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Television Licences: Fees and Charges

Asked by Jim ShannonDemocratic Unionist PartyDepartment for Culture, Media and SportTabled Answered 7 March 2025UIN 33886

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of recent increases to TV license fees.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock

The obligations placed on the BBC, and the public service it provides to the country, show the need for continued, sustainable public funding to support its vital work.

The government has committed to retaining the licence fee for the remainder of the Charter Period. The level of the fee will increase by £5 per household to £174.50 in April 2025, rising in line with inflation as required by the 2022 Licence Fee Settlement. This uplift provides certainty and stability for the BBC and S4C, and supports them in delivering their essential public services remits and world-class educational and engaging programming, while also ensuring we deliver the best outcomes for licence fee payers.

Reflecting our understanding of the pressures on households, this government has taken action to expand the Simple Payment Plan to help more households facing financial hardship pay their TV licence.

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