UK government, at odds with media, eyes BBC funding change

LONDON (AP) — Britain’s government announced Wednesday it is considering a change in the way the BBC is funded that would severely dent the coffers of the nation’s public broadcaster.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservative government — which is increasingly at odds with the country’s news media — said it would hold a “public consultation” on whether to stop charging people with a criminal offence if they don’t pay the annual levy that funds the BBC.

The broadcaster gets most of its money from a license fee paid by every television-owning household in the country, which currently stands at 154.50 pounds ($201) a year.

Failing to pay can result in a fine or, in rare cases, a prison sentence.

In 2018, more than 121,000 people were convicted and fined for license fee evasion. Five people were imprisoned for not paying their fines.

The BBC is Britain’s largest media organization, producing news, sports and entertainment across multiple TV, radio and digital outlets. The BBC’s size and public funding annoy private-sector rivals, who argue the broadcaster has an unfair advantage.

Its critics — who include many members of the governing Conservative Party — say the BBC’s funding model is no longer appropriate in a digital media world.

Some Conservatives also claim the BBC’s coverage of politics amid the UK’s divisive national debate over Brexit has a liberal bias.

But the government denied that its decision to rethink the broadcaster’s funding was politically motivated.

The license fee generated £3.69 billion ($4.8 billion) for the BBC last year, and it’s estimated that removing criminal sanctions for non-payment would cost the broadcaster about 200 million pounds ($261 million) a year.

Even though the Conservative government acknowledges the move would hit the BBC’s funding, it’s not proposing any way to make up the gap.

Morgan also said once the BBC’s current funding period runs out in 2027, the broadcaster’s entire license fee might be in question.

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