Minister downplays claim BBC TV licence fee will be scrapped

An unnamed senior source told a national newspaper at the weekend that the government wanted to get rid of the licence fee.

The funding model for a the BBC is currently under review.

But Transport Secretary Grant Shapps downplayed the claim that the government was set to remove the licence fee entirely.

He said: “There is a consultation out there. It is just a consultation at this stage. There are no further decisions made at all."

The source told the paper that Boris Johnson was “really strident” on reforming the BBC and said the government was looking to replacing the licence fee with a subscription model.

The government is currently consulting on plans to decriminalise non-payment of the licence fee.

One option is that non-payment could be a civil matter rather than a criminal matter dealt with in court.

The latest development in the TV licence saga follows nearly a year of uncertainty after the BBC announced it could no longer afford to provide free licences to over-75s.

Funding to the public broadcaster was reduced by the government when its charter was last reviewed and the corporation said it would be forced to either cut the benefit or end vast swathes of its stations and programmes.

Up to 3.7 million people are set to lose their TV licences under the plans.

When the announcement was made, the Express and its sister titles called on the government to take action to resolve the problem and restore the benefit to pensioners.

More than 600,000 people signed a petition organised by charity Age UK calling on the Government to fund for the licences.

Earlier this month Culture Secretary Nicky Morgan suggested a "simple payment plan" could replace the current TV licence payment system for pensioners.

It would involve the fee being spread out into more manageable instalments.

But Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford MP Yvette Cooper said it did not address the problem.

She said: "This is not good enough. Pensioners over 75 shouldn’t be paying for their TV licence at all.

"All the government has come up with is a scheme for them to pay it over 12 months rather than six months.

"That’s just spreading the pain the government has caused by taking the free TV licence away.

"The Conservatives promised in their 2017 manifesto that over 75s wouldn’t have to pay.

"And Boris Johnson promised the same in his leadership contest last summer. Instead they have let pensioners down.

"Older people who have worked all their lives should not have to pay for a TV to keep them company at home.

"The Government should reverse this plan urgently. Hundreds of people from Normanton, Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley have signed my petition to keep free TV licences for the over-75s.

"We will keep up the pressure in the run up to April when the first payment is due. You can still add your support here: https://www.yvettecooper.com/tv_licence”.