Lucy Frazer quizzes Jagex team on fact-finding Cambridge Science Park mission

The culture secretary and South East Cambridgeshire MP, Lucy Frazer, visited Jagex on Friday (August 4) following an invitation by the games developer.

Jagex extended the invite to the secretary of state following the Downing Street Video Games Showcase in April, which saw 100 UK games industry leaders showcasing their games to MPs.

Among the representatives at that event was Kelvin Plomer, Jagex senior director of games operations, who is also on the board of the Association for UK Interactive Entertainment – UKIE.

“I said to Lucy at the event in April that I’d love her to visit,” says Kelvin. “The government ran a video games showcase and that was the first time they’d invited video games leaders into Downing Street – it’s a sector worth £7bn to the UK.

“I’ve also a long-standing relationship with the DCMS (Department of Culture, Media and Sport) since 2018 and even more so since video games are more on the government’s radar, so it was an opportunity for her to see Jagex and show what we are – to increase understanding of what we’ve got on our doorstep.”

Much of the discussion centred on safeguarding. UKIE has a campaign, ‘ParentPowerUps’, which focuses on LootBoxes, a way of advancing through a game by buying features and tools for real money.

Jagex is, of course, aware of the problem: players under 18 are not allowed to access LootBoxes. Jagex managers explained its duty of care approach with its player communities, including safeguarding players, best practice for consumer protections, and close ties with the Internet Watch Foundation, National Crimes Agency and Cambridgeshire Police.

Ms Frazer said: “Jagex is one of the UK’s largest video game developers, and they employ more than 440 people at their headquarters in Cambridgeshire.

“It was great to look around their superb facility today to see some of their systems in action and to discuss with the team a range of issues affecting the business and their customers.

“I am proud of the world-class science and tech capabilities in our area and pleased to see the determination of local companies like Jagex to think bigger in their industry.”