Yesterday I mentioned that I was off to hear Tony Blair speak on the British creative economy. I waited for a bus to take me there but when it arrived it was full. Immediately behind it was a number 14 which takes me in the direction of my office. I decided to give Tony a miss but here is his speech in full. For those of you who would prefer an abstract, what he said is that arts are important, that before he came to power Britain was in a shocking state culturally, that he invested in the arts which are as a result flourishing as never before, and that he has commissioned a Green Paper which will make things even better. In the words of Macmillan's former Chairman 'You've never had it so good'. I think I may have made the right decision in taking the number 14 bus which passes the great grocery store, Fortnum and Mason on its journey towards the Macmillan offices in Kings Cross.

Yesterday saw Microsoft attack Google for its cavalier approach to copyright as reported here. It is true that Microsoft's dealings with libraries have always been respectful of in-copyright works and it is certainly in Microsoft's interests to support the legal protection of intellectual property. There are those who are suspicious of every move that Microsoft makes but I feel comforted that we publishers seem to have a rather substantial ally in our efforts to protect our authors' rights and a business model which not only rewards creativity but also encourages freedom of expression.

It was fascinating to read that one of Reed's former star authors, Naomi Campbell, is set to start mopping floors. When we published her 1996 novel Swan (Five girls and a dream to die for!) there were those who said that she hadn't actually written the book. Maybe she won't actually mop the floors either. I couldn't find a picture of Naomi in the swan dress she wore for the launch, so here's the book cover instead.

There has been a debate today about whether independent educational establishments should continue to enjoy charitable (hence tax-free) status. There are apparently new much tougher public benefit tests which the organisations have to prove. There is much information about all this at Charity Commission's website. It will be interesting to see whether some publishers who are exempt from UK corporation tax on the grounds of their educational remit will find the new tests to their liking and how long it takes the Inland Revenue to wake up to this tax-raising opportunity.