Ministers ‘missed the boat’ over BBC licence fee reform, MPs warn
The government has no choice but to maintain the BBC’s licence fee funding model for the foreseeable future due to its failure to find an alternative, MPs have warned.
In an in-depth report published today, the DCMS committee said that while the £157.50 annual charge has a “limited shelf life” in the modern media landscape, ministers have “missed the boat to reform it”.
The MPs also urged the government to end growing speculation over decriminalisation of licence fee non-payment, saying it was “effectively allowing the BBC to haemorrhage funds” through evasion.
In its report into the future of public service broadcasting, the committee blamed delays to the UK’s full-fibre broadband rollout as a key barrier to replacing the licence fee.
While it noted that future services would likely be delivered via the internet, it found that the current lack of broadband access and lack of digital literacy skills could result in 1.8m households losing TV and public service broadcasting services if they were moved online.
The MPs also argued that current broadcasting laws were no longer fit for purpose, calling for new regulations with an updated approach to prominence, ensuring public service broadcasters are easy to find.
They also urged the government to broaden the remit of the new Digital Markets Unit, set up to regulate Big Tech, to consider whether social media platforms had an “undue influence” over the ability of consumers to access outlets such as the BBC, Channel 4 and ITV online and through streaming.
“It’s clear that the BBC TV licence fee has a limited shelf life in a digital media landscape. However, the government has missed the boat to reform it. Instead of coming up with a workable alternative, it has sealed its own fate through a failure to develop a broadband infrastructure that would allow serious consideration of other means to fund the BBC,” said committee chair Julian Knight.
“Not only that, but the government is effectively allowing the BBC to haemorrhage funds through non-payment of the licence fee as a result of continued speculation over decriminalisation of licence fee evasion, a situation it must bring to an end.”
One-stop shop
But while the committee lambasted ministers, it also called on the broadcasters to do more to help themselves in the face of tough competition from streaming rivals such as Netflix.
The MPs urged traditional broadcasters to pool their resources, pointing to the tie-up between the BBC and ITV over Britbox as an example of how they could create a “one-stop shop” for on-demand content.
The conclusions are a robust retort to the government, which has been ramping up pressure on the BBC over its funding model and accusations of bias.
Under director general Tim Davie the Beeb has outlined a string of cuts in a bid to save money, as well as a push towards its commercial arm, BBC Studios.
The corporation this month also unveiled plans to move much of its news operation out of London in a bid to stave off accusations of metropolitan bias.
While fellow public service broadcasters Channel 4 and ITV are commercially funded, they are also facing a strain on finances as more and more viewers turn to deep-pocketed American streaming services.