Definition of British Films.

The government announced new rules to clarify what constitutes a 'British' film. Under the current Films Act 1985, movies can be classed as the home-grown product even if they are filmed largely outside the UK, but can be disbarred for not using enough British music.

Now the main qualification for classification as a Brit movie will be spending 70% of a film's budget in the UK and 70% of the film's labour costs on European and Commonwealth citizens.

Announcing the changes, culture secretary Chris Smith said, "The UK film industry has been going from strength to strength in recent years thanks to our wonderful array of acting and technical talent. We want to make it even more attractive to film in Britain, and our economy will undoubtedly benefit as a result."

Smith plans to put his words into action: the government has pledged to invest over £150 million into the British film industry (now estimated to be worth over £900 million per annum) over the next three years. What's more, tax breaks introduced in 1997 help producers and buyers write off production costs.

Since 1997 almost 200 films have been classed as British. Fewer than 20 British films per year were made between 1993-96.