It's the latest thing. Everybody who is somebody is getting one. Liverpool has one.  Edinburgh has one too. London has the biggest one. Even Stoke has one too.

Yes, we are talking about creative industry policy, the newest economic development buzzword to sweep the country since...well, biotech. Massive amounts of public sector spending are being poured into 'creative industries' and not just in Britain alone. Netherlands, Singapore, the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Sweden. They've all got one.
 
Well, surprise, surprise, the Highlands & Islands have one too. The creative industry push in the Highlands & Islands is co-ordinated by the Highlands & Islands Enterprise (HIE), and unlike most of the initiatives elsewhere, there is a substantial role for the private sector here. The recently concluded world summit for creative industries demonstrated the fact that worldwide, 'creative industries talk' tends to be dominated by nonprofit arts organisations or local councils. Interestingly, it was the handful of private sector representatives that were the most sought after in that summit.

HIE should be applauded for being one of the few agencies to understand that, for maximum effectivenes, you cannot embed an 'industry' initiative wholly within a nonprofit or public-sector body. Thus, HIE had a crucial role in setting up Highlands & Islands Record Label and the Association of Integrated Media-Highlands & Highlands, the two trade groupings that represents the creative industries up here. 

Thanks to this far-sighted move, the Highlands & Islands now has the chance to link up with private-sector focused regions in Europe, North America and Asia to form a much more pragmatic and sustainable platform for pushing creative industries. This should help bring more international opportunities to our doorstep as well as bring what we have to offer to the rest of the world.