April 15, 2019

Tiga says that the Government recently revealed that Innovate UK funding to businesses has reached nearly £5 billion since 2014.

Tiga explains that Innovate UK is part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), a national funding agency investing in science and research in the UK. UKRI works in partnership with universities, research organisations, businesses, charities and the Government to secure UK’S position as a world leader in research and development.

Answering a parliamentary Written Question, Government Minister Chris Skidmore MP stated that Innovate UK’s total core funding to businesses since 2014 was £4,927,852,733. Sectors which benefitted the most from this funding included aerospace, agri-tech, energy and healthcare.

Tiga says that Mr Skidmore’s answer additional reveals a fairy equal split between funding allocated to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and to large companies.

In response to these figures, Dr Richard Wilson OBE of Tiga said:

“TIGA welcomes the level of R&D funding received by SMEs through Innovate UK. As an organisation that represents many SMEs and start-ups, we are pleased to see small businesses are not overlooked when it comes to funding allocations.

“However, more can be done to support SMEs in the creative industries, including the video games sector. Access to finance is a major challenge for most of the UK’s 770 games developers. 33 per cent of respondents to the TIGA Business Opinion Survey 2019 said that the principal obstacle holding back their businesses was limited access to finance.

“As well as retaining Video Games Tax Relief, TIGA would like to see the Government introduce a Video Games Investment Fund to enhance studios’ access to finance. It could provide between £75,000 and £500,000 to developers nationwide, promoting the development of original IP and encourage studio growth.” To read Tiga’s news release in full, click here.