DCMS Committee correspondence: Chair calls on BBC to clarify the scale of licence fee evasion

BBC Annual reports identify a rise from just over 5% ten years ago to the most recently published figures of between 6.5% and 7.5%. The BBC had not provided more precise figures to the Committee’s inquiry into Public Service Broadcasting, however it is noted the BBC had provided detailed information to Lord Botham regarding licence fee figures for those over 75.

Julian Knight MP said:

“We want the BBC to address real concerns about licence fee evasion – we’ve heard that current rates are significantly higher than the figures it has published to date.

“When we asked for this information we were pointed to published annual reports that were nowhere near as detailed as what appears to have been sent to Lord Botham about the over-75s. We are left asking whether there is something to hide.

“This matters because there is a real risk that the BBC licence fee funding model could become unsustainable as a result of evasion, a point flagged in our Report published today.”

ENDS

The Committee has requested a detailed breakdown of figures by region, if a range is identified what is the reason for using one and where the actual figure would sit, by Monday 12 April.