BBC to explore reform of licence fee

Davie said the BBC will look at the licence fee’s scope, how progressive it is and how it is enforced. In a speech on Tuesday, Davie said “it is right to ask fundamental questions about its longevity. But he added that we should be. Davie says annual savings target will now rise by £200m to £700m a year by 2028.

BBC income has effectively fallen by around 30% between 2010 and 2020. Long term funding of the BBC World Service ought to be paid for by the government. The director general also criticised cuts to the BBC in real terms in recent years, including a two-year freeze on the licence fee. Since then there have been varying levels of grant support from the government, but it is at the moment largely paid for by the licencefee.

The cost of a TV licence will rise by £10. 50 per year to £169. 50 on 1 April. Davie suggested the BBC would begin looking at ways of making the licence fee more affordable to people on lower incomes.

He also acknowleged that the BBC now has an inflation-linked agreement until the end of the current BBC Charter. Davie said the approach to reform needs to be careful and cautious. He rejected the idea of the BBC being reduced to a paywalled subscription service. The BBC funds a free licence for any household where someone over 75 also receives the means-tested pension credit.

The size, scope and funding of the BBC is reviewed by the government. The next charter will have to be agreed by the end of 2027. The BBC is looking at ways to make it more affordable for people to watch its programmes. It is also looking at how to make the BBC more accessible to people of all ages.

Davie says licence fee is ‘progressive’ and will continue to be so. BBC will argue for the continuation of its role and funding, he says. This is an indication of how the BBC will fight for its funding, says Davie. He adds: “What I was signalling is as we look at the licence fee going into the future, you know what exactly it covers” More resources will be moved out of programming on the broadcaster’s traditional TV schedules.

BBC Three will not commission programmes anymore, with shows commissioned by iPlayer instead as part of a digital first approach. Government announced an expert panel who will advise it on how the BBC should be funded. Davie said he wants to fight for universal funding, but the exact mechanism is open to the consultation. He also set out an ambitious plan that he said focused on three roles - “pursue truth with no agenda, back British storytelling and bring people together.

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