Edinburgh, Scotland - Pembridge Partner Hugh Mason delivered a ‘provocation’ presentation today to an invited audience at the Scottish Parliament. His key message was that there were great opportunities for Scotland as it shapes its Creative Industries policy, but also risks if the objectives of the exercise were not clear.
The event in Edinburgh considered what should be the top priorities for government policy to support the creative industries in Scotland, asking if the policy architecture in Scotland is “fit for purpose” and if the nation has the right balance between support for start-ups vs. high growth potential businesses. It also explored how policy might exploit the linkages between the cultural sector and the wider creative economy and how policy could help creative businesses identify, understand and make the most of new technologies. Hugh Mason's presentation was one of four 'provocations; designed to encourage discussion at an event organised as part of Scotland’s Futures Forum by Jonathan Kestenbaum, Chief Executive of NESTA.
Hugh Mason said: “Small- and Medium-sized Creative Industries businesses have great potential for Scotland but, as it looks at forming new structures to support to support growth, there are also lessons to be learned from what has and hasn’t worked elsewhere. Our experience is that it’s easy for both policy makers and business owners to mix up the cultural, social and economic outcomes they seek to deliver from the sector and that the best initiatives don’t try to hit more than one at the same time. It’s also easy to make the assumption that all businesses want to grow when in fact many are happy as they are. Agencies seeking economic growth from this sector need to be very sure that the businesses they are supporting really are on the same agenda and the best way to do that is to take the hard-nosed approach of an investor who looks for concrete evidence in SMEs actions rather than just their words.”
Hugh Mason’s contribution followed an overview of the creative industries in Scotland by Stuart Cosgrove, NESTA Scotland Trustee and Director of Nations & Regions for Channel 4. Other speakers include William Roe, Chairman, Highlands and Islands Enterprise; Brian McLaren, Associate Director, EKOS and Graham Leicester, Director, International Futures Forum.
Commenting on the event to The Scotsman, Linda Fabiani MSP, Minister for Culture, said: "There were powerful points made at the meeting about the need for the different arms of government to work more closely together, and for funding mechanisms to be capable of responding more quickly and flexibly"
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