To think it's a terrible idea to scrap the BBC licence fee?

[dellacucina]

Inspired by this article: www.google.com/amp/s/www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1242927/BBC-News-Boris-Johnson-license-fee-subscription-British-Broadcasting-Corporation/amp

I'm recently naturalised and I think that the BBC is part of what makes Britain special. It makes me very sad indeed to imagine it being cut down.

I'm recently naturalised and I think that the BBC is part of what makes Britain special. It makes me very sad indeed to imagine it being cut down

There's no reason why scrapping the licence fee needs to lead to it being cut down. It could be paid for in a different way. For example a flat levy on TV and internet subscriptions would hardly be noticeable to people buying all those things, and mean people with higher spending pay most of the cost. Though that's just my idea, I've never heard anyone else suggest it.

(I think some parts of what the BBC does could/should be scrapped. It should stick to news, British-themed drama and entertainment, and documentaries. )

I strongly disagree that the BBC is fantastic, brilliant, envy of the world and all the other bollocks about it that gets drummed into us.

Me too, and it’s like a kind of relentless brainwashing. Do they think we’ll believe it just because they keep repeating it?

It’s no longer brilliant and hasn’t been for years because it has massively overreached. Why does it have so many channels? Or 61 radio stations? And why are some of their presenters paid such insanely high salaries? Why are we paying for all this?

I don't understand why it can't just be funded by taxation. It should certainly never be privatised, but the licence fee system is now seriously outdated.

Surely adding just 0,5 per cent to general taxation should cover it (I haven't done the maths).

I'd happily pay double the licence fee just for cbeebies and cbbc.
I can shove cbeebies on for dd(3) for an hour while I do housework, eat breakfast, have a shower, whatever, and know that shes watching something half decent, with no adverts, and I dont need to worry. Its educational, and not (too) irritating. Unlike blippi.

@PettyContractor

Did you really just say out loud that you think the BBC should only show

British-themed drama and entertainment, and documentaries

Wow WTAF

This just reminded me to do my declaration saying I don't need one. Ta! 😁

Oh - I like Pettycontractor's idea of a levy on TV and internet subscriptions even more.

I used to think the same as you OP but having thought about it, u probably watch a total of 2 drama’s on the beeb every year and I wouldn’t miss them if I couldn’t. It really isn’t very good anymore. They should have confidence that if they took the enforced fee away that people would subscribe because they make good quality content. I find it really odd that people on the one hand argue that they make great content but on the other hand they couldn’t survive if they had to actively court subscription money. Well that’s because most of it is utter crap. I happily subscribe to Netflix and amazon prime because I consider it good value for money. BBC not at all.

Because it is not a subscription service, I have stopped watching for many years now. I’m not paying for £15 for substandard entertainment when I already got Netflix, amazon prime and cinema paradiso. The way the subscriptions works is that you have to pay upfront for 3 months and you can’t cancel whenever you want. (Prime is a year too but I get it for delivery). All the other subscription service I can join and leave with a month or less notice. And all done online in a form without having to talk to a person. It’s why I won’t join sky either. I get now tv when I want to watch games of thrones and I can cancel when it’s finished. It’s just how things should be now.

@PettyContractor and @thecatneuterer

My understanding is that there is no proposal to provide any funding other that a subscription fee. So this isn't really a theoretical debate. It's a question about the Government's actual plans iyswim

I really dislike the way the BBC lavish the so called talent with massive salaries and then stop free tv licences to pensioners. It makes no sense.
I want the BBC to understand that as fee payers they have to use our money better.
Lower millionaire salaries. Nobody needs to earn nearly two million a year.
They need a shake up.

The only thing we watched on BBC before we stopped was Dr Who for DH. It’s also on Netflix abate delayed. We just finished the last season with Peter Capaldi. I don’t mind if we don’t watch it or if it’s delayed. We have lots of other things to watch.

I'd happily pay double the licence fee just for cbeebies and cbbc.

Which is why a subscription or pay-per-view model is a good idea. I don't have children so I have never watched those channels, but I am paying for them nonetheless.

It should have gone to an advertised system years ago. I've been in some really crappy financial situations, and had to prioritise TV license which just seems crazy (because I can't afford fines or legal implications, and I don't want to be bullied by enforcement because I have a laptop or TV in the house even if they are not used for that purpose, now they try and enforce if you have a smart phone too).

You don’t need cbeebies for the children. They are perfectly fine with Netflix. It is also without ads. And cheaper. CBeebies is very poor value for money.

I think it's disgusting that poor people find themselves potentially criminalised for being unable to pay for a 'service' that they may or may not even use or want.

I know of one family of hippy types who didn't even own a TV, but they were harassed for years by the TV licensing people claiming to have detected a TV which they did not own.

This issue has been brewing for years and the BBC has had plenty of time to streamline but these warnings seem to have gone unheeded.

Frankly, the news coverage is terrible and biased and I've noticed political bias starting to creep into it's documentaries too. The quality of a lot of the programming has gone down and I very rarely watch anything on any of those channels. I think if it was switched off tomorrow it would take me a couple of weeks to notice.

Do people genuinely never watch the TV?
I mean never watch channel 4? ITV.

I've not watched any of the standard 5 channels for years. I prefer nextflix, amazon etc

My understanding is that there is no proposal to provide any funding other that a subscription fee.

Good. Privatise the bloody thing. Or add adverts, run it for profit and then pump the profits back into the treasury.

Haven't had it or paid for it in 6 years! If you don't use their services, cancel it.

Prime, Netflix and itv app dont require it.

CBeebies is a load of crap, just constant repeats only good thing was Tom Hardy reading the bedtime story. 🥰😂
Agree about Netflix, far more educational programmes on there.

What might work well would be an advert-funded model for BBC1 which has some of the programmes with v. high viewing figures, such as EastEnders, and subscription or pay-per-view for the more niche stuff.

Scrap it now. I oppose having to pay fir shit I never watch.

YABU.

All the people who think the BBC is special, brilliant, and so on, would presumably be happy to pay a subscription fee for it. If they're right, and the majority of the population agrees with them, then it can carry on as usual.

I don't see any justification for forcing people like me, who don't think the BBC is great and don't watch it, to pay the license fee if I want to watch non-BBC channels. Other people enjoying the programming isn't a justification. If I love Sky Sports and happily pay for it, that doesn't give me the right to demand everyone pay, whether or not they like and watch the sports channels. I don't have that right even if my favourite sports channel wouldn't be commercially viable if I didn't force non-viewers to pay for it.

My son ,s never liked CBeebies they prefered ,Nickolodean ,Nick Jr etc

They've got a bit too cocky and something needs to happen. If I don't watch BBC1 then I shouldn't have to have a licence. But they've brought in fines for people watching any live TV on completely different channels.

I rarely even watch live TV because I'm not in much, but still find myself paying for a license. Solely because I have the internet and the capability of live TV (( also have now TV but only when I get free vouchers )) I think it's about time the BBC stopped being able to hold people to ransom and a subscription service in today's climate is the way forward