Ministers aim for 1 million more jobs in creative industries by 2030

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UK ministers have pledged extra support for Britain’s creative industries as part of a strategy to create 1 million more jobs in the sector within a decade.

UK culture secretary Lucy Frazer will say in a speech in London on Thursday that the government wants Britain’s creative sectors to grow by an extra £50bn in value by 2030.

The government is to unveil a creative industries plan before the summer, which is expected to focus on expanding specialist ‘clusters’ of companies in different parts of the UK in sectors such as games and cinema, and developing skilled workers.

Creative industries are one of the “pillars of the economy” that Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has prioritized alongside technology, green industries, life sciences and advanced manufacturing.

Hunt said the creative industries are key to underpinning the UK’s ambition to foster the next Silicon Valley in tech companies.

Frazer will tell Deloitte and Enders’ media and telecoms conference Thursday morning that government “can do more tangible things to support our creatives,” but he also warned of the threat of growing global competition. “We can’t afford to be complacent,” he’ll say.

The UK is a leading country for film and television production, thanks to access to large scenic spaces, tax breaks and the purchasing powers of broadcasters such as the BBC. The UK is also believed to have a competitive edge in other industries such as music and gaming.

Creative industries employ more than two million people, according to the government, meaning the new targets reflect an ambition to grow the sector by a third in seven years.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport is developing the plan for growth of the sector across the UK. Frazer will say the government will support skills, ranging from music and extracurricular activities for primary school children to boot camps and apprenticeships for those looking for work or returning to the workforce.

He will say businesses will be encouraged to cluster across the UK as “support cannot be at the expense of London or detract from those places that are already thriving. . . it has to build on what we’ve already seen across the country. Whether it’s video games in Dundee and Leamington Spa, or TV in Birmingham and Leeds”.

The government will also aim for ‘specific support to different sub-sectors, to unlock growth across the UK’, it will add.