Chancellor Darling faces game industry

The man sitting at the heart of UK’s entire economic policy – Chancellor Alistair Darling – has attended a meeting with Blitz Games CEO Philip Oliver to hear recommendations on how to aid the games industry.

Oliver visited Westminster to present plans for improving skills and training for the games industry. 



According to a statement, it was Darling who requested to meet with Oliver to discuss the state of the industry and examine policies going forward.



Oliver had presented a list of arguments, arranged in part by the UK games industry body Tiga. He said it was “hugely encouraging” to see the Chancellor consult the games industry on the issues of skills and education.

“Tiga has been leading the debate on education and skills required by the games industry and the chancellor was very receptive to the ideas presented,” he added.

“We will continue to lobby Government on these and other issues that can improve the business environment for UK games developers. I hope the chancellor will seriously consider the proposals outlined today and look forward to further consultation on these issues.”

The Blitz Games chief executive argued that the government should cut tuition fees for undergraduates taking mathematics and computer science degrees.



He added that teachers in STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths – often referred to as the ‘hard’ sciences) should be highly qualified and be adequately rewarded for entering the teaching profession straight from the industry. 



He also suggested that students should be introduced to programming courses from an early age, and added that the ICT curriculum may benefit if it included optional courses on basic game development.



Also added to the discussion was the proposition to offer tax credits for companies who invest in supporting schools.