BBC: Jacob Rees-Mogg calls for licence fee to be scrapped
The BBC is facing a review into the future of the licence fee amid fears it is "unsustainable".
Ministers are expected to announce the probe into the ￡159 a year charge in the autumn.
It will look at alternatives including subscription, a broadband levy, increased commercial activity and advertising, with the findings due next year.
The BBC's annual report released last week showed the number of households with a TV licence had fallen by 400,000 to 24.4 million.
The corporation blamed the drop on the cost of living crisis and more competition.
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The BBC is facing a review into the future of the licence fee amid fears it is "unsustainable".
Ministers are expected to announce the probe into the ￡159 a year charge in the autumn.
It will look at alternatives including subscription, a broadband levy, increased commercial activity and advertising, with the findings due next year.
The BBC's annual report released last week showed the number of households with a TV licence had fallen by 400,000 to 24.4 million.
The corporation blamed the drop on the cost of living crisis and more competition.
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It meant revenue from the levy was down from ￡3.8 billion to 3.74 billion.
A government source told The Times: “The evidence that there is a growing unwillingness to pay is shown by figures each year. The licence fee model is becoming unsustainable.”
One option being favoured to replace the licence fee is a partial subscription model where some premium content is paid for but the rest is free.
John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance campaign group, said: “The TV tax is long past its use by date.
"Retaining the licence fee would force unwilling and uninterested taxpayers to cough up for a service they may not want, while holding the BBC back from modernisation.
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"Serious work now needs to begin to examine alternative funding models, while ensuring that genuine elements of public sector broadcasting are put on a sustainable footing."
There have been ongoing calls to scrap the licence fee due to a changing media landscape with pressure from streaming giants such as Netflix.
Former culture secretary Nadine Dorries last year said she wanted to find an alternative before the BBC's royal charter is up for renewal in 2027.
It comes as ministers are set to intervene to prevent the biggest increase in the licence fee for more than 20 years next April following a two-year freeze.
The annual charge was due to rise in line with an annualised inflation rate of 8.2 percent, which would see it go up by ￡13 to ￡172.
But the Government is looking to use a monthly inflation figure later this year, which is expected to be lower.
BBC chiefs to face Parliamentary grilling in wake of Huw Edwards furore
BBC chiefs are to be grilled in Parliament about the “adequacy” of the corporation’s governance arrangements following the Huw Edwards furore.
Find out more HERE.
BBC chiefs are to be grilled in Parliament about the “adequacy” of the corporation’s governance arrangements following the Huw Edwards furore.
Find out more HERE.
"Serious work now needs to begin to examine alternative funding models, while ensuring that genuine elements of public sector broadcasting are put on a sustainable footing."
There have been ongoing calls to scrap the licence fee due to a changing media landscape with pressure from streaming giants such as Netflix.
Former culture secretary Nadine Dorries last year said she wanted to find an alternative before the BBC's royal charter is up for renewal in 2027.
It comes as ministers are set to intervene to prevent the biggest increase in the licence fee for more than 20 years next April following a two-year freeze.
The annual charge was due to rise in line with an annualised inflation rate of 8.2 percent, which would see it go up by ￡13 to ￡172.
But the Government is looking to use a monthly inflation figure later this year, which is expected to be lower.
"Serious work now needs to begin to examine alternative funding models, while ensuring that genuine elements of public sector broadcasting are put on a sustainable footing."
There have been ongoing calls to scrap the licence fee due to a changing media landscape with pressure from streaming giants such as Netflix.
Former culture secretary Nadine Dorries last year said she wanted to find an alternative before the BBC's royal charter is up for renewal in 2027.
It comes as ministers are set to intervene to prevent the biggest increase in the licence fee for more than 20 years next April following a two-year freeze.
The annual charge was due to rise in line with an annualised inflation rate of 8.2 percent, which would see it go up by ￡13 to ￡172.
But the Government is looking to use a monthly inflation figure later this year, which is expected to be lower.
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