Tax uncertainty hits film jobs
Film industry sees huge drop in jobs as tax uncertainty hits home
The government crackdown on film tax breaks has led to a steep
drop in the number of people employed in the industry, according to UK Film
Council figures.
The number of people employed in the film and video production
sector was 24,816 in 2004, from 31,264 the year before – a drop of 20%.
That number is expected to fall further as uncertainty
continues over the introduction of new rules for films looking to gain tax
relief.
The government announced plans to change the tax rules over
concerns that the current relief system was being abused.
There are fears that the new regime, which begins in April
2006, will further discourage filmmaking in the UK.
