Businessman and politician Hasan Bakhshi, honored with the MBE recognition.
Hasan Bakhshi MBE Shapes UK's Creative Industry Policy
Hasan Bakhshi MBE, as Director of Creative PEC (Policy and Evidence Centre), is at the forefront of shaping policies for the UK's creative industries. His role involves leading research and evidence-based initiatives that inform government decisions on this sector.
Bakhshi is a member of the government's Creative Industries Council and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport's Advisory Board. He also serves on the board of two arts organizations: Art UK and Darbar Arts. These roles provide him with a unique perspective on the creative industries, enabling him to propose solutions that support sustainable growth and innovation.
Under his leadership, Creative PEC conducts surveys such as the Creative UK Access to Finance Survey, providing critical insights into the financial constraints and needs of creative businesses. His team examines the economic value of digital culture, including consumer willingness to pay for digital streaming, which informs policy on digital creative services.
Bakhshi's work also touches on how creative industries can contribute to national goals such as the UK’s net-zero targets and regional economic leveling-up, linking creative innovation to broader policy objectives. His achievements include producing evidence that influences government budget responses, such as the 2023 Spring and Autumn Budgets, by highlighting the economic importance of creative industries and recommending ways to support them during economic challenges.
Creative PEC, led by Newcastle University and funded by the AHRC, is a research organization where Bakhshi's team includes esteemed individuals like Giorgio Fazio, the Research Director and Chair of Macroeconomics at Newcastle University Business School, and Alejandro Ramirez-Guerra, a Research Associate at the same institution. The Core Team of Creative PEC includes Karen Brodie, Nirat Rujimora, Simon Jones, Sarah Najm, Daniel Simandjuntak, Iqra Choudhry, Emily Hopkins, Alice Kent (Head of Communications), Makena Guantai Day (Executive Assistant), Bernard Hay (Head of Policy), Nik Gunn (Policy Adviser), Tom Cahill-Jones (Research Network Manager), and Duncan Todd (Finance and Administration Manager).
Prior to his current role, Bakhshi worked at Lehman Brothers, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and the Bank of England. He has also co-authored significant reports like "The Future of Skills: Employment in 2030", a report that combines foresight methods and machine learning to predict future workforce skills, and the landmark "Next Gen" skills review of the video games and visual effects industries.
Bakhshi's contributions to the creative industries have been recognised with an honorary Doctorate from the University of Brighton and an MBE in the 2015 New Year's Honours. Through his research-led advocacy that blends economic analysis with strategic sector development, Hasan Bakhshi significantly shapes UK creative industry policy.
- Hasan Bakhshi, Director of Creative PEC, shapes policies for the UK's creative industries by leading research and evidence-based initiatives.
- Bakhshi's team conducts surveys like the Creative UK Access to Finance Survey, providing insights into the financial needs of creative businesses.
- The economic value of digital culture, including consumer willingness to pay for digital streaming, is examined by Bakhshi and his team.
- Bakhshi proposes solutions that support sustainable growth and innovation in the creative industries, linking creative innovation to broader policy objectives.
- His work contributes to national goals such as the UK’s net-zero targets and regional economic leveling-up.
- Bakhshi has co-authored significant reports like "The Future of Skills: Employment in 2030", combining foresight methods and machine learning to predict future workforce skills.
- Online education and self-development can be enhanced by learning from the evidence-based policies shaped by Hasan Bakhshi for the creative industries.
