§ Simon HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what(a) financial and (b) other assistance has been provided towards film making in (i) Greater London and (ii) England in each of the last five years. [162341]
§ Estelle MorrisThe following table gives details of financial assistance towards film making in (i) Greater London (GL) and (ii) the rest of England (Eng) for the last five years. Prior to the establishment of the UK Film Council in April 2000, funding for film production was channelled through the British Film Institute's (BFI) production arm, the Arts Council of England (ACE) and British Screen Finance Limited. The UK Film Council took over responsibility for investing in film making from the date of its inception in April 2000.
Also, from 2001–02 an additional £7.5 million per year has been allocated to regional film development, and allocated through the Regional Screen Agencies. These have the promotion of film making as a core concern, but also assist training programmes and a wide range of other activities which work to promote film on a regional level.
In addition to the funding referred to above, the UK Film Council's film-making scheme for young people, First Light, has made 34 awards to projects in Greater London at a cost of £494,466, and awarded funding to an additional 120 projects in the rest of England at a cost of £1,250,765.
As well as financial assistance, the UK Film Council works to create the best possible environment for filmmaking in the UK. Examples of its activities include the joint establishment, with Skillset, last year of the first ever skills strategy for the film industry.