London mayor announces £10m boost for creative industries

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has promised to invest more than £10m into the UK capital’s cultural and creative industries over the next four years to support economic growth.

The funding will be distributed to Film London, the London Design Festival, the British Fashion Council, and Games London. 

The mayor says that supporting the creative industries is “at the heart” of his London growth plan, which was launched last month as a “blueprint for turbocharging productivity”.

The mayor’s office said previous funding for the British Fashion Council, Film London and the London Design Festival has helped to secure over £7.5 bn in sales, trade and investment since 2016.

It claims the latest funding will help generate more than £2.5bn in film investment, as well as £60m in fashion sales, up to £17m in games investment, and up to £15m in design sales and exports.

Khan said that the creative industries have a central role to play in helping London grow and thrive over the next decade.

“They help make London the greatest city in the world and are vital to London’s success and future as well as the whole of the country,” he said.

His comments were echoed by Justine Simons, deputy mayor for culture and the creative Industries, who said: “Culture and creativity are our DNA in London and key to our success as a global city.”