UK Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer has set out her ambition to grow the creative industries by £50 billion in GVA and to create a million extra jobs by 2030.
Speaking at the Deloitte and Enders Media and Telecoms 2023 & Beyond conference, the Culture Secretary noted that since being appointed in February she had put forward proposals to update gambling laws, announced plans to introduce an independent regulator for football and published the draft Media Bill.
She told the conference that her focus will now turn to growing the UK’s world-leading creative industries: “Our creative industries are world class. We are in the golden age of the silver screen. We rival any country in the world at sound and visual effects, and are on track to double UK film stage space by 2025.”
According to BFI figures, the UK had a record £6.27 billion film and high-end television production spend in 2022. Studios such as Pinewood and Shepperton are expanding, while new studios such as Sky Studios Elstree and Shinfield Studios near Reading have recently come online.
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Frazer said: “I have zero doubt that we in Government can do more tangible things to support our creatives. But we cannot simply copy and paste the formula for that past success. We face increasing global competition and we cannot afford to be complacent.
Working with the Creative Industries Council, the DCMS is developing a Creative Industries Sector Vision which will focus on driving growth across the UK, building the workforce of the future, and help the sector maximise its wider impact on society.
The Culture Secretary said: “Over the next few months we will be identifying how we can go further. First - growing these sectors by promoting skills from primary school children to those returning to the workforce. Whether that is in music at school or extracurricular activities, and working with the creative sector on maximising the opportunities of bootcamps and apprenticeships.
“Secondly we want to harness talent in clusters across the UK and support cannot be at the expense of London or detract from those places that are already thriving. It needs to build on what we have already seen across the country. Whether that’s video games in Dundee and Leamington Spa, or TV in Birmingham and Leeds.
“And thirdly, targeting specific support at different sub sectors, to unlock growth across the UK.”
The Creative Industries Sector Vision will be published in the coming months.
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