Creative Industries Task Force

The Creative Industries Task Force brings many of New Labour's favourites into the Department of Culture, Media and Sport. The main Task Force is dominated by donors to the Labour Party and personal friends of Government ministers.

• Lord Waheed Alli Multi-millionaire founder of Planet 24 Television. Now Managing Director of Production at Carlton Television.
• Richard Branson, Tony Blair's favourite beardie millionaire, is the founder of the Virgin empire which includes companies like Virgin Trains, Virgin Airlines and Virgin Music (sold to EMI in 1992 for £510 million). His personal wealth is put at £2.4 billion. He was knighted by Tony Blair in the 2000 New Year's Honours List. Despite the fact that Branson's solely-owned companies are actually losing money, in May 2000 the Virgin Group was paid £35,000 by the Department of Health for advice on how to make the NHS more 'consumer-friendly'.
• Robert Devereux, Branson's brother-in-law, has a stake in Virgin and property worth £35 million.

Janice Hughes is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of Spectrum Stategy Consultants, an Internet and Communications consultancy, and Chair of SVM (a venture capital fund). Lord Puttnam is Chair of Spectrum Strategy Consultants.

Lord Puttnam is the former head of Columbia Pictures, where he made oscar-winning films like Chariots of Fire and the Killing Fields. He is the boss of Enigma Productions, a Director of Anglia Television, a Governor of the London School of Economics and has been appointed as Chair of the General Teaching Council for its first 18 months from September 2000 (although he has no teaching experience).

Sir Richard Branson Billionaire boss of the Virgin empire.

Robert Devereaux Richard Branson's brother-in-law. Former Chairman of the Virgin Entertainment Group. He gave £5000 or more to the Labour Party in 1997 and 1998.

Janice Hughes Co-Founder of Spectrum Stategy Consultants, an Internet and Communications consultancy.

Alan McGee Alan McGee Founder of Creation Records in 1984, gave £20,000 to the Labour Party in March 1999. Creation Records gave £24,838 before the election in 1997.

Lord David Puttnam Lord Puttnam, boss of Enigma Productions, gave more than £5,000 to the Labour Party in 1997.

Gail Rebuck is the most powerful woman in UK publishing. She is Chair and Chief Executive of the Random House Group, one of the largest publishing companies in the world. Her husband is Philip Gould (of Focus Group fame), one of Tony Blair's most important advisers. Rebuck is a millionaire, and a trustee of New Labour's favourite think-tank, the IPPR.

Eric Salama is Group Director of Strategy at WPP, controlling £20 million of investment. WPP is the largest advertising group in the world with 25,000 employees in 90 countries. WPP includes advertising agencies like J Walter Thompson and Ogilvy & Mather, and Millward Brown the market research company. Salama worked as an adviser and speech-writer for the Labour Party front bench team for 3 years before becoming Managing Director of the Henley Centre marketing consultancy. He went to Oxford University. Tony Blair has also appointed him to the Board of the British Museum. WPP's Chief Executive, Lord Martin Sorrell, was paid £35 million in 1999 (Sorrell also sits on the Foreign Office's Panel 2000).

Paul Smith is the UK's most successful Fashion Designer and Chairman of the Paul Smith international design company, which has an annual turnover of £142 million.

In August 1999, a new sub-section of the Task Force was set up with Robert Devereux as Chair, called the Creative Industries Task Force Inquiry on the Internet.

Gail Rebuck The most powerful woman in UK publishing, Chair of the Random House Group, of of the largest publishing companies in the world. Wife of Philip Gould, Tony Blair's Focus Group Guru.

Eric Salama Director of WPP, the largest advertising agency in the world. He was paid £259,000 in 1998.

Paul Smith Fashion Designer and Chairman of the Paul Smith international design company, which has an annual turnover of £142 million.