Yorkshire sings when it’s winning – to the tune of £203m
THE regional economy was boosted to the tune of £203m last year by 611,000 tourists who came to attend a concert or music festival in Yorkshire and the Humber.
Analysis by Oxford Economics on behalf of UK Music, an umbrella organisation which represents the commercial music industry, showed nationally the industry contributed £3.1bn to the economy – up from £1.3bn just two years earlier.
Its report, Wish You Were Here 2015, found music tourism helped sustain 1597 full-time local jobs as part of an industry 38,000 employed nationally.
“British music is legendary around the world and this report confirms its role in our tourism boom,” said Culture Secretary John Whittingdale. “Our creative industries are one of the UK’s greatest success stories, and music festivals are making a huge contribution to local economies across the UK.”
In Yorkshire and the Humber, £116m was spent directly which was added to by a further £87m of indirect spend. Although most of England’s regions saw a greater impact from music tourists, only London, with total spend of £663m, and the North West, with £383m, exceeded £300m.
“Sheffield has a rich musical history,” said Paul Blomfield, MP for Sheffield Central. “Home grown bands such as Arctic Monkeys, Pulp and the Human League, to mention a few, have consistently attracted music fans to our city.
“It shows the importance of Government support for music and the arts.”
