Whereas British Columbias creative sector including music, live events, film, television, visual effects, digital media, and gaming is a major driver of the provincial economy, supporting tens of thousands of skilled jobs and contributing over 6.7 billion in GDP annually, yet Canada currently lacks a dedicated immigration stream to attract and retain exceptional creative professionals and cultural entrepreneurs; And whereas other jurisdictions such as Los Angeles and London have successfully leveraged targeted immigration pathways to grow their creative economies, and British Columbia is uniquely positioned to pilot a similar initiative through the Provincial Nominee Program in collaboration with organizations like Creative BC, Music BC, and DigiBC: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM call on the Province of British Columbia to develop a pilot Creative Talent Stream under the BC Provincial Nominee Program to attract and retain globally recognized creative professionals and cultural entrepreneurs who can contribute to the provinces creative economy, tourism sector, and global competitiveness; And be it further resolved that UBCM urge the Province to design this pilot in close consultation with cultural industry partners and seek federal partnership and dedicated nomination allocations through Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, with the potential for national expansion based on pilot results.
