BFI Charts U.K. Screen Tax Relief Benefits

The U.K. government’s film and television tax incentives resulted in a £13.5 billion boost to the local economy, creating 219,000 jobs, between 2017 and 2019, according to Screen Business, a new independent report published by the BFI.

In addition to record-breaking levels of production and jobs, the tax incentives boosted local businesses and led to infrastructure expansion across the U.K.’s nations and England’s regions. They also attracted record levels of inward investment and boosted exports of U.K. productions and services internationally.

In the period from 2017 to 2019, an estimated £1.02 billion in tax relief seeded £5.11 billion in direct production spend in 2019, a 61 percent increase from 2016. Production spend on film, high-end, children’s television and animation that would not take place without the tax relief was worth £6.14 billion in 2019.

In the period from 2017 to 2019, direct spend on film and high-end television across the U.K. grew by 74 percent from the previous forecast period to reach £13.86 billion. Direct spend on production generated a record £5.11 billion in 2019 across all screen sectors, up from £4.31 billion in 2017. This included £2.08 billion from high-end TV production, £86 million from children’s TV program production and £65.3 million from animation program production. Inward investment and co-production spend for film, high-end TV, animation and children’s programs was £3.45 billion in 2019, 81 percent of total spend.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak commented, “The U.K. is home to some of the best creative talent in the world and our TV and film industry is a jewel in our crown, driving hundreds of thousands of jobs and billions for the economy. We’ve ensured the sector has had our support throughout the pandemic, with the furlough and self-employment schemes, and the £500 million Film and TV production Restart Scheme is now helping productions get back up and running. We continue to support the creative sector—our tax reliefs make the U.K. an attractive place to film and are driving a wave of private investment, and our Plan for Jobs is helping more people to enter the industry through apprenticeships, traineeships and the Kickstart scheme.”

“This report shows just how important government action has been in driving unprecedented growth across the screen industries,” added Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries. “U.K. content not only keeps audiences at home and around the world entertained but also provides a huge boost to our economy. We have backed our incredible screen sector during the pandemic, through the UK Film &TV Production Restart Scheme and the Culture Recovery Fund, to ensure the country cements its reputation as being the best place in the world to shoot high-end film and TV.”

“We work with industry and government to build the U.K. screen sector,” noted Ben Roberts, BFI Chief Executive. “Screen Business is evidence of the strength of the tax reliefs and how they have supported a staggering level of production and jobs, and built business across the U.K.’s nations and regions. It’s a testament to this strength that our screen industries have bounced back faster than almost any other industry post-pandemic. As we look to the future we need to ensure that we stay on top of our game—by building the skilled workforce this level of production critically needs and increasing investment in areas across the U.K. where there are opportunities for growth and innovation.”

Screen Business was produced by the international consultancy Olsberg SPI with Nordicity and commissioned by the BFI.