TIGA appreciates the UK Spending Review's attention to the creative industries, while highlighting the "importance" of the UK Games Fund

TIGA has addressed the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer’s recent spending review, commending the government’s plan to boost funding for the creative sectors as "encouraging."

The review, unveiled by Reeves on June 11, proposed substantial funding increases aimed at fostering regional growth and innovation, nurturing creative hubs, and maintaining the global prominence of the UK's creative sector. The creative industries have been identified as one of the eight primary sectors for growth by the government.

The organization stated: “The Government’s intention to massively increase funding for the creative sectors, regarded as one of the essential drivers of growth, is encouraging. We await the specifics in the Creative Industries Sector Plan and the upcoming Industrial Strategy White Paper.

"Proposals in the spending review for capital investment, educational funding, and the British Business Bank are also promising," noted TIGA CEO, Dr. Richard Wilson OBE. “The UK gaming sector is also eagerly anticipating the Autumn Budget. A key action the Government can take to catalyze investment, boost employment, and foster studio expansion in the UK gaming industry is to enhance the Video Games Expenditure Credit.

"In our recommendations to the Government, we emphasized the necessity of investing in the UK Games Fund and proposed raising the VGEC rate from 34 percent to 39 percent; increasing qualifying expenditure from 80 percent to 100 percent; or establishing an Independent Games Tax Credit (IGTC) akin to the Independent Film Tax Credit, offering a 53 percent rate on 80 percent of qualifying expenses for projects up to £23.5 million. Implementing one or more of these changes would help reinforce the UK’s position as a premier hub for game development, stimulate investment, create high-skilled jobs, and support the expansion of gaming clusters across the country.”

Earlier this year, TIGA officially welcomed four new members to its board from the UK games industry.