UK creative industries growing at twice the rate of the economy

John Whittingdale

The UK’s creative industries are increasing at more than twice the rate of the wider UK economy and exported £17.9 billion (€25.2 billion) of services in 2013, according to government figures.

According to the latest figures published by the Department for Culture Media and Sport (DCMS), exports from the creative industries increased by 34.2% –around £4.5 billion – between 2009 and 2013, outperforming the rest of the UK economy by almost 15%.

The creative industries – which include TV, film, video, radio, publishing, advertising, marketing, music and performing arts – also saw jobs increase by 5.5% between 2013 and 2014 compared to a national 2.1% rise in employment, according to DCMS.

“These latest figures demonstrate how the UK’s creative industries continue to be one of our great success stories. It’s a fantastic sector which now accounts for more than 1.8 million jobs in the UK, and employment in this area is increasing at twice the rate of the wider economy,” said UK culture secretary John Whittingdale.