The report highlights that the creative industries saw a 35% increase in employment from 2011–2019 and that the DCMS sectors account for 5.3 million jobs, which is 15.7% of total employment figures for the UK. Despite these figures however, DCMS remains one of the smallest departments in Government in terms of budget.

The DCMS recommendations for the creative industries were published after the announcement of a £1.57 billion relief fund on 6 July 2020 and include the formation of a Creators Council to ensure a better dialogue with the industry. This is a measure that ALCS has been campaigning for along with other creative organisations such as the British Equity Collecting Society (BECS), Design and Artists Copyright Society (DACS), Directors UK, Equity, Musicians’ Union, The Royal Society of Literature, Society of Authors and the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain (WGGB). A sector-specific Job Retention Scheme (JRS) and Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) are also recommended until creative work and income returns to sustainable levels, with specific reference to support for the self-employed who have been excluded to date.

ALCS has been urging members to write to their MPs to raise these concerns in Parliament, so we are extremely pleased to see that the DCMS committee has made these recommendations. Thank you to all ALCS members who got in touch with their MPs – we appreciate your support!

Read the full report and recommendations from the committee here.