Credit: Richard Kendal/RTS
The Government has opened up a new front against the BBC after the culture secretary said she wanted the BBC licence fee to go up by an “appropriate amount”.
The corporation had previously agreed to increases in line with inflation from 2024 following a two year freeze in the £159 per year charge.
Reports that the BBC has asked for a 9% increase for 2024 appear to be wide of the mark. Broadband TV News understands that no specific percentage has been requested. Lucy Frazer who was on the Westminster interview round on Monday morning would not comment further.
“It’s a decision that I’m looking at the moment and we’ll be making an announcement on this very shortly.”
Pressed by Sky News on whether the rise would not go ahead, she responded: “Well, I’m concerned about that level of rise. So it’s something that we’re looking at very carefully.”
The head of union Bectu, Philippa Childs, said the comments by the Culture Secretary were a smokescreen for the government’s own economic management. “It is now targeting the nation’s broadcaster, the catalyst for economic power in the creative industries, and the most influential brand for soft power on the global stage for political expediency as it grapples with these pressing issues.”
The calculation of the Licence Fee is normally an automatic amount that is calculated by the average rate of inflation across the year.
According to the National Office for Statistics, the Consumer Prices Index rose by 4.7% in the 12 months to October 2023, down from 6.3% in September. It reached a high of 9.6% in October 2022.
A BBC spokesperson said: “The Government and BBC agreed a six-year licence fee settlement in January 2022, which froze the licence fee for two years with increases in line with inflation from 2024. As is usual practice the Government sets and confirms the cost of a licence each year and this remains unconfirmed for 2024/25. The BBC will continue to focus on what it does best: working to deliver world-class content and providing great value for all audiences.”
The current settlement means that the BBC must already find £2 billion in savings by 2028. Already regional newsrooms have come under pressure, with local radio and TV cut back. The domestic BBC News channel has also been merged into the BBC World News channel.
It was forced to take on the cost of a free Licence Fee for the over 75s, a measure that received government criticism when the BBC later withdrew it, and taken on the funding of BBC World Service previously settled by a foreign office grant.
