When I was invited to go to Parliament to discuss the proposed tax break for the games industry in the UK and investment in education to safeguard the industry, I immediately thought of Frank Capra’s Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. I could see myself, just like Jimmy Stewart, one man against all the corruption of the government, out alone to bring about good, to change things for the better against all the odds… not that I have a romanticised fantasy world that I inhabit in my head or anything. Like Mr. Smith said, “I wouldn’t give you two cents for all your fancy rules if, behind them, they didn’t have a little bit of plain, ordinary, everyday kindness and a little looking out for the other fella, too.”
I believe wholeheartedly that the sort of tax relief enjoyed by the Canadian industry would have seismic effect in the UK and especially Scotland. Here is a country that has had, next to Japan, probably the biggest effect on the industry in its history. With games like Lemmings, Crackdown and of course the GTA series under our belts you cannot fault Scotland on its incredibly influential creativity. The money just isn’t here though. We have the developers but no publishers. In a country with a great education system, a thriving industry but a falling population, this tax break would help not just Scotland but the whole industry. Nurturing Scotland’s talent for making games would benefit everyone. With this thought firmly in my head I set out for Scotland’s Parliament at Holyrood on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile, suited and booted!
After going through security, the large group that had amassed for TIGA’s Scotland in Focus conference were taken through the huge building to a reception area where we picked up name tags, picked at the buffet and mingled, handing out business cards to each other. I have a beautiful tower of very snazzy perspex business cards… in the house. I never remember to take them anywhere. I was too nervous to eat and my suit trousers didn’t have buffet allowance anyway. The lovely Dave Thomson from Denki sidled up to me and we discussed ‘the plan’ to remain quiet, conformist and under no circumstances be revolutionary in any way. Nodding conspiratorially we went about our business. I hooked up with GMA award winning, Ink Media Managing Director and ex-Ready Up writer, Dave Cook. We headed into the spectacular conference room, stumbled into two seats and got out notepaper and pens.
The speakers from TIGA, NESTA, Denki, Real Time Worlds and French Duncan covered all the topics with great aplomb. They discussed the problem of not receiving distribution revenue from games as overseas publishers siphon away the money from the country. The future of digital distribution was discussed with a focus on how to get the initial investment before this avenue can pay off. Farmville’s success was discussed as a great example of digital distribution with Zynga having posted figures just the day before of 60 million players.
During the talks we were joined by the Minister for Culture, Mike Russell, who listened attentively to everything said. I watched him and just as I was thinking about how much our industry had matured in recent years one of the speakers pointed out that “Let’s face it, two years ago they wouldn’t have let us through the door.” Here we all were, in our suits, amidst the finance guys and CEOs; developers and journalists, gamers basically, telling the government what’s what. The floor was opened up to questions and I heard someone say “I’d like to ask the Culture Minister, what exactly is the hold up with Tax Relief for this industry? It’s a win/win situation for the government and I don’t understand what the resistance to it is?” It was exactly the question I wanted answered which was no coincidence as it was me asking it. I had got to my feet and pointedly stared the guy in the face and asked him in a clear, steady voice for an answer. Despite appearances though I was incredibly nervous. I felt as though my retinas were detaching and after I sat down to write out the Minister’s answer I found I couldn’t as my pen danced across the page not making any proper markings. He reminded me that Scotland doesn’t have the fiscal powers to make such a decision and that if we did he’d support the tax break absolutely. We’d have to vote the right way next time if we wanted… I then interrupted the Minister for Culture to ask why indeed then was Westminster dragging its heels on this issue? He refused to speak on behalf of Westminster but pointed out sensibly that in the end it’s just not on their agenda yet, it’s not a big enough issue and is essentially “a matter of scale”. What is important to Scotland is further down the list in a UK-wide list of priorities.
The issue is getting more attention though. In fact the whole industry is receiving more serious interest from the powers that be. As long as we keep making games, talking about games and playing games our home grown industry will continue to develop and thrive and eventually get the full support of those who have the power to nurture and help us to compete in a global marketplace. I filed out of the conference with everyone else and drank a luke warm coffee, trying not to spill it down my white shirt. Denki’s Managing Director, Colin Anderson sidled up grinning and said “So what happened to ‘the plan’ then?” Hmm, it seems I’m not cut out to be a quiet conformist. Who’d a thunk it, eh? I sat in a taxi to the station staring out the window thinking of Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. “Will the Senator yield?” No, sir, I will not.
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