Ian McKellan, Sir Elton John, Dame Shirley Bassey, and Hugh Grant are some of the more than 400 industry leaders who are urging the Prime Minister to support UK creativity and economic growth by enforcing copyright law on AI. In an open letter asking Keir Starmer asking to protect copyright, the “lifeblood” of their careers, a host of celebrities, filmmakers and creative titans have made their case for an amendment to the Data (Use and Access) Bill which would require tech companies to be transparent about the creative content they use to train

Robbie Williams and Coldplay also signed the letter, which asks the Government not to “give our work away.” It comes after the Bill passed its third reading in the Commons on Wednesday, with the Government resisting proposals to include changes relating to AI and copyright. A vote is due to take place in the House of Lords on Monday, May 12. The letter says that the proposed legal change will threaten Britain’s status as a leading creative power.

It reads: “We will lose an immense growth opportunity if we give our work away at the behest of a handful of powerful overseas tech companies and with it our future income, the UK’s position as a creative powerhouse, and any hope that the technology of daily life will embody the values and laws of the United Kingdom.”

Other signatories to the letter are Piers North, Reach's chief revenue officer, David Furnish, Florence Welch, Kate Bush, Antonia Fraser, Tom Stoppard, Richard Curtis, Kazuo Ishiguro, Moira Buffini, Russell T Davies, Rachel Whiteread, Antony Gormley, Emily Eavis, Tom Dixon, John Pawson, and Justine Roberts, amid hundreds of others.

The letter warns: “We will lose an immense growth opportunity if we give our work away at the behest of a handful of powerful overseas tech companies and with it our future income, the UK’s position as a creative powerhouse, and any hope that the technology of daily life will embody the values and laws of the United Kingdom.

It continues: “The first job of any government is to protect its citizens. So, we urge His Majesty’s Government to accept the Lords Amendments in the name of Baroness Kidron that put transparency at the heart of the copyright regime and allow both AI developers and creators to develop licensing regimes that will allow for human-created content well into the future.

“ These amendments recognise the crucial role that creative content plays in the development of generative AI. They will spur a dynamic licensing market that will enhance the role of human creativity in the UK, positioning us as a key player in the global AI supply chain.”

Under the current government proposal, AI companies will be able to use copyright-protected material unless the copyright holder “opts out” of the process. It is not yet clear what opting out would look like.

Baroness Kidron, who put forward the amendment said: “The UK creative industries reflect our national stories, drive tourism, create wealth for the nation and provide 2.4 million jobs across our four nations. They must not be sacrificed to the interests of a handful of US tech companies. Nor should we underestimate the role of human creativity in the joy of being human nor the need for common facts to cement our collective experience.”

Supporters of the Kidron amendment say the change will mean creatives' whose work is used for training generative AI such as ChatGPT, are compensated for the use of their material via licensing deals. The main source of training for these open AI models is online, including the contents of Wikipedia, YouTube, newspaper articles and book arhcives.

The government has submitted one amendment to the data bill that commits to officials carrying out an economic impact assessment of its proposals

A government spokesperson said: "We want our creative industries and AI companies to flourish, which is why we're consulting on a package of measures that we hope will work for both sectors. "We're clear that no changes will be considered unless we are completely satisfied they work for creators," they added.