BBC World Service gets a boost with tax breaks intact.

The BBC World Service received a long-awaited funding boost in the UK Budget today. There are no updates here on the Film and TV Tax Credit, but it does include news on VFX.

Although Prime Minister Rachel Reeves did not announce it in her speech over the past hour, the fine print in the UK budget document says: “Our mission is to provide trusted media around the world, supporting the UK’s global presence and soft power.” Current payments end in March.

The funding, the value of which has not yet been disclosed, comes from the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

The BBC added in a statement that the company “warmly welcomes” the additional funding. “We are delighted that the Government has recognized the strong case for investment in the World Service. As the world’s most trusted broadcaster, we are uniquely positioned to lead the global news and information market.”

The statement added that additional funding could help emergency intelligence services in areas such as Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine. But the World Service countered that it was still “not immune from the enormous pressures facing the rest of the BBC”. Earlier this month, the BBC launched a program to cut 130 jobs from its news division, cutting a number of programs and changing the way it produces others.

BBC director-general Tim Davie has been pushing for more government funding for the World Service for some time. He warned that without further investment, Russia and China would fill the vacuum left by recent nearly 100 years of global service with “ruthless propaganda.”

The government previously fully funded the World Service, but stopped doing so in 2014 and mainly provided grants for special projects, along with some additional funding. Last year's budget amounted to about 369 million pounds ($480 million), most of which came from the BBC license fee.

Fund James Corden's studio, but keep tax breaks intact

Elsewhere in the budget, the British government will provide £25 million to “improve” the Crown Works Studio site in northeast England, a JV between James Corden's Late Late Show production company Fulwell 73 and investment firm Cain International. The Fulwell-backed studio is already planned to cost around £450 million, with plans approved earlier this year. Approximately 8,000 jobs are expected to be created in the region.

The previous UK budget, the last one delivered by the Conservatives, introduced a 40% indie film tax break for pictures with budgets of up to £15M, which has begun to be paid and has been widely welcomed in the sector. But Reeves, Britain's first female prime minister, did not accept calls for a comedy tax break, unscripted rebates and an extension of the luxury film and TV tax credit this time. But the VFX tax cut, first mooted by the previous Budget six months ago, has been rubber-stamped and will be implemented next year, three months earlier than planned. A number of industry groups responded positively to this announcement. As a result, VFX spend in the UK will receive a net rebate of 29.25% and will be exempt from the full 80% cap on spend eligible for film and TV tax relief from 1 January.

BFI CEO Ben Roberts said: “Today’s Budget announcement introducing additional tax relief for visual effects work in the UK is great news for our industry and the wider creative industries in an internationally competitive sector. “The UK is proud to be home to some of the world’s most innovative and creative visual effects companies, creating jobs in fields that integrate creativity and digital innovation.”

One group still desperately in need of help is Britain's ailing film and TV freelance workforce. They have been hit hard by the slowdown and death of the “stressed middle.”

Reeves promised that people working today “will never see higher taxes on my paystub as a result of the choices I make today.” However, one indie source said the freelance community could be hit hard by increases in employers' national insurance premiums, which could impact those who are paid through personal service companies.

Ellie Peers, Chief Executive of the Writers Guild of Great Britain, said: profit.”

However, Philippa Childs, who oversees junior union Bectu, welcomed the minimum wage increase and was positive about the changes to World Service and VFX.

“Many people working in the creative industries continue to face low wages, poor conditions and precarious employment, and significant challenges remain for the workforce,” she added. “We hope to see promising signs today, underpinned by significant and ongoing efforts to strengthen the sector through the government’s Industrial Strategy.”

“Two decades of cuts at all levels have seriously undermined the potential of the sector,” said Paul Fleming, who runs actors’ union Equity. He called for a roadmap to invest 0.5% of GDP in UK creative industries, which would expand UK film and TV production and regulate AI.

low expectations

Before budgets, expectations for sweeteners were low in the world of film and TV. The Percy & Warren survey found that 69% of respondents said they were not confident the government's budget would support the UK's film and TV sector, while only 8% were confident in the government's potential benefits. Despite these caveats, 54% of producers believe the industry will grow in 2025 and 69% plan to invest in growing their companies in the next year, the survey added.

The budget is widely regarded as one of the most important in the UK for decades. It was the first speech ever given by a female prime minister and comes as Labor seeks to rebuild Britain under the banner of a “decade of national regeneration”. Labor has repeatedly said the Conservatives have messed up its finances and are following suit with tax hikes in recent weeks. This includes industrial strategy, raising the minimum wage, investing in clean energy, and more.

“We must restore economic stability and reverse the history of the last 14 years,” Reeves said in a speech to Congress today. “I said there would be no return to austerity and that is the choice I made today.”

Conservative leader and former chancellor Rishi Sunak was the last to respond to Reeves in parliament. He will step down as Conservative leader over the weekend and be replaced by either Kemi Badenoch or Robert Jenrick as the leadership contest draws to a close.

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