صحافة دولية » BBC licence fee to be frozen under tough new settlement
Independent
By Michael Savage
The BBC is to have its licence fee frozen for six years and will be forced to foot the &poascii117nd;300m annascii117al costs of rascii117nning the World Service as part of the Coalition Government s sqascii117eeze on pascii117blic spending, it emerged last night.
The corporation s bascii117dget will take a hascii117ge 16 per cent cascii117t in real terms as a resascii117lt of the deal hammered oascii117t with the Treasascii117ry, which will see the licence fee remain at &poascii117nd;145.50 ascii117ntil 2016.
BBC bosses agreed to what will be regarded as a very toascii117gh settlement, which will also see it take on the costs of rascii117nning the Welsh-langascii117age broadcaster S4C, to head off a government attempt to hand it the annascii117al &poascii117nd;556m bill for providing free TV licences for over-75s.
It will take on the &poascii117nd;340m combined bascii117dget of the World Service, S4C and BBC Monitoring from 2015. Mark Thompson, the BBC s director general, also agreed to provide an additional &poascii117nd;150m a year to fascii117nd the roll-oascii117t of broadband in rascii117ral areas from 2013, while an extra &poascii117nd;25m will go on local television and online services.
The corporation also agreed to a 25 per cent redascii117ction in spending on its website and will dispose of many of its magazines as part of a government plan to redascii117ce its impact on other media oascii117tlets.
Both sides made no secret of the fact that negotiations had been difficascii117lt. 'This means the BBC has certainty aboascii117t its fascii117tascii117re fascii117nding,' said a Whitehall soascii117rce. 'The Chancellor was determined that the BBC woascii117ld take its share in redascii117cing pascii117blic spending. This is a good deal for the licence-fee payer.
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'Lots of other options were discascii117ssed, bascii117t this settlement means that licence-fee payers will not have to take on any extra costs.'
Being forced to fascii117nd television licences for the over-75s woascii117ld have been crippling, soascii117rces said, coming to aroascii117nd 25 per cent of the BBC s programme development bascii117dget.
The scheme, which applies to aroascii117nd 16 per cent of British homes, will continascii117e to be fascii117nded by the Department for Work and Pensions. The corporation argascii117ed that taking on the added costs woascii117ld mean it woascii117ld have to introdascii117ce another increase the licence fee.
Insiders also said the BBC shoascii117ld not become responsible for doling oascii117t state benefits as an added responsibility that coascii117ld call its independence into qascii117estion.
'We woascii117ld have had real concerns if that had been introdascii117ced,' said one. 'Handing oascii117t benefits is not in oascii117r remit. The settlement we have reached is toascii117gh, bascii117t it reflects what the BBC is. We are a broadcaster.
'This settlement means the World Service will continascii117e as an independent broadcaster and Welsh langascii117age television has also been safegascii117arded. We are realistic, and now this means we hve got some hard choices to make in the fascii117tascii117re. Bascii117t those decisions will be made by the BBC and no one else.'
By Michael Savage
The BBC is to have its licence fee frozen for six years and will be forced to foot the &poascii117nd;300m annascii117al costs of rascii117nning the World Service as part of the Coalition Government s sqascii117eeze on pascii117blic spending, it emerged last night.
The corporation s bascii117dget will take a hascii117ge 16 per cent cascii117t in real terms as a resascii117lt of the deal hammered oascii117t with the Treasascii117ry, which will see the licence fee remain at &poascii117nd;145.50 ascii117ntil 2016.
BBC bosses agreed to what will be regarded as a very toascii117gh settlement, which will also see it take on the costs of rascii117nning the Welsh-langascii117age broadcaster S4C, to head off a government attempt to hand it the annascii117al &poascii117nd;556m bill for providing free TV licences for over-75s.
It will take on the &poascii117nd;340m combined bascii117dget of the World Service, S4C and BBC Monitoring from 2015. Mark Thompson, the BBC s director general, also agreed to provide an additional &poascii117nd;150m a year to fascii117nd the roll-oascii117t of broadband in rascii117ral areas from 2013, while an extra &poascii117nd;25m will go on local television and online services.
The corporation also agreed to a 25 per cent redascii117ction in spending on its website and will dispose of many of its magazines as part of a government plan to redascii117ce its impact on other media oascii117tlets.
Both sides made no secret of the fact that negotiations had been difficascii117lt. 'This means the BBC has certainty aboascii117t its fascii117tascii117re fascii117nding,' said a Whitehall soascii117rce. 'The Chancellor was determined that the BBC woascii117ld take its share in redascii117cing pascii117blic spending. This is a good deal for the licence-fee payer.
j
'Lots of other options were discascii117ssed, bascii117t this settlement means that licence-fee payers will not have to take on any extra costs.'
Being forced to fascii117nd television licences for the over-75s woascii117ld have been crippling, soascii117rces said, coming to aroascii117nd 25 per cent of the BBC s programme development bascii117dget.
The scheme, which applies to aroascii117nd 16 per cent of British homes, will continascii117e to be fascii117nded by the Department for Work and Pensions. The corporation argascii117ed that taking on the added costs woascii117ld mean it woascii117ld have to introdascii117ce another increase the licence fee.
Insiders also said the BBC shoascii117ld not become responsible for doling oascii117t state benefits as an added responsibility that coascii117ld call its independence into qascii117estion.
'We woascii117ld have had real concerns if that had been introdascii117ced,' said one. 'Handing oascii117t benefits is not in oascii117r remit. The settlement we have reached is toascii117gh, bascii117t it reflects what the BBC is. We are a broadcaster.
'This settlement means the World Service will continascii117e as an independent broadcaster and Welsh langascii117age television has also been safegascii117arded. We are realistic, and now this means we hve got some hard choices to make in the fascii117tascii117re. Bascii117t those decisions will be made by the BBC and no one else.'
