The BBC licence fee is set to increase by £13 next year as the two-year freeze policy ends. The Government is under increasing pressure to cancel the hike, but do you think they should intervene? Vote in our poll.
The licence fee has been frozen at £159 for the last two years but will increase in line with inflation from April 2024, according to the Culture Department’s official policy.
According to The Telegraph’s report, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is forecasting the inflation figure to be 8.2 percent.
READ MORE: BBC licence fee could increase by £13 next year
This means the BBC licence fee will be hiked from £159 to £172, the biggest rise in over than 20 years.
On Thursday, March 16, Former Culture Secretary, Nadine Dorries, who signed off the freeze, called for no further increases in the licence fee until changes to BBC’s funding are considered. She said: “I am in favour of freezing it until a full review of how the BBC is funded is completed and alternatives explored.”
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On Wednesday, the OBR produced a series of estimates, and forecasted that the BBC licence fee revenue will jump from £3.7billion in 2023 to £4billion in 2024.
A BBC spokesman said: “The Government 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. It is not for the BBC to speculate on what inflation might be and how that might impact the licence fee in future years.
“Ultimately it is for Government to set and confirm the cost of a licence each year. The BBC will continue to focus on what it does best: working to deliver world class content and value for all its audiences.”
So what do YOU think? Should the Government cancel the proposed TV licence hike? Vote in our poll and leave your thoughts in the comment section below.
