A new group to enable politicians and professions involved in the computer games sector in Scotland to collaborate more closely on key issues of concern was established last night at Holyrood in a meeting attended by MSPs from all parties.
Dundee City West MSP Joe FitzPatrick was elected Convenor of the Group and said that he hoped the new group would enable better development of policy, improve communications within all parts of the sector and raise awareness of the opportunities and challenges facing the sector.
In the initial meeting, officers were elected and both TIGA (the trade association representing the UK's games industry) and NESTA (the National Endowment for Science, technology and the Arts) have said that they will be collaborating with the new group.
Speaking after the meeting, Joe FitzPatrick said: "I am pleased that the group has been established. The main aim is for developers and those key stakeholders at Universities and Colleges to get their message across to MSPs and keep the sector and politicians involved and informed.
"The next stage is to register the new group with Parliamentary Standards and get on with organising a first full meeting.
"It is hoped that the group will organise fact-finding visits to companies, educational institutions and key parts of the computer games sector.
"The industry currently faces a number of difficulties in securing finance for projects, which is inhibiting growth in the sector here in Dundee and across Scotland. With that in mind, we intend to examine whether a targeted tax relief, which would have to be introduced by the UK Government, or a Creative Content Fund as proposed by TIGA could alleviate some of the difficulties being faced by developers.
"While not all of these issues are within the remit of the Scottish Parliament, we hope this new Cross Party Group will create a stronger voice for the key partners in the industry in Scotland and more influence in policy-making to enable the sector to flourish, develop and expand, bringing high-quality jobs to Dundee and Scotland."
