IES Manifesto Launch: The conversation around the future of the Scottish games sector has reached a new level of agreement and consensus.
Following the historic debate in the Scottish Parliament and the Business & Employment Minister’s commitment to a “line-by-line” review of our Level Up: Scotland’s Games Action Plan, we are pleased to see Interactive Entertainment Scotland (IES) Ukie’s Scotland organisation publish their manifesto for the 2026 Scottish Parliament election.
Strategic Alignment
It is encouraging to see that the core pillars of our community-led Games Action Plan – which was forged through 18 months of intensive consultation – are now being echoed by the UK’s games trade body. The IES Manifesto’s focus on targeted pilot funding, strengthening institutional knowledge within government, and a national data strategy directly aligns with the Games Action Plan and provides a unified mandate for Scotland’s future.
From Campaigning to Delivery
While the IES Manifesto looks toward the next Scottish Government in 2026, Level Up: Scotland’s Games Action Plan is designed for the here and now.
“We welcome this validation from our colleagues at Ukie,” says Brian Baglow, Director of the Scottish Games Network. “It proves that our community-driven approach has correctly identified the pressure points in our ecosystem. While IES is rightly setting out the long-term vision for the next parliament, we are currently working with the current Parliament to deliver the Chief Games Officer and the Pilot Fund today. As well as education stakeholders to build a national games skills forum.”
The “Golden Thread” Advantage
One area where Scotland continues to lead is in our “More Than Games” vision. While the national manifesto focuses on the games industry in isolation, the Games Action Plan – backed by endorsements from Scotland’s existing innovation centres, including The Data Lab and the Digital Health & Care Innovation Centre – treats games technology as the “Golden Thread” running through the entire digital economy.
Cross-Party Group & Ministerial Review
We’re now working with CPG co-chairs, Clare Adamson MSP and Michael Marra MSP, to identify and confirm a date for a meeting of the games CPG. Once confirmed, we will, of course, be inviting Richard Lochhead MSP for the promised Ministerial review. At the meeting, we will be presenting a plan that is not just supported by the Scottish games community, ecosystem, and the media, but also underpins the manifesto of the UK’s games industry trade body.
The call to action is clear. The games ecosystem is speaking with one voice. It is time to deliver the UK’s first Games Supercluster.
You can download and read the IES Games Manifesto here.
If you’ve not yet read, or left a message of support or endorsement for Scotland’s Games Action Plan, you can find both documents and leave a comment here.