Around 50,000 new jobs are set to be created over the next three years in the UK's creative industries, Film and Broadcasting Minister Janet Anderson said yesterday.
And the jobs boom will not be confined to the capital – cities like Manchester, Sheffield, Huddersfield and Birmingham will benefit as the sector, which includes advertising, design, the performing arts, TV, film and computer games – expands.
Janet Anderson told the London College of Fashion's Millennium Conference that the creative industries already generated £60 billion of revenue each year and employed 1.4 million people.
She said, "The creativity of the British is one of our greatest strengths. This Government is fully behind those who develop and make the most of this creativity to generate wealth and jobs, enriching everyone's lives and having a real economic impact."
"The creative industries are growing at a rate of 5 per cent a year, twice the national average, and I am very pleased to see that this growth is not simply focused on the capital. The drive and imagination that are behind these new industries is bursting out all over the country. So it comes as no surprise to me that cities like Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds, Birmingham, Huddersfield and many more are all seeing the creative industries driving their regeneration."
Janet Anderson concluded, "These industries are a vibrant, exciting, productive part of the economy – they make a difference! They also have significant growth potential – we can realistically expect to see the creation of nearly 50,000 new jobs in the UK within these industries over the next three years. A majority of these will be skilled jobs – widening our skills base and equipping us as a nation to take the lead in the development and use of new, creative technologies."
"Government and industry need to work together to build on what we have achieved and move beyond the easy rhetoric to back up our words with action. We need to drive the agenda forward, exploiting the spirit of partnership which the Creative Industries Task Force has engendered. Together, we can, we must and we will make that difference."
