BBC Licence fee to be abolished in 2027

[knark]

Fucking Tories. Why do people vote for them? Why isn't there a viable opposition?

I would protest against this decision, but, oh, they've abolished that too.

I would happily pay for it... despite not living in the south of England.

Fantastic news!

@BowerOfBramble

TBH I think this is just the government trying to intimidate the BBC into shutting up about all their misdeeds during lockdown. If you don’t believe me you should hear some of the things the really right wing ones say - many think it’s outrageous and evidence of bias that the BBC is even reporting on the No 10 parties etc (strangely they don’t say that about the telegraph who Broke the story).

Ideally this will scare the journalists into being “kinder” to the PM, is that what we want?

Huh? We have hundreds of news outlets reporting the same things. If fact, all the partygate stories were broken by itv. Shutting up BBC is not change the narrative against the govt. the BBC only has itself to blame, it has lost public support due to sub standard output and waste. Unfortunately, the organization didn’t realize how easily the govt can play on this to look like it’s listening to public. The government would not do this if the majority public loved the BBC like it once did.

Considering that I know people who are happy to pay around 80 to 100 a month for the full sky tv packages ( sport fans etc) my 42 every three months is a bargain really ( I think it's this amount , might be a bit more ?)
I just wasn't aware that there was on option not to pay it though etc but I wouldn't meet the criteria as I do watch I player and like ' live ' tv and can record it.
I wished they had a bbc plus 1 channel too , but I guess that's won't happen now..

The BBC produces consistently high quality tv and radio broadcasting

I really don't find it to be 'consistently' excellent. There are true gems (David Attenborough's Green Planet) but there's an awful lot of dross too.

The bbc has long been far from impartial and their coverage of many issues is biased in the extreme. So I don’t think they deserve our tax money though I do agree they have made some excellent dramas in the past.

it's odd that at the moment someone can't legally watch any live channels without a license, even if they don't watch the BBC. That's because the license fee is how the government charges us for live broadcasts. A holdover from when they owned all the transmitters.

That the equivalent amount raised was paid to the BBC was a matter of expediency, not that the license fee directly pays for the BBC.

Good. It's no longer an acceptable tax.
The BBC does not produce good quality programming. I'm finding it increasingly biased and the news service has deteriorated.
For years I started my day with R4 Today, but no longer. The quality has gone. The BBC needs a good shake up, and needs to justify those inflated salaries.

Poor BBC, bent over backwards trying to placate the Tories practically turning into a Tory HQ press office and all for nothing. Murdoch still got his wish before he died. Get ready for the 10 minute ad breaks plus subscription fee.

Radio with adverts is dire , they just play the same songs on a loop. At least the six radio stations on the beeb have different play lists Even my twenty something sons prefer radio one to Heart and radio five has some good programmes and caters for the sport fans too and a decent phone in not dominated by ads!

I'm worried about funding for things like the BBC orchestras and choirs, and the Proms concerts, if the licence fee is abolished. Does anyone know if they'd continue to be funded? And the music commissioned by the BBC, and the Young Musician competition.

@knark

The BBC produces consistently high quality tv and radio broadcasting, despite having their funding cut and cut again. They have journalistic freedom, free from commercial demands or editorial ownership of a single man.

I'm sick of capitalism and commercialism and consumerism. This government relies on soundbites and division and has no shame in legislating against those who would hold it to account.

What’s load of tosh

There are so many repeats it’s unbelievable. They do the occasional thing well, as do ITV, C4 etc

They are so woke and biased it’s unbelievable, and are full of overpaid rubbish presenters, as well as directors

They can join the real world and compete for their money rather than it just be given

@ZenNudist

There is no need for a state broadcaster in todays world. Dh and I seriously considered deregistering from the licence fee but I watch the occasional live Facebook of church service and apparently that is covered by the licence fee (cheekily, nothing to do with BBC).

I can't justify the cost for one channel. No other broadcaster gets to tax the public.

I do like some BBC drama right now but we've had years and years of not using it at all and that's at least £1,000 down the drain.

Oh the innocence.

The BBC has been attacked for years and forced to take on private market practices, like the rest of the all-but-nonexistent public sector, so the quality in many areas has been decreasing.

However as with the rest, we will miss it when it’s gone. Especially in an electronic world, where information can be controlled so easily without the checks and balances offered by a strong public sector counter balance run by strong independent professionals.

Getting rid of the BBC, in terms of both quality and price, is the equivalent of allowing hyper markets to move in, discovering that they have killed the high street independents as predicted, and then watching the hyper market monopoly reduce quality and put up prices.

Welcome to the new British Empire everyone. Enjoy your total lack of rights, because after all we can always take more from you if we feel like it so be bloody grateful you lazy bastards.

@the80sweregreat

I love not having any adverts during a programme , but I agree that some of the celebs are paid way much money and seeing the back of Steve Wright would make my day!

The BBC is packed full of adverts for more of their own shit I don't want. Radio 5 has been blanket bombing me with adverts for the fucking apprentice - a total shitshow they could and should have left to commercial telly.

The fact that a large proportion of the BBC's critics claim it's biased and on the side of the Tories and a large proportion of the BBC's critics claim it's not impartial because it's too left wing merely confirms that people's views of the BBC are heavily influenced by factors external to the BBC and its output.

Next election will be big then. Tories win that's the end of the BBC and they'll continue to carve up the NHS.

Op you may well beleive the BBC is the best thing since sliced bread ,and that's your opinion of course ,there are many ,many people who don't watch Bbc ,or listen to BBC radio ,that's their choice and believe it or not they won't miss it
It's a ridiculous and antiquated system

@Doyoumind

The fact that a large proportion of the BBC's critics claim it's biased and on the side of the Tories and a large proportion of the BBC's critics claim it's not impartial because it's too left wing merely confirms that people's views of the BBC are heavily influenced by factors external to the BBC and its output.

I don't think it has a particular Tory/Labour bias, but it is cripplingly London-centric and very biased and self referential when it comes to it's place in the World. If it didn't believe in its own divine right to exist and do what the fuck it likes, it would have moved to subscription already.

Considering Nadine Dorries doesn’t even seem to understand/has conveniently forgotten it was her own government and not the BBC that withdrew the funding for over 75s licences I have little faith in anything she claims will or won’t happen.

Good, we stopped paying for the license a while ago as we’re only watching one series a year on it.

@JackieWeaverHandforthCouncil

Poor BBC, bent over backwards trying to placate the Tories practically turning into a Tory HQ press office and all for nothing. Murdoch still got his wish before he died. Get ready for the 10 minute ad breaks plus subscription fee.

Yes, poor Gary Lineker struggling to make ends meet.

Zoe Ball too. Just imagine existing on only £1.13m/year.

I actually feel sorry for the continuity announcers. Unsung heroes, they do a far better job than any of the overpaid "stars", for a fraction of the money and no recognition.

Local radio will go.

London biased and self reverential
I agree.
Newsnight used to be informative and well researched, now it's just superficial.

@busybanana

I'm worried about funding for things like the BBC orchestras and choirs, and the Proms concerts, if the licence fee is abolished. Does anyone know if they'd continue to be funded? And the music commissioned by the BBC, and the Young Musician competition.

No they wouldn’t, if the BBC went that would all go - although Proms concerts are all paid for tickets anyway aren’t they?

I think this is a great step. We stopped paying the tv licence and watching live tv/iplayer etc cause the cost was too much for the meagre content we actually enjoyed. But if they remove the licence, we’d still be able to watch the odd thing rather than giving it all up to save money, which is the decision you have to make currently.