TIGA, the trade association representing the UK games industry, said today that UK politicians have been “asleep at the wheel”” as the Canadian games development workforce grew to exceed that of the UK. TIGA made the comments following a report in Develop Magazine that the Canadian development workforce has now overtaken the UK to become the third largest developer of video games in the world.
Dr Richard Wilson, CEO of TIGA, said:
“UK politicians have been asleep at the wheel – while the Canadian video games industry has soared in numbers and the UK development workforce has declined. There was nothing inevitable about this process. Canadian policy makers simply took the farsighted decision to create an attractive environment to do games business, in particular, through the provision of generous tax breaks.
“UK policy makers need to wake up. If we are to rebalance the UK economy away from an excessive reliance on public sector employment and financial services then we must encourage the growth of other sectors, including creative industries such as the video games industry. It is not too late to ensure that the UK remains a leading developer of video games. The UK Coalition Government must look again at our proposal for Games Tax Relief – a measure that over five years would generate 3,550 graduate level jobs, £457 million in investment, encourage new business models and the generation of new IP. “