Helena Kennedy, an internationally-recognized barrister and British Parliament heavyweight, has been appointed chair of a U.K. watchdog group that will investigate harassment and abuse in industries spanning music, film, TV and theater.
British stars like Keira Knightley, Cara Delevigne, Emerald Fennell and Rebecca Ferguson in an open letter last month urged creative organizations to help fund the Creative Industries Independent Standards Authority (CIISA). The chief of Bectu, Britain’s Britain’s Broadcasting, Entertainment, Communications and Theatre Union, told The Hollywood Reporter this week that CIISA’s launch is expected in the coming few years as it fortifies its funding.
Leaders across the creative sector, as well as those in government, have endorsed the creation of CIISA. Upholding and improving standards of behavior across the creative industries is proving more vital than ever following recent allegations, such as those against Russell Brand or on the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing. Acknowledging the need for an independent authority to combat bullying and harassment of a discriminatory nature has, many think, become imperative.
“The creation of an Independent Standards Authority for the Creative Industries is a very important development,” Kennedy said. “A high proportion of those working in the arts and in other cultural fields are self-employed and especially vulnerable to abusive and exploitative conduct. A carefully-wrought framework is essential to create fair and respectful treatment for everyone in these working environments. I also think the CIISA could provide a template for other sectors where such problems are also rife. This will be the ‘go-to’ body for anyone experiencing misconduct. I am looking forward to chairing the Board and helping in its establishment.”
Kennedy, a Labor member of the House of Lords, has recently been appointed the Order of the Thistle in Scotland in recognition of her extensive human rights and social justice work both in the U.K. and abroad. A director of the International Bar Association’s Institute of Human Rights, she has helped develop the defense of PTSD in U.K. courts and made strides in the fight to stop violence against women and children.
In 2012, she led the Equality and Human Rights Commission Inquiry in Scotland addressing human trafficking and in 2021, when Afghanistan fell to the Taliban, Kennedy evacuated 102 women judges and prosecutors who were on death lists by raising funds, securing safe houses, chartering planes and resettling the women around the world. She is currently working for Ukraine’s President Zelensky on war crimes and the alleged abduction of Ukrainian children by Russian forces.
Heather Rabbatt and James Bond mogul Barbara Broccoli, founders of Time’s Up U.K., said of Kennedy’s appointment: “[We] founded Time’s Up U.K. back in 2018, focused on making practical interventions to bring about change in the industry dealing specifically with bullying, harassment and abuse. The idea of creating a new standards authority started its journey with Time’s Up U.K. and has been in development with the creative industries round table and many other partners over these last few years. We are absolutely delighted that Baroness Helena Kennedy is our inaugural chair to launch CIISA this year.”
CIISA research found that 53 percent of respondents did not currently feel confident reporting concerns, with 75 percent stating their fear that reporting would have a negative impact on their career and 67 percent believing that their concerns would not get resolved in any event. A whopping 91 percent backed the creation of CIISA.
