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

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on the potential effect of an integrated transport system on the creative industries in South Yorkshire.

Strong transport connections are important to all businesses but particularly so for creative industries, which rely on bringing together creative talent. Growth of creative industries in particular locations benefits neighbouring areas and therefore support for creative hubs can boost the local economies around them. Furthermore, creative industries are overwhelmingly micro businesses and SMEs with a network of suppliers and collaborators including freelancers. For these networks to function effectively, communication links are critical.

South Yorkshire benefits from a number of fast-growing creative industries such as Sheffield’s strengths in digital, publishing and design alongside that of Sheffield’s universities widely recognised . South Yorkshire also neighbours other counties with fast-growing creative industries clusters including fashion in Leeds and film, TV, games and media in York, both of which have benefited from recent investment via the Arts & Humanities Research Council’s £100m Creative Industries Cluster Programme.