Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans his Department has to assist and promote the UK video games industry in areas outside London.

The video games tax relief, launched in April 2014, is available to support video games productions based anywhere in the UK. Additionally, in October 2015 we launched our new £4m UK Games Fund to accelerate video games sector growth in all UK regions offering grants, mentoring and skills support for micro-businesses and SMEs. Of the first 24 successful grant applicants announced in February 2016, 18 were based outside London. Grant winning companies located in the North East of England for example included Coatsink Software in Sunderland, Nosebleed Interactive in Newcastle and Cardboard Sword and Double Eleven, both in Middlesbrough. The second call for applications is currently underway and closes on 18th April.

The UK Games Fund’s talent programme, Tranzfuser, is currently in development and will be working with a UK-wide network of regional hubs including Vector 76 in the North East of England, The Digital Creativity Hub in the North West and Sheffield Hallam University in South Yorkshire.