Blimey! Old Twinkle Toes himself, John Sergeant, has come out against the BBC licence fee:
The case for the licence fee, a form of poll tax, has been steadily eroded by the arrival of a multitude of competitors. It’s hard to see how the BBC can last in its present form for much longer. It is time to think of different ways of paying for BBC programmes, whether it be some form of payment by subscription, as well as programme sponsorship, if not a move towards advertising in general.
Even more astonishingly, so has Gary Lineker:
The licence fee is our fundamental problem. You’re forced to pay it if you want a TV, and therefore it’s a tax. The public pay our salaries, so everyone is a target. I would make the licence fee voluntary. I’ve always said for a long time, I would make it voluntary. I don’t know the logistics of how it would work. You would lose some people, but at the same time you’d up the price a bit. It’s the price of a cup of coffee a week at the moment. If you put it up you could help older people, or those that can’t afford it.
We've definitely crossed into a new era since the defeat of the BBC's favourite party at the recent election. As far as the Emperors at the BBC are concerned, the barbarians have crossed the iced-over Danube and are heading straight for Rome!
ReplyDeleteWhat I believe we need is a managed transition to a new subscription-based system (possibly on an opt out basis), enforced organisational reform, democratisation of the BBC, hiving off of some parts (like local radio) and some continued subsidy (to support programming for people with disabilities, minority British languages, schools broadcasts, World Service, OU and regional news).