TV licence fee outrage as Britons face ‘biggest rise in 20 years’

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Many people have objected to a potential licence fee increase in April, with some calling for it to be scrapped altogether. Reports suggest the licence fee is due to increase in line with inflation going up from £159 to £172.

Britons face many household bills going up from next month so the licence fee bill hike will only add to these expenses.

Energy bills are increasing as the £400 energy bills discount comes to an end while broadband and mobile bills are also going up, along with council tax and water bills.

Express.co.uk readers have responded to the news the licence fee will be going up with their views.

Several people said it didn’t matter to them how much the licence fee increases as they had cancelled theirs previously.

Claremont77 said: “I cancelled my licence 18 months ago as I felt the BBC was no longer impartial and treated the licence fee payer with contempt.

“I now don’t watch live TV at all. I don’t miss it one bit and I wish I had done it sooner.”

Elliecar said they also decided to cancel the licence fee, explaining: “I cancelled my licence a while ago, it’s a bit over reach though that you can’t watch other channels either, even though they have adverts to fund them.

“What gives the BBC the right to insist on you having a licence to watch channels that are not linked to them?”

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Many called for the licence fee, which funds the BBC, to be scrapped altogether. Euripes said: “I have no intention of funding the BBC anymore, if it wants to pay obscene salaries to it so-called stars then it must fund itself, there is nothing the BBC has to offer that I consider remotely watchable.”

Tichboy said: “Let them balance their books like every other business, cut salaries, cut the expenses and give value to your customers.”

However, some said the licence fee should be maintained as the BBC is a valuable service to Britons.

Gnasher1981 said: “If we scrapped the licence fee we would lose the only impartial media outlet in the UK.

“Quality programmes and documentaries would be scrapped in favour of whatever the advertisers want aired and we’d have to sit through so many adverts.”

Some older Britons may be able to get their TV licence for free, as people aged 75 and over who claim Pension Credit can claim one free of charge.

Pension Credit is a benefit that tops up the income of people of state pension age on low incomes.

The support tops up the weekly income of a single person to £182.60 and up to £278.70 for couples.

People may want to check if they can claim the benefit as payments are increasing 10.1 percent next month.

The rate for single claimants is going up to £201.05 a week while the rate for couples is increasing to £306.85.

Extra payments are available for those who care for someone or if a claimant has a severe disability.

The state pension age for both men and women is currently 66 although this is set to increase to 67 and then 68 over the coming years.

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