Licence Fee isnt working
The revelation today that 1 in 20 people in Northern Ireland do not pay their TV licence and that this has been a persistent trend calls into question once again the way in which the BBC is funded, Sammy Wilson has said.
The East Antrim MP made the following remarks:
“It is clear that the system of guaranteed funding for the BBC through a compulsory tax on the population does not work.
Some of the people who don’t pay their licence may be making a conscious decision not to fund a broadcaster with whose increasingly biased view of many aspects of politics, social trends and religion they disagree. Most of the others are probably just chancers who free ride off the back of the law abiding people who do grit their teeth and pay for a service that they feel they have no choice but to pay.
I have had disputes with BBC and OFCOM about constituents who cannot even receive clear BBC signals yet because they own a television they are obliged to pay and the BBC arrogantly declare that they have no obligation to provide these people with a service.
Then of course there is the issue of whether one broadcaster ought to be guaranteed payment by the state whilst others must finance their activities through attracting advertising or attracting customers willing to pay.
Given the millions of pounds which are wasted by the BBC in a bureaucracy which would make many government departments look like thin, streamlined organisations and the fat salaries paid to many of their presenters the question that has to be asked is why should the public be forced to pay for this money swallowing organisation.
The Labour party has shied away from this issue; hopefully a change of Government will lead to a serious debate otherwise the 95% who pay will rightly have questions to ask about this tax which is imposed on them.”
Tags: bbc, license fee, sammy wilson
