I’m sure Conway understands that free access overseas leads to future sales, but for the PA, soundbites beat strategy every time.

The UK’s Publishers Association (PA) has endorsed the government’s ambitious new International Education Strategy, which aims to boost education exports to £40bn by 2030. However, the trade body warns that this goal is fundamentally undermined by the government’s own “state publisher,” Oak National Academy.

The Conflict of Interest

The core contention lies with Oak National Academy, originally a pandemic-response charity now converted into an Arm’s Length Body of the Department for Education (DfE).

Because Oak provides high-quality curriculum resources for free online, accessible globally, the PA argues it directly cannibalises the market for British educational publishers trying to sell similar resources abroad.

Dan Conway, CEO of the PA, describes this as a failure of “joined-up thinking.” Yeah, don’t laugh. Dan Conway? Joined-up thinking?

This is the guy who applauded the Francis Report for not dealing with the UK’s reading crisis.

While the Department for Business and Trade pushes for export growth, the DfE is effectively flooding the international market with free, state-subsidised product. The PA is urgently calling for Oak to be geo-blocked to protect the commercial sector’s IP and revenue streams.

The Wider Context: Protectionism vs. Access

This dispute is the latest chapter in a bitter saga. In 2022, the PA, alongside the Society of Authors and BESA, launched a judicial review against the DfE’s operating model for Oak.

They argued (I use the term loosely) it creates a “one-size-fits-all” monopoly that threatens the diversity of educational resources.

However, the PA’s stance raises uncomfortable questions for the wider educational landscape. By demanding geo-blocking, the industry risks appearing protectionist, prioritising profit margins over the global public good of accessible education.

Critics argue that restricting free, high-quality British pedagogical resources denies developing nations access to vital tools, contradicting the UK’s soft power goals.

More importantly, education researchers suggest that open educational resources (OER) drive innovation rather than stifle it. By locking down Oak, the PA may be fighting a rearguard action against inevitable digital democratisation.

The View From The Beach

While their duty is to protect member revenues, the aggressive move to restrict global access to taxpayer-funded resources could damage the UK’s reputation as a benevolent leader in global education, trading long-term influence for short-term commercial security.

The government’s strategy (again, I’m using terms loosely here) shifts focus from recruiting international students to the UK toward exporting UK education overseas.

I’m sure Conway understands that free access overseas leads to future sales, but for the PA, soundbites beat strategy every time.

This post first appeared in the TNPS LinkedIn newsfeed.