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[David Berry <d.berry AT sussex.ac.uk>]

http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2005/12/chancellor-announces- 
independent.html

The Chancellor of the Exchequer in the UK, Gordon Brown, has  
announced today the establishment of an Independent Review to examine  
the UK's intellectual property framework. The Review, announced as  
part of the Chancellor's Pre-Budget Report package, will be headed by  
Andrew Gowers, a former editor of the Financial Times and will run  
for 12 months.
The Government believes that the current IP system is fundamentally  
sound, striking the right balance between the interests of IPR owners  
and users, and so the Review will be examining what improvements can  
be made, and will make suggestions for targeted and practical policy  
recommendations.

In particular the Review will examine

* the way in which Government administers the awarding of IP and  
their support to consumers and business;
* how well businesses are able to negotiate the complexity and  
expense of the copyright and patent system, including copyright and  
patent licensing arrangements, litigation and enforcement; and
* whether the current technical and legal IP infringement framework  
reflects the digital environment, and whether provisions for fair use  
by citizens are reasonable.
Also, the Government's prior commitment to examining the duration of  
performers rights will be carried out as part of the Review

http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/independent_reviews/ 
gowers_review_intellectual_property/gowersreview_index.cfm