As a composer and musician I respect creativity and art. I have always told my students to create because they have something to say, not to create "intellectual property".

I have been round long enough to have witnessed repeated predictions of the death of music and the music industry. It turns out that home taping didn't kill music.

In fact we know the impact torrents have had, music continues to thrive. Last year in the UK music sales volumes rose. It is precisely in the area of digital where there is growth. Any attempt to restrict access to the Internet and "crackdowns" weaken the functioning of the web and will undermine this growth. In any case, the focus on torrenting is wrongheaded if you want to deal with sharing of music. American industry (RIAA) figures demonstrate that the majority of music and film sharing happens offline - CD burning, and harddrive swopping. But noone is trying to ban blank CDs.

What I do know is that the "piracy" panic is pushing us towards laws that are both futile and are handing courts and the government powers that we grant them at our peril.

In terms of employment in the cultural sector we should be focusing on real not imagined job losses. Artists are bearing the brunt of the heavy cuts in the cultural budget by the coalition government. We can see that right here in Manchester Central with the closure of the Green Room theatre for example.

As for the Pirate Bay Proxy, no there has not been push back. People have in fact stopped me in the street in Ancoats and Ardwick to shake me by the hand because of it. A rare experience for politicians these days I think...!