The Hon Rod Kemp was Minister for the Arts and Sport from Friday 23 November 2001 to Tuesday 30 January 2007. This site is available for archival purposes only.

PLR Chair reappointed

The Minister for Arts and Sport, Senator Rod Kemp, today announced that Mr John Shipp has been reappointed as Chair of the Public Lending Right (PLR) Committee for a further two years.

'Mr Shipp's expertise and experience continues to benefit the PLR Committee in its role of administering both the PLR and the Educational Lending Right (ELR) schemes,' Senator Kemp said.

Mr Shipp is highly regarded in the Australian library sector, and has previously served as President of the Australian Library and Information Association and the Council of Australian University Librarians. He has been the Chair of the PLR Committee since 2000 and is currently the University Librarian at the University of Sydney.

'The Australian Government is supporting the enrichment and development of Australian writing and publishing by making payments to eligible Australian creators and publishers, through the PLR and ELR schemes, based on the income lost from the availability of their books for use in lending libraries,' Senator Kemp said.

'In the 2004-05 Budget, ELR was allocated $44 million to continue the program over the next four years.'

PLR and ELR payments for 2004-05 are expected to be made in late May 2005-with payments totalling more than $17 million this year.

SYDNEY
4 March 2005

Media contact: Adrian Chippindale, 02 6277 7350 or 0407 208 743