The television license fee could be abolished and replaced by a new tax on municipal taxes, according to a committee of the House of Lords that studied how best to fund the BBC in the future.
Under the proposal, all households would pay the BBC through the local authority bill, and low-income families would pay less for the station’s services. This would end the traditional link of having a TV and ensure that people who only use the BBC’s radio or online services also have to pay to use them.
“We see a lot of potential benefits in it,” said Conservative Tina Stowell, who chairs the House of Lords ’communications and digital committee between parties.
He said his committee did not definitively support the council’s tax-based funding model, but said it worked well in Germany. “We see this as a viable proposal that needs to be taken very seriously,” he said.
Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries has indicated that she believes the license fee needs to be replaced and that she wants to see a new BBC funding model in place by the end of 2027. She should start a public inquiry into the issue, although it may be delayed. by the collapse of the government of Boris Johnson.
Lady Stowell’s committee concluded that commercial replacements of the license fee, such as switching to a Netflix-style paid subscription or an advertising-compatible model, would not produce enough money to fund the BBC on anything like this. in its current form. Niche public interest services are likely to close and it would be a technical challenge to put up a pay wall around existing BBC television and radio channels.
Other ideas, such as providing the BBC with billions of pounds of public funding directly from the government, were rejected due to the possible impact on the station’s independence. However, the committee urged the BBC and the government to also look at a hybrid model, where the BBC’s high-end drama is behind a pay wall but news services are accessible to everyone.
The license fee costs £ 159 a year and must be paid for by all households in the UK who watch any live TV channel or use the BBC’s iPlayer service. Those who do not pay face the risk of criminal prosecution, with a disproportionate probability of women facing legal proceedings for non-payment, possibly because they are more likely to be home the day inspectors call.
In recent years, many other European countries, such as Sweden and Switzerland, have abolished the television license fee and switched to different funding models for their national broadcasters, including direct government subsidies or the introduction of new taxes. in homes.
Stowell said the public had to understand that ending the license fee and switching to a new funding model should not mean the end of the BBC as we know it. “For a lot of people there’s a lot of emotion invested in that and the fear that it’s motivated by a political motive,” he said. “I think we all have to get over it and say it’s not about that at all.”
The total number of households paying the license fee has gone into a steady decline in recent years. Revenue from the BBC’s license fee (£ 3.8 billion a year) has also been hit hard by years of government-forced freezes that have forced the station to make deep cuts.
Stowell urged the BBC not to wait until the last minute and wait for a new funding model to emerge. “We are telling the BBC that you have to prepare for the transition,” he said. “The status quo is not an option.”
A BBC spokesman said the station was “open-minded” about the future of the license fee.
Possible models to replace the license fee and the verdict of the House of Lords committee
Advertising-funded model: It would result in a “reduction of millions of pounds in revenue for the BBC” and harm other commercial broadcasters such as ITV by taking away advertising revenue.
Netflix-style subscription: unlikely to produce enough money and technically challenging given the continued popularity of traditional TV and radio channels. A pay wall cut large chunks of the BBC audience, undermining the idea of a national station.
A monthly BBC tax on broadband contracts: rejected as a small improvement over the existing license fee and difficult to prove. It could prevent households from registering for Internet connections or other telephone contracts.
A new limited income tax to fund the BBC: it could easily be checked, but it would be “politically controversial” to add a new line to payroll for BBC funding.
A universal council tax: given a letter of approval from the House of Lords committee. They say it would be difficult to evade, it could be tested by means for less affluent people to pay less and it would be relatively easy to collect the money.
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Direct funding from the BBC government: rejected because it “does not meet the principles of independence or legitimacy”.
Partial subscription: hold some form of public funding for the BBC’s main news offering and other services, and then place the BBC’s entertainment and drama behind a pay wall. The committee said this would pose “a significant business risk with no guarantee of success” and could upset the public if it loses its preferred programs.
Rising commercial and international revenues: Find some way to maintain funding for British domestic production, while foreign revenues will increase to cover the BBC funding gap. “It would avoid compromising the universal access of domestic consumers.”