chief Executive of the British Library, appointed to Strategic Advisory Board for Intellectual Property (SABIP)
02 May 2008
- Dame Lynne Brindley DBE appointed to SABIP as one of the members to give Ministers strategic advice on intellectual property issues
- SABIP was set up following a recommendation of the Gowers Review of Intellectual Property
- SABIP will be an advisory non-departmental body with a research budget to commission the empirical evidence that will underpin its thinking and advice
Dame Lynne Brindley DBE, Chief Executive of the British Library, welcoming her appointment stated: “I am honoured to have been selected to sit on the board of SABIP and look forward to working together with the other members to provide strategic counsel to the government.
The British Library has played a key role in the debate on copyright in the digital age and this is something I continue to take a personal interest in. I am concerned that the shift from print to digital publishing is undermining the traditional balance at the heart of copyright in ways that could make it harder for researchers to access and use information.
The British Library works to balance the rights of creators to be recognised and rewarded for their work with the public interest in ensuring access to information and ideas. As a publisher in our own right, we also understand the threats and opportunities presented to rights holders by the digital revolution.
I believe copyright is critical to a healthy creative industry. We need to find the right balance on intellectual property in order to support an innovative knowledge economy.”
For further information and interviews, please contact: Lawrence Christensen at the British Library Press Office, +44 (0)20 7412 7114, lawrence.christensen@bl.uk or Suvi Kankainen, +44 (0)20 7412 7105, suvi.kankainen@bl.uk
For enquiries about SABIP please contact Nadia Vally on +44 (0)20 7596 6533
For enquiries about the UK Intellectual Property Office press or media activities please contact the Communications Team on +44 (0)1633 814840 or +44 (0)1633 813825
Notes to Editors
Strategic Advisory Board for Intellectual Property (SABIP) was set up following a recommendation of the Gowers Review of intellectual Property. It will operate as a non-departmental public body helping to provide a strategic overview of IP policy in the context of the wider economy.
Following an open competition, five members have been appointed to SABIP under the Chairmanship of Joly Dixon CMG :
- Dame Lynne Brindley DBE - Chief Executive of the British Library
- Dr Cathy Garner - Chief Executive of Manchester Knowledge Capital
- Professor John Pickering - Member of the Competition Appeals Tribunal and Business Consultant
- Dr Jonathan Spencer, CB - former Director General at the Departments of Trade and Industry and Constitutional Affairs and member of the Solicitors' Regulation Authority
- Iain Wilcock - Founder and Deputy Managing Director of Quester Capital, a healthcare investment company
This is a public appointment, which has been made in accordance with the Code of Practice of the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments (OCPA). Members will be appointed for an initial period of two years and will be paid £6,000 p.a. each. Appointments have been made on merit in an open competition and political activity played no part in the selection process. In accordance with the requirement for appointees' political activity to be made public all applicants filled in a political activity questionnaire.
Full biographies of members can be found at www.ipo.gov.uk/sabip
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and one of the world's greatest research libraries. It provides world class information services to the academic, business, research and scientific communities and offers unparalleled access to the world's largest and most comprehensive research collection. The Library's collection has developed over 250 years and exceeds 150 million separate items representing every age of written civilisation. It includes: books, journals, manuscripts, maps, stamps, music, patents, newspapers and sound recordings in all written and spoken languages. www.bl.uk.
A dedicated British Library Intellectual Property site now exists at www.bl.uk/ip.
Joly Dixon currently has part time assignments with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the UK IPO. He is a Statistics Commissioner and chairs the Fiscal Policy Panel in Jersey. Full biographies of SABIP members can be found at www.ipo.gov.uk/sabip