The EBU has expressed its concern over proposals to abolish the licence fee in Romania. It’s part of a broader plan to reduce taxes ahead of upcoming elections.
The EBU believes removing stable funding from TVR and Radio Romania would seriously endanger public service media (PSM) in the country and expose it to political pressure. It has written to the Romanian Parliament and Prime Minister to express its concern.
EBU Director General Ingrid Deltenre said: “We appeal to the Romanian Parliament not to take such an irredeemable step which risks destroying the fabric of PSM in the country. “PSM funding in Romania is in urgent need of reform but that should be done in line with European standards and the EBU is already working with TVR on a peer to peer review to support its growth.”
Licence fees and similar schemes remain the most popular source of income for public broadcasters. In 2015, the licence fee contributed two-thirds of all income for public service media among the EBU membership.
The Romanian bill has already passed through the Senate and will be presented to Parliament next week.
