Claudia Winkleman must be one of the most talentless people on tv.
Why does she get paid so well.
Not sure how they enforce the licence fee.
Plenty o vids online saying they have no right of access to your house and to ignore any questions.
Anyone know how they can enforce the licence? (cue blackbarn whos normally savvy with this type of thing.

This debate will run and run but the important debate is whether the compulsory license fee should remain at all. I have just turned 75 so will have one year free for my home license but still pay for 2 self catering cottages on my property although they are only occupied for around 18 weeks of the year, so nearly £10 per week of occupancy. I will therefore contribute £300+ to the BBC this year and it seems likely that it will be £460 next year. I also pay for Sky, BT sport and Racing UK but the important thing is that I can cancel any of those at will but I can't watch any of them without paying for the BBC which I hardly ever watch. I am old enough to remember when the BBC was the only TV broadcaster and the license fee made sense but now the BBC represents only about 5% of the available channels but they have the power to stop you watching any of them unless you pay their ransom. I would make the BBC raise their money from a voluntary subscription which would tell us just how many people really want it.

State aid that gives a company an unfair advantage is against both WTO and EU rules.
The BBC receives billions of pounds a year in state via the TV tax.
The big question is how come the rest of the world does not complain about this inbuilt massive advantage?
The only answer that makes any sense is Britain has forfeited something in exchange, but what?
What have we given away that everyone else is so happy to accept?

I can’t believe we are still forced to pay for the bbc , especially when you consider their arrogant attitude, they use this well funded broadcaster to push their own agenda. the bbc in effect are dictating British social direction, this is unacceptable from an unelected body .
The government need to get the bbc under control.

lot of jealous lefties in this thread seething at BBC presenters ability to draw a good wage in the free market of entertainment

Interesting points but most 75+ were brought up to pay their bills and obey the law which is sadly less prevalent these days. As far as the EU rules etc, they get away with it as it has been in place for so many years and apparently Germany has a similar system. They could not introduce it these days. I might consider paying a modest annual fee for BBC news, but certainly not for the rest of their programmes.

Maintaining free TV licences for those pensioners was part of the Conservative Party manifesto at the 2017 general election.


Conservative Party leadership candidate Andrea Leadsom called for a reversal of the plan, describing the decision as "unacceptable".
She said: "It's a commitment in the Conservatives' manifesto and we need to find a way to reverse that."


Her leadership rival Esther McVey said she was "ashamed" of the BBC, which had "forgotten the public they are supposed to serve".

Surely means testing any freebie is sensible?

It remains free for those on pension credits. The rest have to pay. It'll save the Beeb 10s of millions. With an ageing population why should those who can afford £3 a week not pay??

It's an indictment on our politics if this becomes a big issue at the next election.

It's already been said but many over 75s are some of the wealthiest people in the country. Having benefitted from the housing boom and final salary pensions, asking them to pay a measly £3 a week is hardly something to cry about.

The ONS predicts that ONE THIRD of babies born now will live to they're 100. It's a staggering statistic. No way can all of the freebies continue.

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/lifeexpectancies/articles/whatareyourchancesoflivingto100/2016-01-14

noone needs to pay this bbc tax,,when they turn up[  if they ever do ]  at your door just turn them away,,you wont hear another word from them,,iv never ever paid this  bbc tax to watch tele,,

Agree about the BBC wage bill.

Why will it stress your mum out? Can't her son step up?

donny I used to take my old man to West Ham. I'd pay £50, he'd pay £25. He's loaded

With people living far longer, these issues have to be addressed. If folk can't afford £3 a week, they must surely be entitled to pension credits meaning exemption from the licence fee.

Here again we see people who did the right thing being penalised, with  all those who put something away for their retirements now paying the price of their thrift.

And all those who didn't give a toss and spent their money enjoying themselves are now being rewarded for a second time.

Hang on - didn't they tell the first lot it would be the other way around when they sold them their private pensions?

the question has to be who the hell sits and watches the BBC  least of all  the over 75s i'd've thought Laugh

The average age of a BBC viewer has topped 60 thanks to the migration of younger audiences to online streaming, according to a report.

from
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/bbc-viewers-have-average-age-of-60-as-young-default-to-netflix-7jg0skcdd

Why should BBC find out how much it's customers earn, or pension they receive?

because the gov used to fund it but handed it over to the BBC - it is either charing or getting rid of basically the whole lot apart from radio and BBC 1,2


Injera is the only one whose (right wing) principles seem to hold on this issue - must be a youngster! I really don't see any justification at all for OAP's not paying it - my 82yo dad (doesn't object to having to pay it) has 50k in the bank 400k house with no mortgage and he doesn't pay - explain the rationale in that! Old people always used to pay it but it seems this generation of old people don't see why they should pay their way - if the 1.5m people who don't claim the credit start claiming it as a result of this then it won't save the gov any money I'd have thought!

Surely over 75s shouldn't be expected to pay for anything?

tory election pledge...tory leadership election

see who wants the votes...

If the oldie are forced to pay for it, then surely to be fair to them unedited episodes of "Tell Death Us Do Part" should be shown on prime time BBC along with archived Bernard Manning concerts?

I am not really opposed to the over 75s paying their way but it is disappointing to see it abolished just one year after I reached the magic number What I will repeat is that I am opposed to anyone paying the fee. All TV watching should be funded by those who watch it, not those who don't. It is not an essential service like the NHS. And in case somebody tells me they prefer ad. free television, try timing the BBC adverts for their own programmes. They are almost equal to those on ITV/C4,5 etc. for other products because the "one hour" programmes are all made to last around 52 minutes.

annie. that is not true. If you don't have enough qualifying years you can get much less than that. The rules have changed for those retiring now but anyone retiring 10 years ago with only 25 years of NI will only get half of the state pension. You may get pension credit as well if you live alone and have no other income or assets.

Totally agree with safeform's post  sageform • June 11, 2019 10:34 AM BST, especially this part:
but the important thing is that I can cancel any of those at will but I can't watch any of them without paying for the BBC which I hardly ever watch. I am old enough to remember when the BBC was the only TV broadcaster and the license fee made sense but now the BBC represents only about 5% of the available channels but they have the power to stop you watching any of them unless you pay their ransom.