UK Film Studios Put Property Tax Bombshell On Culture Secretary’s Radar As Sunset Studios Pauses $900M British Expansion Amid Uncertainty
deadline.comEXCLUSIVE: Some of the UK’s top film and TV studios have raised concerns with Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer over a property tax bombshell that has this week put the breaks on Sunset Studios’ major expansion into the British market.
Deadline understands that Frazer has held talks with industry representatives about potentially eyewatering increases in business rates.
Sources said she is keen to avoid damaging Britain’s world-leading production facilities. The Treasury leads on tax matters, so it would ultimately be for Chancellor Jeremy Hunt to intervene, but Frazer could be an important advocate for a rethink.
Hunt is a former Culture Secretary himself and has championed the UK’s creative industries. Political interest in the issue comes as Sunset Studios Waltham Cross, a £700M ($900M) studio development in Hertfordshire, has been paused amid uncertainty over the property taxes.
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