Tax breaks on video games production will create and protect more than 10,000 jobs in and around the UK gaming industry, according to new calculations by Tiga, the games lobbying body.
The government will also benefit through receiving £490m in tax receipts over the next five years, while the tax breaks being introduced in the current tax year will cost just £129m - a net gain of £361m - over the same period, says Tiga, which forecasts that UK games studios will make an extra investment of £188m during that time.
The new data, revealed exclusively to the Guardian, comes just as the government in Quebec, Canada, slashed tax breaks for "English-speaking" games from 30% to 25% - almost the same as the UK's 25% - as part of efforts to make $500m savings to its public finances. However, it is keeping a 37% break on "French-speaking" games.
Richard Wilson, chief executive of Tiga, predicted that the Canadian move would lead to an extra boost for the UK economy as publishers consider relocating projects, and personnel look to the UK for jobs.
"I know of one UK chief executive who has already had calls from people based in Canada looking for work here," Wilson told the Guardian.
Montreal, in Quebec, is home to a number of multinational games studios including Ubisoft, Square Enix and Warner. UK games developers have lost staff to them in the past five years - but could now see those return.
Tiga estimates that the UK's tax breaks on video games will create 2,000 new development jobs, and 3,700 "indirect" jobs in related industries, while protecting 1,600 development jobs and 3,000 "indirect" jobs that would otherwise be lost, either to overseas studios or closure.
The coalition introduced a guaranteed five-year tax relief scheme for video games studios in the UK from April 2014 following seven years of lobbying by Tiga and others in the game industry, who said that they were losing investment and staff to other countries which did offer tax breaks.
They argued that films and other creative industries already enjoyed similar tax breaks - and that providing them to games would be a recognition of the UK's important position.
Tiga has substantially raised its forecast for jobs, revenues and tax receipts that will be created by the UK's tax breaks following a survey of the games industry.
It previously forecast that they would "create and protect" 4,661 jobs, encourage £188m in additional investment, and generate a net £76m in tax receipts over five years.
"These revised figures are welcome and important news for the UK games industry. Games Tax Relief is now set to lead to an upsurge in investment in the games industry, resulting in more jobs and more culturally British games being developed," said Tiga chairman Jason Kingsley, who is also chief executive and creative director at games studio Rebellion.
"This is great news for the UK games industry and for the wider economy. Now it is up to developers and digital publishers to demonstrate what these figures look like in action in the form of new games and new jobs and to drive our high technology and creative industry to new heights of achievement.”
Tiga began lobbying for games tax breaks in 2008, pointing out how the UK had fallen behind Canada in games development because of the latter's deployment of tax breaks on employee salaries.
• Games tax breaks: what they mean and what happens now
